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Dev. Diary #232

Developer Diary #232

Hello everybody,

The next update 3.201 will be released really soon. In the previous Dev Diaries, we told what it will bring for Bodenplatte, but it will also contain many improvements for other projects as well. Let's start with Tank Crew.

The first important feature (not only for tanks, but it is especially important for them) is the new occlusion system for object markers. Now ground and aerial object markers will be occluded by other moving objects, cockpit elements, hills, trees buildings, etc. It should really pump up the tension of battle even in the 'markers on' mode.

Second, we have changed the way a turret (or closed sights MGs like bow MG-34) is steered on all tanks, now it moves like on M4A2 before and there is a special overlay indicator showing the set turret direction.

In addition, all the Tank Crew player controllable tanks now have improved engine startup procedures, both visually and audibly. Pz. IV and M4 have autonomous turret traverse mode working with effects and animations. The tanks handling has been improved. Many of them have their interiors and some exterior details updated.

Two historical campaigns set near Prokhorovka designed by Alexander Timoshokov and Victor Sechnoy are finished and their beta testing should start next week along with the commander interface for controlling the crew and an entire platoon. To create correct mission scenarios, a lot of effort has been put into research - just their briefings have enough text to fill up 40 book pages. Ground AI improvements required a lot of time as well. We plan to release these campaigns to all Tank Crew owners in October.





Now onto Flying Circus. The coming update will include the Arras area map (1918). The cities, towns, and airfields recreate the atmosphere of the era believably. The designers paid special attention to smaller details in the airfield buildings. The towns have trade squares, suburban blocks and more detailed factory areas. There are barbed wire and dugouts on no-mans-land. Together with the latest technologies available in IL-2 engine, the new Arras map will give the aviators of the Great War the next level of immersive flight and dogfights above the Western Front positions.







Returning to Bodenplatte, we're glad to report that we have found the means of increasing visual quality of Tempest Mk.V even more. Since the end of Summer, our artists worked on the texturing and materials and you can see the result on these screenshots.



The aircraft released in the previous TOWs also gets attention - Battle of Stalingrad owners will see IL-2 mod. 1942 and Bf 109 G-2 skins updated to 4K quality thanks to Martin =ICDP= Catney and Francisco =BlackHellHound1= Bindraban. But not only visuals are being upgraded for our previous projects - we're also working on some sound improvements. For instance, DB-601 and BD-605 engine sounds installed on Bf-109s and Bf-110s will become more realistic in 3.201.



Sturmovik Steam users do not despair! All of this will be included when be bring Battle of Bodenplatte, Flying Circus and Tank Crew to Steam. That will happen in the not too distant future. However, if you already own Battle of Stalingrad you can purchase BOBP, FC and TC from our website today and link your Steam account which will allow you to enjoy these improvements before we start selling these titles on Steam. If you don't want to link, you can simply wait until we release them on Steam a little later this year.

Regardless, we will continue to post our Developer Diaries on Steam so you are kept up to date on all things that are happening in the IL-2 Sturmovik: Great Battles universe!

The IL-2 Sturmovik Team

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Dev blog #231

Hello everybody,

We're in the second half of September and this means that the next update 3.201 isn't far away. This one will be massive and will bring a lot of new content as well. Three player controllable aircraft, AI bomber, new AI ground vehicles and of course, the new map - Rheinland. This map tops the records once again: 130 000 square kilometers of reachable terrain (401 x 324 km), 176 000 square kilometers total size (461 x 384 km), 225 cities and towns - a record number of big cities, 70 airfields - 67 of them have historically correct layout recreated using archive documents. For increased detail and historical accuracy, for the first time, we have used 4 airfield types on the same map - with concrete, metal, and unpaved runways and airstrips without runways.
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You can see full text and visual materials on our forum

Fall Into Savings Sale, Latest P-51, P-38 and B-25 Shots

Dear Pilots,

Summer is drawing to a close once again and our offices in Moscow and Las Vegas are finally transitioning to cooler weather. The Fall season brings warm sweaters and more indoor time with the family and more time playing your favorite combat flight-simulation – IL-2 Sturmovik!! The team is very busy preparing the next update due later this month which will be a big one, but not quite the final one before Battle of Bodenplatte and Flying Circus are considered ready for release. We also continue our work on Tank Crew which has some new features and improvements coming as well.

FALL INTO SAVINGS SALE HAS STARTED!

All Collector Planes = 50% Off (Including the U-2VS)
Battle of Moscow at 66% OFF and All Scripted Campaigns at 50% Off (Website only, there is a limitation on how frequently we can offer a product on sale on Steam)

In light of our crammed schedule, we simply leave you with some new images of our P-38J-25 and P-51D-15 and a shot of our A.I. B-25 from Battle of Bodenplatte!

Enjoy!

Dev blog #229

"Today I’d like to tell you a story about how our Tempest Mk.V came to be. Every once in a while, I get to stop being a producer and just be a fanboy and add something to the simulation to fulfill a dream. When I saw how well our Spitfire Mk.Vb turned out, I knew I wanted a Tempest added whenever possible. There is something very cool about these British birds. I knew a Tempest built by our team would be awesome.

I’ve always thought the Tempest was really an awesome warplane. It just looked tough and mean with that huge air scoop under the nose of that powerful Sabre engine. It appealed to me as the perfected sibling of the legendary, but initially troubled Typhoon. The Tempest represented the pinnacle of piston powered late-war aircraft. The type of Allied fighter that could beat the best the Luftwaffe had and put the final nail in the coffin. As an American kid, the British Tempest looked uniquely cool and somehow different, but I could only see pictures in books and read about them. I never got to see an actual Tempest in the air. Unlike Spitfires and Mustangs, so few examples survived their service and performed to airshows in California where I grew up. So, when the opportunity came much, much later in life, I decided I wanted to fly one built to our specs in our engine with our team. Now it’s finally time.

From the first moment I decided we should make the Tempest, I knew building it would be a challenge. I recalled from the days of IL-2:1946 that there was a real lack of quality references to make the plane to a high degree of detail, both in its physical shape and the engine’s performance. That Tempest model is a great accomplishment as well and I remember the enthusiasm that accompanied it way back then. I knew it would be the same difficult road today for our Tempest without a real effort and help from other people. And luckily, that is exactly what happened. Thanks to total strangers and friends in the community, this mission has been a successful one. In the past, other such endeavors have failed, so I am very excited that this one did not."

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You can see full text and visual materials on our forum

Dev blog #228

Hello Dear Friends!

As you know, to work well one needs to have a good rest. While the summer season continues, and our colleagues go on vacation, I will tell you how important it is for a military pilot to be able to save and properly spend his strength during combat.

Probably you have already realized that in today's diary I want to talk about our new pilot physiology modeling, which we are preparing for the release in the next update. Our Beta testers will receive this model for tests today.
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News from Jason

Bodenplatte Coming Along Nicely!

We continue to work on the BOBP map and its large list of airfields and urban areas which is something rather new for us. This map has been a challenge like never before and we have it functioning in Beta, but it has a little way to go still...

Saddle Up Cowboy!

Our P-51D-15 “Pony” is nearing the Beta stage as we finish the cockpit and external model...

Personal Images in Cockpits

Another popular request has been the ability to place a personal picture in the cockpit of your plane...

New View Distance for Airplanes

Yes, by popular request, we have increased the visibility of distant airplanes...

Next Collector Planes in Pre-Production

And last but not least, we have begun preliminary work on a couple cool Collector Planes...

You can see full text and visual materials on our forum