JustFlight Spitfire pack

According to correspondance with JF, yes. I think they began to take notice of what people were saying on their forum…

Doh… Seems I was proved wrong…

If nobody minds too much id like to step in and have the last word on this as I don’t think the discussion is going anywhere. The Spitfire has been out for a little while now and we are now in a better position to gauge how it has been received and to look closely at feedback from users to determine whether any changes need to be made. The biggest problem with releasing a Spitfire package is that for a lot of users the Spitfire is a emotive aircraft and everyone has their own idea of what a Mk22 should look like in terms of squadron markings etc. Whenever people have pointed out that a particular marking is “incorrect” (as has happened now with most of the Spits) we have taken it to the developers responsible for the paint job and they have backed it up with proof that on the particular day their reference material was obtained – whether it was from a book or data they collected themselves – that was how the Spit looked. Remember that Spitfires where frequently repainted and also its pretty rare to find two Spitfires painted exactly the same anyway.

Hunhunter – Although your repaint of the BBMF Spit does look good it is the view of Just Flight and the developers that the colour scheme on that particular model is historically correct. I know you will point me back to the picture you posted but to me if you compare the colour and hue of the buildings and sky in the background they look very pale and washed out, when you compare this to how buildings and sky look in FS then it looks very washed out in comparison. Again this is a colour scheme that has varied a great deal over the years. We are very grateful for the feedback though so please feel free to point out anything further that you may come across. Thanks guys

The underlined part is particularly amusing as this is making reference to AB910, and its desert camouflage. It was only repainted in this scheme two or three years ago was it not? (edit – winter 2002/3). Sounds like they’re not entirely sure what they’re talking about… 🙁

I know it’s a bit late for a campaign to put honesty back into advertising, but a promotional push along the lines of – “Here’s a load of Spitfire variants we produced ourselves to a quality standard varying from not bad to indifferent” isn’t going to do much for sales, but at least it would be honest.

What a nice idea … and how wonderful if we could get all software publishers to go along with a bit of honesty?

Trouble is that we do need *all* to take this idea on board and the standard across the board seems to be hype it up. In that respect JF are certainly not the worst offender …

According to correspondance with JF, yes. I think they began to take notice of what people were saying on their forum…

C’mon guys. JF do a pretty good job.

Yes, but my beef is that ‘pretty good’ isn’t what all their pre-publicity promotes it as.

I know it’s a bit late for a campaign to put honesty back into advertising, but a promotional push along the lines of – “Here’s a load of Spitfire variants we produced ourselves to a quality standard varying from not bad to indifferent” isn’t going to do much for sales, but at least it would be honest.

Patch on the way already? :rolleyes:

Moggy

Apparently there is a patch on the way… Hopefully with lots of improved textures…

Here are a few comparison shots then……
They cover the aircraft in general, the 2D view, the VC and an in flight shot…

JF shots first, then the RealAir second down the line…
I know they are probably different Spit flavours, but the idea is a product comparison from a few pics!!!

C’mon guys. JF do a pretty good job.

They don’t *just* repackage other people’s stuff either. (The forthcoming Flying Club and Airline packages are both in-house products.)

As for the Spitfires, well they’re not that bad; in fact they’re pretty good. Granted the 22 needs some attention.

Well, my first impression was it was OK. I think my PC is at the lower end of the specs, however, as on FS2004 it was taking some time to load up, and especially since some of the aircraft exteriors and interiors were slightly lacking in detail (and sometimes colour!).

I was so disappointed in that Mk.22 version. I mean, they could have at least tried harder to get the tail the right shape!! 🙁

Also, I don’t know if it was just me, but it seemed as though on CFS3 that two of the Spitfires were actually the same, or very similar. BBMF Spitfire VB and Ian Gleed’s IR-G – what the hell was the point in that?! 😡

To be fair tho chaps, some of the JF addons are pretty good – Yes we know they are repackages of other products, but the PSS Vulcan , Airbus series, and Dash 8 were pretty spot on…..

And others are horribly flawed – Mosquito Squadron and BoB particularly.

Moggy

I got mine yesterday and installed it today, so I’m just about to go off for a sortie.

Mind you, that Spitfire F.22…..!!! 😡

To be fair tho chaps, some of the JF addons are pretty good – Yes we know they are repackages of other products, but the PSS Vulcan , Airbus series, and Dash 8 were pretty spot on…..

One thing though, you can’t fault their promotion, it’s first rate.

Except the problem is it raises expectations that the programs always fail to match.

Still I suppose ‘Here’s a pack with lots of Spitfires in all sorts of different marks sloppily assembled, but you do get a lot of them for your money’ wouldn’t really have the punters flocking, would it?

Moggy

What you describe about the JF pack is typical imo of all their FS add-ons. Their ethos is a bit like “never mind the quality, feel the width”. Were you expecting any more of them than usual?

But the LA9 textures where upgraded and are available form flightsim.com. Let’s hope the same happens with these spits.

J.V.

I for one, would have been happy to pay considerably more for the Spitfire pack being to Aeroplane Heaven’s normal levels of modelling and texturing.

Jim

Might be a problem Aeroplane Heaven need to address – the reviews of the LA-9 address similar texture problems…

I agree with what you’re saying Charlie.
However Aeroplane Heaven set the bar with their freeware Seafires, that are beautifully modelled and textured.
I just find it disappointing that the Spitfire pack they produced with Just Flight isn’t up to this level (forgetting the Real Air Spit).

I for one, would have been happy to pay considerably more for the Spitfire pack being to Aeroplane Heaven’s normal levels of modelling and texturing.

Jim

Real Air Spitfire – 1 Mk, 8 models, around £18 (€25) – works out about£2.15/model

Just Flight Spitfire – 8/9 Mks, 39 models, £17.99 to £29.99, depending on vendor – about £0.80 per model (tops)…

If you’re happy to pay for the (outstanding) RAS package, then effectively you should be prepared to pay a lot more if you wanted a just flight package of the same quality…

Charlie

Well, my copy has arrived, and what an utter disappointment. 🙁

After the downloading the Seafire freeware from Aeroplane Heaven which has beautifully and accurately modelled aircraft, great VCs, and terriffic sounds, I was expecting great things from the Aeroplane Heaven / Just Flight collaboration, but it’s failed on many levels.

Whilst there are nice effects in the VC cockpit, the textures are plastic and amateur.
The aircraft themselves vary in accuracy, but my favourite Spit (Mk22) is wildly inaccurate. The tail isn’t even close to the shape it should be, and the tail wheel looks more like a retractable version of one from a MKV!

The sounds are cheap imitations of what they should be, and even in external views, do not sound like either a Griffon or a Merlin.

The guns are a nice effect, but I can’t see the point in FS2004 to be honest.

All in all, a great disappointment.

Daz, I thoroughly recommend you downloading the Real Air Version, as I downloaded it last night, and standalone, it is awesome. In comparison to the Spitfire pack, it is LIGHTYEARS ahead in terms of quality, realism and flyability.

Jim

I installed this and tried it this morning……my view is that iit is nowhwere near as good as the RealAir Spitfire……the JF version has pretty dodgy textures, so so sounds, a mediocre panel(&VC) but it does have a HUGE variety of models!

You’ll find a whole load of screen shots of the new Just Flight Spitfire in the UK Scenery Yahoo group files area.

The list is accessed by sending a blank e-mail to
[email]ukscenery-subscribe@yahoogroups.com[/email]

It’s a discussion group on UK flight sim in general and does go off topic fairly often – you have been warned. Some like it others leave …