So is it worth $50?

So is it worth $50? In its current state.

Yes.

Yes. I only bought it because of the upcoming Tomcat, I'm not much of a jet jockey, but I was amazed how good it looked, great performance too. Probably the best ED module in terms of release state. It's breathtakingly beautiful.

Yes.

I'm also just a fan of supporting ED, because there development costs for things like the Hornet and the map are extremely high for our very niche market.

Yes.

Yes ! I got all 4 maps, and this is my favorite already. For several reason:

- it's gorgeous ! (well, at least if not more than the other)

- It run maybe smoother (because you know ...desert is simplier than trees to render)

- It gives a reason to overfly water (which only happens in normandy for some scenario)

- It is, with Caucasus, the only map with relevant modern era combat scenario !! and this is the biggest sellpoint for me. Because Red flag in NTTR is cool but ....you know you can only do so much "training missions" and russian aren't gonna invade Las vegas anytime soon. Same with Normandie, even with Brexit, Brits aren't gonna bomb france with harriers .

So, yes, worth every penny, plus with F14/ F18 and naval operations, this will be a new dawn for DCS for the next years, board the train ;-)

And for the couple of hours i spend both in air and in the editor, it works very well : AI / ATC/ Radio nav ..didn't encounter any bugs

By heroes, you mean, of course, posthumous recipients of MOH, Cross De'Guere, or Victoria's Cross.

Yes!

So is it worth $50? In its current state.

Hi,

It is the most definitely worth its price. To me, this terrain module marks a milestone in DCS terrain development and sets the quality bar high.

Things like city lighting and ground clutter rendering distance will improve over time I am sure.

The Normandy map, is a decent, albeit imperfect, substitute to Baltic Sea, Gulf Riga, and Denmark Straights scenario. As well as a littoral naval warfare, and naval air-ground environment. The austrere aviation infrastructure stands in for sparce , austere operational environment.

Regarding Nevada. If , possible, take time to visit (open to public) areas of NTTR, 29 Palms, Ft. Irwin(National Training Center), White Sands. Notice that region has topography similar to Afganistan, Pakistan, Central Asia, MidEast, North Africa, that is applicable to low, medium, and high intensity combined arms, air-ground, ground-air operations.

wargaming will always take imagination.

and I have been wargaming since carboard counters and lead figures. before computers.

the computers help. but you still need imagination.

if I can imagine a table top to be an alien world, then anyone can imagine any of the maps to be anywhere they like. with not nearly as much effort :)

So is it worth $50? In its current state.

Yes. Yes it is. very much so. No really. It is.

So is it worth $50? In its current state.

No it isn't. 50$ is a steal. It's worth much more than that. Why?

1. The level of detail is amazing. Number of custom buildings, size of the cities All of the small bits of pieces that make the map feel authentic. Just can't imagine the effort put into the map.

2. With the hudge cities like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bandar Abbas the performance is the best from all of current maps. And that’s already on the first release.

3. The region - Persian Gulf, the strait itself and its history is extremely interesting. The map can serve as a base for many immersive scenarios.

4. It has a good balance of ground and sea. Carrier groups will be right at home in PG map while they don't seem to fit the Black Sea map so well. If you're a Navy aviation fan this map is a must.

5. The map is absolutely not that small as most (including myself) used to think. Quite contrary, it’s quite big. As an example, I took off from Al Dhafra in M-2000C with an external fuel tank. Did a sightseeing tour along the shore line with a brake for a short fight with F-5. That was enough to arrive with almost a dry tanks in Khasab. So not even crossing the strait!

On Iranian side the Lar base makes for quite a long flight to the coast.

6. Its only going to get better as the map is confirmed to be extended.

Not that great things:

1. The release of PG map was too close to the F/A-18 which obviously overshadowed the release of the map.

2. Units needs an update. For instance there are almost no UAE units at the moment available in the mission editor.

Most of the static objects are tailored towards Caucasus. So creating a ground bunker results in a patch of grass in the middle of the desert.

This is being worked on however as I understand.

3. Some repetitive patterns in the secondary – sub-urban structures. In other words there are sections that look like copy/paste. I assume it’s going to be addressed with future updates.

4. Not so much content - which is obvious as the map just got released. There are however already quite many MP servers. When it comes for SP, at the moment the mission editor and your imaginaiton is your best friend ;)

(1) Fly over Dubai , topping 70-100 story skyscrapers

(2) as you approach the Burj Khalifa , enter a steep climbing turn

(3) Time how long it takes to top that big bad Burj .

