IL*2 Great Battles News

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This week was a hard one - we had to let you play during the weekend without problems, so we released another update that continued the work started in 3.010. The majority of the changes are in the GUI and are required for the new Marschal multiplayer mode that is coming this Spring and will concentrate on the interaction with the map. Other important improvements were made for tank weapons and damage calcualtions. We hope that now the basic damage model is adequate and we’ll start working on more particular tasks in the tank systems and combat damage department next week.This week we finished the map of the Southern part of the Kursk salient while two next tanks, M4A2 and PzKpfw III Ausf.M, will follow soon. The new tanks and the map will be released into Tank Crew Early Access after beta testing. Today we can show you the first in-game screenshots of them taken near Prokhorovka:






 
Hello everybody,Before we return to telling about the Battle of Bodenplatte and Flying Circus in our DDs, today we’d like to tell you more about Tank Crew. The most important thing is that we prepare the next big update that will include two new tanks, M4A2 “Sherman” and Panzerkampfwagen III Ausführung M, that were used in Kursk area and the map of the southern part of the Kursk salient made for joint ground and air warfare. But of course, we work not only on the new content.
The main areas of the Tank Crew development at this moment are:

  1. Improving the damage and armor-projectile interaction model both for the player controlled tanks we’re making for Tank Crew and the other objects. Several consequent updates for the sim we released this month contained most part of this work, but this was only a part and we continue. Ricochet modeling will be improved and ‘simple’, non-player controllable, vehicles will get even more detailed armor (which will be noticeable especially when you attack them from the air). We’re beginning the work on the detailed systems of the player controllable tanks (fuel, electric, transmission, cooling, etc.) which will allow for more variable and realistic damage of Tank Crew vehicles. We also plan to make them repairable in the field.
  2. Developing and expanding the tank and tank platoon commander functionality. The basic commander functionality is done - a commander can give all the orders we planned for this stage of development in relation to the current position, target, firing, maneuvering and some additional commands that make the playing experience more diverse. A commander will be able to give orders to other players in his tank in multiplayer and to AI crewmen alike. It looks like the commander role will be the most interesting one.
  3. Developing AI for crew members. Again, the basic functionality is done and now detailed tanks controlled by AI can follow the orders that can be specified in a mission like the simple AI vehicles always did. This means that detailed tanks can be fully used in a mission scenario. Now we begin the work on implementing the functionality that will make possible for a player to give orders to crewmen of his tank and other tanks in his platoon. We hope to have this functionality mostly done by the end of Spring and release it into Tank Crew Early Access.
  4. Developing the scenario campaigns which should carry out the main idea of the project - let you experience not the fictional gladiator-like balanced tank duels, but the tank warfare of July 1943 with its balance of power and technical characteristics of the armored vehicles involved. Moreover, we’ll try to show the historical events since the scenarios will be based on the tour of duty of the units that participated in these events. Later we’ll tell you more about these scenarios.
All this - detailed, true to history tank models including interiors with crews, the historical map with variable detail level, buildings with detailed damage modeling, realistic movement kinematics, improved tank damage modeling, detailed weaponry, all important crew roles, especially the commander one, acting as a part of a tank platoon, history-based and educational scenario campaigns telling about the major event of WWII, ability to control one tank with several people in multiplayer - all this combined should give you the new experience and impression you can’t get anywhere else.
To make this DD less dry, our studio and our partners Digital Forms prepared several WIP screenshots for you that show what will be released in the next big update:
The map of the southern part of the Kursk salient you’ll see in the game. The zone containing detailed buildings developed for tank warfare and scenario campaigns in the historical events of Clash of Prokhorovka project is marked inside (106x106 km, the detailed zone is 19х23 km):



KV-1S crew:
 
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Salute, comrade pilots!
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For some time, we have not covered the work being done in our aviation workshop, giving the news platform to armored vehicle enthusiasts. But today it is time to return to the planes. And I will tell you what our engineering team is working on now.

