Falcon BMS Explained by an Idiot!

 Falcon BMS Explained? Well, to tell that story, I must tell you another. Long, long ago, before time, games came in boxes. In those boxes were physical media in the form of disks (floppy, CDs, and later DVD/Blu-rays) and books. Falcon 4.0 came on one disk, but its predecessor came on multiple floppies. Falcon 3.0 also had a pretty hefty manual. These manuals are a gamer's first ritual when you grow up, as I did.

We read them and looked at the pictures on the ride home. Smartphones were not a thing, and depending on what part of the area you were in would depend on the quality of the music over the radio. You got creative. Plus we were excited.

Falcon 4.0 did not have a manual. It was a book. The book was like Johnny's first Natops manual. I mean, this fucking thing was a 500-page technical manual. For me, a game generally came with a manual that amounted to a pamphlet.

Falcon 4.0 is arguably the peak of modern combat flight simulations. Now stop, close your mouth, and take a deep breath through your nose. Count to 4 and exhale. Rinse and repeat until you have calmed down. It's a fact.

The game came out in 1998, and it's still relevant, receives regular updates, and is a must-have for anyone who considers themselves a combat flight sim enthusiast. How do I know? I am a combat flight sim enthusiast, and so are five of my friends. Four of them agree with me, and one of them has a sloped head.

Without citing any sources at all and basing this entirely on memory (Something that has never backfired on anyone), BMS got its roots not long after the game's release. I remember some dude that I used to fly with during my tour with one of my first virtual Squadrons, the VF-143 Pukin' Dogs.

We used to play Joint Strike Fighter and Fighters Anthology. He had a particularly memorable voice, pronouncing it "Fighters Annnnthoolllllogyyyy," really putting an emphasis on the 'Anthon' section. During breaks, he would drone on and on about this game. It required you to know how to do the entire realistic, 1:1 start sequence of the F-16C Fighting Falcon.

No fucking way. Really? He showed me a website with Flash player videos that walked you through the startup sequence. It talked about being able to fly many other fighter and bomber planes. While limited to the avionics of the F-16C, it looked like whatever your little bloody dogs of war heart desires.

It also had a dynamic campaign, complete with tanks, infantry, artillery, surface-to-air missiles, flak guns, logistical movements, shipping, factories, power plants, and more. It was all tied together under the command of the AI. Both sides had their set pieces, win conditions were made by the maker, and the theater was one of many. Korea and the Balkans were the most accessible and popular since they came with base versions of Falcon games.

These AI commanders would fight it out, and in doing so, ground units would move and fight each other. This would generate missions for the air war to do what the air war does: support the ground war. Ground "Commanders" request targets get knocked out to aid in their fight. The simulated higher command would pass down orders, and the AI pilots would execute them.

                             

You, as a player, are a literal cog in the machine. It does not matter if you live, die, or grow mushrooms out youur ass, the war grinds out. Orders are made, and missions are flown. Around the clock. All day, every day. Until either, you end the campaign or one side wins.

Some last a week, and others last for a month. The week-long ones may seem short, but when you consider a round-the-clock flight schedule, it's a lot. The requirement to inflict as much damage on the enemies of freedom requires day and night poundings, so there are a ton of missions.

There are dozens a day, ranging from Combat Air Patrols to coordinated deep strikes, battlefield interdictions, and, of course, my favorite, SEAD/DEAD. FILO YGBSM. There is more diversity than a new Star Wars movie IP.

Each time you play, the outcome and events are different. You play out your aerial dramas over hostile land, where lives and equipment matter. Get shot up because you were drinking off and over-flew the target instead of one pass, haul-assign your way to victory like a Chad, and you might have to punch out.

You better hope for another friend, or I'll see you. If you owe any of us poker money, we might reconsider, but we have to call it in over the radio. Hopefully, you get picked up by friendly forces, or Mr. I-Hate-America is gonna invent new ways to use a deep-cycle marine battery on your genitals. Your life, as insignificant as it is, matters. 

One less pilot means one less body to put in a plane. Squadrons often have more planes than pilots, so losing a pilot is costly. You could eventually find yourself in a situation where you have missions and planes but no pilots.

Likewise, other logistics matter as well. The beans and the bullets matter. As a young pup, it was grounded in me that amateurs talked tactics and professionals talked logistics. You have to keep an eye on the weapons you use. If you missed a lot with the good stuff because you suck, you will run out and get left with the shit you really can't hit things with.

The same goes for the other team, so you send as many of those little virtual commie bastards to hell as you can. If at all possible, make that son of a bitch auger into an ammo dump next to a fuel depot and a hospital. That way, it's not a war crime.

The less they have, the less they will throw at you. Brothers and Sisters, the AI out there will throw it at you and try and kill you. A lot. Your AI team will do their part as well. The skies are crowded over Korea when it's time to remind them who daddy is.

What started as an amazing campaign supported by a die-hard community has turned into multiple decades of passion. The people over at Benchmark Sims have poured their time, money, heart, soul, and energy into keeping this living and breathing combat zone alive—not just alive but thriving.

So much so that signs of new life exist on the horizon. What I knew to be Falcon 4.0 has evolved into what is referred to as BMS. Currently, in 4.37, you can enjoy this campaign online, with friends, and even player vs. Player. They have added another full-fidelity aircraft to their list, no longer bound to the F-16C avionics.

Now, the F-15C joins the skies alongside its younger cousin, the Viper. Together, they battle over the world for truth, justice, and the American way.

It's not just Korea and the Balkans. The other night, I was doing OCA strikes over Iraq in 1991, jamming out to the Clash's "Rock the Casbah," just living my best life. Central Europe, the Mediterranean, the Pacific Islands, and so many more are just ripe for the picking.

It has it all, and it comes complete with a hyper-fixated and decimated community. These fuckin' people will square you away like nothing before. They will expect you to try learning the jet, but they will give you every tool at their disposal to make it possible.

4.38 is set to bring in a significant update to the engine's GFX. The Terrian will get a major overhaul, and the screenshots look SPECTACULAR. She's old, but she's got it where it counts, and this cougar is SMOKING! Oh, did I mention all this, and it works in VR, too? All done through the sheer magic that can only come from Jerimiah Weed himself.

To round this all out, there is going to be a Falcon 5.0. Microprose recently announced that they are starting production of a follow-up to Falcon 4.0. Microprose has also been in talks with BMS and worked out an agreement—one that I am more than happy to speculate on.

The future is bright if the writing on the wall is correct. So I say fuck it, fox three. Full send it on Falcon BMS.

It's obligatory and something I must say. I am contractually obligated to remind everyone to like and subscribe to this blog. Something, Something Al-Gore rhythm. Seriously, it does really help, and it makes me uncomfortable to ask. My discomfort should bring you joy.

Anyway, I like to write, tell stories, and share things I love with the void that is the internet.