Digital Combat Simulator

Digital Combat Simulator World (DCS World) is a free-to-play combat flight simulator. It includes a free simulation of the Sukhoi Su-25T Frogfoot attack aircraft and TF-51D Mustang, an unarmed training variant of the P-51D Mustang. DCS is expandable through additional official "modules" as well as user-made add-ons and mods.

Digital Combat Simulator
Developer(s)	Eagle Dynamics
Publisher(s)	The Fighter Collection
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows
Release	RU: 17 October 2008 EN: 10 December 2008 GER: 7 March 2009 NA: 2 April 2009
Genre(s)	Combat flight simulator
Mode(s)	Singleplayer, multiplayer

Gameplay

DCS World includes mission and campaign editors; online multiplayer; a large inventory of air, land and sea combat units; AI opponents; a mission generator; dynamic weather and seasons; training missions; a replay system; and a pilot log book.

The mission editor utilizes Lua support and a campaign editor for user created tasks. This allows users to extend provided missions with content created independently from module publishers, or create their own unique scenarios. Users of DCS World can host their own servers with user-made missions for co-operative and/or adversarial multiplayer missions with or against AI units.

Setting

DCS World includes one free map, which features a large area of the Caucasus region that encompasses much of Georgia – the location of the Russo-Georgian war in 2008, as well as a portion of Crimea, the site of a Russian Annexation in 2014, and a portion of Russia's southern border. Additional maps include:

• "Nevada Test and Training Range" - A U.S. Air Force training range and location of the Red Flag exercise, which includes Las Vegas, Hoover Dam, Groom Lake Air Force Station, and Tonopah Test Range Airport.
• "Normandy 1944" - centered around the English Channel, it includes areas of the southern United Kingdom, and Normandy, France during World War II.[1]
• "Persian Gulf" - centered around the Strait of Hormuz, it includes nearly the entirety of the United Arab Emirates, as well as southern areas of Iran.[2]
• The Channel 1940-1945 - centered around the South East of England and Northern France, to the East of the Normandy map.

Modules

DCS: Black Shark 2

A simulation of the Russian Kamov Ka-50 single seat attack helicopter, Black Shark was originally released in October 2008 as a stand-alone simulation, with the updated Black Shark 2 released in 2011 to upgrade the simulation, and to change it to an expansion module for DCS World. The Black Shark 2 module incorporates Eagle Dynamics' Professional Flight Model, the Advanced Systems Model, and presents the player/pilot with the full six degrees of freedom style cockpit.[3]

DCS: A-10C Warthog

Released on April 22, 2011 DCS: A-10C Warthog is a PC simulation of the Fairchild Republic A-10C Thunderbolt II. This is the second aircraft in the DCS lineup, following DCS: Black Shark. DCS: A-10C Warthog provides a simulation of a modern fixed wing combat aircraft in regards to flight dynamics, avionics, sensors, and weapon systems. The player also has the option to play Warthog in "Game" mode for a casual game experience. Players can fly missions against a wide array of air, land and sea forces under AI control (or in some cases other players). Users can create and share their own missions and campaigns with the included mission and campaign editors, and fly with and against other people online.[4]

Development

DCS World traces its lineage directly from the Flanker series of combat flight simulator games. Eagle Dynamics published DCS World's direct predecessor with Ubisoft as Lock On: Modern Air Combat. The aircraft from Lock On: Modern Air Combat are still available as part of the Flaming Cliffs 3 module.

The first module (though not until later referred to as a module) added to DCS was DCS: Black Shark (released in 2008) as a stand-alone simulation of the Kamov Ka-50.[5] It was originally an add-on for the previous Lock On: Modern Air Combat series, but it was deemed necessary to use a different engine instead.[6]

The second module added to DCS was DCS: A-10C Warthog (released in 2010). Originally released as a stand-alone simulation, but offering multiplayer compatibility with Black Shark, it was one of the first native 64-bit flight simulators.[7]

In 2011, DCS World was launched with concept of plug-in "modules". This allowed using previously stand-alone simulations in same scenario while sharing assets. DCS: A-10C Warthog was made available as plug-in module, while DCS: Black Shark became DCS: Black Shark 2 as part of an upgrade to the simulation.[8][9]

In October 2015, DCS World was relaunched under the guise of DCS World 1.5 via a free update.[10] 'DCS World 1.5' brought all the current aircraft, ground units, and terrain into the new Eagle Dynamics Graphics Engine (EDGE) featuring DirectX 11.