At this time our software engineers are simultaneously developing three legendary airplanes: the P-51D Mustang, the Fw-190 D-9 Dora and the Me-262 Schwalbe, which is the first jet airplane in the "IL-2: Great Battles" series. Undoubtedly, all these airplanes stand out from the rest of the plane-set in terms of their excellent speed characteristics. And as usual making a virtual copy of a new airplane to our stable brings new challenges and tasks we must perform.

For example, the Me-262 is the first aircraft in our project with a swept wing. It would seem that the difference is not very big, but this circumstance required us to refine the aerodynamics calculation technology. The result of this work will be more accurate characteristics of the stability and controllability of the airplane in lateral movement, which sweep has a significant impact. Daniel has already mentioned about a turbojet engine in the previous diaries, and now work on the Jumo-004B model is in full swing. A dynamic model of the turbo-compressor was assembled, and now work is underway on the engine's thrust, heat and fuel-flow characteristics. Virtually each of the above airplanes required us to make improvements in the models of units and on-board equipment. For example, this is a powerful developed wing mechanization, including slats across the whole wingspan of the Schwalbe, a new gunsight that the Dora and the Schwalbe will receive - they will be the first German airplanes in our project with a gyro gunsight. There is also an automated control of radiators and superchargers on the Mustang. I should note that the P-51D and Me-262 have a sensitive center of gravity when heavily loaded with fuel and ordinance. For example, the Mustang had such a small reserve of longitudinal stability with full fuel tanks that the pilot flight manual instructed pilots to avoid aerobatics with full fuel tanks because of the risk of stall and spin. This quirk of the P-51D will be present in our simulator.

In addition, two new biplanes for the Flying Circus project have entered the “factory testing” stage. These are the legendary Fokker D7 and Sopwith Dolphin, whose 3D models were revamped by our partner Ugra-Media. This stage involves a large number of in-game tests that we perform before giving the airplanes to beta testers. And for such tests, we use special developer tools that allow us to quickly check various animations, visualization of damage models, operation of instruments and visual effects, such as smoke, fires, dust from under the wheels and others. Today I would like to show you a short video with one of these tests. In this video you can see an in-game test (conducted at a special test base on a distant secret island) where the animation of the landing gear damage was checked. I recorded this video in the fall while working on the implementation of the Sopwith Camel to our project. Often, working on "serious games" we forget that our work is also fun. In this video I just wanted to have some fun with my colleagues, to cheer them up after a period of hard work. So today, my colleagues and I decided that maybe it is a good idea to share this video to you. If it evokes a smile on your face - well, then I recorded it not in vain. If you like it, it may possible that we will show you some more in-game tests that our very serious engineers do:




And finally, since we have touched on our Flying Circus project, we would like to show you a series of screenshots from the Arras map which our partners at Ugra-Media are actively working on. In these screenshots you can see the step forward in visualization of the map compared to our previous Great War simulation. Plus, here are the first in-game screenshots of the re-furbished Sopwith Dolphin and Fokker D.VII cockpits which are coming soon:











 
IL-2 Sturmovik Forum[h=3]Developer Diary 219 - Discussion[/h]Just now, Han said: 219 Dear friends, One week has passed since our previous Dev Diary and we have something new to show you once again. The rate of development is truly fantastic. Today we wont have so much text but will compensate it with WIP...



219Dear friends,
One week has passed since our previous Dev Diary and we have something new to show you once again. The rate of development is truly fantastic. Today we won’t have so much text but will compensate it with WIP screenshots of two ‘stars’ of our Bodenplatte project.
The first star of today’s Blog is the British fighter Hawker Tempest Mk.V series 2. These planes played a significant role in the events of January 1st, 1945 - the units managed to take off in time when Luftwaffe attacked the Allied airfields during Bodenplatte operation. Tempests were equipped with some serious firepower - four 20mm Hispano guns - and achieved good speeds at lower altitudes, which was handy for a dogfight near the ground.


he second aircraft we want to show you today is USAAF North American P-51D-15 Mustang, the most famous American fighter of WWII that was widely used in different theatres of war. To a degree, its exceptional range and altitude capabilities made the deep bombing raids over Germany possible. Mustangs had good overall maneuverability and climb rate, while their six .50 cal M2 Browning machineguns allowed them to engage any air targets. A Mustang could also carry bombs and rockets, making it a fighter/bomber.
It should be noted that while many Mustangs still exist around the world, including airworthy ones, most of them are combinations of different modifications, including post-WWII ones. Therefore we’re spending a lot of time researching tech schematics, spare parts catalogs, and similar documents to make sure the final result will be as authentic as possible.



