By Craig Pearson on February 29th, 2012 at 4:50 pm.
Precocious, pondering, prattish younger me used to stand in game shops holding Jane’s Combat Simulation games, marveling at the heft of the box, the grandeur of the screens, imagining Jane at her desk, making a game and being so proud she’d put her name to it. I was stupid. Now I know better: Jane is the second name of military enthusiast Fred T. Jane, and he died in 1916. He didn’t make those games, although given that they were basically manuals made into gaming form, with his love of detailing military hardware he’d probably have enjoyed their elegant air battles and cockpit rendering. As for the latest incarnation, Jane’s Advanced Strike Fighters, being released a full decade after the last one, I’m pondering how he’d react. The video below looks fun, sure, but I’m sensing developers Evolved GamesTrickstar have taken a bit of a diversion around realism.
Like when the two jets clip each other at high speed. The pilots end up a lot less dead than I expected.
Like I said: fun. It has all the charms an actiony, shooty, onliney action game should: four-player co-op, some pretty weather effects, 30+ jets and a large terrain, but I wonder if Mr Jane would be quite as thrilled with it compared to the previous series?
29/02/2012 at 16:58 pegolius says:
At least this thing is not worth connecting a joystiq to a computer. That would be like using a steering weel+pedals to play World of Tanks. It’s sad to see a name that once stood for realistic sims being used to sell arcade flyshoots.
01/03/2012 at 01:31 moashdfg says:
Unless my opinions don’t line up with the facts, in which case, my opinions take priority. http://kisalt.be/wuxrb2
29/02/2012 at 16:58 Brun says:
Still won’t be as good as Falcon 4.
29/02/2012 at 23:13 D says:
Relevant lets play youtube channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/tanit/videos
I wish I had the time to get into it like those guys.
01/03/2012 at 23:06 tyrspawn says:
lol @ my videos being posted on RPS. Hi2u.
29/02/2012 at 17:03 Snuffy the Evil says:
Oh man I LOVED Jane’s F-15. I was only a kid so I was absolutely terrible at it, but it was a simulator of the plane my dad flew which naturally made it the best thing ever.
It’s a shame this newer title seems to be nothing more than a subpar Ace Combat clone.
29/02/2012 at 17:07 huw says:
Not sure why Jane’s would put their name to this. Not to sound snobbish – I’m sure there’s a nice, big demographic out there who really enjoy this type of game. But I’ve always associated Jane’s with proper simulators, which this clearly isn’t.
It must make nice money for them, I guess.
01/03/2012 at 03:48 Torgen says:
This may be a shovelware release to retain rights to using the Janes name on computer games, and not some new agreement between the defense analyst people and EA.
29/02/2012 at 17:07 kyrieee says:
How foolish of me to think this was a sim
29/02/2012 at 17:11 Jimbo says:
Jane can lift off my advanced strike fighter any day.
29/02/2012 at 19:32 Skabooga says:
I am Jane’s advanced strike fighter.
29/02/2012 at 17:14 DogKiller says:
The word on the grapevine is that this is absolutely terrible. Worse than HAWX or whatever the hell the Ubisoft series is called. I miss the old Janes games. Well, figuratively speaking. I’ve pretty much got all the games the Janes\EA brand came out with. Still play them, too, and they hold up excellently today if you can get them to work properly. F-15 is one of my favourites, along with Longbow 2 and F/A18.
29/02/2012 at 20:17 Jason Moyer says:
The first HAWX was pretty good for something that clearly wasn’t trying to be a simulator in any way.
29/02/2012 at 17:18 Fishbed says:
’nuff said…
http://www.simhq.com/_air13/air_502a.html
“The “return” of the Jane’s label should have been avoided completely rather than be associated with a game like this one. Jane’s was once a powerhouse, delivering titles like Longbow, F-15, and the ne plus ultra of simulations, F/A-18. It’s best that we have those memories to look back on, rather than try to recapture them. Like the ones we had in high school, going to the Texxas Jam with a girl wearing a pleather miniskirt and tube top. Remember?
