CBIHE REUIELU5 Stunt Flyer Computer: Commodore 6-1 Publisher: Sierra P.O. box 485 Coarsegold, CA 93614 Medium:
Disk
Price:
S2-195
erything about Ilight simulators, along a program
After trying to perfect the
Hammerhead maneuver,
Just when you think you know ev tomes
Rl-Vil-AVIiOUYrKVINBOLKI
that
proves you
wrong. In this case, the program is an engaging new simulator from Sierra,
called Stunt Flyer. Admittedly, the Pitt Special, on
Which Stunt Ffyer is based, is not a
you may
find yourself longing for the simplicity of a high-speed dogfight.
the international conventions and rules of stunt flying. You
must, for
Maeh 2 aircraft, No SAM missiles will
example,
come your way, and there are no oth
the bounds of an imaginary, three-di
er planes trying to shoot you out of
keep your aircraft
within
mensional box. You must also com
the sky. Yet, after trying to perfect the
plete your stunt in 6() seconds or less.
Hammerhead maneuver, you may find yourself longing for the simplic
These constraints heighten the chal
ity of a high-speed dogfight.
outside loops, they mean nothing un
You
must
read
the
lenge, liven if you may be great at
instruction
less performed within fixed param
book. It is the equivalent of ground school, teaching you the
eters.
basics of
Though keyboard control is said to
your four control groups, the princi ples of aerodynamics, and the moni toring of aircraft
be more precise than joystick control, I found only a slight difference be
performance
through the instrument panel.
tween the two. Graphics are fair and Until this point, you have an out-
Filled with diagrams, the- documen
the-windscreen view, with your in
the screen showing your nose-dive into the ground is a bit static and
tation teaches you four basic maneu
struments neatly arrayed before you.
vers and how to put them together to
looks like a page out of a coloring
The Immclmann you just tried went
form more complex stunts.
book. Sound is limited to the noise of
In the
smoothly—a piece of cake. But now
end, you'll even learn how to draw an
your engine, which changes pitch as
you must watch yourself from outside
Aresti Card, a kind of shorthand lan
you alter the throttle setting.
guage stunt flyers use to outline each
the aircraft. You arc forced to watch
i kept trying to do a smooth takeoff,
each excruciating turn and gyration
but the aircraft kept doing things I
maneuver in a sequence.
until your wings fall off and you nose-
was
From the main menu, you may
first Into the dirt. You may then watch
choose to watch xtn airshow or go
three tries, I realized each flight be
the stunt again, have it judged, or see
straight
gins in mid-air—though I still haven't
how an expert performs. Or you may
found it mentioned in the book.
into
acrobatic
training.
Should you choose the training, you will have to choose between doing a
not
prepared
lor.
After about
go back to the main menu and try
With these reservations in mind, I
again—the old pilot's cure, seen in
still recommend Stunt I'lycr highly. It
specified stum or simply flying free-
countless Il-movies, for helping the
form, l-'ree-fonn is recommended lor
is an original concept in flight simula
rookie overcome his fear.
beginners as a means of getting the feel of the controls (keyboard or joy
tion, and although the instant replay
somehow managed to score at least
stick).
When you choose a specific stunt,
Now perhaps you are an expert, or 50 points. If that happened, choose another stunt and fly that to perfec
will probably humiliate you, it is that feature that is most outstanding. Although you're flying a biplane,
don't start thinking of yourself as a
you"II be presented with a menu of all
tion. Score at least 50 points on 15 of
the classic stunts. Choose one, fly it
barnstorming sky gypsy. That kind of
die classic stunts and you'll be ad
flying has been gone for almost 50
the way you feel it should be done,
mitted to the competitive part of the
and then watch the instant replay, though it isn't really instant, since you
simulator. Here, you design your own
years. But however you approach Stunt Flyer, you'll come away from it
sequence of stunts, fly them and save
must take into account the speed of
with a much better idea of the diffi
the results to disk. Even enter them in
die 1541 ami the convolutions your
culty of these aerobatics. And next
Sierra's Stunt Flying Competition and
time you watch an air show, you'll
computer must do as it tries to ar
try for a prize of 51,000!
know exactly what those guys are up
range your wild flying.
26
FEBHUARY/MARCH '86
Don't forget that you are binind by
against. You've been there.
Q