14.03.2010, 14:18
1. Although it's tempting to jump around from plane to plane, choose one fighter that appeals to you and really learn to fly it well. Although you might be tempted by some of the fast, heavily-armed late war fighters, you'll probably find it less frustrating if you choose a relatively slow-moving, single-engined plane with decent handling and stall behavior, something like the A6M2, B-239, F4F, IAR 80 or Hawk 75/P-36.
2. Practice your gunnery obsessively. To start, practice shooting friendly planes in the Quick Mission Builder (they don't maneuver when you shoot them). For a start, try to get as close behind them as you can, without overshooting, before you open fire. Try to shoot from 200 meters or less. Concentrate on accuracy and the speed at which you can line up your shoots. As you feel more comfortable, practice against a single enemy novice enemy fighter, of the same type as your plane, and try to follow it as it maneuvers. Increase the number and skill of the enemy as you get better.
There is a program called "snipers corner" which will tell you where you should aim to hit a plane moving at a certain speed and angle at a particular distance. It can be helpful to give you the basics of deflection shooting.
You can also determine where your shots are hitting by setting "Arcade = 1" in your conf.ini. When you score a hit with arcade mode on, an arrow will appear to be stuck into the enemy plane.
3. To improve your "situational awareness" try flying with the cockpit view off and the map view turned on, but set so that you can see enemy planes. Then set the map view so that it is just focused on on you immediate area. The combination of "arrows" at the edges of your viewscreen and the enemy planes shown in relationship to your plane on the map will give you a sense of where the enemy planes are relative to you. You can also use the padlock view to "track" a particular enemy.
4. During fights against multiple opponents, pause the game at regular intervals and pan around your airplane using the external view, to give you a sense of where your plane is to the enemy. Also use the external view to look at your opponents, especially when you're shooting at them. You can tell by the location of your tracers relative to the enemy if you're shots are hitting (along with the arrows from the arcade mode, if you're using it). After a fight, review tracks to analyze your performance.
As you gain confidence and skill, start turning the training aids off. The first to go should be the no cockpit view. Next try flying without the map to assist you. Finally, turn off the arcade mode and resist the temptation to use external views to view your opponent.
2. Practice your gunnery obsessively. To start, practice shooting friendly planes in the Quick Mission Builder (they don't maneuver when you shoot them). For a start, try to get as close behind them as you can, without overshooting, before you open fire. Try to shoot from 200 meters or less. Concentrate on accuracy and the speed at which you can line up your shoots. As you feel more comfortable, practice against a single enemy novice enemy fighter, of the same type as your plane, and try to follow it as it maneuvers. Increase the number and skill of the enemy as you get better.
There is a program called "snipers corner" which will tell you where you should aim to hit a plane moving at a certain speed and angle at a particular distance. It can be helpful to give you the basics of deflection shooting.
You can also determine where your shots are hitting by setting "Arcade = 1" in your conf.ini. When you score a hit with arcade mode on, an arrow will appear to be stuck into the enemy plane.
3. To improve your "situational awareness" try flying with the cockpit view off and the map view turned on, but set so that you can see enemy planes. Then set the map view so that it is just focused on on you immediate area. The combination of "arrows" at the edges of your viewscreen and the enemy planes shown in relationship to your plane on the map will give you a sense of where the enemy planes are relative to you. You can also use the padlock view to "track" a particular enemy.
4. During fights against multiple opponents, pause the game at regular intervals and pan around your airplane using the external view, to give you a sense of where your plane is to the enemy. Also use the external view to look at your opponents, especially when you're shooting at them. You can tell by the location of your tracers relative to the enemy if you're shots are hitting (along with the arrows from the arcade mode, if you're using it). After a fight, review tracks to analyze your performance.
As you gain confidence and skill, start turning the training aids off. The first to go should be the no cockpit view. Next try flying without the map to assist you. Finally, turn off the arcade mode and resist the temptation to use external views to view your opponent.