Addon Review: Case Blue / Fall Blau

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Addon Review: Case Blue / Fall Blau

Postby EURO_Snoopy on Tue Jul 12, 2005 10:58 am

Case Blue from Matrix Games

Review By Tsisqua

Case Blue is a pay addon, designed for The IL2 series of combat flight simulation games from Ubisoft/1C Maddox Games. The current full version is a merged installation of IL2 Forgotten Battles/Aces Expansion (official) /Pacific Fighters, and patched up to version 4.01. The addon deals with the German invasion, and subsequent takeover of the Crimean peninsula. Case Blue comes to us from Matrix Games, and is not an offical expansion, but rather a third party endeavor. With that in mind, it should be mentioned that there are many of these types of "addons" available for free. The mission building community at the Ubisoft IL2 forum have been creating nice campaigns and missions from the beginning of the series that include movie tracks, skins, and splash screens . . . none of which (except the movie tracks) will you find in Case Blue. There are, however, some very nice things about Case Blue that can make the buyer happy with the purchase.


Installation

Originally released as Fall Blau in Europe, Case Blue was re-released with an English translation, and mission files were converted to play from the perspective of a Russian pilot. The German missions are still there, also translated into English, and you may play as a German pilot as well (And you will want to! After all, This was designed primarily as a German addon). You will notice that once you begin installation all of the references to the game's name will be in german, Fall Blau. You will actually need to run three different installation .exe's, which is not a problem at all; Each installation .exe will launch automaticially as you finish the previous one. The first will create a Case Blue folder from which all of your installation files will launch. Once everything is installed it will contain an uninstall .exe in case you decide to remove Case Blue.

A nice bonus for those using force feedback technology: the last step of the installation is a set of force feedback profiles to add to the realism of your combat. In light of the lack of extras with Case Blue, this was a welcome addition to the expansion.


What's Inculuded, and Mission Content
Another bonus that I wasn't aware of when installing was that a free update with new campaigns had been included. Although the missions are not available as single missions, it is a very exciting addition to the gameplay. There are 6 German campaigns available (i.e. Russia-BF-110, Afrika-West Of El Banausi, 1941-1944, June 1942-1944, Stalingrad-August 1942-1944, and Operation Trappenjagd-May 1942-1944), 1 RAF campaign (Afrika West Of El Banausi), and 3 USAAF campaigns (West Of El Banausi in either the P-38, the P-47, or the P-51). This brings us to a staggering number of missions to complete, and is the clincher in the "is it worth the money" question for most enthusiasts.

Ok. All of the added goodies aside (i.e. movies, screens, skins . . . etc.), the most important part of an addon for this series is the actual content of the missions. Case Blue allows you to play any mission from the Luftwaffe or VVS side, in any order, or to play as a campaign, which is recomended. There are literally hundreds of missions included (350 German and 200 Russian), and historicity seems to have been a major priority.

If you like waiting on the tarmac for clearance to takeoff, then start with lowest rank. It gives you a chance to get a drink, say a prayer, or whatever while waiting. You may want to notice, though, that many of these missions are timed, and your mission will fail if you do not accomplish your goals soon enough. So, for that reason, it is suggested to start a campaign with highest rank.

The first five missions from the VVS side are flown in the I-16. The experience of simply taking off in this little fighter can be exhilerating. Don't underestimate what the I-16 is capable of; The Rata can down a 109 with ease once you are in firing position. All of the missions tested so far have been very consistent in their gameplay, and are fun. On the other hand, the free releases from the community are just as fun, but usually do not contain this many well thought out missions. It is truly apparent that many hours have been spent making Case Blue a fun gaming experience.

The main German campaign starts with a movie track that is the best night night battle that I have seen yet in the IL2 series. Once again, historicity has been a great prority for Matrix Games, and there is much learning here for us Westerners. Well planned, well researched, and tons of fun, this addon has much to teach us about this part of the war. It is also probably the one most important aspect of the IL2 series in general: that the player will learn something more than just how to down an enemy plane.

None of these missions are extremely long, thankfully, and most are less than an hour in length; usually 20 to 45 minutes. This means that the average IL2 fan can get in a couple of missions a day.


Worth The Price?
With so many missions, this means at least a good three months of gameplay for your $20.00, which is about what one would expect for that price. With the free update there seems to be something here for everyone who loves the IL2 series. If you have $20.00 US to spend on an addon you won't go wrong here.

This review complete with screenshots can be viewed on the main site: http://www.airwarfare.com/AWX/features/reviews/caseblue_review.htm
Last edited by EURO_Snoopy on Sat Aug 20, 2005 5:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby dieg777 on Thu Jul 14, 2005 9:24 am

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Postby ytareh on Wed Apr 12, 2006 11:29 pm

Definitely the best aftermarket add on in my opinion-at least up until recently-havent seen the very latest (PF based)ones yet...
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