Feb 20, 2021

Developer Diary #272 - Spitfire XIV, GAZ AAA Truck and Normandy Landmarks!

IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad - 777 Studios

272

Dear Friends,

Earlier this week we have published update 4.506 that brought the new aircraft for the Battle of Normandy and many important improvements, but the preparation of this update did not slow down our main development. Soon we'll be able to show the first teaser screenshots of the new map, while today we have for you several of the unique buildings that you'll see in the Normandy and Southern English coast cities - Royal Hospital Haslar (Gosport, Hampshire), Abbey of Saint-Étienne (Caen) and Bayeux and Rouen Cathedrals.

We are also glad to report that the next Battle of Normandy fighter, Supermarine Spitfire Mk.XIV, will be finished soon - its FM should be ready in a month while its visual model, including the cockpit, is nearly finished. Here are the first in-game shots of this legendary aircraft:

Together with our partners at Digital Forms, we continue building the player-controlled AAA trucks - the Soviet 72-K AA gun installed on the GAZ-MM truck chassis will be ready soon. The visual and physical models of the truck itself are complete, the 3D model of the gun is created and we're working on animating it and its crew. Ballistics are recreated according to the historical data and the rounds already have self-destruct fuzes (you may have seen such fuzes in action when fired from other AA guns in this week's update). This in-game screenshot demonstrates the state of its completion:

Enjoy!

The Sturmovik Team

Feb 16, 2021

Version 4.506 Update Released! New FW-190 A-6 and 4K skins for Bf-109 E-7

IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad - 777 Studios

Dear Friends,

Today our team presents you the first IL-2 Great Battles update in 2021, 4.506. The main feature of this update is the Fw 190 A-6 fighter/bomber developed for the Battle of Normandy. The Normandy map is in development, but you can already fly the new aircraft in Rheineland Career mode, provided you have both Battle of Normandy and Bodenplatte. You can also encounter the new A-6 as an enemy in the recent Wind of Fury campaign and anyone can set it up as an AI in quick missions.

In addition to the new arrival, there is a significant number of other changes and improvements. The updated graphical effects are included (the ones that are ready), Chiawei =Oyster_KAI= Liang continued his work on the 4K texturing of many planes cockpits and Martin =ICDP= Catney created 4K external textures for Bf 109 E-7 and corrected a number of other aircraft. There are two AI corrections, but they are significant. Among other fixes are ones for aircraft systems, player controllable tanks, including an important one for the gun aiming, and many improvements for historical campaigns.

We continue our work as always and this Spring you'll see new planes and improvements for the game world.

4.506
Main features
1. German fighter/bomber Fw 190 A-6 is now available to all Battle of Normandy owners;
2. Fw 190 A-6 added to Rheinland Career mode (to the 1st and 2nd chapters to joinable squadrons III./JG 11, I./JG 26 and II./JG 26 and to all chapters to AI squadrons III./KG 51 and NSGr. 20);
3. Bf 109 E-7 got 4K quality external textures;
4. There are new truck variations (which look exactly like the regular ones) that are loaded with ammo and explode when attacked in a spectacular way;