And to finish today’s blog, here are WIP screenshots of the next Flying Circus plane - Fokker D.VIIF. This Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte late WWI fighter has been equipped with a great engine for its time, BMW D.IIIa, that gave it an advantage over Allied fighters at high altitudes. Coupled with good maneuverability, it made Fokker D.VIIF a very dangerous adversary.




 
Really stunning graphics guys. Its already a great pleasure just to watch the images in this thread :encouragement:

Cheers,
Huub
 
They just announced that they are adding damage effects to the interiors of the tanks which will be added to the aircraft later on. Starting with smoke and fire as seen in this pic. Just click on it to enlarge, pretty amazing stuff I think.

 
[FONT=&quot]Hello everyone!

In these sunny April days, we are working on the next big update, which we hope will be released in May. Previously we can say that this update will again be very voluminous in terms of the amount of content being released. A little bit later we will be able to say exactly what will be in this update, but we are aiming to launch a new noteworthy aircraft of the "Battle of Bodenplatte" project, two WWI airplanes in the "Flying Circus" project and two new tanks in the "Tank Crew" project. We also continue to work on evolution of the aviation part of the project and on deepening the gameplay of the tank part. A little later in the developer’s diaries we are planning to tell in detail about a new big "feature" of the multiplayer game - the "Battlefield Marshal" mode, the development of which is almost completed and will soon move to the testing and debugging phase. In the tank project, we are working on the functions of the tank commander, which will allow you to control both your crew and subordinate units. Also in the next update, we plan to significantly expand the model of damage to the systems and parts of the tank.

Today we want to show you a couple of the first in-game cockpit shots of our new "Swallow" - the Me 262 A "Schwalbe" fighter-bomber. Honestly - it turned out to be an incredibly interesting aircraft:





Today we also will dedicate a couple of screenshots to the almost completed crew of the M4A2 "Sherman" tank. Since the tank has an extremely wide range of possible positions for firing and driving by various crew members - this work was not easy, but the result is interesting too:





And another screenshot shows a new particle-based effects technology inside the cockpits in the first-person view. In the first stage, we will introduce this system for tanks (the effect of a fire starting from spilled fuel, the effect of extinguishing this fire, smoke when the engine is damaged, powder gasses when firing from a cannon and a machine gun). In the medium term, we also plan to use this technology for airplanes:





And many of your have inquired and commented about the Arras map for Flying Circus. It is underway by our partner Yugra Media. So far, everything regarding this map is on schedule, but work is still early and we don’t have any WIP shots for you to see yet. We are doing our best to help Yugra make a quality map for you.