It would have been a good idea for Jane’s to have avoided being associated with this game, because in the event that they did try to make something more challenging and more like their titles of yesteryear, no one will be interested because all they’ll remember is this one. Kinda like how no one wants to buy a new Metallica album because they all remember St. Anger.”
I hope that our gentle and noble innkeepers will have the good taste to make for such an infamous entry by quickly telling us wot they think about a fine game like Wargame:EE, rather than keep on beating up some month-old dead donkey!
Actually, I can beat it up for you if it helps.
29/02/2012 at 20:44 BAshment says:
st anger is there best (only good) album.
as for jane it really confuses me why publishers use niche titles to relaunch as a complete new game its like syndicate why not just create a new series.
29/02/2012 at 17:23 skoeldpadda says:
As wrongly named as this game may be, it’s still fairly enjoyable to play. It’s full of low budget arcade fun with pretty planes and infinite ammo to blow stuff up. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting anything much : this is made by guys behind Heroes of the Pacific and Heroes Over Europe, with less than half the budget they had when they were backed by Ubisoft.
29/02/2012 at 17:24 Echo Black says:
This looks like Ace Combat…Which is a cool series, but not what I would expect from a “Jane’s” title.
29/02/2012 at 17:35 westyfield says:
I wish they’d bring Ace Combat to the PC. I had such good fun with The Belkan War (PS2) and Skies of Deception (PSP), and I’d love to play a super-shiny HD version with a joystick. Sadly Jane’s Advanced Strike Fighters does not look like Ace Combat to me.
29/02/2012 at 17:46 Raiyan 1.0 says:
Eh, Ace Combat has gone downhill with that abomination that is Assault Horizon. I would rather run AC 3, 4 and 5 on an emulator.
01/03/2012 at 03:44 Nater says:
Janes: Ace Combat
Too bad, I was hoping for a good modern combat sim with multiple aircraft. Been a long time.
29/02/2012 at 17:29 Moni says:
These planes look sort of happy. Not jets though, maybe making flappy proppy noises makes them cheerier.
http://www.cityofart.net/bship/flying_tigers_p40_sqd.gif
29/02/2012 at 17:36 bambusek says:
This is going to be released on consoles too, so of course there is no chance for sim. Trailer looks more like another game from H.A.W.X serie (that was quiet good, at least first game, but even in assistance off mode it was nowhere near sim). Another good, old and respected serie going down because someone is trying to make a mainstream console game. Sad.
29/02/2012 at 17:58 Joshua says:
Consoles in combination with “No chance for a sim?”
I think Birds of Prey / Wings of Prey begs to differ, since it has quite a bit of simmy stuff going for it.
29/02/2012 at 18:14 Echo Black says:
Wings of Prey would be an extremely light, arcade “sim”. I’m trying to imagine something like DCS AC-10 Warthog or Black Shark being played on a console and it’s just not working. Over 150 commands!
29/02/2012 at 17:42 RogB says:
got excited at the name, then watched the video
looks like a budget PS2 game. :(
29/02/2012 at 18:22 Nero says:
Not a big history with flight sims but it’s still sad to see this new trailer. The sim I spent the most time with was Super EF2000, could barely land the planes though :(
29/02/2012 at 19:05 molten_tofu says:
Third person view with HUD? Nope, no thanks.
29/02/2012 at 19:11 kzrkp says:
Why are sims taboo in mainstream games, anymore? Did people abruptly get stupider in recent history?
29/02/2012 at 19:16 DennisK4 says:
Yes
PC gamers used to dominate the scene and were a smart bunch. Then the consoles drew in a lot of ehh….not so…..techy?…people to gaming and now thats where the big bucks are.
But flight sims are still being made they just don’t get much attention from the media which is almost exclusively aimed at those other gamers.
29/02/2012 at 20:02 Gary W says:
Maybe
However, the flight sim eventually disappeared up its own meticulously-riveted posterior and lost its sense of fun. Ironically, Strike Commander, Crimson Skies and
OpFlashArmA: CWA are the best games with (terrestrial) flight in them.29/02/2012 at 20:24 kzrkp says:
Crimson Skies! Now there’s something that needs revisiting! I’m not sure if it even runs properly on windows 7.
