F-19 Stealth Fighter

The Good
Almost infinite variety of missions, plenty of authentic weapons with different release parameters and effects, plenty of enemies from planes to radars to ships and more, different rules of engagement, multiple theaters of war, the tension of sneaking around radars (it's like playing Thief or Metal Gear Solid)

The Bad
After a while, the mission start to get repetitive. To win the CMOH you need to play at ELITE level (which is nearly IMPOSSIBLE as not even flying 20 ft off the sea level can get you past fighter patrols) and do EVERYTHING right. Some weapons are very difficult to use (some bombs must be dropped at altitude) but required to hit larger targets.

The Bottom Line
F-19 SF was a game that stressed FUN and TENSION above all else. The controls are easy to learn, as there aren't a ton of controls to keep you confused. The terrain is a bit simple but they get the point across. Sneaking past enemy radars, flying under enemy fighters and radar planes, and take out the primary targets are a lot of fun and you feel really accomplished after finishing the missions, esp. in cold war ROE where you must NOT be seen (or else deal with anyone who saw you). The ability to be promoted and win medals are just icing on the cake. The full debrief with a second-by-second replay of your accomplishments with every single plane shot down and target blown up are shown as well. It's great for your ego.

On the other hand, this sim does have some flaws. On the PC, the x86's at the time can only drive the sim at about 4-12 fps. The missions can sometimes get extremely long as you can't use autopilot when you're extremely low (sometimes, flying 20 ft off the ground is normal) and thus you can't use accelerated time. Sometimes enemy fighters chase you right to your base (even though they can't see you). The missions get quite repetitive after a while as there's no real "campaign" mode, just fly mission after mission until you die or retire. While the targets do vary a bit, they don't vary THAT much.

While the game has its flaws, it does not distract from the truly amazing gameplay. The tension in the mission is real. If you got hit you can be damaged, and if you managed to get the wounded bird back to base you really feel you've cheated death. Unfortunately there are no sims that truly capture this kind of tension, as the stealth fighter only made its appearance as one of the planes in EA's USAF, and that game doesn't have a campaign like F19's. In fact, no game came with a campaign quite like F19's except MicroProse sims like F-15 Strike Eagle III. As Sid Meier have not designed a sim since, his touch on this sim will truly be missed.

The Good
I was in the Air Force when this came out and we had heard the rumors of the "Stealth Fighter" that was still in test (which would eventually be known as the F-117). After the Persian Gulf War started, I actually pulled this back out and started playing all the missions against Iraq! It was pretty fun though flight simulation games aren't my cup of tea.

The Bad
I think VGA graphics were out by the time this game came out yet I was (for some reason which eludes me) still forced to play it in CGA mode. That annoyed me. Also, I never did get the hang of landing on a Carrier! lol

The Bottom Line
This is a typical fighter-flight simulator game. Plenty of action, missions, and ways to get promotions/medals. I had a lot of fun playing.

The Good
Almost everything is great. This is the most addictive game I ever played, it just makes you want to go up in the air again and score more points, get more medals, hurt the enemy as bad as you can with your limited fuel/weapons load. Flight model seems to be good, and I often use high stall speed to help me maneuver during dogfight. Excellent game... whoever played it, must be horrified at the sight of Il-76 Mainstay on the radar.

The Bad
The engine noise is irritating, and it's way too easy to shoot down anything from the sky using only guns.

The Bottom Line
Low-resolution simulation, endlessly addictive. Minor bugs with gunfire, but otherwise this is the way a game should be made. Today's games which are based solely on graphics could learn a lot from this one and its gameplay and atmosphere.

The Good
What's not to like? Even today, if you ignore the graphics, it holds its own for gameplay. For it's day, it was incredible.

The graphics, even though only 16 color, were well done. With a little imagination you're soaring over the North Cape or Iranian Desert. That they managed to fit very complex 3D theatres into the humble PC XT without using floating point holds F-19 up as some very awesome coding. The gameplay was good; you kept coming back for more. The manual was a masterpiece; it really sucked you into the environment.

The Bad
At the time, there was nothing like this, so faults were forgiven or not noticed.

It was very easy; too easy. Even on the highest level your humble F-19 could smack bang the entire North Cape forces.

The AI was light was stupid; even top of the line MiGs would fly straight at you so you could pop them off with a sidewinder. Annoyingly when chased back with the enemy on your tail, your own F-18s would orbit the airbase ignoring your plight.

But these were early days and the faults were forgiven. What wasn't that when MPS released the sequel F-117, they only gave it a graphics makeover and didn't fix any of these shortcomings.

The Bottom Line
A classic. The definitive combat flight simulator.

If only Microprose had stuck around and stayed true to their original philosophy; can you imagine what we might have today?