Electronic Arts has released the first images of the 17” action-sculpture featuring the character of Eddie Riggs from their upcoming Brutal Legend. According to the announcement email they have only made one thousand of these statues and will be giving them away via their Twitter account.
Checkout some totally metal images of the statue After the Break!
Hot off my last review of Saitek’s Pro Flight Instrument Panel, I took a look at their Pro Flight Radio Panel. While gauges are fine and good, at some point you are going to need to communicate with the ground to do such important tasks as check request a flight following, acknowledge nearby traffic, or even something as simple as put in a request to taxi to the runway.
Microsoft’s Flight Simulator series has never been great at giving the player the ability to change their multiple frequencies. Usually I pause the game and fiddle with the mouse cursor, which acts my pilot’s ‘virtual hand’, to adjust the small and large increments to get them just right. This is just not fun and it generally ends with me doing auto-station flips via the on-screen ATC communication menu.
I can safely say that my radio issues have crashed and burned thanks to the new Pro Flight Radio Panel. In this peripheral, Saitek has designed a very good recreation of the basic radio stack found in civil aircraft. It features four bright LED readouts in the center of the panel as well as two heavy-duty mode select knobs on the left of the unit. To the right side of the radio panel you will find the macro and micro-adjustment knobs and standby buttons. The construction of the frame is in keeping with all of the Saitek Pro Flight panels and is a heavy-duty black plastic.
Its mounting frame which gets screwed into other Pro Flight peripherals (most likely the Pro Flight Yoke) is still a bit flimsier than I would like to see but it doesn’t get too much in the way. Using the Radio Panel is very simple. After mounting the unit where you like, simply install the included software and you will be all-set to use it in FSX (Microsoft’s Flight Simulator X). It is really that easy to get up and running.
Loading up FSX, I start on the parking area at KRAL (Riverside Municipal – my hometown’s airfield). I then bring the map and begin to plan my flight. For today’s excursion I plan on arriving at Orange County’s John Wayne-Airport (SNA). Its a short flight and going by visual flight rules I don’t expect any real delays or problems. Clicking on the two airports I write down both their control tower and ground frequencies. My short-range setup is to have my departure airfield as COM1 and arrival airfield as COM2. Manipulating the dials on the right of the top panel, with the left knob selecting ‘COM1’, I reach KRAL’s ground channel and hit the ‘standby’ button, which switches the ‘active’ and ‘standby’ frequencies with the other. This system allows you to setup a frequency in-flight, if you like, before you actually need to switch over to it. So with KRAL’s ground frequency as the active one and its tower frequency in the standby position, COM1 is all setup. I follow the same algorithm to setup COM2 with SNA’s ground and tower frequencies.
Thankfully, the Radio Panel is responsible for a whole lot more than just your COM channels. You can also setup your NAV frequencies in the same manner! In addition, Saitek has had the forethought to add additional modes like your transponder frequency as well as DME and ADF frequencies – very vital things to have so handy in navigation.
The added-convenience and tactile-feedback provided by this panel is incredible. In the image below, you can see the radio panel glowing in all its glory in lower-light conditions.
The worst issue with the Radio Panel is that even though the frequency adjustment knobs have detents built-in to give you tactile feedback when turning them, they do not always match up to the frequencies. Sometimes, you will find that you hit the frequency you are looking for in-between knob detents, forcing you to wiggle the metal control a bit until it aligns correctly.
While some would argue that the Radio Panel’s $149 dollar price point is expensive, I would say that when you look at other panels of the same function you are actually saving money by using the Saitek model in your home cockpit. GoFlight sells a larger panel of similar function and it retails for over a thousand dollars. While it is of more realistic construction than the Pro Flight Radio Panel, for the average virtual pilot you are getting a whole lot more out of your dollar with Saitek’s peripheral.
Overall, the Saitek Pro Flight Radio Panel is an excellent addition to the Saitek Pro Flight range and to your home ‘pit. It provides a ton of convenience in giving you easy-to-access radio frequencies as well as provides a new level of realism in your home cockpit with its crisp LEDs and tactile feedback.
