After seven months spent locked away in a hanger, IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad has begun taxiing down the development runway in preparation for launch. The dogfighting sequel has a new teaser trailer to announce the commencing of a pre-order program, giving flight fans a chance to secure early access to the game's beta.
Pre-orders come in two sizes - Standard and Premium - with a variety of bonuses and shiny gimmicks available. While I'll not list them here, because pre-ordering is, as always, an inadvisably risky gamble, if you really must abandon common sense, you can find details on the game's official site .
More usefully, 1C Game Studios has announced its planned feature list, detailing what the developer has planned for this new entry in the series.
- "Brand new single-player campaign mode for combat flight-sims: server supported campaign generator where all missions are historical, dynamic and unique.
- "Unprecedented level of details in physics, damage model and aerodynamics of the virtual aircrafts.
- "True-to-life and complex AI system.
- "The largest and most detailed recreation of the air war in Stalingrad (unique structures/buildings, you can only find recreated here).
- "Legendary combat aircraft thoroughly re-created using the original drawings and blueprints.
- "Historically correct reconstruction of all key operations of the Stalingrad battle.
- "Quick fights and large-scale battles in single-player and multiplayer with dedicated servers.
- "In-game achievement system, allowing players to unlock new airplane modifications/upgrades based on player's mission results.
- "Global player statistics."
IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad is due out Spring 2014.