First Eagles: The Great War 1918

The heroic airmen who took the skies above the trenches of Flanders during WWI were flying some of the slowest, least manoeuvrable fighter planes ever constructed. Which presents certain problems for anyone wishing to create an entertaining simulation of this particular aerial conflict. The way Third Wire get round this inconvenience is to make their sim, based on the Joint Strike Fighter engine, as simple and playable as possible.

That said, and even if you are in the mood for some Flying Circus action, there isn't all that much to do here. All the aircraft are single-seater bi-planes with very similar handling and weak armaments, and all there is to do is low-tech dogfight, shoot up some crappy tanks or burst a balloon or two. Which is made all the more tiresome over drab low-res carpets of green and brown, supposedly representing the fields of Flanders and the Somme, punctuated by the odd explosion and puff of flak.

If it was the first flight.simulator you'd ever seen, you'd probably think it's quite fun, all this honourable duelling between knights of the sky in their canvas-and-wood flying coffins. But if you're used to the quality and class of your average Oleg Maddox product, this all feels a little geriatric.