In November 2015, DCS World 2.0 was released in open alpha format via a free update. 'DCS World 2.0' gained the ability to add new theaters of war, such as the new Nevada Test & Training Range. The Caucasus map was in the process of being updated, and was not yet compatible with DCS 2.0.[10][11]

In May 2017, DCS World 2.1 was released in early access which includes support for Nevada and Normandy maps and new rendering (deferred shading and physically based rendering, PBR).[1][12]

In January 2018, DCS World 2.5 was released into open beta testing, which allowed for migration to 2.5 on Steam (service) and from 2.2 Open Alpha. It included an updated, more detailed map of the Caucasus region along with a plethora of other changes and additions.[13][14] The release version of 2.5 was published in April 2018.[15]

In the future, DCS World will undergo a graphics engine overhaul, integrate Vulkan API, support multi-threading and feature a dynamic campaign engine, voice chat and enhanced aircraft artificial Intelligence.[16]

List of modules

Name	Module type	Role	App. historical year	Developer	Release date	Status	Flight model	Systems model
DCS: Caucasus	Terrain			Eagle Dynamics	2 November 2008	Released
DCS: Ka-50 Black Shark 2	Aircraft	Attack helicopter	1987	Eagle Dynamics	2 November 2008	Released	Professional	Advanced
DCS: A-10C Warthog	Aircraft	Close air support Ground attack	2005	Eagle Dynamics	22 April 2011	Released	Professional	Advanced
DCS: MiG-29	Aircraft (2 variants-A/S)	Air superiority Multirole	1982	Eagle Dynamics	10 October 2018	Released[17]	Professional	Standard
DCS: Su-33	Aircraft	Air superiority Carrier-based	1998	Eagle Dynamics	22 September 2017	Released	Professional	Standard
DCS: Su-27	Aircraft	Air superiority	1985	Eagle Dynamics	11 November 2014	Released [18]	Professional	Standard
DCS: Su-25	Aircraft	Close air support Ground attack	1981	Eagle Dynamics	26 July 2013	Released	Advanced + [19]	Standard
DCS: A-10A	Aircraft	Close air support Ground attack	1977	Eagle Dynamics	26 July 2013	Released	Advanced + [20]	Standard
DCS: F-15C	Aircraft	Air superiority	1976	Eagle Dynamics	26 July 2013	Released	Professional	Standard
DCS: P-51D Mustang	Aircraft	Fighter	1945	Eagle Dynamics	12 September 2012	Released	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Flaming Cliffs 3	Aircraft		1995	Eagle Dynamics	30 April 2013	Released	Mixed	Standard
DCS: Fw 190 D-9 Dora	Aircraft	Fighter-bomber	1944	Eagle Dynamics	14 August 2014	Released	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Bf 109 K-4 Kurfürst	Aircraft	Fighter	1944	Eagle Dynamics	12 December 2014	Released	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Spitfire LF Mk IX	Aircraft	Fighter	1943	Eagle Dynamics	16 December 2016	Released	Professional	Advanced
DCS: L-39C/ZA Albatros	Aircraft	Trainer Light ground attack	1971	Eagle Dynamics	19 February 2016	Released	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Combined Arms	Land combat		2005	Eagle Dynamics	25 December 2012	Released	Professional	Advanced
DCS: World War II Assets Pack	Air, ground and sea assets		1944	Eagle Dynamics	26 May 2017	Early access [21]
DCS: NEVADA Test and Training Range	Terrain		2017	Eagle Dynamics	30 November 2015	Released
DCS: Normandy 1944	Terrain		1944	Ugra Media	26 May 2017	Released
DCS: Persian Gulf	Terrain		2018	Eagle Dynamics	25 May 2018[22]	Released
DCS: Hawk T.1A	Aircraft	Trainer Light fighter	1976	VEAO Simulations	16 March 2015	No Longer Available[23]	External	Advanced