Aircraft improvements
5. AI pilots of fast fighters engage slow-flying targets much better;
6. AI pilots that are alone or from different groups carry out a landing approach much better - now all the AI pilots form the landing queue, not only the ones that belong to the same group;
7. MC.202 propeller rotation and twist were corrected;
8. Yak-9 and Yak-9T elevator is affected at high speeds similar to other Yak fighters;
9. On all aircraft with set throttle control positions the current position is shown in the technochat instead of the throttle percentage;
10. UBT MG gunsight scale on IL-2 mod. 1943 has been recentered;
11. A damaged Fokker D.VII won't visibly disappear at long distances;
12. Gunsight adjustment (target size and range) using buttons happens faster and their default values are set for a close dogfight against a typical enemy fighter;
13. German gyro gunsight Ez.42 damping corrected, higher frequency oscillations of the aircraft affect the calculated lead less;
14. AI pilots fire all 12 Hurricane MGs when installed instead of only 8;
15. Water vapor effect added to the damaged or overheated Hurricane radiator;
16. Oil and water drops won't visibly appear on the inside surface of the cockpit canopy on many aircraft;
17. A number of typos that appeared on Soviet planes after increasing the cockpits to 4K quality were corrected;
18. Bf 109 E-7 cockpit: a typo corrected, detail of certain controls improved, dimmer looks more historically accurate;
19. Bf 109 F-2 and F-4 wheels corrected;
20. BG-25 detail increased (Bf 109 G6/G6 Late/G14/K4);
21. Rocket control panel detail improved on Bf 109 G6 Late and G14;
22. Fw 190 A-3/A-5/A-8 ammo counters panel detail improved;
23. Hs 129 B2 cockpit: weathering and scratches on leather objects, weathering of the gunsight parts outside the cockpit, more detailed dimmer switch, revised coloring and updated lettering of gauges and parts to make them more historically correct, alpha layer adjustments;
24. MiG-3: enhanced textures of braided cables, redrawn placards, alpha layer adjustments;
25. P-39L: control stick weathering, more detailed radio equipment (MN-52H, BC-345, BC-451) and recognition light switch box, more accurate white aluminum panels and detailed text, enhanced throttle quadrant and fuel prime pump handle, improved gauges and parts lettering, alpha layer adjustments;
26. P-40E: more detailed radio equipment (BC-366, BC-451A, BC-450A), throttle quadrant and fuel prime pump handle, historically correct texture for exposed wiring (black wires and white braided cables), alpha layer adjustments;
27. P-47D22/D28: more detailed BC-765 switch box and fuel prime pump handle, upgraded textures of the white screws on the trim indicators box and flap control handle slide rail, alpha layer adjustments;
28. Fw 190 A-3 and A-5 default pilot positions and some skins of these aircraft were corrected;
29. Radio and lighting switches are now animated in Fw 190 A-3 and A-5 cockpits;

Player controllable tank improvements
30. An option added that amplifies the gun aiming response to the mouse movement. If you play without a visual mouse aim indicator or aim the gun using buttons, it is recommended to leave it at the default setting (0);
31. Player controllable tanks now correctly collide in multiplayer;
32. A wrong technochat message about turning on and off the powered turret traverse won't appear while moving across rough terrain at high speed;
33. SU-122 and SU-152 crews throw out all the accumulated spent ammo casings when the hatches are opened;
34. The initial position of the shot off Ferdinand gun mantlet corresponds to the mantlet type installed;
35. 72-K 25mm round ballistics were corrected;
36. HE rounds of 72-K, 61-K, Flak 36, Flak 38, Flakvierling 38, Sh-37, NS-37, BK-3.7, M4 and Vickers Class S now have self-destruct fuzes (HE rounds without such fuzes were not used on these guns);
37. Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.M suspension animation corrected;

Visual effects improvements
38. New bomb ground and water impact (impact, not explosion) effects;
39. 50-100 kg bombs explosion effects have a new style (it is planned to update all the explosions in a similar way);
40. Additional explosion effects added for rounds containing more than 450 g and less than 1500 g explosives;
41. Improved gunfire effects for the detailed ground vehicles;
42. APHE explosion effects corrected accordingly to the number of explosives they contain;
43. Ground vehicles leave better-looking tracks;

Other improvements
44. The hook on port cranes is raised higher so it won't prevent larger ships to dock underneath;
45. The visual model of a destroyed 52-K AAA gun was corrected (it contained elements of an intact gun);
46. Blazing Steppe, Fortress on the Volga, Ice Ring historical campaigns: all fire effects updated, ammo trucks added, many other improvements and fixes;
47. During the Wind of Fury historical campaign you can encounter С-47 and Fw 190 A-6 while Bf 109 G-6 fighters were replaced by Bf 109 G-6 Late;
48. Fortress on the Volga historical campaign: fuel and ambulance trucks added to the transport columns, the overall number and size of the columns increased.

Enjoy!

See you in the skies!

The Sturmovik Team

Feb 5, 2021

Developer Diary #271 - Pics of Normandy Ground Units and Vehicles!

IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad - 777 Studios

271

Dear Friends,

There will be a lot of Battle of Normandy news in 2021. Relatively soon we'll be able to show you the first landscape shots, while today we have some of the ground vehicles that are already done. Please note that the quality level for the new trucks, armored cars and other objects for Normandy has increased. Of course, the new objects will benefit from all the previously developed physics and AI improvements.

