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World of Aircraft: Glider Simulator, it's high for Aerosoft

Edited by Aerosoft, World of Aircraft is a series of stand-alone simulators that each focus on a specific type of flight. Glider Simulator takes care of the "gliders" and "tugs" part.

World of Aircraft uses a graphics and physics engine geared towards small aviation. The developers announce a more interesting level of detail than big simulators. Then… this catchphrase on the Steam page of the game could have been true before the release of the juggernaut Flight Simulator 2020. Except that there is now a before and after MSFS. In short, let's move on to the aesthetic side, let's see the gameplay.

Not being a connoisseur of the environment, I started the game thinking I would discover the pleasure of free flight without an engine. And it is rather the case. And even a little too much. The freedom is such that the game doesn't even display an ATH with some information. I do not know ? Would the altitude and speed be a good start? What if the ingame interface was the only problem. The menus from the outset are of a poverty worthy of some Polish alpha games.

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We are offered some tutorials, a free mode (awkwardly translated as Free Flights), and a multiplayer mode which, even after several hours of waiting, remains less populated than the Sahara. The passage through the options box will last only a few seconds, the time to adjust the sound, the graphics, and the meager presets present to configure a gamepad or a keyboard. For this first grip, I start with an Xbox One pad, which I could not adjust the extreme sensitivity.

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We take a little height

Let's move on from this first bitter taste to focus on thefts. Glider Simulator is fulfilling its end of the bargain. The controls are simple and the term "Simulator" makes perfect sense. We are let loose in nature and free to move around within the limits of the map, on the banks of the Rhine, near Mannheim. With an announced surface of 2500 km², it must be admitted that it is difficult to see the end of it, especially at the speed of movement of a glider. No need to want to make a comparison with the colossal Flight Simulator and its entire land as a playground. Anyway, in your glider, you will try to connect 2 aerodromes fairly close to each other, letting you guide by them. birds that use hot air currents.

In total, 5 machines are available:

  • Diamond HK36 Dimona, a two-seater glider
    dimona.png.0026bc4ef2fa3f54d7ec93566af7201b
  • LET L-13 Blaník, a world famous glider, often used for training
    Blanik.png.0bad086413f9f33d1776694a444576a5
  • Schleicher ASK21, two-seater glider with good performance and strong aerobatic ability
    ask.png.c960262c41ce5d53a7346f98b139664f
  • Schleicher ASK21 Mi, motorized self-launching glider
    mi.png.a0048b28da7863ea589e2592ea494b5d
  • PLZ-104 Wilga, four-seater aircraft suitable for towing
    wilga.png.69b285d49d66600fe0eaea7c57610f70

In the end, the idea of ​​breaking down a franchise by theme isn't bad, but Glider Simulator leaves inexperienced gamers, including myself, hungry. This simulation is clearly aimed at a niche: those who already fly gliders. The lack of explanations, guides, scenarios, quite simply gameplay, does not invite to come and discover the aerial “world of silence”. Especially since the title is sold for nearly 30 euros on Steam.