From: hchong@netcom.com (Hoi Chong)
Subject: Comanche is GREAT! (if you have the right hardware) 
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1992 05:07:36 GMT

First off, I have already posted 1st-Look, which mention some
prelimary stuff about the game, like required 4meg of RAM, etc,
so I will not go thru them again.

I have played the game during the weekend, and have decided that
IMHO it is the best chopper simulation, even best simulation game
ever (again, if you have the right hardware). 

Usually you deal with only 2-D in a simulation game where obsticles 
are concerned.  This one is 3-D!  Go between 2 mountains, tight valleys,
hid behind big rocks before exposing yourself to shoot the enemy, etc.
You have to try it to believe it. (if you have the right hardware).

Sure, the enemies are easy to shoot (unless your hellfire laser sight
get blocked by some big boulder), but flying the chopper alone, 
avoiding the terrain (actually doing terrain-following manually)
takes away most all your concentration.  (G*d helps you if you have
to use the keyboard).  It is like a 3-D version of Space Invader, 
with the majority of your effort doing terrain-following (i.e. real
flying), and what little effort left doing shoot-em-up, if you have the
right hardware.  One thing though, ammo (hellfires and stingers) are 
limited, many times you have to resort to canon against enemy choppers,
and rockets against enemy tanks.

Terrain is very complex in Comanche.  Unlike in GS2000 where the terrain
is mostly flat with some mountain here and there, Comanche terrain are
mostly uneven, going up and down with few large-continuous-flat region
in most scenerios.  And unlike GS2000 mountain which has straight edges,
Comanche mountains and vellays are curve, jagged, rounded, whatever.
It is a comparison of digitized terrain (as digitized from the real 
world) for Comanche versus Synthesized mountain (as FM synthesizer) 
for GS2000 (SB digitized channel vs Adlib FM synthesized).  You have
to see it to believe (if you have the right hardware).  Hence, immediate
and intuitive controls are very important for the game. 

Joystick 
========

By now you are probably tired of my saying "if you have the right hardware".
There is a reason for saying that.  Terrain-following is so tedious, that
using keyboard for either of your hand makes it very hard.  So you will
need at least a joystick amongst others.  FCS (I have FCS Pro) is good,
but CH Flightstick is sufficient.  In fact, having FCS does not give you
any practical advantage over a CHFS.  

Yes the coolie-hat does work, but not the way it should be (like Aces).
When you let go of the hat after pushing it left, it does not return
to the front view, instead you have to explicitly push forward to get
the front view.  But that is inmaterial since I seldom, if ever, use
the hat (I am through 60% of the training/mission).  The 3rd and 4th 
FCS button is used to control the tail-rotor, same functions performed
by the rudder/padel.  Anybody who can afford FCS can at least afford
a cheap $40 MAXX rudder/padel, if not the $150 full-size Rudder Control 
System from Thrastmaster.  What a waste!  They should have used the
3rd and 4th button for something else. 

WCS
===

WCS is defintely need for the other hand to control the collective.  Good
thing is that any WCS will do, even the earliest ones since the setting
used by Comanche is 1-turned-in, the-rest-off, dip-switch setting.  WCS
not only control the collective (up-and-down force of the chopper), but
also hardpoint selection -- six buttons for six hardpoints, no cycling
for weapon.  In fact, only 4 hardpoints, the other 2 select artilary
(very useful) and wingman targeting.  The 7th switch, the rocker switch,
allows you to zoom your top-down view (like radar but with terrain 
features clearly shown) in and out.

Rudder/Padel
============

* when I say rudder, I mean the tail-rotor, rudder just make it shorter

If you have the money, the Rudder Control System ($150 direct from 
Thrustmaster) is a must.  If not, go get a $40 MAXX rudder, it is better
than nothing.  You can use the 3rd and 4th button of FCS to do rudder,
but many times you have to react so quickly to avoid slaming into the
mountain side, that rudder/padel is the only way to go.  Forget about
keyboard.

486/CONFIG.SYS
==============

You really need a fast machine for this deal.  My 486-25 works good,
but I wish it was faster.  I don't know how a 386-20 will go, but I
think it will be pretty bad.  Yes, 286 will not do however fast, since
Comanche uses 32-bit instruction set.

You cannot use QEMM, which would sends the computer into virtual 86 mode. 
Comanche needs to be in native 386 mode to use 32-bit instruction set.
Do not use EMM also, as it will slow down the game quite a bit.  You
will need XMS to use the upper 3+ meg of RAM for the game.

Conclusion
==========

486-50, FCS Pro, WCS (and 2 D-clamps to hold them to the table), RCS,
good size screen, 4meg DRAM, 10meg of disk space, SB card with good
speakers, you are set.  

With simple menu (no weapons selection, no complicated mission selection,
etc), and simple enemies (no take-an-atomic-bomb-and-still-not-a-scratch
enemy), the game is even playable by simulation beginners, if you have
the right hardware. 

p.s.
You cannot say that since the enemy is not very smart, you simply fly
high and shoot them from up there.  First, the chopper cannot fly very
high (unlike GS2000).  You have to virtually hug the terrain when climbing
mountain at a slower pace to get up high.  Also, many times the enemy 
hide behind near-straight vertical drop, which means you have to be 
practically ontop of them to train your optics on them if you wanna to
shoot from up high. 

Many times I trained my laser sight on a tank, and fire a hellfire 
(which requires the laser to guide it to the target continously), and
half way the tank either go behind a tree, or I drop the collective
too much and let my chopper dip behind a cliff blocking the laser.
The hellfire was lose. 

Also, the respone is quite realistic, with short delays between your
stick and actual reaction from the chopper.