Rating: 
Summary: Extremely demanding sim - needs training module!!
Review: "Jane's F/A-18" is one of the most challenging and complex military flight-sims around these days - rivaling "Falcon 4.0" and "Flanker 2" in that respect. Here you get to fly the F-18E, the newest version of the Hornet (distinguished by its larger size and square intakes), one that takes the can-do capability of older F/A-18C's and ups everything up a notch. This sim is no mid-level game - certainly nothing like other Jane's "Fighters" titles (ATF, IAF, USNF '97), and being much closer to the superb but daunting "Jane's F-15". Here, you will manage the F-18E's mind boggling array of avionics and weapons. Did you think that the "multi" in multi-mode radar means that you can scan both air and ground targets? Forget it - in counter-air alone, you'll learn about ACQ, Track-While-Scan and RWS modes (and there's probably at least one more). The sensor suite alone requires a tutorial that will keep you occupied long after your dream computer is overtaken by the latest Pentium. Then there's the opposition: I may just be a novice, but those MiGs know how to work in hunter-killer teams, and since this is a Jane's game, your enemy will fire at you like you're their only enemy (boys! boys! save some SAMs for China!!). Then there's the game's ace-in-the-whole, the F/A-18E itself. Visually, the machine's a stunner in every way (I'm talking about its graphical representation; I don't think the real plane is all that pretty), both inside and out. To match its complex avionics, the jet is blessed with an almost completely click-functional flight panel. On the outside, you can almost smell that sheen of gull-gray paint (as on Falcon 4, you can customize your jet's skins). Handling wise, the F-18 here reveals the extent of the game's hardcore realism: if you came of age playing flight-sims of easily maneuverable fighter jets, keep away: Jane's F-18 is no easy performer. Instead, lose airspeed, and you nimble jet will become as agile as a UPS truck with wings. Think you're flying straight and level just because your jet's nose is right on the horizon? Not a chance - in this game, you're either about to get holed up by a missile or pancake right into the ground. Think you can defeat enemy MiGs using the old banking-turn? No way, you're not safe using that maneuver. You're never safe in this game. This is flight simulation with an accent on "flight". And let's not forget that you'll spend a fair amount of time on this game learning to grease your wonder-plane onto stretch of runway about as long as a football field from a speed of about 180 knots (if you really needed to be reminded that a game about F-18's will require you to land on aircraft carriers, it's only one more sign that this is really not for you). If F-18, has one realism lapse it's one inherited from "Jane's F-15" - there's no training module! You get the expected "instant action", "single missions", "campaign" and "multi-player" with which you and your high-tech nightmare plane can burn up the sky, but nothing beside a few basic combat missions designed to teach you how to fly and fight your plane. We're supposed to learn as we go in the single missions, on the idea that they are simulations - but why remind us that the whole game is a simulation?. They could have had you fly "real" flights that were designed as training hops (like the paper targets in "Iron Eagle" or against drone planes or in gunnery missions against towed banners) in F-18's with training skins (high-vis colors on wing tips). That way, there could have been a dynamite training module which would have reinforced the game's otherwise winning brand of verisimilitude. It's just annoying that Jane's went to the trouble of crafting a truly deep and detailed flight-sim, and gave it nothing better to do than blow everything up. Graphically, the rest of the game is beautiful - especially the flaming effects of missiles and destroyed airplanes. Ground terrain is nice, but not spectacular, while the upper atmosphere looks tantalizingly beautiful. While F-18 fits the same genre of extreme flight-sim occupied by Flanker2 and Falcon4 (which came out at about the same time), OpenGL graphics accelerator support sets Jane's game apart from those other ganmes which only really come alive under the older "Glide" system used on 3DFx graphics cards (Falcon will fly on my system, but not in Graphics Hardware Acceleration mode). I "flew" this game on my Win XP Pentium4 and eventually overcame WinXP compatibility problems (XP users will need to find a patch file first). Both this and Falcon 4 are worthwhile games - though the other game suffers for its slavish adherence to 3DFx cards. Also, Falcon has spawned a larger cult following than Jane's F/A-18, which means much more meaningful 3rd party files on the internet. Still, the thrill of naval aviation (and OpenGL) are enough to keep this reviewer's attention. I don't recommend you buy both programs (you'll have your hands full trying to master one of them), only that you see what your graphics accelerator is, and choose accordingly. For owners of GeForce or other cards using OpenGL, the choice is clear - "Jane's F/A-18".