DCS: M-2000C	Aircraft	Multirole	1987	RAZBAM	25 December 2015	Released	External	Advanced
DCS: UH-1H Huey	Aircraft	Utility helicopter	1967	Belsimtek	19 April 2013	Released	Professional	Advanced
DCS: MiG-15bis	Aircraft	Light fighter	1950	Belsimtek	11 March 2016	Released[24]	Professional	Advanced
DCS: F-86F Sabre	Aircraft	Light fighter	1953	Belsimtek	1 April 2016	Released[25]	Professional	Advanced
DCS: F-5E Tiger II	Aircraft	Light fighter	1972	Belsimtek	11 November 2016	Released[26]	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Mi-8MTV2 "Magnificent Eight"	Aircraft	Utility helicopter	1990	Belsimtek	5 September 2013	Released[27]	Professional	Advanced
DCS: AJS 37 Viggen	Aircraft	Interdictor Strike fighter	1993	Heatblur Simulations (as Leatherneck Simulations)	27 January 2017	Early access[28]	External	Advanced
DCS: MiG-21bis	Aircraft	Light fighter Interceptor	1972	Magnitude 3 LLC (as Leatherneck Simulations)	19 September 2014	Released	External	Advanced
DCS: C-101 Aviojet	Aircraft	Trainer Light ground attack	1980	AvioDev	21 January 2015	Released	External	Advanced
DCS: SA342 Gazelle	Aircraft	Utility helicopter	1973	Polychop-Simulations	29 April 2016	Released[29]	External	Advanced
DCS: AV-8B Night Attack V/STOL	Aircraft	V/STOL Ground attack Carrier-based	1991	RAZBAM	29 November 2017	Early access[30]	External	Advanced
DCS: F/A-18C Hornet (Lot 20)	Aircraft	Multirole Carrier-based	2005	Eagle Dynamics	1 June 2018	Early access[31][32]	Professional	Advanced
DCS: MiG-19P Farmer	Aircraft	Light fighter	Early 1950s	RAZBAM	1 March 2019	Early access[33]	External	Advanced
DCS: F-14B Tomcat	Aircraft	Interceptor Air superiority Carrier-based	1987	Heatblur Simulations	15 March 2019	Early access[34]	External	Advanced
DCS: F-14A Tomcat	Aircraft	Interceptor Air superiority Carrier-based	1974	Heatblur Simulations	Scheduled for the end of summer 2020[35]	In development[36]	External	Advanced
DCS: Forrestal	Aircraft carrier	Carrier	1954	Heatblur Simulations	Scheduled for the end of summer 2020[35]	In development[36]
DCS: Yak-52	Aircraft	Two-seat trainer	1979	Eagle Dynamics	3 August 2018	Early access[37]	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Fw 190 A-8 Anton	Aircraft	Fighter	1944	Eagle Dynamics	07 June 2019	released[38][39]	Professional	Advanced
DCS: I-16	Aircraft	Fighter	1939	OctopusG	10 May 2019	Early access[40]	External	Advanced
DCS: Christen Eagle II	Aircraft	Aerobatic	1977	Magnitude 3 LLC	18 January 2019	Early access[41]	External	Advanced
DCS: F-16CM Fighting Falcon/Viper (Blk.50)	Aircraft	Multirole	2007	Eagle Dynamics	3 October 2019	Early access[42]	Professional	Advanced
DCS: JF-17 Thunder	Aircraft	Multirole	2007	Deka Ironwork Simulations	3 December 2019	Early access	External	Advanced
DCS: Superсarrier	Other	Carrier		Eagle Dynamics	22 May 2020	Early access[43]
DCS: F-15E Strike Eagle	Aircraft	Multirole Strike fighter	1985	RAZBAM	Unreleased	In development	External	Advanced
DCS: MiG-23 MLA Flogger	Aircraft	Fighter	1985	RAZBAM	Unreleased	In development	External	Advanced
DCS: F-4E Phantom II	Aircraft	Interceptor Fighter-bomber Carrier-based	1970	Eagle Dynamics	Unreleased	In development	Professional	Advanced
DCS: F-8J Crusader	Aircraft	Fighter	1969	Magnitude 3 LLC	Unreleased	In development	External	Advanced
DCS: F4U-4 Corsair	Aircraft	Fighter-bomber	1945	Magnitude 3 LLC	Unreleased	In development	External	Advanced
