Are the proper US aircraft ever going to make it in this Sim?

[Charlie901]

Whats up with the missing USN/USMC planes that were in the Pacific?

It seems that SHIII had a much better representation of US aircraft.

Are the current substandard list of US planes (Brittish Lancaster Bomber w/ upside down star, wth!) just placeholders until the Devs finish the lacking US A/C list?

Has there been any word on this being officially addressed?

[Drebbel]

It sure would be great to have the correct aircraft. But my guess is that the dev-team had other worries that are more important.

[Camaero]

Maybe there are copyright issues?

[CCIP]

Maybe there are copyright issues?

That's what I thought too. Pacific fighters ran into this.

That said... not if the modders can do something about it! :arrgh!:

[Tigrone]

There are templates of both the Liberator and the Avenger in the Texture files, along with Hula girls and German war posters. I think there are even some mermaids. It's all very strange. I wonder if it's some devs personal collection?:hmm: The Liberator is there in Textures. Can it be swapped for the Lancaster, as the US general purpose bomber? Notice the date modified, it's recent.
http://mysite.verizon.net/web22rsn/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/liberator_dds.jpg


The Avenger is there too. I could not find that wandering Lancaster though. They must be on a round-the-world flight.

There are so many ETO specific files in Textures that it makes me wonder if this was or is meant to be a platform for another game, maybe a SH5 rework of 3 with the new graphics? :hmm:

Here's another odd file in SH4 Textures, which looks like it was put in recently, and I don't think this is from SH3:
http://mysite.verizon.net/web22rsn/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/wwiiposters_dds.jpg

[Werewolf13]

There are so many ETO specific files in Textures that it makes me wonder if this was or is meant to be a platform for another game, maybe a SH5 rework of 3 with the new graphics? :hmm:
What it means is that SH4 is an incomplete rework of SH3... :damn:

[bookworm_020]

I'm sure the Modders are working on a fix and some new aircraft as well!:up: Can't wait till I see a GWX for SH4!

[rodan54]

I also noticed there are textures for an F4F Wildcat and a SBD Dautless as well.

It's too bad about those planes being copyrighted, if that is indeed the reason behind them being substituted.

But either way, any omissions in the aircraft (and ships) department will surely be fixed by the modders in no time. :p

Now, if only I knew how to model, and add new units.

[IsaanRanger]

What kind of copyrights would the planes have? Can anyone tell me about what Pacific Fighters ran into regarding copyright issues on aircraft?

They had to contact Boeing? (Douglas), LTV (Vought), Lockheed? to have WW2 planes?

[Spin Doctor]

What kind of copyrights would the planes have? Can anyone tell me about what Pacific Fighters ran into regarding copyright issues on aircraft?

They had to contact Boeing? (Douglas), LTV (Vought), Lockheed? to have WW2 planes?
There was a big stink about this maybe a couple of years ago. I suppose the problem was that they didn't contact those aircraft companies before putting the planes in the Pacific Fighter sim.

I can't remember the details, but I personally suspect Microsoft was trying to squash the competition by stirring the pot since it was about the time they released their POS combat sim. It was never an issue in any other sim that had been released in the past, so why now?

[Harry Buttle]

The Lancaster is an issue, but I'd much rather see the dev team work on the vast amount of show stopping problems in SH 4 before they waste one second on fixing it.

[Charlie901]

Wait a minute!!!



What about that recent "Pacific Storm" video game....didn't that have some of the aforementioned US Naval and USMC A/C in it.

It couldn't have been a copywrite problem for the devs/publishers on that title.

[WFGood]

Maybe there are copyright issues?

That's what I thought too. Pacific fighters ran into this.

That said... not if the modders can do something about it! :arrgh!:

Aren't some of the US aircraft already in SH3? I can't see how it could be a copyright issue. I know this has been brought up before, but several recent games such as Battle of Midway and Pacific Storm have accurate US aircraft in them and named as such. It cannot be alright for those two companies but not Ubi unless they have either misunderstood something or really ticked someone off.

[hmatthias]

Hula girls? I think we should replace the Lancaster textures with the Hula Girl texture!

[joea]

There was a big stink about this maybe a couple of years ago. I suppose the problem was that they didn't contact those aircraft companies before putting the planes in the Pacific Fighter sim.

I can't remember the details, but I personally suspect Microsoft was trying to squash the competition by stirring the pot since it was about the time they released their POS combat sim. It was never an issue in any other sim that had been released in the past, so why now?

:hmm: :down:

[sea enemy]

What kind of copyrights would the planes have? Can anyone tell me about what Pacific Fighters ran into regarding copyright issues on aircraft?

They had to contact Boeing? (Douglas), LTV (Vought), Lockheed? to have WW2 planes?
There was a big stink about this maybe a couple of years ago. I suppose the problem was that they didn't contact those aircraft companies before putting the planes in the Pacific Fighter sim.