If you are one of the many people planning to pre-order Activision’s Guitar Hero 5, know that where you pre-order will effect what bonus goodies you get!
Here is the breakdown of goodies per outlet:
GameStop – Receive two free playable songs with reservation (for Playstation®3 computer entertainment system. Xbox360® video game and entertainment system and WiiTM)
GameCrazy – Receive an exclusive faceplate with reservation
Amazon.com – Receive five free MP3s with reservation
Guitar Hero Store – Receive free two-day shipping with reservation
Guitar Hero 5 is scheduled to release on the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 on September 1st, 2009.
Remember the unboxing video of the super-awesome Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Prestige Edition? Well, this most awesome of game editions features real-working night vision goggles and will retail for $149.99 US Dollars. Aside from the NVGs, it will feature the steel-hardened DVD case featured in the mid-level ‘Hardened Edition’ as well as a token to download the original Call of Duty and an official art book.
The pricing information was broken by Infinity Ward’s official Twitter account only a few hours ago. So get ready to pre-order that bad boy, although no official pre-order date has been announced. No matter what edition of the game you get, it is due out on November 10th.
Robert Bowling, Infinity Ward’s Community Manager, has released a video of the unboxing of the first off-the-line unit of the Modern Warfare 2 Prestige Edition. The big draw of the Prestige Edition?
IT COMES WITH FULLY-FUNCTIONAL NVG’s!
You heard me, night vision goggles! Also, it comes with a token to download the original Call of Duty game as well as steel disc case and art book. The hardened and standard versions of the game are out for pre-order, but there is no word yet on the price of the Prestige Edition. The mid-level ‘Hardened Edition’ comes with the steel case and is $80 dollars. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is due out November 10th.
Saitek has made a lot of fans out there in the flight sim community by selling good-quality peripherals for competitive prices, and their new Pro Flight Instrument Panel continues this tradition. Our two panels arrived in unassuming, well-fitted boxes, I pulled out a panel, plastic mounting bracket, screws, and allen wrench from one box and began to go to work, planning how I wanted my home cockpit to look.
Saitek had the forethought to include a series of six screws/mount points across the top of their Pro Flight Yoke just to accommodate these extra peripherals. I grabbed the plastic mounting bracket and flight yoke, removing two of the screws from the top of the base unit. Then I screwed the instrument panel mounting bracket into the flight yoke and slid the instrument panel itself into its plastic mount. The mount is somewhat cheap-feeling, which is surprising given the quality of the panel itself. Four screws attach the panel to the mount which was extremely easy to install. Aside from the screws on the flight yoke, no tools are needed except for your fingers.
Looking at the instrument panel, the 3.5” LCD was covered by a plastic safety film which I promptly removed and then played with a few of the buttons which array in an L-pattern down the left and bottom of the panel. They reacted crisply but I was slightly worried about actually pressing the buttons on the panel without bracing it somehow. Even all screwed in, the panel mount flexes slightly when a button is pressed. I never heard any cracking or breaking come from it so I assume the mount is fastened properly. Still, the flexing made me a little nervous so I would quickly learn to use it by pressing the buttons with my thumb and bracing it with my fingers.
The cable which comes off of the back of the panel can easily be plugged into the USB passthrough on the flight yoke, but beware you will need the optional AC adapter to use it properly that way. If you do not have the AC adapter on your flight yoke you can plug the panel into a powered USB port on your PC.
Installing the CD-ROM software is as easy as can be. A few simple menu selections as to where you want to install, etc and you are on your way. After the software is installed and you plug your panel into a powered USB port, it will gleam to life with a default Saitek Pro Flight splash screen.
The software is already setup to use Microsoft’s Flight Simulator X so I fired it up to check it out while actually playing the game. I loaded up a free flight and just giggled when I saw the instrument panel flash its default gauge: The altimeter. Before actually taking to the skies, I pressed through all of the available gauge modes with the up and down arrows at the bottom of the panel.