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[FONT=&quot]Just now, Han said: 221 Dear friends, As the development continues, we have new stuff to show you today. ........................ S.E.5a combined all the main combat characteristics needed for a victory - speed, firepower and maneuverability....[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]As the development continues, we have new stuff to show you today. Let’s begin with the Flying Circus project - together with our partners, we’re finishing the next two planes: British S.E.5a made by Royal Aircraft Factory made and German Albatros D.Va made by Albatros Flugzeugwerke.[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]S.E.5a combined all the main combat characteristics needed for a victory - speed, firepower and maneuverability. Its 8-cylinder 200 HP V8 Wolseley Viper engine enabled it to go up to 218 kph at the ground level. Its armament of two different machineguns was somewhat original - one forward firing 7.69 mm Vickers and one 7.69 mm magazine fed Lewis installed on a mount that made firing at the targets forward and above possible:[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]Albatros D.Va was a symbol of the first half of WWI and its streamlined profile is easily identifiable. Powered by 6-cylinder 180 HP Mercedes D.IIIa engine and armed with two synchronized 7.92 mm Spandau LMGs 08/15, it had a completely rigid fuselage made of glued wood, which is now much easier to visualize in the sim thanks to the increased quality and complexity of 3D models:[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]For Tank Crew project we’re developing the interiors of the next two tanks together with our partners: PzKpfw. IV Ausf. G and T-34 made by UVZ factory at the beginning of 1943. In addition to these new tanks, the next big update will bring numerous additions to the tank system functionality and damage modeling. Today we can show you the renders of the new T-34 interior made by Uralvagonzavod.[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]And finally, the news about our biggest project, Bodenplatte. At the moment, all buildings models for it are completed, including the unique historical ones, and most of them already have modeled damage. The work on the new AI-controlled ground vehicles required for this project has started. Of course, the development of the remaining aircraft is progressing at full speed. Today we can show you a couple of screenshots showing the building damage on the Bodenplatte map:[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]And here’s one of the new AI-controlled vehicles - Willys MB off-roader. You can see the increased level of detail we have set up for all new non-player controlled ground vehicles:[/FONT]
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IL-2 Sturmovik Forum[FONT=&quot][/FONT][h=3]Developer Diary 222 - Discussion[/h][FONT=&quot]1 minute ago, Han said: 222 Dear friends, The time flows and the Summer draws near, and were another step closer to the release dates of our projects. For Bodenplatte, the biggest chunk of work to be done is the map. With first cities, settlements...[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]Dear friends,[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The time flows and the Summer draws near, and we’re another step closer to the release dates of our projects. For Bodenplatte, the biggest chunk of work to be done is the map. With first cities, settlements and airfields done, the work continues on placing the rest of them according to historical data. In the code, we have begun the long-awaited work on aircraft AI improvements: for instance, in the next update, we plan to release the improved formation logic. For Career mode, new squadron emblems, military ranks and awards for all three countries will be finished soon.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]P-38J-25 and Tempest Mk.V FM are in the works, while Me-262A jet fighter-bomber FM should be finished soon. Speaking of visual models, P-51D-15, P-38J-25, Tempest and B-25D are nearing completion and proceeding according to schedule. Of course, the new theatre of war requires new ground vehicle models too. Today we can show you the screenshots of another one - German Sd.Kfz. 7/1 halftrack with 20 mm Flak-Vierling 38 AA gun:[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]For Flying Circus, the development of the Arras map (1918) continues, it will use the new art techniques being developed for ‘Bodenplatte’. We should be able to show you the first screenshots of it in Summer, but today we have some new WWI aircraft cockpit screenshots, S.E.5a and Albatros D.Va. As you can see, the work on them is nearly complete and we plan to release them for Flying Circus owners before the end of this Spring:[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot] For Tank Crew, the work on enhancing the tank damage modeling is progressing well. Physical tank models now include many systems and their damage while visual models have many new animations and working instruments. The already released systems have their damage modeling improved and we have added simple GUI damage notifications for systems and crewmen. All significant events will be displayed in the ‘technochat’ (log) on screen. In May-June we plan to implement repairing, refueling and rearming (which later will be also applicable for aircraft). In the next update, we’ll release the animated crews for PzKpfw. III Ausf. M and M4A2. Today we can show you the PzKpfw. III Ausf. M crew and PzKpfw. IV Ausf. G interior:[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]223[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Hello everybody,[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The Spring ends soon, and we’re preparing the next update for you. In the next 2-3 weeks, we plan to finish the testing of the new game version, which has started already - this week we started the beta testing of Flying Circus S.E.5a and Albatros D.5a and today we add T-34 UVZ mod. 1943 from Tank Crew project to it. And the next week the beta testing of the long-awaited Me 262 A for Battle of Bodenplatte will begin.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]For Bodenplatte we also have the Summer US pilot ready, German and British pilots will receive their summer outfits soon. We can show you the US one today:[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]Jet engine Jumo-004B-1 for Me 262 A fighter/bomber is nearly finished - it is installed on the aircraft, its characteristics are set up and it is being tuned right now. For our project, we have chosen the updated variant of this engine which had a modified valve that made the throttle controls more trouble-proof. However, sharp throttle changes still can cause an engine fire, so it requires a degree of caution. Speaking of available modifications, this aircraft in the game will have the following ones:[/FONT]

