Software:IL-2 Sturmovik (video game)

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IL-2 Sturmovik
Developer(s)1C:Maddox Games
Publisher(s)
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
Release
  • NA: November 20, 2001[1]
  • PAL: November 30, 2001
Genre(s)Combat flight simulator
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

IL-2 Sturmovik (Russian: Ил-2 Штурмовик) is a 2001 World War II combat flight simulator video game and is the first installment in the IL-2 Sturmovik series. The release focused on the air battles of the Eastern Front.[2][3] It was named after the Soviet Ilyushin Il-2 ground-attack fighter, which played a prominent role in this theatre and is the single most produced military aircraft design to date.[4] Along with its sequels, IL-2 Sturmovik is considered one of the leading World War II flight simulators.[5]

Gameplay

The game features 31 flyable planes and additional 40 non-flyable planes (available as opponents). One can play as Australia , France , Finland , Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland , Romania, Slovakia, the United Kingdom , the United States , and the USSR.[citation needed]

The game includes a multi-player feature which supports up to 100 players online over the internet[citation needed]. Free internet services such as Xfire, Hyperlobby, and The All-Seeing Eye, are used for setting up online game sessions.

History

The game was developed by 1C:Maddox Games and published by 1C in Russia and Ubi Soft in the rest of the world, for Windows on November 18, 2001.

Sequels and subsequent development

The game saw the release of a number of add-ons and sequels since its initial release, with some of the sequels including the entirety of the original release's content.

The game is currently distributed as the IL-2 Sturmovik pack. The latest edition that includes all sequels and patches is version 4.14.1, which brings the number of available flyable aircraft up to 85* and the number of maps to 41*. IL-2 Sturmovik is the flight simulator video game longest supported by its developer with the demo released in 2001 and the latest patch including new planes, maps and other features released in December 2022. Recently patches 4.13, 4.13.1, 4.13.2, 4.13.3, 4.13.4, 4.14, 4.14.1, 4.15, and 4.15.1 were released.[6]

All the patches or versions, like Forgotten Battles (2003) or standalone games, like Pacific Fighters (2004), used and shared the same game engine from 2001 until the 1946 pack (2006) and even until the console adaptation (IL-2 Sturmovik, 2009). The first games in the series not using the original 2001 game engine were IL-2 Sturmovik (2011, which runs its own game engine) and IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad (2013, which runs on a game engine derived from another game, the 2009 simulator Rise of Flight).

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings90.65%[7]
Metacritic91/100[8]
Review scores
PublicationScore
GameSpot9.2/10[9]
GameSpy94%[10]
IGN8.3/10[11]
PC Gamer (UK)89%[12]
PC Gamer (US)90%[13]
PC Zone90%[14]
Absolute Games90%[15]
The Cincinnati EnquirerStarStarStarStar[16]

IL-2 Sturmovik received a "Silver" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA),[17] indicating sales of at least 100,000 copies in the United Kingdom.[18] As of 2014, the game's overall sales had surpassed 2 million copies.[19]

The review aggregator Metacritic gave IL-2 Sturmovik a score of 91 out of 100,[8] while GameRankings, another review aggregator, gave it 90.65%.[7]

Awards

IL-2 Sturmovik was named the best computer simulation of 2001 by Computer Games Magazine,[20] Computer Gaming World,[21] The Electric Playground,[22] GameSpy and GameSpot,[23][24] and was a runner-up for IGN's award in this category, losing to Independence War 2.[25] Similarly, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated IL-2 Sturmovik for its "PC Simulation" award,[26] but ultimately gave the prize to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2002.[27] It also "narrowly" lost PC Gamer US's "Best Simulation" award to Flight Simulator 2002, according to that magazine's editors.[28]

While awarding the game, the editors of Computer Games called IL-2 Sturmovik "the best World War II flight sim—the best flight sim of any kind, for that matter—to come along in years."[20] Similarly, those of Computer Gaming World wrote, "IL-2 Sturmovik's election to Sim of the Year was one of the biggest shoo-in votes in the history of this magazine. [...] Know this: Sturmovik is not only the best simulation of 2001, it's the best WWII-themed sim ever, and one of the best flight sims of all time."[21]