I can't remember the details, but I personally suspect Microsoft was trying to squash the competition by stirring the pot since it was about the time they released their POS combat sim. It was never an issue in any other sim that had been released in the past, so why now?

Actually, what got Pacific Fighters into trouble was nothing to do with the game at all. It was the BOX that the game came in. Some genius labeled the flyable planes by adding the manufacturers name before the model; i.e Grumman F6F-5.
Naturally, Grumman (Northrop) and one or two other companies were interested in this unsanctioned use of it's name-property- and sent some threatening letters to ubisoft..It wasn't really the big deal many made it out to be, the 'end of simulations' and all..

[akdavis]

What kind of copyrights would the planes have? Can anyone tell me about what Pacific Fighters ran into regarding copyright issues on aircraft?

They had to contact Boeing? (Douglas), LTV (Vought), Lockheed? to have WW2 planes?
There was a big stink about this maybe a couple of years ago. I suppose the problem was that they didn't contact those aircraft companies before putting the planes in the Pacific Fighter sim.

I can't remember the details, but I personally suspect Microsoft was trying to squash the competition by stirring the pot since it was about the time they released their POS combat sim. It was never an issue in any other sim that had been released in the past, so why now?

Actually, what got Pacific Fighters into trouble was nothing to do with the game at all. It was the BOX that the game came in. Some genius labeled the flyable planes by adding the manufacturers name before the model; i.e Grumman F6F-5.
Naturally, Grumman (Northrop) and one or two other companies were interested in this unsanctioned use of it's name-property- and sent some threatening letters to ubisoft..It wasn't really the big deal many made it out to be, the 'end of simulations' and all..

mmm...not quite the issue in its entirety...

[sea enemy]

mmm...not quite the issue in its entirety...

Well, that's how Oleg Maddox explained it, as well as I can remember.

I dunno, though..there's alot I don't trust about anything IL-2 related..They're always on lookout for new ways to make you buy IL-2 yet again-for the upteenth time....I guess it's a brilliant marketing strategy


By the way..Does anyone ever actually see any allied planes in career mode? I sure don't.

[akdavis]

mmm...not quite the issue in its entirety...

Well, that's how Oleg Maddox explained it, as well as I can remember.

Oleg stated quite clearly that they would never be able to add certain aircraft and ships to the sim. He also made it clear that he had doubts about their ability to do so in any future sim. You are correct about that being how the whole problem started off, but there is a much wider issue at play here.

I dunno, though..there's alot I don't trust about anything IL-2 related..They're always on lookout for new ways to make you buy IL-2 yet again-for the upteenth time....I guess it's a brilliant marketing strategy


Maddox Games was hit hard by the whole debacle. It was not in their interest in any way.

[Strikor]

I see some on radar near Pearl but they're usually too busy crashing into the ground to fly by me.

[DanielMcintyre]

Aces High has pretty much every major plane from ww2 implemented and has done for at least the last 6 years. I was playing it in 2001 and I think its still going.

In fact, pretty much since I started playing sims I have flown most if not all the major ww2 flight sim equvilents of modern ww1, ww2 and more modern aircraft.

I think the cats been out of the bag too long for companies to start claiming copyright on artwork, and if they did it would probably also apply to literature and still art as well.

"Im sorry sir, however we're going to sue you for your representation of our aircraft in your book" <- not going to happen.

[mr darcy]

Then again, haven't plastic model companies been hit by this as well?

I'm sure I heard that Tamiya, Revell & Airfix (RIP) among other were now having to pay for copyright on various kits. Even ones that they had been producing for years.

Could be interesting watching the Electric Boat company (aka General Dynamics) sueing Microprose for Silent Service 1 & 2.

[akdavis]

Aces High has pretty much every major plane from ww2 implemented and has done for at least the last 6 years. I was playing it in 2001 and I think its still going.

In fact, pretty much since I started playing sims I have flown most if not all the major ww2 flight sim equvilents of modern ww1, ww2 and more modern aircraft.

I think the cats been out of the bag too long for companies to start claiming copyright on artwork, and if they did it would probably also apply to literature and still art as well.

"Im sorry sir, however we're going to sue you for your representation of our aircraft in your book" <- not going to happen.

So? A corporation is not a law enforcement agency. They don't have to hold themselves to a standard of not making a claim unless it is claimed fairly and across the board. Nor do they allow their past choices or inaction to dictate current and future action.

Now a court might hold them to that standard, but here's the rub: Northrop-Grumman and friends have unimaginable resources in comparison to any French software publisher or Japanese model kit maker. They would run out of money long before anything went to court. The simple threat, no matter how baseless, is more than enough to cause them to back down (especially when it comes to niche games with low profit margins).