The article is an honest interpretation of the project, as it was released at the time it was written. There was no over-hype and no bashing either.
I could have not covered it at the time at all ā and I wasnāt really considering it as I thought it was too early ā but, since it WAS released and since so much hype was built around it, people started to ask me, some folks were saying it was very realistic, and I felt like I had to say something about it so that expectations could be met by those that didnāt try it yet. Or by those that now think helicopters behave like that.
I could have gone the easy way and either praise it to the skies or thrash it to the ground like most content creators seem to like to do nowadays. Instead, I tried to be as analytical as possible and lay it as it is, no thrills, no frills.
And I did. I was completely honest and sincere in everything I said so that people could have a straightforward, unbiased, no-hype, honest opinion of what it was. And what it wasnāt.
Saying something is great when itās not, just to jump onto the bandwagon does not serve anything except get people frustrated when they realize something is not what they expected it to be. And people would start questioning everything I would write about any product. I take it as my responsibility to provide an honest opinion and help people understand what the products I write about are all about.
That is quite a tricky balance. And, still, not everyone will be happy because I am not hyping or thrashing and go all wild and crazy.
Yes, I do get excited over some products now and then, but thatās because I honestly get excited about them for being so good. So, when you DO see me get excited about something, you should know itās not a fake, for-the-likes, excitment. Itās the real deal.
That being said, Iāve been testing all the versions of the 135 that came out and I am in contact with the developer. Itās much better, yes, but itās still lacking and it still feels like flying a drone. I have also seen someone saying that itās better than FSX and P3D but I donāt think it is. The lack of inertia alone is quite a big deal.
Yes, it is quite fun to try, yes they did a great job, and they are progressing nicely. And yes, I will revisit it in the future once it improves a bit more. More than VRS, I hope they fix other areas that are far more important such as IGE/OGE, improved torque, improved ETL, side-force from the tail rotor, and autorotations.
All this is something the dev team is looking into based on the feedback provided. I am not sure they will be able to make everything work properly (mainly because I donāt think itās their goal to add all that in the first place). I am waiting for some of these areas to be improved to do a second write-up about it.
I am giving the team some more time to mature it a bit more. I donāt want to write 15 articles about it because they released 15 versions. I want to do a proper follow up, showing their progress.
About Asobo, I donāt need to āmake excuses for themā. They are more than able to defend themselves, obviously. Thatās not my role. And I donāt want it to be.
What I do, though, is try to understand whatās happening and give my opinion on what I think itās going on based on my experience as a software developer.
Just like I donāt jump on the overhype bandwagon, I also donāt jump onto the bashing bandwagon. No matter who Iām talking about. That is a pattern you will certainly find in my articles.
Iām not here to do pep talks or throw rocks at developers when I write content. Iām here to inform people and provide my opinions as I see it.
Please feel free to disagree but donāt expect me to follow any standards but my own. I have no interest in being someone that says what he says just because itās a popular opinion.
The bottomline, I guess is that if someone releases something to the public, thereās a chance I will write about it. And if I do, I will, definitely, be honest about what it is. I can speculate on what it COULD be. But I will, surely, lay it as it is exactly as I see it.
Like I said, I am in contact with the developer and Iāve offered my help, just like I did with other developers (and even Asobo, yes). My intention is to get us amazing helicopters on all platforms and sims.
To do that, we ALL, as a community, need to be honest and support developers, yes, but also tell them what we think and how we think they should improve. And, if we can, offer them our help.
I am working hard to do my part. Even if it means taking criticism and being seen as the ābad guyā.
Iām perfectly fine with that.