The Dam Busters
The Lancaster dam bomber sim
In the WWII a lot of weapons were developed, and one of those was the water bouncing bomb, intended to be driven close by to a damn, explode underwater and create blast that would take that dam down. The bomb was deployed via a plane bomber and released just a few hundreds of feet or more in front of the dam. There, it would bounce on the water up until close to the dam, and would sink close by and explode underwater, creating a shock wave that would puncture the dam. Then the water would do the rest! So, you will play the pilot of such a dam buster plane, and will have a small window of opportunity to release the bomb. And, overall, the Lancaster bomber is a very satisfying flight and simulation game, very well produced and very nicely created to get the specifics of the real world operation done. Graphically don't expect something too nice; it's CGA graphics, which means 4 colors and rather poor construction. But it's fun, and has that retro feel that is hard to find these days. So have it in your collection, along with Warship, another highly specific WWII themed war simulation.
Ambitious but flawed early flight sim
The original Dam Busters are some of the greatest heroes of World War II and while this old school flight sim allows players to step into their cramped cockpits to experience the thrills of flying daring missions, it rather lacks the excitement that you would hope for. The game features a rather paltry three missions, which is understandable given its age but which is undeniably disappointing, all of which are set at night and which require players to blow up various dams. However, things are not quite so simple as all that, and of course you first have to reach these dams. One of the most intriguing features of the Dam Busters is that once you are in the air, you are in control of all members of the plane's crew, including the various gunners, the bomber, engineer and of course the pilot. Your attention is split between these various roles and you must ensure they all survive the journey if you want the best chance of success. Your route must be planned, you must watch out for enemies including other planes, flak and searchlights and you must take care of random events like engine fires, all of which conspire to make your task that much more difficult. Make it through all this though, and you will get to make the final assault on the dam, sending those legendary bouncing bombs to fulfil their role. The Dam Busters is certainly ambitious, with lots of things to keep your attention during the flight and which should prove entertaining for nostalgia buffs. However, the lack of longevity and variety in the missions mean that any entertainment is fairly short-lived, with action that is not overly thrilling and with only minimal strategy required to complete your tasks. As such, this is probably only really worth looking at if you are a true retro head, but it retains a certain fascination.