Rating:
Summary: Extremely demanding sim - needs training module!!
Review: "Jane's F/A-18" is one of the most challenging and complex military flight-sims around these days - rivaling "Falcon 4.0" and "Flanker 2" in that respect. Here you get to fly the F-18E, the newest version of the Hornet (distinguished by its larger size and square intakes), one that takes the can-do capability of older F/A-18C's and ups everything up a notch. This sim is no mid-level game - certainly nothing like other Jane's "Fighters" titles (ATF, IAF, USNF '97), and being much closer to the superb but daunting "Jane's F-15". Here, you will manage the F-18E's mind boggling array of avionics and weapons. Did you think that the "multi" in multi-mode radar means that you can scan both air and ground targets? Forget it - in counter-air alone, you'll learn about ACQ, Track-While-Scan and RWS modes (and there's probably at least one more). The sensor suite alone requires a tutorial that will keep you occupied long after your dream computer is overtaken by the latest Pentium. Then there's the opposition: I may just be a novice, but those MiGs know how to work in hunter-killer teams, and since this is a Jane's game, your enemy will fire at you like you're their only enemy (boys! boys! save some SAMs for China!!). Then there's the game's ace-in-the-whole, the F/A-18E itself. Visually, the machine's a stunner in every way (I'm talking about its graphical representation; I don't think the real plane is all that pretty), both inside and out. To match its complex avionics, the jet is blessed with an almost completely click-functional flight panel. On the outside, you can almost smell that sheen of gull-gray paint (as on Falcon 4, you can customize your jet's skins). Handling wise, the F-18 here reveals the extent of the game's hardcore realism: if you came of age playing flight-sims of easily maneuverable fighter jets, keep away: Jane's F-18 is no easy performer. Instead, lose airspeed, and you nimble jet will become as agile as a UPS truck with wings. Think you're flying straight and level just because your jet's nose is right on the horizon? Not a chance - in this game, you're either about to get holed up by a missile or pancake right into the ground. Think you can defeat enemy MiGs using the old banking-turn? No way, you're not safe using that maneuver. You're never safe in this game. This is flight simulation with an accent on "flight". And let's not forget that you'll spend a fair amount of time on this game learning to grease your wonder-plane onto stretch of runway about as long as a football field from a speed of about 180 knots (if you really needed to be reminded that a game about F-18's will require you to land on aircraft carriers, it's only one more sign that this is really not for you). If F-18, has one realism lapse it's one inherited from "Jane's F-15" - there's no training module! You get the expected "instant action", "single missions", "campaign" and "multi-player" with which you and your high-tech nightmare plane can burn up the sky, but nothing beside a few basic combat missions designed to teach you how to fly and fight your plane. We're supposed to learn as we go in the single missions, on the idea that they are simulations - but why remind us that the whole game is a simulation?. They could have had you fly "real" flights that were designed as training hops (like the paper targets in "Iron Eagle" or against drone planes or in gunnery missions against towed banners) in F-18's with training skins (high-vis colors on wing tips). That way, there could have been a dynamite training module which would have reinforced the game's otherwise winning brand of verisimilitude. It's just annoying that Jane's went to the trouble of crafting a truly deep and detailed flight-sim, and gave it nothing better to do than blow everything up. Graphically, the rest of the game is beautiful - especially the flaming effects of missiles and destroyed airplanes. Ground terrain is nice, but not spectacular, while the upper atmosphere looks tantalizingly beautiful. While F-18 fits the same genre of extreme flight-sim occupied by Flanker2 and Falcon4 (which came out at about the same time), OpenGL graphics accelerator support sets Jane's game apart from those other ganmes which only really come alive under the older "Glide" system used on 3DFx graphics cards (Falcon will fly on my system, but not in Graphics Hardware Acceleration mode). I "flew" this game on my Win XP Pentium4 and eventually overcame WinXP compatibility problems (XP users will need to find a patch file first). Both this and Falcon 4 are worthwhile games - though the other game suffers for its slavish adherence to 3DFx cards. Also, Falcon has spawned a larger cult following than Jane's F/A-18, which means much more meaningful 3rd party files on the internet. Still, the thrill of naval aviation (and OpenGL) are enough to keep this reviewer's attention. I don't recommend you buy both programs (you'll have your hands full trying to master one of them), only that you see what your graphics accelerator is, and choose accordingly. For owners of GeForce or other cards using OpenGL, the choice is clear - "Jane's F/A-18".
Rating: 
Summary: A Step Backwards?