  • EZ 42 gyro gunsight with automatic deflection calculation,
  • R4M unguided air-to-air rockets, 12 per mounting,
  • Armored pilot headrest,
  • Pilot back armor,
  • Removal of the gun mounting armor for making the aircraft less nose-heavy,
  • Removal of two Mk 108 guns,
  • Bomber variant capable of carrying two SC 250 or one SC 500 bombs.
[FONT=&quot]The list of this plane peculiarities includes the dangerous effect of Mach tuck at higher speeds that at first decreases its yaw stability. This yaw stability decrease not only makes the aircraft harder to handle but also warns the pilot of the increasing danger of an uncontrollable dive. The nose landing gear is omnidirectional and has additional brakes. While the plane is capable of reaching up to 837 kph near the ground it has good controllability at low speeds thanks to wing slats. It should be noted that the longitudinal center-of-gravity depends on the remaining fuel, ammo and modifications installed very heavily. For instance, if you remove the nose gun armor and two guns, it becomes so tail heavy with full tanks that it is dangerous to fly. Positive characteristics include good roll controls at any flight speed. All in all, the plane is going to be controversial, unusual and very interesting to fly:[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]Next Flying Circus planes, S.E.5a and Albatros D.5a, are completely finished and are being tested at the moment. The new level of visual quality allows us to have a fresh look at the aircraft of the Great War - previously invisible details became apparent, the materials became more lifelike. We hope to be able to show you the first screenshots of the Arras map soon. Meanwhile, we started the work on the next pair of WWI planes we have to develop - Bristol Fighter and Halberstadt CL.II. Bristol Fighter was a general purpose frontline aircraft that served as fighter, light bomber and recon plane while Halberstadt CL.II was a specialized frontline attack aircraft, sometimes also used for recon. But today we can show you the screenshots of S.E.5a and Albatros D.5a:[/FONT]
 
[FONT=&quot]Tank Crew owners will also get much new stuff in this update - our partners from Digital Forms have finished the work on T-34-76 UVZ mod. 1943 and it will also be added to Early Access. There is much info on T-34 available, but some things can be repeated. Fast, maneuverable, with good armor and weapons - sloped angle armor made it only slightly less armored than heavier KV-1s. However, long 75 mm and 88 mm German guns in 1943 were very dangerous and this armor was no longer enough, so this means that T-34 crews need to rely on the main advantages of this tank - speed and mobility - even more.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]However, the new tank isn’t the only addition to Tank Crew you’ll get in the next update. We’re currently testing the new, more detailed tank damage model. The damage sustained will be indicated on a special overlay toggled by Enter key and in the messages on the left of the screen. The following systems can be damaged:[/FONT]

  • Engine,
  • Cooling system (coolant leaks that eventually lead to an engine overheat and damage),
  • Oil tanks (oil leaks lead to fire danger),
  • Fuel tanks (fuel leaks also increase the danger of fire, more for gas engines and less for diesel ones),
  • Transmission and gearbox (longer gear shifting, inability to change the gear, complete transmission failure),
  • Steering (more difficult turning),
  • Electric system (inability to start the engine, inability to use powered turret traversing mechanism, internal and external lighting, radio),
  • The left part of the suspension and left track,
  • The right part of the suspension and right track,
  • Radio,
  • Main turret traverse mechanism,
  • Manual turret traverse mechanism,
  • Gun mounting,
  • Main gun,
  • Machine guns,
  • Crew.
[FONT=&quot]Of course, this feature is linked to another - the possibility of field repair. It is also being worked on and most of it will be usable for aircraft as well. The crew will be able to repair the tank systems in the field as long as the tank is not completely destroyed. In addition, the mission designer can add special repair and ambulance tracks that accelerate this process both to single and multiplayer missions. Later, during Summer, we plan to add refueling and ammo trucks to replenish the fuel, oil, water and ammo reserves. And today we can show you the screens of the coming T-34-76 UVZ mod. 1943:[/FONT]
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