IL2 Sturmovik 1946 (PC)

OK, this game is of the "older" generation. It's slow, frustrating at times and does look somewhat dated. However, it still has the playability thing going for it today. The game is as difficult as you want to make it. You can tick all the realism boxes and stall every time you sneeze or you can go for the "arcade" type settings which include infinite ammo...and lose the realism.Up to you.Cons:1). The soundtrack is awful (I turned the music settings off)2). The mission descriptions are so mundane you rarely read them (then becomes a "follow the leader" type game)3). Every plane sounds the same...as has been said by another review, lawnmower effectsPros:1). Aircraft are fun to fly and fight in2). Easy to use mission editor3). Lots of paint schemes...though somewhat limited but this was more for realism4). Player friendly control set up5). Never played a simulator that gives you the option to fly the MiG-9, Tu-2 or Bf-110 before!!!

EDIT BELOW>Have previously owned Il-2 Sturmovik and the Forgotten Battles sequel so was looking forward to this with some glee, especially at a price of £4.49!Opened the package and then the DVD case and - no supporting paperwork? Well that's a first! Not even an advert for another product! Never mind at that price who cares! Let's get this thing installed!!Autorun started - install screen appeared - dialog box to select language - English and click OK.....Now what? Disc drive is working, I can hear it. Seems to be a bit erratic though. sort of starting and stopping... Install has stopped and dialog boxes disappeared...So lets go online and do some exploring.Several hours follow where I searched forums and discovered the following.It might be a compatibility issue and have to be run in compatibility mode - or it might not! Some differences of opinion on that one - didn't work for me.Don't use the install program, browse the disc contents and start the install via a program called, "a.exe". Lots of people appear to have had success with that option - except I am not one of them.Copy the contents of the DVD on to your HDD and install it from there. Lets try that... Nope - the source disc cannot be read. More forums - Ahh some people had issues with DVD RW drives. OK! So off I go and buy a DVD ROM drive and try that? Nothing! So I take the DVD out of the drive and look at it. Looks OK. No scratches - seems in pristine condition.The I notice a tiny little imperfection in the surface of the data side. Get the light angled just right and a mark is visible - looks like a drop of water. Then another - and another! Hardly visible except in just the right light, at just the right angle, there is a line of these marks - about 2-3MM in diameter and in a curve in line with the edge of the disc. It looks like some solvent liquid was dripped onto the plastic disc before the data layer was applied, which has resulted in molten circular marks which were then covered by the shiny data layer. Incredibly difficult to see but definitely there.Well some lessons there for sure. If your disc is faulty look at it.Not the usual casual examination, but carefully, in detail and with the utmost care, examine the data surface and the printed surface, since I have had a game destroyed in the past by careless handling resulting in a scratch through the printed layer deep enough to allow light through from the data side. So the laser 'sees' a hole.Thankfully this whole sorry tale has taken well under the 30 days allowed for a refund under Amazons conditions, so the offending item has been returned.Now, do I re-order the game?Since I have found out about all those other people who had problems with an old game on Windows 7 can I be bothered with all the hassle? Trouble is there were some who had no issues at all and are enjoying this allegedly brilliant simulation. Having enjoyed the original game so much I think it is worth the risk. Particularly at £4.49, and with Amazons guarantee.Hopefully I will be writing a positive review really soon!EDIT>Well I am pleased to say the issue has been resolved. I re-ordered this game and have been using it trouble-free for some months. The original disc was returned and the money came back to my account.Sorted!Positively brilliant game too!

I have recently returned to the world of flight sims, having played Microsoft's CFS3 and the IL2 series up to and including Pacific Fighters which, until now, in my opinion, was the best flight sim ever. I've spent a few years away from flight sims, playing the EA Games Battlefield series of FPS games, but felt the need to do some 'proper' flying again. I opted for IL2 1946 as I was so impressed with the IL2 series and have not been disappointed. The graphics are as smooth as ever, the flight physics are pretty damned accurate, the flyability / degree of difficulty options are very extensive and I'm still as rubbish as I used to be.The range of flyable aircraft is astonishing, the graphics are impressive and, whilst the map choice leaves a few gaps, there are still enough combat zones to suit most players.So, with IL2 1946 patched up to the latest version, a new Saitek F.L.Y.5 flightstick and a few days off work, the world will have to do without me for a while. Just need to find a few of my old flying buddies again and I'll be away.Oh yes, and a big shout for 4GamersUK. I ordered the game from them (for this ridiculously low price) on Saturday, expecting 3-5 working days delivery. It was despatched on Monday and I received it on Tuesday. Nice one guys. I would recommend you wholeheartedly.~S~Spook

the item received was not the advertised il2 sturmovik 1946 but il2 sturmovik Ultimate Edition whichis a composite version of several il2 programs and is not what is required.

Recommended. Item as described.

Graphics are a tiny bit dated (however it looks pretty damn good if you stay up high). With a very active modding community and regular patches this is an excellent budget game that can be run on something less than a super-computer. :D

Amazing game, especially for how old it is.Pros-Good Graphics-Realistic flight sim-Loads of planes-Incredibly accurate, all the planes are true to the real model and the cockpit's are all how the are on proper planes.Cons-Impossible to play without a joystick-Very difficult if you are new to flight sims-Also, tricky to install if you run windows 7. I made it work by installing to "C:/il2 1946" instead of "C:/Program files/il2 1946"Hope this helps!!-James

Tries them all..this works. its very cheap and effective. Thoroughly recommend to everyone. There are lots of poor flight sims around ..this is not one of them