Oh yeah , it's worth it .

The Normandy map, is a decent, albeit imperfect, substitute to Baltic Sea, Gulf Riga, and Denmark Straights scenario. As well as a littoral naval warfare, and naval air-ground environment. The austrere aviation infrastructure stands in for sparce , austere operational environment.

 

Regarding Nevada. If , possible, take time to visit (open to public) areas of NTTR, 29 Palms, Ft. Irwin(National Training Center), White Sands. Notice that region has topography similar to Afganistan, Pakistan, Central Asia, MidEast, North Africa, that is applicable to low, medium, and high intensity combined arms, air-ground, ground-air operations.

Also NTTR map is very easy on CPU and general computer resources so super-large scale missions are possible.

Not worth $50 imho. I was tremendously disappointed with it. Persian Gulf can't hold a candle to the Caucusus map. Much of the PG map feel unfinished. Not enough airfields and multiplayer will suck on this map, especially for moving ground units in Combined Arms across the water. Sure, one could argue that there are a few nice urban areas with pretty buildings, however, that's only a tiny percentage of the map. The rest resembles a massive big, brown, lumpy, sandy turd. Literally.

Worth every penny and then some. Even if it's not your favorite map, purchasing these products (should) help ensure future development. So, yes, I think the more we "help keep the lights on" the better it will always be for all of us here.

Not worth $50 imho. I was tremendously disappointed with it. Persian Gulf can't hold a candle to the Caucusus map. Much of the PG map feel unfinished. Not enough airfields and multiplayer will suck on this map, especially for moving ground units in Combined Arms across the water. Sure, one could argue that there are a few nice urban areas with pretty buildings, however, that's only a tiny percentage of the map. The rest resembles a massive big, brown, lumpy, sandy turd. Literally.

Wow, I couldn't disagree more! For me the cities are the low part in the map. Too much repetative suburbs for me. The canyons and mountains of Oman/Iran are spectacular. They've already stated that they're adding two new airfields in the center upper portion of Iran to the map. Central/western Iran also has a lot of smaller towns/settlements with a lot of greenery that don't show up on the map, I was pleasantly surprised when i saw those.

I would have been OK with more open flat desert spots but was surprised by a lot of gradually building mountains and canyons, home to settlements and the like. A lot more settlements than I expected, especially in Iran. (And not marked on the ME map!)

For me, this map has it all; An actual reason to traverse a body of water (Blue/Red side), strategically placed islands, mountainous areas for COIN or hiding from AWACS, short strips neccesitating lighter loadouts, large open parts of desert for simulating desert warfare.

These pics are all from central/western Iran, last pic shows where they were taken:

I was tremendously disappointed with it.

Well what did you expect? Glaciers? Have you ever seen photos of this area?

Yes, it's well worth the $50. A great map, just perfect for COIN stuff which is what I like to do most myself :thumbup:

I think it is absolutely worth it, I think this may be the first map we see a shift in multiplayer servers toward (might end up even with the black sea map).

Not worth $50 imho. I was tremendously disappointed with it. Persian Gulf can't hold a candle to the Caucusus map. Much of the PG map feel unfinished. Not enough airfields and multiplayer will suck on this map, especially for moving ground units in Combined Arms across the water. Sure, one could argue that there are a few nice urban areas with pretty buildings, however, that's only a tiny percentage of the map. The rest resembles a massive big, brown, lumpy, sandy turd. Literally.

I'm pretty much in the same boat as you.

And that's not even mentioning the unoptimized mess that is the PG map.

Don't even bother playing on it unless you have more than 16 gig of RAM. I have 16 gig RAM, and constantly crash.

Don't even bother playing on it unless you have more than 16 gig of RAM. I have 16 gig RAM, and constantly crash.

I have 16 gigs, haven't crashed while playing once.

I have 12 GB and never had any issues with that map.

And that's not even mentioning the unoptimized mess that is the PG map.

Simply not true. Havent had any issues with the map. Quite contrary I generally get better FPS on PG than on the other maps. Even comparing center of Vegass on NTTR and Dubai which obviously has much more objects the performance is better.

Yep, worth every penny! :D

Despite its in lack of content aka EA release I can say its worth it. Better FPS than Caucasus (on my system) and much more close to realife scenario. Oh one more thing its beautiful . Go for it