Related, Research Indicates doing a Crimson Skies let’s play that I need to sit down and continue watching. http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL53A77D6A7A1EE2B1&feature=plcp
29/02/2012 at 19:45 mingbu says:
http://ppt.cc/7mA7
29/02/2012 at 19:52 buzzmong says:
A Jane’s game that’s not a sim?
Oh :(
29/02/2012 at 21:40 jonfitt says:
I was always more of a DID and Digital Integration fan. But it’s sad to see the once mighty Jane’s turn to this arcade nonsense.
Health bars, recharging missiles…
29/02/2012 at 21:50 MistyMike says:
Why is this game named after a girl? I thought jet fighter sims are for boys.
29/02/2012 at 22:00 jonfitt says:
Some boys have girl’s names.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1BJfDvSITY
29/02/2012 at 22:11 MistyMike says:
So this was named after a boy named Jane who became a fighter pilot to prove that he was a real man?
01/03/2012 at 11:24 Shadowcat says:
jonfitt: Try this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ekaa5GtHipE
29/02/2012 at 22:18 Eater Of Cheese says:
The story is incorrect. This game was not developed by Evolved, it was developed by Trickstar, which once was another game studio that made quite a few air combat games – Heroes over Europe, Heatseeker, Heroes of the Pacific.
Good old facts and games journalism…
EDIT: Craig is clearly a horrible person (forgot to mention this in original post, but Craig pointed it out. Thanks!)
29/02/2012 at 22:47 Craig Pearson says:
Oh dear, I managed to get a publisher and developer muddled. I must be a horrible person
29/02/2012 at 22:48 TCM says:
You have no journalistic integrity because you are a games journalist. Everything you say is wrong by default unless you absolutely line up with every fact AND agree with my opinions.
29/02/2012 at 22:49 TCM says:
Unless my opinions don’t line up with the facts, in which case, my opinions take priority.
29/02/2012 at 22:50 Unaco says:
I don’t think he’s calling you a horrible person Craig, just a horrible games journalist. So… yeah. It’s not that bad.
29/02/2012 at 23:06 Craig Pearson says:
You think? Phew!
29/02/2012 at 22:29 Discopanda says:
Jane’s WWII fighters was my favorite as a youngster. Hopefully they bring back the WWII planes!
02/03/2012 at 06:28 Corrupt_Tiki says:
But we already have IL-2 Cliffs of Dover?
01/03/2012 at 00:16 rockman29 says:
What the hell is this crap. I was expecting some simulation like my favourite F22 Lightning 3… failll…
Oh well… there’s always Lock On: Flaming Cliffs 2 to play now :-)
Though I still miss the mesmerizing Jane series for which I always relished in not know what the hell to do and always feeling like there’s was something more to experience :-)
01/03/2012 at 06:51 Shadowcat says:
It’s perhaps worth remembering that the “Jane’s Combat Simulations” brand was not always focussed on realism.
The titles ranged all the way from the “sim-lite” approach of the U.S. Navy Fighters series (culminating in Fighters Anthology), all the way up to the hard-core detail of F/A-18, and there was plenty in between.
Now granted, I didn’t even see a cockpit in that new trailer, so one suspects they’re not even pretending with this one, but you could say it’s just another point on the sliding scale.
01/03/2012 at 08:00 siegarettes says:
I keeping seeing these titles at my local used bookstore and the logo always throws me of for a bit and makes me think that it’s Jet Set Radio Future on the PC do to the similar font. Then I come to my senses and cry a little.
I think its made me resent this series a little.
01/03/2012 at 08:06 propjoe says:
I had literally the same thought about the Jane’s name when I was younger. And given that I’ve barely thought about the franchise since its heyday, I was actually under that impression until about five minutes ago. Anyway, learning the truth has been incredibly disappointing.
01/03/2012 at 09:05 max pain says:
Weren’t Jane’s games on the sim side in the good ol’ days?
01/03/2012 at 19:31 disperse says:
CHAFF! CHAFF!
CHAFF! CHAFF!
CHAFF! CHAFF!
01/03/2012 at 22:53 cassus says:
Man, I wish I was 11 again.. This would have blown my mind, probably… I was a pretty dumb child.