The panel can replicate the following gauges:
– Altimeter
– Vertical Speed Indicator
– Attitude Indicator
– Airspeed
– Compass
– Turn & Slip Indicator
The instrument panel also features two knobs which interact with many of the available gauge modes. For instance, in the compass mode, you can control the VOR indicators as well as calibrate the altimeter. This tactile response really adds to the realism and immersion of the sim and, if you can afford six panels, you would not need to show the 2D or 3D panels at all giving you a lot more viewing room on your screen. With only two, we still needed the on-screen panel for other instrumentation.
Here is our test rig (pardon our mess) in lower-light conditions:
As you can see, the realism is further enhanced in these slightly lower light conditions as the light of the instruments glowing brightly brings your eye’s out of the same plane of focus as the on-screen panel. This gives the illusion of greater depth between the panels (and other peripherals) and what is happening on the screen.
The buttons arrayed along the left side of the panel control popup sim instrumentation windows such as the GPS display, map, and radio stack. These allow you to access that instrumentation without using an onscreen button (accessible with the mouse cursor) or keyboard shortcut. Additionally, this helps you not lose focus while flying as it is far easier to keep your eyes on the skyway with a button press in your field of vision then taking your eyes off where you are headed to find a keyboard button.
Currently, the Pro Flight Instrument Panels are only compatible with Flight Simulator X out of the box, but the software does include an SDK for your developers out there looking to make use of a detachable LCD in an upcoming project.
I love their modularity but hope that Saitek will create a dual or triple-LCD unit in the future, giving more of a ‘glass cockpit’-feel. This modularity, of course, helps to keeps the cost per unit down. You can walk away from most online retailers with a Pro Flight Instrument Panel for $149. Buying the full six needed to never have to switch between gauge modes would cost you roughly $900 US dollars. Now compare that to an Elite Pro Flight Panel II which only includes some switches and a yoke which runs roughly $2,800 US Dollars. With the Saitek peripherals you are getting a whole lot of bang for your dollar.
The most glaring issue I can see with these panels is their less than stable mounts. One way to help with this would be to buy multiple panels and attach them together via the side bracket screw holes. Then attach the three panels to the yoke. This would give added stability to the array of panels. If you don’t have the money to do this, bracing the panel with your fingers while pressing buttons with your thumb becomes second nature only after about a half hour of flight.
Another configuration of panels:
Saitek has once again hit it out of the park with their Pro Flight Instrument Panel. It provides a lot more realism to your flight sim experience while not breaking your home-cockpit budget. Installation is a breeze and the software automatically sets the unit up for Flight Sim X. What more could a simmer ask for? Another panel….Muhahaha…
Madden NFL 10 keeps drawing closer and closer to its August 14th release date and EA Sports continues its virtual season preview with a new video on the AFC North (For the NFC North video check here).
The mech madness continues as Smith & Tinker, the firm created by BattleTech and FASA founder Jordan Weisman, has announced that they will be distributing MechWarrior 4 for free in honor of BattleTech’s 25th anniversary. The distribution will take place via MekTek and will happen ‘soon’.
The download will also include the MechWarrior 4 expansion packs. MechWarrior 4 was originally published in 2000 by Microsoft and its expansions (Black Knight, Inner Sphere Mech Pack, and Clan Mech Pack) were released a year later.
Anyone up for some multiplayer?
EA Sports has released the new ‘NFC North Sizzle‘ trailer for their upcoming Madden NFL 10. EA Sports recently announced that they would be previewing their virtual NFL season by announcing the ratings of various teams and players. You can check out the whole Season Preview at their official website.
Madden NFL 10 is due out on August 14th.
According to an official SEC filing, Bethsoft parent publisher ZeniMax paid $105 million US Dollars to purchase Doom-developer Id Software. The deal was first announced back in June. Id Software has recently released Doom 3d for the iPhone and is working on a new Wolfenstein game as well as a title using their still in-development game engine known as ‘Rage’.
Via PaidContent