Review: After playing FA/18, I expected to see an awesome addition to the excellence achieved by USAF. FA/18 doesn't come close. The graphics seem to be equal to some shareware products, compared to USAF, and the game doesn't capture the feeling of realism that USAF did. I guess if it had come out before USAF, it probably would have impressed me more. It appears to be F15 reincarnated, staged in a different theatre. The carrier take offs and landings are ok, but even the older Microprose F14 Fleet defenders' carrier activity appeared more exciting. It's definately not what I expected to take the stage after USAF. I was somewhat of a disappointed to me. If you're just dying to catapult from a carrier, at least wait several months, this way you can pick it up in a clearance bin for $19.99.
Rating: 
Summary: BUCKLE YOUR SEAT BELTS
Review: BEING A VETERAN OF THE UNITED STATES MILITARY, MOST SIM'S WE GET OUR HANDS ON JUST AREN'T REAL, FAKE LOOKING MORE GAME THEN SIM, BUT JANE'S INFROMATION GROUP AND ELECTRONIC ARTS HAVE PUT TOGETHER ONE OF THE BEST, IF NOT THE BEST SIM THAT I HAVE EVER PLAYED. THE WORLD OF F/A 18 IS SO REAL FROM THE USE OF THE ATFLIR TARGETING POD, TO THE NIRD(NORMALIZED IN RANGE DIPSLY) FOR THE LAUNCH OF A AMRAAM MISSLIE. THIS GAME USES THE MOST ACCURATE REPORTS OF THE DAY, AND PUT'S IT ALL TOGETHER IN A 3-D REAL TIME REAL WORLD PACKAGE THE AIMS TO PLEASE. SO IF YOU LIKE FLIGHT SIMS BE PREPAIRED FOR THE RIDE OF YOU LIFE AS YOU KEEP YOUR ANGLE OF ATTACK IN THE YELLOW, LOWER YOUR FLAPS, CUT YOUR SPEED, DROP YOUR GEAR, AND LINE UP FOR THE 3 POINT SCORE WITH E/A'S/JANE'S F/A/ 18!
Rating: 
Summary: DO NOT GET IT
Review: Do not get f/A-18. The views are all stupid. The grapics Are very Bad. IF you want to get a High quality game Get U.S. Air Force better known as USAF
Rating: 
Summary: below Jane's standards
Review: Expected more from this title; being spoiled be the previous Jane's releases /my most favorite sim is probably Jane's WW2 Fighters/. I just can't believe that they slightly re-polished their 4 years old F-15, removed Glide support, and put it on the market with words "the next generation graphics" on the box; that's pretty deceiving at best. Graphics are very tired, with exception of some atmospheric effects and storms. Explosions are far below average, 3D objects modeling /with exception of your F-18/ is very simple. There comes the question; how come that with such a poor graphics the game crawls even on relatively fast machines /heard about guys with PIII600's and Athlon 700's having problems/much exceeding Jane's recommended setup, not mentioning required one ? Probably just bad code, which is not optimized enough. You're in hardware 3D, but it seems like you almost do a poor software rendering instead. So you'll end up with choppy gameplay and miserable visuals at max. resolution 1024*768. Color depth is not selectable, and is obviously average 16-bit. But there are not many colors in the game anyway, so you don't have to worry about that part. The game can be choppy in lower res as well, so it's no need to run anything less than max res and max detail. This is definitely not a way to go in the year 2000. Positive stuff: Weapons systems and avionics are accurate, with many sub-menus, a lot to learn and to play with, but don't expect much help from the thin manual /to have Falcon4 manual on your desk can be handy here, since systems operate similarly/. There is a decent scenario editor available in the game as well. Overall atmosphere is, surprisingly, pretty OK , I guess it corresponds with that part of the world by Murmansk, Northern Russia. Also, the game didn't lock up or freeze once, and missions load time is very short /since there isn't much to load really/. Hopefully Jane's will release another patch /1.01F is out now/, addressing at least the framerate problem. Until then, unless you have a very fast PC, would recommend to stay away from. Tested on well tuned PII-400MHz/128MB RAM/AGP ViperV770 TNT2-32MB. /Jane's recommends P350/64megs/16megs 3D card/.
Rating:
Summary: BEATS USAF, FALCON 4.0, AND ALL OTHERS HANDS DOWN!
