IL-2 Sturmovik (video game)

Infobox VG
title = IL-2 Sturmovik (Ил-2 Штурмовик)


developer = 1C
publisher = 1C, Ubisoft
released = November 18, 2001
genre = Combat flight simulator
modes = Single player, Multiplayer
ratings = Everyone
platforms = Microsoft Windows
media = Compact Disc, DVD
input = Keyboard, mouse, Joystick

"IL-2 Sturmovik" is a combat flight simulator video game, focused on the air battles of the Eastern Front during World War II. It is named for the Soviet Ilyushin Il-2 ground-attack fighter, which played a prominent role in this theatre. Along with its sequels, it is considered one of the leading World War II flight simulators. The original version of the game featured 31 flyable Soviet, German, American, British, French and Polish planes and an additional 40 non-flyable planes (available as opponents).

The game was developed by and published by 1C in Russia and Ubisoft in the rest of the world, for PCs on November 18, 2001. The game has been updated frequently, the latest edition that includes all sequels and patches is version 4.08m.

"IL-2 Sturmovik" and the sequels "Forgotten Battles", "Forgotten Battles Ace Expansion Pack", "Pacific Fighters", "Pe-2" add-on, "Manchuria" and "1946" now contain 347 aircraft, with 256 being flyable. The aircraft covers most major aircraft deployed during World War II as well as some which did not leave the prototype stage.

The game includes a very stable multi-player feature which supports up to 64 players online over the free internet matching service Hyperlobby. The All-Seeing Eye also allows members to host multiplayer games. As of April 2007 the game still attracts over 1,500 online players at peak times.

equels

A sequel was released in March 2003, entitled "IL-2 Sturmovik Forgotten Battles", which greatly expanded the number of simulated planes and battlefields. The game is based around the Russo-Finnish Continuation War of 1941–44. The 'Forgotten Battles Ace Expansion Pack" followed in March 2004.

In October 2004 "Pacific Fighters" was released, which can be installed on top of the earlier releases or as a stand-alone game. It expands the action to the Pacific, adding many Japanese and United States planes as well as aircraft carriers and battleships.

Many users of the first three games in the "IL-2" series took the option of merging them on their hardware. This was essential to be able to access the majority of IL-2 servers for online gaming. Later a "Complete Edition" was released, combining the three in one installation.

In May 2006, the "PE-2" add-on was released in Europe and North America. This added 95 campaigns, five single missions and five multi-player cooperative missions. Two new flyable aircraft, the Petlyakov Pe-2 (four variants) and the Petlyakov Pe-3 (two variants), as well as a large number of new ground vehicles and artillery were also included. When installed, "PE-2" is merged with previous games in the series.

Ubisoft released the "IL-2 Sturmovik 1946" compilation pack in stores in December 2006 in Europe and Australia; North American release was on March 13, 2007. In addition to all of the above games, it includes two new games: "Sturmoviks over Manchuria" and "1946". This raised the total number of aircraft to over 300 with 32 new flyable aircraft, such as Soviet and Japanese aircraft that served during Operation August Storm in 1945, as well as some which never went beyond the design stage in reality. Among others, the package introduced the Yak-15, MiG-9, Messerschmitt Ta-183, MiG-13, Arado Ar-234, Kawanishi N1K-J, Mitsubishi J2M, Mitsubishi Ki-21, Douglas A-20C, Ilyushin Il-10 and many others. It also features nearly 200 new missions and new maps featuring the Kiev region, new parts of the USSR, China, Korea and Burma. The package is now patched up to 4.08m.

In 2009, "IL-2" will be available for handheld gamers using the PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3 and XBox 360 the under the title "IL2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey". The theatres of war are the Battle of Britain, the Battle of Stalingrad, the Allied Invasion of Sicily, the Battle of Korsun and the Battle of Berlin.

Aircraft

The lists includes only flyable aircraft.Due to intellectual property issues, several important US planes - such as the TBF Avenger - could not be included in the game as flyables. [http://www.netwings.org/dcforum/DCForumID18/4203.html] )This list is correct for version 4.08m IL-2 1946. Several model variants of the aircraft in the list are not included (such as all the flyable variants of the Supermarine Spitfire).

Patch 4.09 has now been added which includes extra multiplayer maps. A version of this patch is also available which enables the user to access mods from allaircraftarcade such as different sounds, graphics, maps and best of all extra planes.

Allies

Axis

Combat Areas / "Maps"

The original "IL-2 Sturmovik" came with several maps depicting the main battle areas of the Eastern Front, including
* Moscow (summer and winter)
* Berlin
* Kuban
* Crimea
* Stalingrad (summer and winter)
* Prohorovka
* KurskThe first Add-On "Forgotten Battles" provided some further maps:
* Leningrad (summer and winter)
* Hungary (summer and winter)"Pacific Fighters" came with a plethora of maps for the Pacific Theater of Operations, like
* Pearl Harbour
* Okinawa
* Midway
* etc., pp.The last Add-On "1946" brought two more maps,
* Manchuria
* Kiev and
* NorwayLater, some patches came with maps created by voluntary players:
* Kurland (autumn and summer)
* Bessarabia
* Slovakia (version 4.09 BETA1)Also, a lot of imaginary landscapes were designed, like "Pacific Island", several "Deserts" and "Italy".

torm of War

The next game from Oleg Maddox, is a sequel to the IL-2 series.

External links

* [http://mission4today.com/ Mission4Today IL-2 Knowledge base, forums and downloads site.]
* [http://www.gamespot.com/pc/sim/il2sturmovik/ IL-2 Sturmovik for PC at GameSpot]
* [http://www.pacific-fighters.com/en/il2_fb.php?skin=S2/ IL-2 Sturmovik at 1C: Maddox games]
* [http://www.pacific-fighters.com/en/pacific.php/ Pacific Fighters at 1C: Maddox games]
* [http://www.simmerspaintshop.com Simmers Paintshop - Skinning Tutorials]
* [http://www.il2-fullmissionbuilder.com Full Mission Builder step-by-step visual tutorials for IL2 Sturmovik Forgotten Battles & Pacific Fighters]
* [http://www.luft46.com/ German WWII plane designs that never flew (some of which are available in IL-2 Sturmovik: 1946)]
* [http://www.preflight.us Preflight] , an Israeli simulation fan site with an active IL-2 community
* [http://acewannabe.blogspot.com/ Ace Wannabe IL-2 Related Blog, News, Videos, Tutorials.]
* [http://www.vwings.net Svět virtuálních křídel] Czech and Slovak community page