F-22 Lightning 3

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F-22 Lightning 3
Developer(s)	NovaLogic
Publisher(s)	NovaLogic
Version	1.00.01.04
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows
Release date	April 30, 1999
Genre(s)	Combat flight simulator
Mode(s)	Single player Multiplayer
Rating(s)	ELSPA 11+
Media	CD
System requirements	Intel Pentium 133 MHz CPU, Windows 95/98/NT, 32 MB RAM, 220 MB hard disk space, 3D card
Input methods	Keyboard or joystick

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F-22 Lightning 3 is a combat flight simulation computer game from NovaLogic, produced only for the PC. It is based on the F-22 Raptor produced by Lockheed Martin. It was released on May 25, 1999 and was successor of earlier game F-22 Lightning II (released in 1996), for the time, both games displayed very realistic graphics and some physics of flying a plane. The makers gained legitimacy by Lockheed Martin sanctioning their product, the actual makers of the real-life F-22 fighter.

Predecessor F-22 Lightning II was released in September 30, 1996. It's minimum requirements were 486/100 Mhz or equivalent CPU, 8 MB RAM and 35 MB hard drive space. It was released for Dos and was much more detailed in comparison to contemporary combat flight simulators like Jane's US Navy Fighters.

In both games (Lightning II and 3) aircraft was named 'Lightning II', instead of the correct 'Raptor', even when by 1999 plane was officially named by Air Force as 'Raptor'. F-22 Lightning 3 also failed to come close to the physics modeling shown in DiD's F-22 ADF released 2 years earlier. This has later been explained by Novalogic since they never intended a 'hard core' military flight simulator, but an easily approachable multiplayer software.

The game itself is not so much an all-out simulation but a combat flying game for the masses whose gameplay is easier to access than some of its rivals such as the Falcon series or games from Digital Integration. F-22 Lightning 3 features a host of real life weaponry such as AMRAAM missiles, Sidewinders, 20 mm Vulcan Gatling gun, HARMs, JDAMs, various types of iron bombs, and the B61 10-kiloton tactical thermonuclear free-fall bomb. Due to the stealth capabilities of the F-22, the player rarely needs to worry about their plane's radar signature.

Since the simulator ignores the 'emcon' issues and doesn't model the difference in signature with radio and radar modes and activation. It remains stealthy even when you are tracking a target with an active radar.

There are six campaigns, with a total of 46 missions split between them (each campaign features either seven or eight missions, which must be played in order). The campaigns cover various hot spots around the world (Libya, Chad, Indonesia, Syria, the Kola Peninsula, and so forth). The game can be played online with a host of other NovaLogic games at NovaLogic.net or on a network. As of March 25th, 2007, the game requires a patch to play online, which can be downloaded via the NovaLogic website.