Combat Flight Simulator 3: Battle For Europe - PC

Being an avid fan of WW II vintage aircraft, I have enjoyed playing and 'flying' CFS3 simulator. It has some great features which, quite honestly, are exceptionally realistic to me. One gets to fly any of many types of aircraft, from P-51's, Spitfires and ME109's to name just a few. The amount of time I have spent being entertained and amazed by this game is nothing short of spectacular! It is not without some annoying faults, however. One being the miserable simulation algorithms for the P-51; as programmed in CFS3, the airplane won't turn, won't climb and sounds like tired lawn mower. This should/could have been one of the stellar features of the game. Instead, it was botched by the programmers who dropped the ball completely on this. Another disturbing/annoying fault is the complete bias toward the British fighter planes and pilots -- not to take anything from these very brave and skillful aviators, mind you -- like their being able to shoot you down from every angle of flight including, out the butt end. Nonsense! Strange, as they are the only ones capable of performing such amazing feats, but, yet, manage to perform mid-air collision stunts at an alarming rate! I've yet to plow into an ME-109 in over 14,000 kills, but I am only too familiar with the tail end of a Tempest or Spitfire, even after dodging the fearsome and accurate fire-power comming out of said end of the aircraft! The P-80 and P-47 are also disappointing. One is left to wonder why, with such a lousy line-up of American built fighters (if one were to base one's opinions on the examples portrayed by CFS3), the war ended as it did, with the complete destruction of its adversaries. That said, however, I have found other aircraft within the CFS3 simulator that do perform quite nicely, namely, the British fighters. Really! And enjoy flying the British Vampire above all. Yes, I realize it is a jet that saw little if any action during the war, but it is, as programmed in the simulator, a heck of fighter! Fast, good manners -- albeit, not as nimble as some -- but with a set of cannons that really deliver the knock out punch with just a few rounds; unlike the wimpy firing power of the machine gun equipped fighters installed on ... yes, you guessed it, American fighters. Death by a thousand cuts/rounds never applied to the .50 cal guns of the period, if one were to believe the CFS3 models. Other faults that can be found, for which there are no cures, in spite of what Microsoft may say, is that the program often crashes even after installing the prescribed patches. Overall, CFS3 is a great bit of fun at a very affordable price. Honestly, I can't see how one would go wrong with this purchase.

I bought this for the sole purpose of playing Over Flanders Fields: Between Heaven and Hell, a World War I add-on for CFS3 available at [...]Despite some known glitches like incompatibility with virus software and jittering with dual core processors (fixed with an AMD dual processor patch) CFS3 was easy to install.CFS3 is good looking and fun to fly, but due to the limitations of the flight modeling it won't completely satisfy hard core sim pilots looking for the ultimate in WWII realism. For those wanting to add-on WWII planes, scenery, airfields, etc, there are numerous mods for CFS3 available at fan sites like [...] (you might try Mediterranean Air War or European Theatre of Operations).The Over Flanders Field: Between Heaven and Hell add-on is a fantastic addition to the game, and one of the few ways to engage in WWI era flight. The last great WWI flight sim was RedBaron3D, which never reached it's potential while Sierra/Dynamix was behind it. But over the years, a number of mods (Full Canvas Jacket, Western Front, Hell's Angels) made RB3D playable and more historically accurate. The authors of those mods have now taken CFS3 to unbelievable heights through OFF:BHAH, with high resolution scenery, 39 flyable aircraft, 3200+ historically accurate aircraft skins, the best campaign manager I've ever seen, etc., etc. The experience of flying a campaign in the OFF:BHAH world is simply incredible. As realistic as it gets.I have played dozens of flight sims and FPS games over the years, and have to say OFF:BHAH IS THE BEST MONEY I HAVE EVER SPENT ON A GAME!!!

Like "BirdDogICT", I also purchased this game for Over Flanders Fields, the World War I modification. Combat Flight Simulator 3 as a standalone game is a very disappointing experience. The flight model is very basic and simple, the landscape textures are very bland, and the dynamic campaign is tedious and boring. There is a decent variety of German, British, and American aircraft to choose from, but most of them handle in the same manner. However, I am being generous with my rating because once the game is transformed with Over Flanders Fields, you won't be disappointed that you decided to buy CFS3. If you're looking to buy a World War II flight simulator, then Il-2: 1946 is your best option.

not the same as original CFS. you can't just fly and practice take off and landings. pre flight selections are limited or this stuff is hidden. I know, "read the instruction manual." this version is not intuitive. still, it is fun and works well in WIN 8.1. graphics are much better than older version. well worth the money. had to buy this version because old version on 8.1 would not allow joy stick control. got new joy stick for this new version - logiteck extreme 3D pro JS. now I can fly, again. regards uncle ralphie.

I have the original Microsoft Battle for Europe Game, and love it. Even better is CFS2, Battle for the Pacific. This game is good, but I find it more complicated to use than CFS2. CFS2 built on CFS1, so it was easy to figure out the basic changes. This game has revamped the game completely, so the learning curve has been higher. I'm sure those who are game-savvy will have no trouble, though. But if you're an older gamer like myself, you may find it a bit more difficult to learn. But hey, for the price, give it a chance.

This game is still a great game, but the graphics are not very pleasing to the eye. Works better with a joystick than the keyboard. Using the joystick, I went into a serious dive, turned left to fast and the plane stalled. Great action in dogfights, but the graphics make it somewhat less than I expected. Played on Windows 7 with no problems.

I enjoy the program, although the graphics are not as clear as other Flight Simulator programs I have. I use Windows 7 Professional, and have gone through Options to run in Windows XP mode, to no avail. I will continue to check out some other options though. Ron

The games run perfectly, everything is fine, but the only issue is when pressing F12 which pops up a window with controls options of the airplane, which contain vital information such as emergency procedure in case engine stops, but in order to read you need to scroll down to continue reading, but it does not work scrolling down or either clikcing the arrows.

When I bought this product I thought it would be compatible with windows 7 and I could be able to use my Saitek controls to fly the plane. Does not work like that. Maybe it was my mistake and I did not understood the instructions/compatibility before buying it

Ok but needs up dating for smoother graphics.

Needed to buy CFS3 in order to install the excellent Wings Over Flanders Fields by OBD, which is a mod based on this game. Arrived quickly. I'll try the vanilla CFS3 later.