I played an early (maybe some beta version) of World of Warplanes...I, too, found it to be not very much fun. Spawn in to plane, fly around with rudimentary controls, get swarmed/ganked because I had a low level plane, die, respawn...repeat.

Maybe it has imporved since my first run at it, maybe it would be better if I had a higher level plane / $pent money on better ammo (as it was in Tanks...pay-to-win business model. Blech...no thank you...)

It's still in beta actually but there have been a few updates. I think it's doomed to fail, unfortunately, though. Something about either the game's physics, or its control system, is seriously flawed.

Have you seen they are also coming out with a Naval combat simulator along the same line as WoT? Again, I think a cool concept that will not play nearly as well as it sounds.

My brother and I used to play a board game (Submarine) by Avalon Hill - awesome simulation, especially when using "blind" game play (one guy played the submarine player, the other player had a convoy and sub hunters...the submarine and his torpedoes did not show up on the map until discovered...cool game.

I do miss a good submarine game...

I have heard about World of Warships, yes. Thing is, World of Tanks is good - the physics is pretty good and the control system is fine, so it's perfectly possible World of Warships will be ok too, but World of Warplanes is dire.

I've never played that particular AH game. How did the "blind" version work? I mean, did the submarine player have a separate board he kept out of sight of the convoy player?

Honesty, Jamie...lol Damn, it's been about 30 years since I played Submarine with my brother so I don't exactly remember. Sub player, I think, kept track of his units locations on a separate piece of paper. Each turn each player wrote all his orders out for all the ships, if I am thinking of the right game, and then executed them - so players are playing simultaneiously. It is assumed the Sub player has a better knowledge of where ships are than the opposite, so he has the advantage until discovered.

Another good naval combat game was Wooden Ships and Iron Men -- all about the tall ships fighting with cannon.

Anyway - World of Warships - ships are not simple devices where yo click a mouse and shoot the main gun - that is my concern with World of Ships, is that in order to be available to the masses they may have to oversimplify control mechanisms.

You guys should try this game...

http://www.battlegroundeurope.com/

Free to play and you play a soldier of some fort... Maybe a gunner in the belly of a B-16 or maybe the pilot or maybe a fighter pilot in a warbird. Maybe a tank commander or the driver or just an infantry man. You get to pick where you want to go into service and what side you fight on.

You can try 'War Thunder' as well. You can download it directly or on Steam. I recommend it if you like WW2 air combat simulators.

I've heard War Thunder is worth a look, yes.

Sorry to disappoint you, krellin, but Wargaming already said that World of Warships will NOT feature submarines. That being said, I look forward to unlocking the Iowa-class battleships and subsequently fucking everyone up.

I, too have been looking forward to World of Warplanes and have been disappointed. I was REALLY looking forward to unlocking the F-86 Sabre, which we can all agree is the sexiest airplane ever made.

I am an active World of Tanks player, by the way. Grinding my way up the American line as we speak. Loving my new T29 heavy tank.

"F-86 Sabre, which we can all agree is the sexiest airplane ever made."

Nope, the SR-71 and the P-61 are the two sexiest ever.

Well, in their size they are. Actually, the XB-70 is #1 even above the SR-71.

My favourite tank in WoT is the Medium 1. Love playing only against tier 1 light tanks.

I rarely play, like I've only played 30 battles tops.

If you like Navy things, you can try Navy Field. Its a bit older, but its got everything from destroyers to battleships, subs and carriers.

F-86 has the sexiest/most badass paint job, hands down. Polished steel finish, full color roundel on the left wing and "USAF" on the right wing (reverse on underside). Not to mention the obligatory nose art and MiG kill markings (if applicable)

SR-71 has the sexiest performance, hands down. There's something extremely satisfying about Mach 3.3 and 85,000 feet. A side note: The Aurora Project spaceplane has even sexier performance, but it's still mega ultra super classified :(

The P-61 is a curveball. In terms of pre-jet sexiness, I think the P-63 Kingcobra and the P-40 Warhawk respectively are both overlooked. I don't like the Mustang for some reason.

Ah, the Sabre. Swept wings and a huge air intake instead of a nose. Something about it is just... awesome. Definitely one of my three favorite-looking planes, along with the F-4 Phantom and the F/A-18 Hornet.

The SR-71? Really? It has no wings...barely looks like it could even fly.

Regarding Submarine, I was fortunate enough to acquire a copy a couple of years ago, and yes, the "blind" version allowed the Sub player to record his position and moves secretly, until he is spotted by sonar, radar, or the Mk. I Eyeball. There's a "double blind" version in one of the General magazines, too, in which neither the convoy player nor the sub player has anywhere near complete info on the other. Never tried that one, but it sounds epic...

http://www.airfighters.com/profiles/sr-71/SR-71A_top.jpg

The SR-71 has plenty of wing. Plus the edges of the fuselage lift as well.

But here is the best looking (albeit experimental) jet ever.

http://newspaceandaircraft.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/201108240800.jpg

It's my favorite jet at Wright Pat AF Museum.

And the P-61 Black Widow is like a P-38 on serious steroids.

http://www.warbirdsresourcegroup.org/URG//images/p61-1.jpg

You gotta love the turret on top. That beast just bristles with weaponry.

