RAZBAM update: F-15E, TALON AI, and more!

2–3 minutes

Third party DCS World developer RAZBAM appears to be ramping up their promotion of their DCS: F-15E Strike Eagle module with a series of screenshots, an announcement about AI, and a promotional trailer.

Wait for it…

Recent updates coming from RAZBAM have given us our clearest indication yet that the F-15E Strike Eagle is almost ready to go. Near constant updates over the last several months have given us increasingly detailed examinations of the module. We’ve seen everything from radar, to IFF, to the jet’s various displays all up and running. Encouraging signs to be sure for what is sure to be a complex module to develop.

RAZBAM have just released a promotional trailer with the words “Coming Soon” at the end. It’s not a confirmation on a date but “2023: The year of the Strike Eagle” and the recent flurry of activity seem to suggest that we’re ramping up to it.

Check out these screenshots that have been released over the last few days showing off both cockpits and the exterior.

There’s also this video showing off all of the various liveries. And there are a lot of them!

Release appears close at hand now. I’m not certain if its months away or just weeks away but we’re getting there.

TALON AI

RAZBAM appear keen to tackle an issue that has come up over the course of the F-15E’s development – the lack of a backseat AI.

We now have a few modules released for DCS World with two-seater arrangements. Those include Heatblur’s F-14 Tomcat as well as Eagle Dynamics’ Mi-24P Hind and AH-64D Apache. Now, RAZBAM are talking about their own AI system that will eventually be a part of the DCS: F-15E.

In a tweet by RAZBAM CEO Ron Zambrano, we got an announcement that they would be introducing their own AI solution that they are calling Tactical Attack Lock On Navigation AI or TALON AI. In classic backronym form, TALON sounds cool but it also appears to be a strategic move as the AI was announced not only for the F-15E but other two seat aircraft they have in development such as the A-29B and the IA-58 Pucara.

We don’t know a lot about the system beyond the tweet but it is significant as a future update for the F-15E and for other two seat projects that are coming later on.

More news about TALON AI and the DCS: F-15E are likely to come up over the coming weeks and months. Stay tuned!

17 responses to “RAZBAM update: F-15E, TALON AI, and more!”

  1. CanadaOne Avatar
    CanadaOne

    Definitely some serious hype over this plane. I’ll still be surprised if it keeps to the pricing standards. $101.99Cdn for the top shelf planes on Steam now. I really think they’re going to tack on another $20. I don’t really mind that much but I’m curious to see if someone is going to jump that hurdle. Wasn’t there a MSFS airliner for about $150?

    In any case, I’m getting it. My kinda plane.

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. ShamrockOneFive Avatar
      ShamrockOneFive

      I hope that we don’t see any additional price inflation. DCS modules have already climbed in price some and $79.99 USD seems to be the standard now. That’s probably about right for what we get but I really hope it doesn’t climb beyond that.

      You may be thinking of the HotStart CL-650 is $114.95 USD. Most expensive individual package that I’ve seen. Some airliners are close rivals although MSFS has had some downward pressure on price due to higher sale numbers.

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    2. Urgent Siesta Avatar
      Urgent Siesta

      Funny, I was thinking much the same thing just yesterday. I think the smart thing to do (for Razbam) is to basically keep it from going on sale, and perhaps even cut the EA access percentage. That way they’re not “raising the price”, but they’re getting more money than normal.

      The PMDG 747-400 is US$140, and if you want the 747-8i, tack on another $70!
      FS Labs has rather similar pricing for their A320.

      I think the good news is that these modules have been priced this way for years, and we didn’t really see price increases across P3D as a result.

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      1. CanadaOne Avatar
        CanadaOne

        That’s $187.50 Cdn. for the PDMG 747. That’s a chunk o’ change. Add tax and you’re at $200+. Hard to believe they want that much for an FSX product.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. ShamrockOneFive Avatar
        ShamrockOneFive

        Yeah it’s way too much but as with a lot of things its all about “what the market will bear.” MSFS has caused PMDG to drop prices… both I think because their competition are undercutting them and because they are able to sell more copies at lower prices.

