Battle of Britain II: Wings of Victory

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Battle of Britain II Wings of Victory

Developer(s)	Shockwave Productions,Inc.
Publisher(s)	TRI Synergy,GMX Media
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows PC
Release date	^PAL August 26, 2005 ^[1] ^USA September 12, 2005 ^[2]
Genre(s)	Flight simulator
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	ESRB: Everyone 10+ (E10+) PEGI: 7+
Input methods	Keyboard, Joystick,Mouse,TrackIR (if desired)

Battle of Britain II Wings of Victory is a Windows-based flight simulation created by Shockwave Productions,Inc. and released in 2005. It is a remake of Rowan's Battle of Britain combat flight simulation by Empire Interactive. The aerial combat is drawn from the Battle of Britain during the Second World War and features the British RAF versus the German Luftwaffe. Wings of Victory remains very popular among serious PC historical World War II flight sim enthusiasts. Shockwave's Forum announced a sequel to be called Flying Tigers. Battle of Britain II can be played either as a flight simulator or as a strategy game, or both combined. Changes include an extensive graphics overhaul, gameplay tweaks and new features. Its scope includes hundreds of warplanes and huge aerial raids and battles in the air. The simulation has realistic AA fire, radio traffic, and in-game ambience that includes military forces on the ground.The flight sim developers term BoBII WoV their time machine and the flight simulation engine (code) used in this is called the "Merlin" engine as indicated on Shockwave Productions forum.

The available warplanes that can be flown include two variations each of the RAF's Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane. Aircraft of the Luftwaffe are the Messerschmitt Bf-109, Messerschmitt Bf-110, and Junkers JU87 Stuka. Other aircraft featured are the Luftwaffe bombers Junkers Ju-88, Heinkel He-111, and Dornier Do-17. It also includes the RAF Bristol Blenheim bomber and Boulton Paul Defiant. The simulation installation is on one CDROM and after the install it does not require the CD to run the application.

The limited edition version of Battle of Britain II WOV comes with a historical DVD on the Battle of Britain and includes the Wings of Power B17 Flying Fortress for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004. The simulation has had many patches since its release and the latest patch 2.07 was released at Shockwave Productions website as of November 25, 2007. Patch 2.05 and multiskin will let the user or other 3rd party user modify the artwork insignia and camouflage pattern for different aircraft for historical representation. BoB II WOV comes with a 136 page Operations Manual but the manual has been updated several times with each improvement. The title box includes a map and keyboard overlay. Improved maps are being introduced with Patch 2.05.

The 3rd party accessory TrackIR greatly improves gameplay and is an inexpensive substitute for virtual reality goggles.

A modified version of the game with arcade-style gameplay was published by Wild Hare Entertainment under the title Air Battles: Sky Defender in 2007.