Macross Plus Project

Greetings fellow gamers and aviators!

First thing's first, I am a veteran, gamer, and fledgling mod maker. I stumbled onto DCS through watching the Grim Reapers and then Growling Sidewinder. It was GS's channel that convinced me to take the plunge and I am ever so glad I did. I've been enjoying both FC3 and the nothing short of incredible F/A-18C module.

It was when I was watching GS's F-14 vs. F-22 video that an old idea of mine popped back into my head. I've always been a huge fan of Robotech. I was still in elementary school (5th grade I believe) when Harmony Gold brought that show to the states. I recall that it came on at 3:30 PM and required me to flat out run from school to my front door in order to catch it. It was the first cartoon that had an interracial couple:

And was the first cartoon that made death a real outcome for some of its heroes:

It blew my mind, to say the least.

Now, I fully realize that DCS is a serious affair. Seeing the commitment and dedication involved by the team at Eagle Dynamics, to it's 3rd party affiliates, and the community as a whole, I know science fiction could be viewed as being childish or disrespectful towards the platform. However, there has always been a part of me that is called by the fantastic, the impossible, and the epic. With that, here's what I'm in the process of doing:

The Macross Plus Project.

For those unfamiliar with the material, Macross Plus is a four part animated miniseries that aired in 1994 thru 1995. The basic story is kinda off the walls, like anime usually is, and revolves around four primary characters, three of which have been friends since childhood:

Isamu Dyson - the protagonist of the story, a hot headed combat pilot sent to New Edwards to participate in a head-to-head test program for UN SPACEY's next generation fighter. Dyson pilots the YF-19 Excalibur:

Guld Bowman - a half alien, half human test pilot and one of the antagonists of the story. He and Isamu grew up together, but due to some falling out that happened in their youth have become bitter rivals. Bowman is the test pilot for the YF-21 Sturmvogel, a highly experimental aircraft that uses a direct link to the pilot's brain instead of a traditional scheme.

Myung Lone - the love interest in the show. She has been Isamu and Guld's friend since childhood and a singer by trade.

Sharon Apple - a psychotic artificial intelligence that ends up being the shows primary villain.

What I enjoyed most about the show was it's flight sequences and how powerful it's aircraft were portrayed. The YF-19 and YF-21 are both completely bananas in terms of flight performance. For example, the YF-19 has an alleged 13 to 1 thrust to weight ratio. I have no clue how that will translate in a simulator like DCS, but I know this is a potential platform where I can build, and fly, something I wish had been made into a game long ago.

The project will be separated into three primary phases with each phase broken into several sub-phases.

Phase 1 - The YF-19

I'm starting with the Excalibur as the first aircraft to build as a module for DCS. The intent is to start with a basic model of the aircraft, non-transformable of course, and develop its flight behavior to accurately and realistically reflect what is seen in the show. Realism you say? Yes, my hope is to provide a challenging aircraft to fly to the limits of its flight envelope. In the show, Isamu is considered a natural genius at flying; the test program at that point had gone through several pilots, with some even being killed while trying to tame the YF-19. This is a jet in the middle of its test program, the FCS software is still being debugged and there are still undiscovered problems that have yet to be settled. It shouldn't be uncontrollable, but it will require attention to pilot effectively.

The sub-phases include creation of a static cockpit, a RIO like second station, and possibly transformation capabilities (don't know if that's possible) are planned. Eventually, a fully clickable cockpit will be considered once the scope and level of effort to do so are determined.

Phase 2 - The YF-21

This will be essentially identical to the processes used to create the YF-19.

Phase 3 - New Edwards and the Macross Plus Campaign

Should the first two phases be successful, the third and final phase will be the re-creation of the New Edwards testing facility, along with two other maps, and creating a campaign that closely mirrors the events of the show but expand on the activities and roles the test pilots in this program would have likely engaged in.

Side note: I'm aware that map creation is not something ED hands out to just anyone. It does seem that DCS has become more open to mods as it matures and given that I am just one dude (and the dude has a family and job), my timeline for completing this is undefined. So, hopefully map creation is something ED opens up to the masses, or my skill in creating the first module allows me some latitude to do more. Regardless, phase 3 is a ways down the road; I'll cross that bridge when I get there.

That's all for now. I'll update this thread as things develop and I look forward to your critiques!

Not my cup of tea, I prefer to stay more realistic. But, you shouldn’t worry about it being disrespectful to the sim or anything like that. You love the game enough to make some mods that will make it even more enjoyable for yourself, and then share it for others to use. I say, even if I don’t really care for those mods in particular, that all our community mod makers are awesome and help make DCS what it is. Fear not, and good luck with your project!

(I might even give them a try!)

I am also a big fan of Robotech. Why don't you go with flatout Macross? F-14 or even F/A-18 is very similar to VF-1s. Just wondering, but I'll definitely keep an eye on your progress.

That's awesome. Macross plus and zero are the best macross movie i have ever seen

Hoping you could finished the project.

And i still remember in the FC2 or even early period , i have seen the FFR-31 mod from Sentou Yousei Yukikaze. but i haven't seen it anymore.......

What about start with some UN Spacy Tomcat skins, since it's easier to achieve and it was also part of Macross history?