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  2. Blue 5 Avatar
    Blue 5

    1 aircraft vs. an entire GB module? I appreciate that they are different beasts, but that is quite the delta.

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    1. ShamrockOneFive Avatar
      ShamrockOneFive

      It’s quite a lot yes. IL-2 offers the best bang for the buck by far. Most of the X-Plane GA modules I’ve bought are $30 and offer quite a bit less than the $50-80 DCS modules.

      When you consider something like the F/A-18 comes with dozens of weapons all which need custom coding and avionics to integrate into the whole system and that weapons are just part of the constellation of features that have been coded. It’s pretty deep stuff and we pay for it.

      Liked by 1 person

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      1. Blue 5 Avatar
        Blue 5

        I see it as a meta for the wider aerospace industry: Outrageous costs for capabilities of questionable utility.

        Defence (-Industry) Costing Simulation

        LoL etc.

        Liked by 1 person

  3. boxcarleader Avatar
    boxcarleader

    Unfortunately that’s too rich for me and I would have preferred the C model more. I’m waiting for the Kiowa and the phantom I like the cold war stuff more less push button and more tactile

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    1. ShamrockOneFive Avatar
      ShamrockOneFive

      Pricing hasn’t changed on high end DCS modules for a few years now. Is the pricing a surprise? I would expect that the Phantom will probably command a similar price.

      ED has so far rebuffed any asks for an F-15C saying air superiority jets with no multi role capabilities wouldn’t sell well – I’m not sure I agree but that was the justification.

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      1. boxcarleader Avatar
        boxcarleader

        I’m fine with $79.99 and expect that price for F-4 but as posted higher up I would not be surprised if the F-15E is more that is what I s too rich and I’m with you full fidelity Air to air is the only way they really have left to go unless they are looking into heavy bombers or the F-111

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  4. Colin Coulter Avatar
    Colin Coulter

    Hang on. So there’s no back seat AI on release? It’s coming later? Can you fly and fight the strike eagle by swapping seats?

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    1. ShamrockOneFive Avatar
      ShamrockOneFive

      That’s correct. This has been known for a couple of years and the AI announcement is a bit of a turnaround.

      The F-15E is very different from the F-14. Controls are similar front and back so the pilot can do everything from the front seat like the Hornet or Viper. The extra position enhances effectiveness and splits the workload.

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  5. Fighter Guy Avatar
    Fighter Guy

    Looking forward to what RAZBAM is going to do with the Mudhen. Personally not all that interested in flying the Strike Eagle though, since DCS’ jamming and ECM environment is still very limited. 2023 seems to be a fundamental year for DCS and ED with many things finally coming into play that were long in the making and will change DCS significantly. The F-15E fits nicely with this background in my most humble opinion. Oh, and Happy New Year, Shamrock 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. ShamrockOneFive Avatar
      ShamrockOneFive

      Happy new year to you as well!

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  6. PHANTOM1 Avatar
    PHANTOM1

    Looks like a very cool module indeed! Normally would balk too at some of the pricing, but seeing the capabilities of the Strike Eagle, my cut off would probably be $100 USD rather than the usual $75 or so. Even then, I’ll look for it to drop to 55 or 60 on a sale.

    To each their own though as others would gladly drop that on the F14 (good in it’s own right), but what you’re paying for is ultimately the time it takes to really learn and use these jets. Still constantly learning and doing things the Viper and Hornet, but at least some of it is cross-translatable since once you know how the weapons systems work it’s just a matter of knowing how to access it in the MFD/AMPCD/HOTAS.

    Liked by 1 person

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  7. DCS: F-15E pre-order price and discount confirmed – Stormbirds Avatar
    DCS: F-15E pre-order price and discount confirmed – Stormbirds

    […] but is it likely to have every single feature? No, it seems unlikely. We know already that the team intend to introduce TALON AI to the product (and other future products) later on down the […]

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