Setup and Installation
Being the instant gratification hound that I am, I popped CD1 into the tray (after carefully removing my BoB 2 CD, and stowing it in behind my ArmA CD, both in the same paper wrapper (When will I ever learn? How come I can’t find that friggin’ game? Oh, I threw the CD in somewhere it didn’t belong…) and away we went. Installation went fine. I have seen posts about numerous problems and possible solutions to said problems, but I just didn’t have any. It loaded. It’s roughly a 2GB hard drive footprint and that was that. The game started up the first time, and subsequent times.
Oh, before I forget, did I mention there’s no keycard? The something with all the things you need to know about what controls what? Like “F2” is exterior view? Yeah well, just try pressing “F4” or “F7”. You’ll regret it. More on that later. How about a pdf file with the key commands, yeah, that’s what they did! Uh, no. They didn’t. Your only recourse to know what keys do what is to go into the menu option screen where you set the controls and scroll the list. Go ahead, do a screenshot of what you can see, then scroll down and take another screenshot, etc., if that’s what you want to do with your life. I don’t have time. Strike one.
Initial setup menu.
The rest of the setup went okay. I named myself “20mm”. I picked the default video of 1024×768, most other options on medium or high. Game play at “normal” — whatever that is — but mostly realistic. No superhuman invulnerable flying wasp without fuel or other restrictions. Yeah well, but wait. You want to have the “Easy” options? or “Custom”? Forgetta ’bout it. Not in the Setup Menu. It won’t take. Do it in the initial mission screen, under “Show Difficulty” and it will probably work. Otherwise, you’re stuck with “Normal”. “Easy”? No, not easy. Exasperating? Yes. Almost a strike right there.
And you know, even when I got tired of trying and failing to get to the later missions, and picked “Easy”, plus invulnerable, it didn’t work. Invulnerable means not capable of dying, among other things, right? Wrong. Not in this sim. You pick that and hit the ground, you’re dead. EOS.
Let’s see, what else? OH! Set up for the all important TrackIR:4 PRO with TrackClipPRO. Yeah, can’t fly without that you know.! Where… where… where? Nothing. Guess what gang? No NaturalPoint TrackIR support. Frankly, inexcusable in this day and age. I almost quit right there. I know, I’ve seen the posts with workarounds for mouse view, but you know what? I just don’t care. I want my TrackIR, and my 6 DoF too. Crap. And strike two.
Two strikes and we haven’t even made it out of the Setup and Installation? Not good gang, but I calls them like I sees them. Load times were not too bad. About 45 seconds to the initial menu and about 2 and 1/2 minutes from the mission screen to actual start.
