Jane's F/A-18 Goes Gold!

Electronic Arts today announced that Jane's® F/A-18 has gone gold and will
be available in stores on January 14, 2000. Jane's F/A-18 features the
Navy's newest front-line carrier strike fighter, the F/A-18E Super Hornet.
Developed in cooperation with the United States Navy, Jane's F/A-18
realistically captures all the spine-tingling emotion and the heart-pounding
glory of commanding the world's most powerful carrier strike fighter.

Jane's F/A-18 will be published by Electronic Arts' Jane's Combat
Simulations brand and developed by Electronic Arts' studio in Hunt Valley,
Maryland, the creators Jane's F-15. In the spirit of F-15, F/A-18 takes the
single-aircraft "study sim" to new levels of realism.

F/A-18 recreates
every detail as only Jane's can; including superb physics-based flight
models, intense carrier operations and painstaking simulation of the
F/A-18's complete avionics and weapons suite. Hold on as the steam catapult
propels the Super Hornet from zero to 150 knots in two seconds. "Call the
ball" just like a US Navy pilot would and put the 46,000 pound bird down on
the rolling carrier deck. Just like in the real jet, the player has to
catch the 3rd wire with the tail hook and slam to a halt from 100 knots to
zero within 150 feet.

Oh, and I love it when marketing departments write press releases about subjects they don't understand: "a physics based flight model". Anybody for the geography based version of the flight model? How about the chemistry based version?

I was so excited when F15 was released In January...I even tracked it on its way home to daddy via UPS...Great start for the New Year! I get to do it all over again ...Janes please continue New Year tradition for releasing study sims even after F18..Cant Wait!..Is there an officers edition avialable like I bought when F15 was released?...I enjoy my Huge Wall Map and authentic F-15 Patch and Wall Posters that are hanging on my wall.

Cheers

What is the importance of going "gold?" I presume this is a term for a certain number of sales? Sales to distributors like EB? Sales to the public?

Additionally, how and why does this impact on a release date?

Thanks.

GOD I hope that's a worldwide release date.
I just can't wait until I walk out of the store with that box in my hand.
The time between buying and playing is always such a thrill

One month does seem a little long but this time of year I'm sure the production is peaking to keep up with christmas sales. And the marketing and distribution is also likely stretched to its limit.

This will be a long wait but keep in mind that the development team is ahead of schedule

------------------
2nd Lt. von Krarr
16th ACCW Flying Tigers
163rd Mad Boomers

1. Finding out what day it's supposed to hit stores.
2. Driving to the store as soon as possible.
3. The anxiety felt as you approach the flight sim section and scan the shelves looking for the box with the Janes logo and F/A-18 hornit on the cover.
4. Looking the box over, reading the text and checking out the screenshots (like you're really still trying to decide whether or not you're going to get it)
5. Waiting in what will inevitably be the longest, slowest line you've ever seen in this store(more time to reread the box, double checking the system specs-maybe I should go back and get that TNT2 Ultra card, no the wife will kill me and I can't fly if I'm dead.)
6. Heading back to the car, getting in, pulling it out of the bag.
7. Your heart is beating rapidly as you tear off the shrink wrap, open the box and breathe in the smell of the freshly printed manual, keycard. mmmm
8. Flipping through the manual, checking out the table of contents and illustrations. You realize it's been ten minutes since you got back in your car and in your excitement did not start it up. It's 20 degrees out and you cannot feel your feet.
9. Risking your life as you begin reading the manual while driving home.
10. Of course when you do get home the lovely wife tells you to take out the trash, fold the laundry and feed the baby. You tell her you love her deeply and she sure looks beautiful today but it doesn't buy you any 'flyboy' time.
11. You finally get to the computer which seems to take 10 minutes to boot up.
12. The cd loads and installation begins as you continue to flip through the manual.
13. Installation is complete and you may or may not have to reboot. Suddenly you've reached the climax of months of talking and speculation as to what this sim will bring.
14. You now spend many sleepless nights and countless days pretending to be sick so you can spend countless hours indulging in this crazy hobby of ours.

Here's to many happy months of Janes F/A-18 flying.

everyone,
What's the point in ordering online. Just go to BestBuy or something. I've seen too many times where the guys that mail-order are complaining because us store guys have had a game for a week or so. The hardcore sim community is global. Not everyone is in the same town, so there's a good chance that stores will be well-stocked. They're not like Indians' tickets (three years ago EVERY seat for the ENTIRE season sold out in THREE DAYS!!)

Yes, F4 was a disaster. It's STILL not solid, and looks like it isn't going to get any better. Disappointing.

That's exactly what I mean...except that I don't have a wife that can keep me from flying.
Back when F4 came out, I got my hands on one of the first retail copies available, because it was initially a pre-order.
I had been window shopping every day for weeks to see if it was there. I went into the store, expecting to find nothing.
My eyes went left to right, top to bottom through the shelves....AND THERE IT WAS!!
God I was happy.
As soon as I came home I browsed through the manual, and after half an hour I realised that it would be much smarter to just go and install the thing.
I love that 'First Day Feeling'.
(I just made that term up, but I hope it'll stick around. Maybe it'll sound better if I call it the 'Thrasher syndrome' )

How do you think the framerates will be on a Celery A 333 with a 16MB Banshee at 800x600? I like to be able to run 1024x768 but I'll be a happy camper with 800x600.

for the 18th day after Christmas my wallet gave to me: 1 Hornet sim

Hehe, to indulge properly in the total F/A-18 experiance one must watch the Discovery Wings channel for 4 hours straight, with coffee.

Personally speaking, i'm going to treat myself to a Christmas gift for me. Go to navywear.com--they have cool stuff, and one of the ultra cool shirts they have is one from VFA-34. One the front, simple letters saying: "Have Gun, Will Travel"

on the back, the oh so lovely HUD picture of a Fulcrums plan view, in the middle of your guns pipper, with just enough lead pulled and 482 rounds remaining....

Screw counting down to the millenium, I'm counting down to JF18 Day.

Sader

There is nothing better than a new hardcore sim from Jane's, installed on your harddrive.