1CGS is a persistent developer in their efforts to improve the state of the IL-2: Great Battles series and patch 4.501 is a testament to continually responding to issues that the community have brought forward. With patch 4.501 we see some big changes to the way spotting and visibility works in the sim. We also have a new free scripted campaign for the Tempest Mark V, new control updates for Tank Crew, and new 4K skins for two more aircraft. Start your updaters!

Spotting improved

The big change with this patch is spotting. There’s been a lot said about it recently so the bottom line is that 1CGS has tweaked and changed the way spotting works and it should be easier to see aircraft around you, particularly at wider field of view angles, than before. This is great news as spotting has historically been a challenging thing – way beyond anything that real pilots suggest is accurate.

Part of the update includes new haze features which can be dialed up and down in the quick mission and full mission builder. Mission files will need to be updated for your favourite campaigns.

‘Wind of Fury’ for Tempest Mark V

A free Scripted Campaign for owners of IL-2: Battle of Bodenplatte has arrived from 1CGS’ campaign maker Alexander =BlackSix= Timoshkov. This new campaign focuses on RNZAF 486 squadron and its fight through Europe from fall 1944 into the first day of 1945. I can’t wait to fly it!

There’s no official skin pack but if you want the RNZAF 486 squadron pack from community skin artists, one is available.

4K skins for P-39 and Bf109G-6

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Martin =ICDP= Catney continues his effort to upgrade every aircraft in the IL-2 series into crisp and sharp 4K textures. The two latest aircraft to benefit from this upgrade are the P-39L-1 and Bf109G-6. I can’t wait to check them out!

Joystick turret mode

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Tank Crew gets an update in this new patch as well with turret and gun control now possible from a joystick instead of being confined to mouse only. Fixed visor cameras are also part of the update.

The caption on the latest screenshots says “Final touches” which likely means that Tank Crew – Clash at Prokhorovka is closing in on being considered finished. It’s taken a long time but offers a unique experience within the sim. Now that it’s almost finished I am going to be taking another close look at it on the blog here and how it interacts with the rest of Great Battles.

Looking towards the next patch and beyond

There’s plenty of good stuff in this patch, however, there’s also much to look forward to. The Hurricane is finally expected to arrive in to the sim sometime in October if all goes well and the team is also working on G-modeling updates. We don’t know what those changes will do but it will be interesting to see what they can come up with.

More detailed modeling of fuel systems and the addition of fuel tanks into the sim is also coming sometime down the road (not necessarily October) and the developers have talked about that update being a necessity for another feature addition – incendiary and API style bullets.

Both coming soon and coming a little later… there’s lots to look forward to in addition to all of the great stuff that arrived today.