Istari6 Posted April 26, 2022 Posted April 26, 2022 (edited) SUMMARY (NO SPOILERS) This was my first time flying on the Persian Gulf map, and Hormuz Freedom provided a great experience. In particular, the narrative sequence of events is brilliantly crafted (spoilers below). Within the missions, there are really atmospheric moments. A few examples: A Scud hunting mission at night made my jaw drop. There are F-14s racing past in the darkness, afterburners ablaze and sonic booms echoing while Oliver Hazard Perry sends Standard SAMs right over our heads. Another illustrative moment is coming over Qeshm Island at night, heading towards Havadarya with great streams of red tracers climbing skywards to protect a key target. There are some suggestions for minor improvements in the spoilers below. Overall, I really enjoyed this campaign. Recommended for others here, and my thanks to the designer for the large amount of work this must have taken to create. A longer review below behind the spoilers tag... (SPOILERS BELOW) Spoiler HIGHLIGHTS This was my first time flying on the Persian Gulf map, and Hormuz Freedom creates a great experience. In particular, the narrative sequence of events is brilliantly crafted. The opening missions with the USN approaching the Strait of Hormuz built tension. There's a palpable sense of “kicking in the door” to the Strait as the war began, but having the Tarawa damaged by a mine is an excellent twist. Other campaigns I’ve flown in the modern era feel US-dominant, where the US grinds down an opponent without suffering any meaningful setbacks. With the Tarawa damaged and the Marines needing to scramble to deploy to Sirri Island, it feels scrappy, improvisational, realistic. Then with the Tarawa damaged, the Marines taking losses securing Sirri Island, the F-18s and F-14s hammered by S-300s and Russian Su-33s making menacing passes to intimidate us, it all feels incredibly tense and uncertain. I really felt like I was part of a small US force on the other side of the world, battling opponents much closer to their bases and supply lines. To recover from those setbacks and then progressively push inwards against Iran at Bandar Lengh, Bandar Abbas, hunting in the valleys beyond for convoys creates a very satisfying narrative arc. Sirri Island is the highlight of the campaign. During the initial landing, there's a great touch with Marines running along the runway and a dead Iranian on runway with helicopters sweeping over and fires burning everywhere. Once we're settled in, the placement of static objects and naval vessels - the CH-53s, HMMVV, HEMTT, Harriers, Oliver Hazard Perry nearby -- really creates the feel of an expeditionary Marine force. A culture of tight-knit camaraderie among grunts, rotary and fixed-wing aircrews. When the voiceover mentions living on MREs and their last pair of socks, it resonates because the atmosphere creates that feel. The CAP mission (“The Fighter!”) is another highlight. After consistent ground-pounding, that feels like a total breath of fresh air. I’m impressed at the realistic rationale - the Roosevelt’s catapults being down for a time, and Harriers needing to go up and perform CAP to plug the gap for a few hours. Has a Falkland War vibe about it, hunting fast-moving antiship strikers with a brace of Sidewinders. Within missions, there are some very atmospheric moments. A Scud hunting mission at night made my jaw drop. F-14s racing past in the darkness, afterburners ablaze and sonic booms echoing, OHP Standard SAMs going out over our heads. Another good memory is coming over Qeshm Island towards Havadarya at night with great streams of red tracers climbing skywards to protect the subs. I like how the designer adds new challenges & twists in the 2nd half of the campaign, like having the Marines go up against HQ-7 SAMs for the first time when hunting that convoy. That feels fresh and challenging, since I’d never faced HQ-7s before. Also appreciate how the last mission was just the right level of challenge. It isn’t an “end boss” mission like some creators use. It requires navigation, planning, but is eminently doable and feels very satisfying. A beautiful setting with dawn, flying back home with the sun rising in the east over the Strait of Hormuz, over the cloud layers in dawn light. Tricky, but not TOO tricky. I used 4 x GBU-54s, two in first attack, then 3rd from a different angle to ensure no conflict. 3rd one blew the complex, didn't even need the 4th :). Awesome racing over the flat sands and jagged sandstone cliffs like Luke in his T-16 over Beggar's Canyon. SUGGESTIONS The biggest suggestion across missions is adjusting the direction for the voice acting. For me, the lead pilot was consistently overacting. Too overtly aggressive, too gung-ho, too confident, too macho. Always growling like an action hero, never betraying any concern or self-doubt. He didn’t sound like a professional aviator, but more like a movie actor trying to portray a stereotypical Marine. It was consistently immersion-breaking for me. KC-135 is bugged for the Harrier and has been for some time. I tried tanking multiple times, and the probe always passed through the drogue basket. Thus I wasn’t able to refuel from the KC-135 at all. It’s listed in the Bugs subforum. So the KC-135s might be frustrating for some players. PROBLEMS WITH SPECIFIC MISSIONS Scud Hunting (M06) - I wonder if the recent changes to the S-300 make it more lethal than intended for this mission? In my experience, the US lost all 8 Hornets AND the AWACS - basically the entire CAP and SEAD support for the mission. I was able to spot a Phantom coming up on us (no AWACS support) and evaded, but I couldn’t get near the Scuds due to the HAWK batteries still being up and running. I eventually skipped the mission to continue the campaign. Debarkation at Sirri Island - the scripting is messed up here. We’re told specifically "do not engage east of the runway". Yet that's where all the enemy were, and I ended up dropping on friendlies west of the runway RESCAP (M12) - this was incredibly difficult to do without labels. For me, it felt there was just too much time pressure to locate targets at night using TPOD. Night CAS is incredibly challenging - can't use natural vision as NVG doesn't show ground targets easily. TPOD is a narrow straw, easy to miss moving elements. Add the time pressure of BMPs or BTRs at 2 nm moving at high speed, there was almost no time to get set. I felt rushed and took an opportunity shot, only to have 10 (!) Iglas fired at me in 3 sec (per the Debrief), even though it was at night. On reflying the missions, I noticed there was parachute illumination, but that wasn't mentioned in the briefing. I could have waited for that to orient generally. Or have ATHS give me coordinates, or JTAC to talk me onto APCs and safe attack routes given friendlies. IR strobe to signal their location, etc. Just too chaotic to offer good support without risking Harriers against powerful air defense under time pressure. It felt like a puzzle mission, and not a welcome one. OVERALL Hope the designer can take these suggestions for minor improvements to help other buyers in the future. The voice direction can't be altered, but perhaps a different direction for future campaigns? But overall, I really enjoyed this campaign and I thank the designer again for the incredible work this must have taken to create. Edited April 26, 2022 by Istari6 4
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