Dodge WC-54 - while working on the Battle of Normandy we have decided to add the ambulance vehicle for the US Army that was missing in 'Bodenplatte'. This 3-ton all-wheel-drive vehicle was designed specifically for the US Army medical service.

Austin K2/Y - you can tell the country of origin of this 3-ton military ambulance vehicle after a first glance. Of course, it is British.

Ordnance QF 17-pounder - this famous British gun which was very effective in the anti-tank role in spite of its relatively small caliber. This gun, either in an AT gun form or installed on a tank gave good chances against German panzer beasts.

Sd.Kfz.222 - this German all-wheel-drive 5-ton armored car with 3 men crew had a powerful weapon for its class, 20mm automatic gun KwK-20, and sloped armor.

AMES Type 15 was a British made radar.

SCR-584 was a US radar. Also on this screenshot are the British AA searchlight and its accompanying electric generator.

See you in the skies!

The Sturmovik Team

Jan 22, 2021

Developer Diary #269 - Typhoon Mk.Ib and GAZ-MM 72K Pics!

IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad - 777 Studios

269

Dear Friends,

So, here is the new year 2021! Like anyone else, we're going to hope that it will be better than the previous one. However, for IL-2 Great Battles, the last year was quite positive in spite of all complications. We hope that we'll build on this success this year - the plans are quite extensive. Let's start with the first in-game shots of the British fighter Hawker Typhoon Mk.Ib which is being developed for the Battle of Normandy. As you can see, it looks nearly complete, but in fact, there is still a lot to do - a hefty chunk of work is left on its cockpit instruments and the flight model. Nevertheless, we're expecting to finish everything before the end of this Spring and release it to all Battle of Normandy customers.

Speaking of the Normandy map, the layout of the towns on its continental part is complete for the first iteration. A bunch of landmark buildings and a significant part of AI-controlled ground vehicles planned for Normandy are already done. We're researching the data for the Normandy Career mode.

Meanwhile, the AAA trucks are also showing good progress - the GAZ-MM with the 72-K gun will be ready first. Its chassis is ready both in terms of the 3D and physical models while the crew animations and audio are being worked on. We've managed to find the authentic firing tables prepared by the Main Artillery Directorate of the Red Army and printed by the military publishing house of the People's Commissariat of Defense of the Soviet Union in 1943 and made the ballistics of the 25mm rounds and their armor penetration ability in various cases as close to the real thing as possible according to this data. We still have to research and recreate the really complicated correction system for the gunsights, that's what we're working on now while our partners at Digital Forms are creating the complex 3D model of the AAA gun itself as you can see on the screens below:

See you in the skies and on the battlefield!

The Sturmovik Team

Dec 28, 2020

Version 4.505 Released - Upgraded 4K Cockpit Textures and 4K Skins for I-16

IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad - 777 Studios

Update 4.505

Dear Pilots,

The IL-2 Sturmovik development team wishes you the best in the coming year and has a small gift for you - another update. It includes the work of the community enthusiast Chiawei =Oyster_KAI= Liang who agreed to work with us more closely and make his textures even better to be included in the sim officially. All the player controllable aircraft in this update have their cockpit textures considerably upscaled and sometimes corrected, resulting in a much better look of their cockpits. At the same time, Martin =ICDP= Catney has finished working on the external textures of another plane - this time it is I-16 - and they look great. There are many other fixes and improvements you can see in the changelist below.

Happy New Year and best of luck to you in 2021!

