General Aviation & Air Combat
Best Commercial Flight Simulation
WINNER: DCS: A-10C Warthog
Not much of a surprise here. Even though DCS: A-10C Warthog arrived in 2010 as a Beta, it was not released in the final version until 2011. For the best in switchology, A-10C can’t be beat. It may be a long time before we see another one this painstakingly detailed in the real plane’s operational functions.
Digital Combat Simulator web site
SimHQ Review
Best Commercial Software Update / Add-on / Mod / DLC
WINNER: ORBX FTX New Zealand South Island Scenery
Nobody makes FSX look better, and there is nothing better than the New Zealand South Island Scenery. Amazing.
ORBX Simulation Systems web site
Best Non-commercial Software Update / Add-on / Mod / DLC
WINNER: Benchmark Sims v4.32
What’s 13 years old, has the best campaign engine ever included in an air combat simulation, has more faithful followers than a sect, and has been totally re-energized in 2011? Oh yeah, did we mention it was free?
Benchmark Sims web site
SimHQ Review
Land & Armor Combat
Best Commercial Land & Armor Simulation
WINNER: None
Sorry, no cigar. Red Orchestra 2 was in the running with some nice new features, but too bad it was dumbed-down in its second version. Why couldn’t we have version one’s tactical abilities with all that new polishing? Oh well, maybe in version three.
BF3, Call of Duty, MW? Pfffft. We’re still waiting for the renaissance of this. One shot, one kill, and no damned health packs. You know, a simulation.
Best Commercial Software Update / Add-on / Mod / DLC
WINNER: Steel Beasts Professional Personal Edition v2.640
Not bad for a $25 USD upgrade, huh? SB Pro PE gets better-and-better, and has evolved into an even stronger product than the first release indicated. And that says a lot.
SimHQ SB Pro PE Review
eSim Games web site
Best Non-commercial Software Update / Add-on / Mod / DLC
WINNER: ArmA 2 1.60
Good gets better as we anxiously await ArmA 3.
Motorsports
Best Commercial Motorsports Simulation
WINNER: Game Stock Car
Starting with the rFactor engine, Reiza Studios built a strong racing sim based on Brazil’s premier racing series. More than an amped-up mod, GSC adds 10 tracks, a full field of cars, a tweaking of the now-tired rFactor graphics, and added their own tuning to make the cars one of the most fun simulation drives of 2011.
Best Commercial Software Update / Add-on / Mod / DLC
WINNER: iRacing 2.0 update
Love or hate its business model, no one can deny that iRacing offers terrific sim racing, and with v2.0, the experience is even better with new features and a cleaned-up interface. Who’d have thought a browser-based MMO for racing would be this good?
Best Non-commercial Software Update / Add-on / Mod / DLC
WINNER: Richard Burns Rally RSRBR 2011
Out of the tragic loss of RBR’s namesake to cancer shortly after release, the add-on RSRBR has brought one of the most under-rated sims ever to the forefront. The Rallysim 2010 version was excellent. Version 2011 is even better. If you like rally driving on high speed courses, this one is a must, and version 2012 was released just recently.
RSRBR 2011 web site
SimHQ Feature (2010 version)
Other Sim Genre
Best Commercial Title
WINNER: Railworks 3: Train Simulator 2012
Amazing graphics, plenty of payware add-on trains and routes, Train Simulator 2012 builds on the success of the previous versions. If you like train sims, you need this one.
Railsimulator web site
SimHQ Review
Games
Best Commercial Game
WINNER: Battlefield 3
The 3D modeling, the graphics, and the game play is top notch. So much so we’re willing to overlook that clunky web interface and the awful Origin.
Battlefield 3 web site
SimHQ Review
Best Commercial Game Update / Add-on / Mod / DLC
WINNER: Battlefield 3 – Back to Karkand
The best expansion pack for the best game (not simulation) of the year.
Best Non-commercial Game Update / Add-on / Mod / DLC
WINNER: CryENGINE®3 Free SDK
What could be better than to download a free version of the SDK? For non-commerical use only, of course!
Hardware / Software
Best Hardware
WINNER: Intel Sandy Bridge processors
Arriving in January 2011, the Sandy Bridge processors have become such a staple of game systems so quick, we forget what it was like before the 2500K and 2600K arrived. Besides the amazing jump in processor performance for a modest price, it made way for a new generation of high performance but economical gaming laptops.
Best Software
WINNER: FRAPS 3.47
The latest version of this longtime favorite video and image capture utility is savvy with Windows 7, and continues one of the best support and update software programs available. Can anyone imagine living without FRAPS?
We want your Feedback. Please let us know what you thought of this article here.
Related posts:
Best of 2005 SimHQ Readers, Staff and Moderators Pick the Winners Page 3
CES 2011 for Simmers
SimHQ 2009 Best of the Year Awards Page 2
Staff Roundtable: The Future of Simulations Part 2 – PC’s versus Consoles
Staff Roundtable: The Future of Simulations Part 3 – PC’s versus Consoles Page 4
Strike Fighters 2 Update – May 2011
The Best of Simulations – 2010
The Future of Simulations Part 4 – Following-up on our staff roundtable discussion, Chunx brings some more points to the table.