I must say that I quite suck at World of Tanks. I've tried grinding my way up the British line, but I just suck too horribly. I stopped playing when I was only in Tier 3

I think the Supermarine Spitfire gives any other plane a run for it's money in looks.

@goldfinger: What's the problem you're having with World of Tanks? I've been playing it for about a year now and really quite enjoy it. It is very important to use the right tactics depending on what kind of vehicle you're taking into battle, though, and what type of battlefield you're on. I'd be happy to offer some advice if you could tell me what you find you're struggling with?

Draugnar, the P-61 isn't that sexy. The nose is too bulbous and the armament, while heavy, isn't "AC-130 holy shit cannons everywhere OMG". Also, the XB-70 Valkyrie definitely has lines in the right places, but I think the SR-71 is just a little more attractive if we're talking about the "absolutely ridiculous holy balls that thing has ungodly great performance" category of airplanes. I'm sticking with F-86 for all time champ, in the same way that a 1970 Oldsmobile 442 W-30 is sexier than a 2013 Lamborghini, because the Olds (and the F-86) has more character and a more timeless design.

rs2excelsior, I personally am not a fan of the F-4 Phantom and the F/A-18 respectively. The former looks like a bomb truck and the latter looks like it was designed by the same people who put six spoilers and a "V-TEC" on their Honda Civic.

Besides, neither has particularly impressive performance. The Phantom can climb like hell, but it can't turn worth a shit. The F/A-18, while a good carrier-based multirole fighter, has no range and not a whole lot of speed.

@ goldfinger

I wasn't very good at WoT either when I first started. It takes practice. You also have to grind through the bad tanks to get to the good tanks. For example, I recently acquired the T29, an American Tier VII heavy tank. I have to say, it's godly. I bounce almost every other tank in my tier, and my 105mm main gun makes big boom at long range. But it wasn't easy to get. It was a long, arduous crawl over broken glass to get to it, as the two heavy tanks preceding it absolutely suck donkey balls (The T1 Heavy and its sister, the M6 Heavy)

A couple of general tips: If your tank is weaker compared to the other tanks in the match, try to hang back and give second-line support. Most tanks in the game have good enough accuracy to permit effective long-range harassing fire.

Remember that cover is your friend. Do not depend on your armor to protect you, even if you are one of the best tanks in the match. Shoot from defilade when possible and ALWAYS reload from defilade if your reload times are longer than a few seconds.

Avoid going anywhere alone, unless you are a very talented scout or you are in a SPG.

If you are using an SPG, always shoot-and-scoot. The danger/effectiveness of counterbattery fire increases as you level up to new tiers and artillerymen become more skilled. Moving as little as 20 meters after every shot makes it exponentially more difficult for enemy artillerymen to counterbattery your position.

If you are using a scout/light tank, think of your armament as a "last resort". Your most powerful weapon is your radio. You should only engage other light tanks or SPGs until your skills improve to the point where you can maneuver with enough skill to pose a threat to medium and heavy tanks.

Rushing the enemy base is usually a bad idea, unless you have a lot of teammates going with you. Even then, don't be the first guy in the column.

I'll take a Corvette over a 442 and to me, the SR-71 *is* the Corvette of the jet world.

And to whoever mentioned the Sptifire - absolutely the most beautiful non-American (but still Allied) WWII warbird ever! For non-Allied power, I am a BF 109 for props and ME 262 for jets fan. But I love the P-61 and the P-38 twin engine fighters from the US for prop planes (although the Mustang is a sweet single prop plane).

Now in the "might makes right" category, enter the B-52... Fucking massive!

It's barely a WWII bird, but I think the sexiest non-American plane of WWII would have to be the Hawker Tempest. It just looks mean and pugnacious.

The Hawker Hurricane deserves some props (no pun intended) as well.

I love WWII warbirds, no matter which side they were on. I could spend an entire weekend at Wright Patterson AF Museum in Dayton just hanging out in the WWII gallery.

Of course I am naturally a fan of the F4U Corsair that the Marines flew in the Pacific Theater of the war.

I was about to say the Corsair was one of my favorite planes from the war, besides the Messerschmitt bf 109

I do love the Corsair, especially if it is a cannon/rocket-armed example. 4 x 20mm Hispano cannons, bitch.

Also, the Corsair is one of the best all-around airplanes in Fighter Ace, along with the B-25J Mitchell.

I can't call myself a BF-109 fan. If I were to pick a German fighter from the era, I'd have to go with a Focke-Wulf 190 or maybe a Ta 152. I like altitude and lots of it. Altitude equals time to do something if something bad happens.

That being said, God have mercy on anyone who tries to land a Corsair on a carrier...

Gunfighter: In general, landing on carriers. I have a submariner's healthy scorn for anything that floats on the top of water like a turd, but carrier pilots? Those people are badass, and should probably have somebody following them around them with a wheelbarrow to carry their metal balls that go clink (men and women alike... the entire concept of a carrier night landing scares me... too short runway that moves, at night *with no lights*).

Yeah. I'm impressed.

@ Jack_Klein

Especially back in the day. Landing a Hornet on a Nimitz-class is probably slightly less challenging than landing a Corsair on a straight-decked Essex-class. No disrespect intended to today's naval aviators, but landing a Corsair 65 years ago? Now *that's* some airmanship.