See also

References

  1. ↑ jkdmedia (2012-05-04). "IL-2 Sturmovik Now Available" (in en-US). https://www.gamezone.com/news/il_2_sturmovik_now_available/. 
  2. ↑ Osborne, Scott (March 11, 2003). "IL-2 Sturmovik: Forgotten Battles Review". http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/il-2-sturmovik-forgotten-battles-review/1900-2912526/. 
  3. ↑ Driver Heaven review of the whole series
  4. ↑ Goebel, G. (2008). "The Il-2 Shturmovik" . Air Vectors, military aviation site
  5. ↑ Spotlight: Ilushin IL2 Shtumrovik, Digital age Shturmoviks. Fly Past magazine, pp 54-73. April 2011
  6. ↑ "4.15 release! - Official Fulqrum Publishing forum". http://forum.fulqrumpublishing.com/showthread.php?t=230741. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "IL-2 Sturmovik for PC". GameRankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/pc/354449-il-2-sturmovik/index.html. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "IL-2 Sturmovik for PC Reviews". https://www.metacritic.com/game/il-2-sturmovik/critic-reviews/?platform=pc. 
  9. ↑ Chick, Tom (December 4, 2001). "IL-2 Sturmovik Review". http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/il-2-sturmovik-review/1900-2829773/. 
  10. ↑ Lackey, Jeff (December 9, 2001). "IL-2 Sturmovik (PC)". GameSpy. http://archive.gamespy.com/reviews/december01/il2/. 
  11. ↑ Butts, Steve (November 28, 2001). "IL-2 Sturmovik". http://www.ign.com/articles/2001/11/28/il-2-sturmovik-2. 
  12. ↑ "IL-2 Sturmovik". PC Gamer UK. 2002. 
  13. ↑ Klett, Steve (February 2002). "IL-2 Sturmovik". PC Gamer: 66. http://www.pcgamer.com/reviews/archives/review_2002-07-10l1.html. Retrieved December 15, 2014. 
  14. ↑ Emery, Daniel (November 30, 2001). "PC Review: IL-2 Sturmovik". PC Zone. http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=21558&site=cvg. Retrieved December 15, 2014. 
  15. ↑ Ламтюгов, Андрей (27 November 2001). "Рецензия на IL-2 Sturmovik" (in Russian). http://www.ag.ru/reviews/il_2_sturmovik. 
  16. ↑ Saltzman, Marc (January 16, 2002). "'IL-2 Sturmovik' simulates World War II aerial combat". The Cincinnati Enquirer. http://cincinnati.com/freetime/games/reviews/011602_sturmovik.html. 
  17. ↑ "ELSPA Sales Awards: Silver". Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association. http://www.elspa.com:80/?i=3942. 
  18. ↑ Caoili, Eric (November 26, 2008). "ELSPA: Wii Fit, Mario Kart Reach Diamond Status In UK". Gamasutra. https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/112220/ELSPA_Wii_Fit_Mario_Kart_Reach_Diamond_Status_In_UK.php. 
  19. ↑ Bailey, Kat (July 25, 2014). "IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad Carries a Lonely Torch for Flight Simulators". USgamer. https://www.usgamer.net/articles/il-2-sturmovik-preview. 
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Staff (March 2002). "11th Annual Computer Games Awards". Computer Games Magazine (136): 50–56. 
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 ((Editors of Computer Gaming World )) (April 2002). "Games of the Year; The Very Best of a (Sometimes) Great Year in Gaming". Computer Gaming World (213): 69–73, 76–84. 
  22. ↑ Staff. "Blister Awards 2001". The Electric Playground. http://www.elecplay.com:80/feature.html?article=8152&page=1#mr_toppy. 
  23. ↑ "Welcome to the GameSpy 2001 Game of the Year Awards!". GameSpy. http://archive.gamespy.com:80/goty2001/index.shtml. 
  24. ↑ GameSpot PC Staff. "GameSpot's Best and Worst PC Games of 2001". GameSpot. http://gamespot.com:80/gamespot/features/pc/bestof_2001/index.html. 
  25. ↑ Staff (January 14, 2002). "2001 PC Game of the Year Awards". IGN. http://pc.ign.com:80/articles/100/100906p1.html. 
  26. ↑ "Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences Announces Finalists for the 5th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards" (Press release). Los Angeles: Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. February 5, 2002. Archived from the original on June 2, 2002. Retrieved January 20, 2020. {{cite press release}}: External link in |location= (help)CS1 maint: location (link)
  27. ↑ "Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences Announces Recipients of Fifth Annual Interactive Achievement Awards" (Press release). Las Vegas: Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. March 1, 2002. Archived from the original on March 6, 2002. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  28. ↑ Staff (March 2002). "The Eighth Annual PC Gamer Awards". PC Gamer US 9 (3): 32, 33, 36, 36, 37, 40, 42. 
  • IL-2 Sturmovik official website
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

On February 13, 2025, Freyholtz stepped down as the site lead to move onto new projects, leaving operations to Tracy Poff, a veteran coder on the site, and Atari staff.[18]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
  18. ↑ "An update on MobyGames leadership". 2025-02-13. https://www.mobygames.com/forum/3/thread/269628/an-update-on-mobygames-leadership/#post-269628. 
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