A320 Professional

Published by Just Flight
Developed by Phoenix Simulation Software
Platform: PC CD-ROM
Price £34.99
Requires: MS Flight Sim 2002
Released: Out Now

The last Just Flight expansion pack we will look at for now is the A320 Professional. The expansion pack concentrates on just the A319c, A319v, A320c, A320v, A321c and A321v aeroplanes and the Airbus A320. Once again the depth and sheer scale is above and beyond anything you've encountered previously from Flight Simulator.

What you get in the pack is extraordinarily good value for money. In addition to the CD-ROM you get an 85 minute video, a 152 page manual (all in English) and a book of charts and tables for the A320. There are 35 liveries on offer for the included aeroplanes and include airlines such as Alitalia, Virgin Atlantic and America West and unlike the 737-400 expansion pack, all liveries come already installed.

The video that comes with the set is again unsubtitled. This is even more a of a shame than it was with the 737-400 video as it is a brilliantly useful video. Many of the aeroplanes systems are explained such as Fly-by-wire, EFIS, ECAM etc. and the video would have served as a very useful reference tool had it been subtitled.

As a whole the expansion pack is superb but the detail of the cockpit's panels is what makes it truly stand out from other expansion packs. The quality and attention to detail is without a doubt the finest ever seen on a home computer. Claiming to have 'high detailed glass cockpit features' the whole thing looks photo-realistic. The virtual cockpit mode is also a work of art. Most expansions of high quality usually choose to leave out the virtual cockpit mode, which is understandable, but thankfully that is not the case here.

Aside from the video, little noises that signal events like the landing gear being lowered or raised and the verbal warnings that ring out if you suddenly begin to nosedive toward the ground are not visually represented. However, the pack is deaf gamer friendly in much the same way as Flight Simulator itself. The manual, 152 pages long, is excellent and covers any details you could wish to know about very comprehensively. As well as the manual there is a 22 page booklet that gives you in depth, details such as take off thrust settings, v-speed adjustments etc. and will satisfy all the aviation experts among you.

Again we have an expansion pack that, had it not been for the unsubtitled video and a few little bits and pieces, would have almost scored full marks. The attention to detail is absolutely first class and it is clear to see why Just Flight are the premier publishers of Flight Sim expansion packs. Despite the few niggles we've mentioned, the A320 Professional expansion pack comes highly recommended for those of you who are serious about your Flight Simulator.

Overall Game Rating: 8.5/10 Another superb example of what can be done with Flight Simulator 2002.

Deaf Gamers comment: The included video isn't subtitled and there are one or two other aspects that could have done with captions or subtitles. On the whole though there are not too many problems.