Review: Falcon is a great game, but way too many crashes and bugs...my copy finally found the trash. And USAF is fun, if you don't mind sacrificing realism and detail for ease of play. Jane's F/A-18 has stability, blazing graphics and gameplay, and realism with detail beyond compare. It does everything other flight sims try to do, and puts it all in a finished, well rounded package. The manual is well written, although the use of a few of the weapons could have been expanded on. Online training missions have filled that need. FA/18's graphics equal and sometimes surpass Falcon's. The 3-D cloud, weather, and lighting effects are groundbreaking. Try dropping out of a 7000 foot stormcloud ceiling, watching the mist dissipate around you and lightning flash in all directions...see the glow of your afterburners from behind and watch your left side light up as you fire an AIM-120 to pierce through the darkness, winding it's way to an unsuspecting MIG-27. After the orange fireball plunges into the cold water, turn and head towards your carrier group. As you break through a low layer of spotty clouds, you see your carrier cutting through the shimmering moon-lit sea. You know your biggest challenge is yet to come...catching the tailhook of your 45,000 pound fighter on one of four wires, while your flight deck rocks and sways in the choppy waters. Communications realism is incredible, including dozens of commands that can be given to your wingman, section, division, or entire flight. Direct a few squadron members out front to take out enemy SAM sites or AAA, clearing the way for you and your wingman to deliver the strike while another section provides air cover. Contact AWACS to request information on enemy group locations and bearings. Unlike many flight sims, in Jane's your AI planes will do what you tell them, without crashing into the ground or performing unexplained maneuvers. Weapons are also modeled with excellent realism, and there are many to choose from: Laser guided bombs, GPS guided munitions, stand off lond distance weapons, anti-personnel, anti-armor, and several versions of the AIM-120, AIM-7 Sparrow, and Sidewinder series. Go into custom arming and pick a predefined loadout or load each of the ! eleven! weapon stations individually. Use data link pods, FLIR targeting pods (forward looking infrared), air launched decoys, or just pickle a "dumb bomb" by planting the crosshairs on your target. Launch the harpoon anti-ship missile after choosing options such as flight profile and skim or pop-up final attack. I've heard complaints about the virtual cockpit and lack of 2-D cockpit. Personally, I never play any sim using the 2-D cockpit, as you can't swivel your "virtual head" to see what is to the sides or behind you. So while Falcon's 2-D cockpit is a bit prettier, F/A-18's virtual cockpit beats Falcon's virtual and works very well. I'll take functionality over beauty any day. Many missions available online complement the great ones included. You'll also find training missions and add-ons like custom cockpits and aircraft skins online. This is the best fighter simulation available this year! F/A-18 isn't good at one thing...it's great at everything. I run it on a PIII450 with 96MB RAM and a Viper550 graphics card and it runs very smooth at full detail. If you have a decent system that can handle other simulations of this quality, you will not be disappointed. I've flown F-15, and this blows it away.
Rating:
Summary: Not up to Jane's usually high standards.....................
Review: I had expected something that would be on par with Longbow 2, F-15, and possibly Falcon 4.0. But, I think this product still has a long way to go. The cockpit detail doesn't even come close to Falcon 4.0, the documentation is incomplete, and the training missions are really poor. Basically, you are told what 2 or 3 keystrokes to do to get an air-air or air-ground kill and then you are finished with the training mission. Then, you are told what further things you can do with a "did you know...." screen after you exit the training mission. But, you are not told how to use some of the more advanced avionics features. In fact, you really have to dig through the very small manual to find out how to use the avionics equipment, and even then you may not find what you need. I hope that Jane's is working on a patch real soon, because it is definitely not state-of-the-art and is definitely not for the hard-core flight sim fan. Shame on you, Jane's, you have sold out to the marketing suits.
Rating:
Summary: Splendid
Review: I have to disagree with all the negative comments and reviews. This product truely out performs any sim I have encountered so far. This ranges from the Microsoft products up to Jane's Combat Simulations. No crashes or so many upsetting bugs as in Falcon 4.0 or FS-2000 Professional. Superb 3D graphics, avionics utterly realistic created, and too many numerous other new features. As a dedicated flight simmer, I will give this product a definite 5/5.
Rating:
Summary: F/A-18 not what I expected...
Review: I preordered this game a long time ago, just after I purchased USAF. I expected a simmilar kind of simulation, one like USAF but spiced up. People have to know this is more of a real f-18 simulator simulation, I mean the real thing. It's very complicated. Once you get the hang of it you will start liking it. I was disapointed with the graphics. I have a K6II 400 mhz and it doesn't run smoothly.
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