Simulators are one of the earliest PC game genres, and remain compelling experiences to this day, even if they’re not as popular as they used to be.
I like all kinds of combat flight sims; the MS Combat Flight Simulator from 1998 was something special, and I’ve had some similar fun in IL-2 Sturmovik. The newest civil air sims are pretty great too, I’ll pop on a podcast and make a flight. They’re particularly cool in VR.
I’ve also found the MechWarrior games to be fun, but I’ve only played 2 and 5. I got to play a bit of Steel Battalion with the full crazy controller at a con a few years back, and that’s got to be a lot of fun once you really know what you’re doing.
So what’s your favorite sim?
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Elite Dangerous and i also love old school mechwarrior 2
I’m going to go with Euro truck simulator 2.
The experience of chill driving across europe and listening to podcasts is nice. The game isn’t complicated enough to affect listening experience, but also engaging enough on it’s own right that it stays interesting.
I have probably seen 80% or so of the roads and cities, bit they still feel fresh… Could be that I’m forgetting places faster than I’m getting familiar with them as well.
I do have a steering wheel and pedals, but they’re just too cumbersome to get out and my wheel stand is made for someone at least 20 shorter than I am, so the experience is hampered a bit anyway. Because I’m lazy I’ve just resulted to driving witn mouse and keyboard combo.
Edit: typos. Typing on phone is butts
Yep. I have all the map and special delivery DLCs too and it’s awesome.
I don’t get it why exactly, but it’s awesome just seeing the detail they put into the game. Getting all the photo locations is really hard!
And some of the achievements take a looooong time to get.
It’s so good in VR. I call it a rubbernecking simulator. You’re missing most of the game without it imo. I spend most of my time looking out the windows at the views.
It’s great in VR, i just have an ancient oculus devkit 2 or so, its horrid mess of cables I don’t want to deal with
Too early adopter issues. :P
Came here to say ETS2 as well. I want to eventually get a sim rig set up so it’s even better, but even with just a controller it’s a very relaxing experience, supports VR too.
KSP 1
2nding this, but also I’m looking forward to KSA, hoping it can be the true successor
I credit Kerbal Space Program for my ability to think in three dimensions. Without KSP, I would have been some kind of dumbass. I thought getting to orbit was just a matter of going up until I was like 18 years old
Have you ever pulled up an old save file to look at the stuff you used to design? I did that the other day and found out that I used to be good at this game. Folded space stations, massive mining rigs, Apollo Style landers, a beautiful SSTO that’s braindead easy to fly, an interplanetary module that can dock to the back of said SSTO, I made fancy shit. Nowadays I just slap boosters and docking ports on fuel tanks and call it good enough
I gotta post pictures from that save file sometime
DCS (Digital Combat Simulator)
Tons of well-simulated combat aircraft. IL-2 is probably the closest simulator to it.
DCS is what I play most of the time - particularly the Viper. I help run the unit I play with as well.
Elite Dangerous is the only other sim I play.
Look into falcon BMS
Falcon BMS is pretty nice. It’s like 5$ and the latest version just got out.
Motor Town, Operation Harsh Doorstop, Easy Red 2, Sailwind, Hydroneer, Liftoff!, Shredders, Old Market Simulator, Cold Waters Dot Mod, Nebulous Fleet Command, From The Depths, Helicopter Gunship DEX and Out Of Ore are all great “sims”.
I also consider extremely mechanically deep rpgs with realistic systems like Cataclysm Dark Days Ahead or Unreal World to be simulators and both are superb.
I am trying out Ships At Sea but don’t have enough experience yet to give a thumbs up or down yet on it (Check out Sailwind!).
Sailwind is a “sailing simulator” as in actual sailing!
I have only heard of two of those so youve given me a large list of games to check out, thank you
Motor Town is amazing from such a small team. Great force feedback and VR support as well.
It isn’t marketed primarily as a racing game or a high speed driving game, but it just feels so damn good I have put SO many urgent taxi job miles in that game it isn’t even remotely funny.
I regret none of that time lol
I also love doing urgent taxi jobs and cruising in multiplayer while being around players doing radically different vibes of driving jobs.
It makes the whole driving experience so much more interesting than when everyone is just driving lamborghinis and ferraris are 200mph and the rest of the vehicles are AI. The map just ends up feeling “more alive” somehow in Motor Town, idk I love it.
Check out eSail as well, if you like sailing.
I’ll definitely look at Sailwind, I’d love a good sailing sim. Thanks for the rec!
Elite Dangerous
A-10 Attack and A-10 Cuba. Still the crispiest and most enjoyable flight sims I’ve ever played.
OMG I had so much fun with A-10 Cuba on classic macOS. It’s still one of my favorite games.
A-10 Tank Killer was the bomb.
X-Wing was the reason I jumped from Atari ST to DOS/Windows.
Carmageddon. It taught me everything I needed to know about the role of pedestrians while driving.
I think this is the first time I’ve EVER seen carmageddon mentioned. Great game
Dwarf Fortress, aka drunken dwarf simulator.
I bought that game just because I watched the Noclip documentary series on the developers. I haven’t played it yet, and I’m not sure I ever will, but goddammit I love those two men.
It’s not a simulator, it’s a parallel world.
I can’t believe no-one’s mentioned BeamNG.drive. The stuff that game simulates is off the charts. It’s been in ‘early access’ forever, but if you’re even remotely interested in driving simulators, it’s the gold standard for a realistic driving experience. Crashing in VR in this game is the most visceral thing ever. It’ll change you.
Here’s a clip of me driving a RHD Piccolina around one of my local roads a kindly modder added to the sim until I crash catastrophically.
I have spent a lot of money on iRacing and Elite Dangerous. I kind of miss it but also feel that i was way too deep into it to be having fun. It was a struggle to always make things better and i was not really enjoying my self
I spent a lot of hours in F-19 Stealth Fighter on the Atari ST as a kid. The manual for that thing was unbelievably in-depth. I’m utterly convinced I could fly real combat missions in that (fictional) plane.
YES! I PLAYED THE SHIT OUT OF THAT GAME!!!
Assetto Corsa
Amazing game, could have more varied maps in free access servers, but the game is old so it’s ok
It’s my favorite racing sim. Good pick.
This has to be roller coaster. Period.
Like the og Roller coaster tycoon 2 for example.
Is that a simulator game? I thought “tycoon” was a different category.
If it fits, I’m on board with it as the GOAT.
Yes roller coaster games are simulators. They are park simulators.
