There have been 250 developer diary updates for the IL-2: Great Battle Series since the first diary in December of 2012. That’s how long the 1CGS team has been keeping this diary going! This week brings some news on the development of the next patch, 4.006, which may be out sooner than you expect. We also get some drop dead gorgeous screenshots for the Yak-9T and a new pilot model. Let’s have a look!

Patch 4.006 is just around the corner

IL-2’s next patch is just around the corner with Han’s update today indicating that the patch is just 2-3 weeks out. It will likely have several updates but it will also have some notable new pieces of content including the Su-152 tank, the Yak-9 and the Yak-9T!

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It will also feature the new deferred shading system that has been detailed in recent weeks.

The new deferred shader will make bare metal aircraft like the P-51D have a slightly more matte appearance while maintaining that characteristic metallic sheen. It also enables cockpit gauges to have realistic light reflection and for cockpit canopies to have realistic reflections of the cockpits interiors.

First images of the Yak-9T in-engine

We’ve seen a few development images but these are the first of the Yak-9T in the IL-2: Great Battles engine and it looks superb.

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I’m not sure if its the texture work, the deferred shading system, or some combination of the two but the exterior texture detail here is outstanding.

The Yak-9T (Series 1) is a modification of earlier Yak-9 fighters with the biggest differences being the NS-37 cannon, a rapid firing 37mm cannon, and the cockpit that has been moved back to accommodate the cannon. The Yak-9T, despite the increase in firepower, saw only a small increase in weight and essentially performed essentially the same as the Yak-9.

The NS-37mm gave the Yak-9T a powerful anti-bomber weapon and the high fire rate made it suitable for attacking fighters as well. It was also flexible enough to be used against ships and even some tanks – although the primary purpose of putting the larger cannon in was to destroy enemy aircraft more quickly.

2,748 Yak-9T’s were produced making it one of the most produced Yak-9 sub types and the fighter saw service from middle-late 1943 through to the end of the war. After I got into IL-2: 1946, the Yak series become one of my favourites and it was often a toss-up between the Yak-1B, Yak-9 and Yak-9T in the mid war time period. I’m glad that we’re getting those in the Great Battles Series and I’m thrilled that it looks so good!

New German pilot

1CGS also also taken the wraps off of a new German pilot model for the series. This pilot model will be used for 1941-1943 on the eastern front. It’s not slated for 4.006 but it will be coming soon after according to the dev diary.

This pilot model joins the other examples we saw a couple of weeks ago with a new Soviet pilot model also in the works. These are both going to help upgrade the look of the earlier IL-2 series… and once again reminds us that 1CGS not only updates the latest content but they also do a pretty good job of updating older content too which keeps them current.

Read the rest

For the rest of the updates check out the latest IL-2 Developer Diary and go to the 250th update. Quite an achievement!