New member & totally unfamiliar with tank sims

[Rutger]

Hi there,

I'm Rutger from Hengelo in the Netherlands.
As an avid aviation fanatic I'm quite experienced with flying in FSX and the world's most extensive F-18 simulator for civilian use, the VRS Superbug. The latter is a sim that completely simulates the entire aircraft, not just CTRL-E that will start the entire aircraft, but you'll have to run the correct procedure to get it to run the appropriate way. Same for every screen, switch, knob and system on the aircraft. It's not a war game though, it's a simulator for those who want the best achievable as far as aircraft behaviour of this particular aircraft is concerned.

Now as tanks are quite fascinating for their weight, fire power and all round appearance, I would be interested in buying such a sim as well.
I would guess the Steel Beast would be a good option for that.

Is this the best available?
Is it usable for a novice?
Does it come with campaigns?
Are training campaigns to familiarize available?
Does the manual include tutorials?
Can I shoot the cannon and is it realistic?
Is there choice between shell types, and does wind and different types of shell influence the ballistic behaviour in such a way that you need to develop skills in order to effectively use them in the sim?
Is it advisable to download extra files to really make it better than the basic bought item?
Is realistic behaviour there in every aspect of operating the tank?
Any further advice?

thanks,
Rutger
(inhabitant of a country that recently got rid the last of its tanks, while we had about 900 25 years ago)

[Gerald]

[ZeeWolf]

Welcome aboard Rudger,
I am a World War II buff, I prefer the T34 vs Tiger. The first reason;
there has been nothing since WWII that can compare to the armored
struggle on the Ost Front. And second reason is, it's mod ability uses
all my skill sets and enables me to re-crate the sim it to a WWII Tank
sim with the things that has been brushed aside or ignored (what ever
the reason). Moreover, on top of that I can focus on the German side
of the war years. This has been something I've dreamed of doing, by
the way, since I was boy.

Zu Ehren von den gefallenen Soldaten.

ZeeWolf

[Skybird]

Hi, SBP probably is my domain here.

Is this the best available?
-> Yes

Is it usable for a novice?
-> Yes

Does it come with campaigns?
-> No, but with a.) a fantastic editor which is quick, ergonomic and allows extreme versatility, andb.) it has dozens and hundreds oif missions available. I'm with the Pro PE since it was released in 2006 - and still have not tried all that come with the latest incarnation. I'm, an old F4 and Longow2-buff, and I understzand the desire for dynamic campaigns, butr believe me: you won't miss them in SBP. Not at all.

Are training campaigns to familiarize available?
-> Training missions. Plenty of them, each focussing on only one aspect of a given tank.

Does the manual include tutorials?
-> No. The briefings for the training missions serve as that.

Can I shoot the cannon and is it realistic?
-> Hahahaha, yes, you can shoot the cannon, and yes, it is one of the most realistic simulation kits available to the civilian public. Truth is SBP-Pro was designed as a training kit for the ral military, and it is the demands of the military and their orders that rule shape and design and content of the sim as it is. You need to understand this: gamers do not decide the sim'S design, it is the real military, the military is their bread and butter, not us gamers. But brest assured, the sim is easy accessible. The challenge lies in mastering tactics and using the terrain to your best advantage.

Is there choice between shell types, and does wind and different types of
shell influence the ballistic behaviour in such a way that you need to develop skills in order to effectively use them in the sim?
-> Hehehe, if only you would know... A sounding "yes" again. As I said, the military uses this sim, they sell this sim to a dozen Western militaries. If they train gunnery with it, you can do it as well, I'm certain.

Is it advisable to download extra files to really make it better than the basic bought item?
-> It's no must-do. Probably you develope a taste for this or that special vehicle skin, but in the latest version their are already many HighRes skins which are superb. Around 400 missions are available for download. And some people prfer to play around with sound replacements, but I do not see that as a must-do either.

Is realistic behaviour there in every aspect of operating the tank?
-> Gunning, cooperation between gunner and commander, tactical management: yes. Loader: not simulated. Driver: simplified.

Any further advice?
-> check this forum, there are many older SBP threads, especially check the stickied threats at the top, there is a SBP resources thread I maintain. It should give you plenty of links that might be of interest to you.

If realism is your thing, than this sim is for you. On tactics (and tanks means team work, no single Rambo missions!) you won'T find any better.

Resources
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=88893
Plenty of screenshots have been merged into that resources thread. They represent various stages of the sim from the past 5 years. The more at the end the pic, the newer the status.

The SBP VIDEO THREAD:
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=150944

Official eSim YOUTUBE CHANNEL:
http://www.youtube.com/user/eSimGamesDtl#

Check the MP videos especially. The sim is an ideal beast for MP.

How to simulate WWII-like battles with SBP:
part 1 http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...3&postcount=53
part 2 http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...5&postcount=54
part 3 http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...6&postcount=55 Ooops, the forum has broken the third link, and messed up the first two parts as well.

Neeeeaal...!!!!

Skybird's Interview on SBP's background with technical director of eSim, "Ssnake" (April 2006):
http://www.tanksim.com/topic15_sbp_interview.htm

Have fun!

[Skybird]

You might take special interest for these videos:

eSim introducing their product at the ITEC 2010
http://www.youtube.com/user/eSimGame.../1/EY7D9j9B0lc

Spanish with English subtitles: explanation on how to operate the secondary gunnery sights in the Leo-2E (no lasers, no thermals, no stabilisation, no auto-lead). These GSS's crosshairs may have different designs and functions in different tanks.
http://www.youtube.com/user/eSimGame.../1/bTzObYPz4yo

How the installation looks like in use with the Norwegian military:
http://www.youtube.com/user/eSimGame.../0/OOYqTauIr9s