DCS: Bell OH-58 Kiowa	Aircraft	Scout Helicopter	1983	Polychop-Simulations	Unreleased	In development[44]	External	Advanced ?
DCS: A-10C Warthog 2	Aircraft	Close air support Ground attack	2005	Eagle Dynamics	Unreleased, scheduled 2020[45]	In development	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Ka-50 Black Shark 3	Aircraft	Attack helicopter	1987	Eagle Dynamics	Unreleased, scheduled 2020[46]	In development	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Mi-24P HIND	Aircraft	Attack helicopter	1981	Eagle Dynamics	Unreleased, scheduled 2020[47]	In development	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Marianas Islands	Terrain		2018	Eagle Dynamics	Unreleased	In development[48]
DCS: The Channel Map	Terrain		1939-1945	Eagle Dynamics	05 June 2020	Early Access[49]
DCS: P-47D Thunderbolt	Aircraft	Fighter-bomber	1944	Eagle Dynamics	05 June 2020	Early Access[50]	Professional	Advanced
DCS: De Haviland Mosquito FB MK.VI	Aircraft	Fighter-bomber	1942	Eagle Dynamics	Unreleased	In development	Professional	Advanced
DCS: Falkland Islands	Terrain		1982	RAZBAM	Unreleased	In development
DCS: Syria	Terrain			Ugra Media	Unreleased	pre-order [51]
DCS: BO-105P AH1-A1	Aircraft	Military helicopter	1991	RAZBAM & Miltech-5	Unreleased	In development[52]	External	Advanced ?
DCS: A-7E Corsair II	Aircraft	Light ground attack Carrier-based	1967	FlyingIron Simulations	Unreleased	Announced[53]	External	Advanced ?
DCS: A-29 Supertucano	Aircraft	Trainer aircraft Light ground attack	1980	RAZBAM	Unreleased	Announced[54][55][56][57][58]	External	Advanced ?
DCS: IA-58 Pucarà	Aircraft	Ground attack	1969	RAZBAM	Unreleased	Announced[59][60][61]	External	Advanced ?
DCS: AMX	Aircraft	Ground attack	1984	RAZBAM	Unreleased	Announced[55]	External	Advanced ?
DCS : Sea Harrier FRS1	Aircraft	V/STOL Multrirole Carrier-based	1978	RAZBAM	Unreleased	Announced[55][62]	External	Advanced ?
DCS: Lightning	Aircraft	Interceptor	1957	RAZBAM	Unreleased	Announced[55][63][64][65][66]	External	Advanced ?
DCS: Mirage IIIE	Aircraft	Strike fighter Multirole	1961	RAZBAM	Unreleased	Announced[67] [68][61][62]	External	Advanced ?
DCS: Super Étendard	Aircraft	Strike fighter Carrier-based	1974	RAZBAM	Unreleased	Announced[62]	External	Advanced ?
DCS: Mirage F1EE, BE, CE and M	Aircraft	Fighter Ground attack	1966	Aviodev	Unreleased	In development[69][70][71]	External	Advanced
DCS: Me 262	Aircraft	Fighter	1944	Eagle dynamics	Unreleased	Announced[72]	Professional

Reception

PC Gamer reviewed the DCS: A-10C Warthog module with a rating of 92/100.[73] IGN praised the care and attention to detail, though remarking a level of inaccessibility: "Yes, there is a 44-page "Quickstart" guide and yes, there are tutorials – a bevy of lengthy, highly instructive tutorials, actually – but precious little of this is designed for the neophyte or even the marginally experienced jet jock."[74] Rock, Paper, Shotgun although praising the module, noted that "The Hog is a fascinating creature no doubt, but by sending it to the Caucasus and involving it in a characteristically skeletal canned campaign, the devs don’t display it in a particularly fresh or alluring light.". The absence of an instructive tutorial and the length of the included instruction manual and the presence of bugs and crashes were also criticized.[75]

Player reviews on GameSpot granted it a score of 9.6 out of 10 out of 55 ratings.[76]

References

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External links

• Official website
• Official forums