''Flight Commander 2'' is a 1994

computer wargame A computer wargame is a wargame played on a digital device. Descended from board wargaming, it simulates military conflict at the tactical, operational or strategic level. Computer wargames are both sold commercially for recreational use ...

developed by

Big Time Software Battlefront.com is a video game developer and video game publisher, publisher. Battlefront specialises in Wargame (video games), war-related games, including turn-based strategy, turn-based and real-time strategy, real-time strategies, as well as ...

and published by

Avalon Hill Avalon Hill Games Inc. is a game company that publishes wargames and strategic board games. It has also published miniature wargaming rules, role-playing games and sports simulations. It is a subsidiary of Hasbro, and operates under the compan ...

. It was designed by

Charles Moylan Battlefront.com is a video game developer and publisher. Battlefront specialises in war-related games, including turn-based and real-time strategies, as well as simulations of air, land and naval military vehicles. On August 27th 2024, the 25th A ...

Gameplay

''Flight Commander 2'' is a

that simulates

aerial warfare Aerial warfare is the use of military aircraft and other flying machines in warfare. Aerial warfare includes bombers attacking tactical bombing, enemy installations or a concentration of enemy troops or Strategic bombing, strategic targets; fi ...

at the

tactical Tactic(s) or Tactical may refer to: * Tactic (method), a conceptual action implemented as one or more specific tasks ** Military tactics, the disposition and maneuver of units on a particular sea or battlefield ** Chess tactics ** Political tact ...

level.

Development

''Flight Commander 2'' was designed by

, later responsible for ''

Combat Mission ''Combat Mission'' is a series of computer wargames simulating tactical battles. The series has progressed through two distinct game engines. The original game engine, referred to as 'CMx1' by the developer, Battlefront.com, powered a trio of g ...

''. It is the sequel to Moylan's

board wargame A board wargame is a wargame with a set playing surface or board game, board, as opposed to being played on a computer or in a more free-form playing area as in miniatures games. The modern, commercial wargaming hobby (as distinct from military ...

''Flight Commander'', which William R. Trotter of ''

PC Gamer US ''PC Gamer'' is a magazine and website founded in the United Kingdom in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future plc. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games ma ...

'' wrote had "gained a small but fanatical following, even though it was too complicated to capture a large market." The game was released for Mac computers in November 1994.

Reception

''Flight Commander 2'' sold fewer than 50,000 units globally. This was part of a trend for Avalon Hill games during the period; Terry Coleman of ''

Computer Gaming World ''Computer Gaming World'' (CGW) was an American Video game journalism, computer game magazine that was published between 1981 and 2006. One of the few magazines of the era to survive the video game crash of 1983, it was sold to Ziff Davis in 199 ...

'' wrote in late 1998 that "no AH game in the past five years" had reached the mark. William R. Trotter of ''PC Gamer US'' gave ''Flight Commander 2'' a positive review, calling it a "thoughtful, intelligent simulation, and one that really has no current competition." In 1996, ''

''s wargame columnist Terry Coleman named ''Flight Commander 2'' his pick for the 15th-best computer wargame of all time. In 2017, Tim Stone of ''

Rock, Paper, Shotgun ''Rock Paper Shotgun'' is a British video game journalism website. It was launched in July 2007 to focus on PC games and was acquired by Gamer Network, a network of sites led by ''Eurogamer'', in May 2017. History ''Rock Paper Shotgun'' ...

'' wrote that the game's "brilliant design still hastens heart rates and evaporates evenings more effectively than any other winged wargame I know."

Legacy

Charles Moylan continued working with

on the aerial combat wargames ''

Over the Reich ''Over the Reich'' is a 1996 computer wargame for personal computers operating the Microsoft Windows operating system. The game was released in North America and Europe. A prequel, '' Achtung Spitfire!'', was released in 1997. Gameplay Players ...

'' (1996) and '' Achtung Spitfire!'' (1997). He went on to found Battlefront.com and designed the game '' Combat Mission: Beyond Overlord''.

References

External links

* {{Avalon Hill 1994 video games Avalon Hill video games Computer wargames Windows games Windows-only games Multiplayer and single-player video games Turn-based strategy video games Video games based on board games Video games developed in the United States