1. All player-controlled aircraft got 4K quality cockpit textures created by Chiawei = Oyster_KAI = Liang;
2. I-16 type 24 fighter got 4K quality external textures created by Martin = ICDP = Сatney;
3. I-16 type 24 fighter has a new “Silver” skin (painted with aluminum paint) by Martin = ICDP = Catney;
4. New visual effects added for and railway fuel tanks and fuel tanker trucks explosions. The airfield fuel storage also explodes with a new effect if there is an entity assigned to it in the mission file;
5. The A-20B bomber crew visual models were updated, as well as the animation of taking off glasses on the ground and putting on an oxygen mask at altitude. In addition, if the country parameter in the mission file is set to UK or USA the crew models will be British or American respectively;
6. Added missing fire effect to old player controllable tanks (T-34 STZ 1942 and Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf. L);
7. Old player controllable tanks (T-34 STZ 1942 and Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf. L) should no longer shoot at targets when considered destroyed (when their marker is removed);
8. Old player controllable tanks (T-34 STZ 1942 and Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf. L) have visual models of the driver and tank commander;
9. The surviving crewmen of the old player controllable tanks (T-34 STZ 1942 and Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf. L) leave if the tank is knocked out;
10. Old player controllable tanks (T-34 STZ 1942 and Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf. L) commanders have a pistol and binoculars;
11. Several cases of incorrect camera operation have been fixed (for example, when the camera remained in the cockpit of a destroyed aircraft or a tank);
12. The giant smoke columns from the Stalingrad city fires should now be visible up to 100 km away from the player starting point in QMB mode;
13. Wrong tree models on the river island near Stalingrad were corrected on Summer and Autumn maps;
14. The cropping of the ground structures outside the mission zone has been optimized, reducing the load on the system and speeding up the mission loading in the QMB mode on the Stalingrad map (all seasons);
15. The cropping of the ground structures outside the mission zone has been optimized, reducing the load on the system and speeding up the mission loading in all Career mode timeframes (BoM, BoS, BoK, BoBp);
16. All internal equipment of the armored vehicles was made less resistant to the fragments of APHE rounds that detonated inside;
17. Zademyanye airfield on Winter Velikie Luki map has been smoothed;
18. Ju-88 cockpit raindrops effect has been restored;
19. Pe-2 bombers right spinner won't become darker when the propeller is rotating;
20. The auto-oscillations of the La-5 elevator in the simplified control mode at low altitudes have been fixed;
21. A technochat error that could cause an incorrect message about the flaps release has been corrected;
22. Ju-87, Ju-88 and Fw-190 aircraft have technochat messages about releasing the flaps to takeoff and landing positions;
23. Yak-9 and Yak-9T water radiator drag has been corrected when the radiator shutter is closed more than a neutral position;
24. Lighting on both Halberstadt aircraft can be turned on only with cockpit lamp modification present;
25. Technochat flap position messages corrected on aircraft with fixed flap positions;
26. On A-20B bombers, problems with ANOs and bomb bay tail signal lamp at long LODs have been fixed.

The Sturmovik Team

Dec 28, 2020

Developer Diary #268 - New Flak Soldier, Sd. Kfz 10 Pics and 4K Skins for I-16

IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad - 777 Studios

DD #268

Dear Friends,

Another year is ending. This one was tougher than usual, but the team has managed to do without losses and meet all the planned goals nevertheless. The work on Normandy is going well and soon we'll be able to show you the screenshots of the unique buildings and ground vehicles being developed especially for it. It will be a while before new aircraft are released because several of them are at the same stage of development at the moment, but in Spring we plan to release a number of player controllable content we're preparing right now. This, however, doesn't mean we won't release anything new till that moment - as you know, we're constantly improving the project in all its aspects and we plan to release some of the improvements sooner, in big updates before that.

One of these improvements is 4K texturing for I-16 fighter created by Martin =ICDP=Catney. In addition to this, we're always glad to have more people improving the project and one can spot a result of the new collaboration on these screenshots. We won't disclose all the details of the coming surprise right now but we're sure you won't be disappointed.

The player controllable self-propelled AA guns saw good progress lately. A new system of visualizing the tires, not less interesting than the one previously developed for tracks, is in the sim already and we'll show it to you soon. The model of wheeled and half-track propulsion is also ready and gets the final touches. In the meantime, our partners at Digital Forms made significant progress working on the second object of this pair - German Sd. Kfz. 10 half-track with 2cm Flak 38. We already can show you the WIP screenshots of it along with a Luftwaffe soldier in Winter uniform:

To finish today's Dev Blog we want to show you the progress that was made on the fascinating bird, one of the planes that are in development for Battle of Normandy - Typhoon Mk.Ib. This legendary aircraft is planned to be released in late Spring 2021, it will be the third one of the Normandy planes that are planned to be released before the Summer. This concludes the last Dev Blog of this year, see you in 2021! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

See you in the skies!

The Sturmovik Team