Published by: Digital Image Design Genre: Flight Simulator ESRB: Teen 8 Graphics:....................9/10 Sound:.........................7/10 Documentation:.........8/10 Getting Started:.........9/10 Value:..........................9/10 System Requirements: • Windows 95 • Pentium 133 • 16 megs RAM • 70 MB free disk space • 2X CD-ROM Drive • SVGA graphics card

The best of the F-22 Combat Flight Sims. If you are going to buy one F22 sim, this is the one.

IF22, F22 Lightning, F22 Raptor, F22 Air Dominance Fighter...does the list ever end? I've "flown" them all and, yes, it ends with the best F22 simulation of them all - F22 ADF. Arm chair warriors will not be disappointed with this truly flexible combat flight sim.

Combat sim enthusiasts to actual pilots will appreciate the rich features and ability to customize F22 ADF. You can fly in an "Arcade mode" blasting everything in sight in the air and on the ground. In this mode, your F22 is refueled and reweaponed for up to five hours as you attempt to run the gauntlet of SAMS and Russia's next generation aggressors!

For the more "serious" fighter jockeys who don't mind a steeper learning curve and want more complex, detailed gameplay, F22 ADF has three full tours of duty including 24 different missions over the Red Sea, Eritrea and Saudi Arabia. A pretty typical storyline is woven through the campaign, similar to other F22 offerings. 20 different training missions ranging from take-offs and landings to combat formation tactics and even AWACS missions make the transition from novice to ace very enjoyable. I actually sweated through a very tough, tense landing of my F22 with hydraulics and electrical power gone - after 2 previous crashes as a result of augering in.

Additional great features found in none of the other F22 sims are the Advanced Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation system (ACMI) and Smart Views. ACMI allows players to view complex spatial renditions of their completed air combat mission as a clear graphical "playback". Smart Views allows you to play "Director" and deliver a movie-like playback of your completed mission complete with various camera angles that you filter prior to combat.

F22 ADF's additional features:

• Leading edge 3D Graphics arguably as good as or better than the gorgeous eye candy found in Novalogic's F22 Lightning and Raptor sims.
• The most realistic and customizable F22 flight model, avionics and weapon systems.
• 4.5 million square kilometers of beautifully rendered Middle Eastern territory with resolution down to one meter or better in target areas.
• Network and Internet play allowing head-to-head dogfights or co-operative missions with up to eight pilots. You can access these through DID's website (www.did.com). Patch news is also available here.

The only thing missing from F22 ADF is a mission creator, as in F22 Lightning. To tell you the truth I barely noticed this, F22 ADF has so many additional cool features. I'm also disappointed with DID since they seem to be doing the exact same thing as Novalogic, whose two F22 sims (Lightning II and Raptor) should have been combined in one package to offer a product nearly as complete as this one. DID is also touting a soon to be delivered add-on called "F22 Total Air War". You actually get to direct an entire war as Theatre or Base Commander or create various other scenarios. This is the Mission Planner DID should have included in the first place. From a business standpoint this strategy certainly brings in more revenue, but I believe gamers might be more loyal to a company that provides a "total solution" that doesn't require you to purchase additional add-ons.

On the very minor downside, the keyboard control maps are buried in the instruction manual and are not the sturdy cardboard we've come to expect with these sims. This is curious as DID has a greatly detailed book called "Allies and Adversaries" included in the package. Another minor issue I have with F22 ADF is that the "Tour of Duty" requires you to complete the mission before moving on. I know all pilots have wished they could skip one or two of these very difficult scenarios. The choice should be left to the gamer.

As with all sims there is always a trade-off between simplicity and flexibility, but DID has given the gamer more control over whether they wish to "fly" or "play". F22 ADF provides the best of both worlds (reality or arcade) compared to the competition.

Tips:

• Run through the training missions - you'll live longer.
• Fly high, use your wingman and be aware of whether you're in arcade or tour mode. The jet has two flight modes - normal mode which will not let you exceed structural limits and pointing mode which allows near right angle turns.
• Try out thrust vectoring while switching to multiple views - it looks incredible!
• Don't miss the Smart Views which allow you to replay your mission with you in virtual control directing the camera angles via pre-set filters. Very cool!