Gunship

The Good
This was a PC conversion of the original, classic C64 / Apple 2 simulation of flying an AH-64 Gunship. (Actually, the C64, Apple II, and PC versions were all developed at the same time --Editor) It's functionally identical - the solid wireframes are coloured-in, and runs slightly faster. As a simulation of flying a helicopter, it's surprisingly good for the time - with the realism options turned on, juggling the collective and cyclic controls was quite tricky. As with other Microprose simulations, this took an arcade-style view of realism (although not to such ludicrous extends as 'F-15 Strike Eagle 2')- you could eliminate dozens of tanks and infantry units with each mission, something which was enormously gratifying. The manual was typically fantastic - it didn't just tell you how to play the game, it taught you about Russian BMPs, too.

The Bad
At the time, it seemed very odd that you could destory bunkers, infantry, airfields, in fact everything with your 30mm cannon, and it might be hard to get this running on modern PCs. The Apple2 version is probably the most 'authentic' recreation of the Gunship experience, and the original was thoroughly overshadowed by the sequel, 'Gunship 2000'.

The Bottom Line
A fun, old-fashioned helicopter sim, overshadowed nowadays by 'Gunship 2000', and indeed 'Comache'.