Beta version or demo of CFS2?

[RichNagel]

Does anyone know of a working download link for the beta version of CFS2? Also, the same thing for the demo (was there ever an official demo of CFS2)? I though it might be interesting to give those a whirl

[Shadow Wolf 07]

Since 2000 I never saw or heard of one. At the time, with dial up connection (at 50 kb/sec) being the primary method of connecting to the internet, I doubt that the thought ever crossed anyone's mind.

[RichNagel]

Thanks for the info, Shadow Wolf 07 Yeah, man, those miserable dialup days LOL!

BTW, as far as the beta version, the only thing that I've seen on the Internet is mention of a "Beta CD-ROM", which I'm assuming was given by Microsoft to only a select few.

[No Dice]

Never heard of one for CFS2, But I have what was called the Gold Version for CFS1,
But I think some gun owners have a saying about prying my fingers off this, Well same
here...never gonna happen.

[RichNagel]

Sorry for digging up this old message thread, but I recently stumbled upon this image. The image was from an EBay auction that had ended last month that hadn't sold:

ULTRA RARE: Combat Flight Simulator 2 Beta - Microsoft Game Studios

Ended: Nov 17, 2021 , 5:45PM

Up for auction here is an extremely rare and confidential disc from Microsoft Game Studios containing a Beta build of Combat Flight Simulator 2, developed by Microsoft!

To note, there is no license with the disc and I'm uncertain if one is needed.

The disc is in great condition and reads perfectly (I imaged the bits and loaded the image via A120%'s emulated drive just to make sure).

NOTE: Microsoft Game Studios discs are commonly protected with copy protection DRM like SafeDisc/SecuROM. This means you will likely see read errors if you try to rip the disc! Software like A120% is typically needed to image discs like this.

INTERESTING!

[Dirtman]

WOW ... YOU STRUCK GOLD !!!

Nice find Rich .. your diligence has certainly paid off!
Mint condition is a REAL BONUS.

I'd create an ISO ... and then lock them in a safety deposit box!!!

[Allen]

Has anyone contacted the seller since it didn't sell and see if they could get it? Wonder if this has the 2 missing P-47s that are found in the INFO folder as .jpgs

[RichNagel]

WOW ... YOU STRUCK GOLD !!!

Nice find Rich .. your diligence has certainly paid off!
Mint condition is a REAL BONUS.

I'd create an ISO ... and then lock them in a safety deposit box!!!

Actually, the auction had ended back in November and no one had bidded on it. I stumbled on it after the auction had ended, so unfortunately I don't have it

That being said.....

Has anyone contacted the seller since it didn't sell and see if they could get it? Wonder if this has the 2 missing P-47s that are found in the INFO folder as .jpgs

I sent the seller two messages, one a few weeks ago, and one today... haven't had a reply yet

@ALL, and YES, if by a slim chance I can get ahold of the seller and am actually able to buy it, I WILL be creating and ISO (probably a CloneCD image) and uploading it somewhere

[ViperPilot2]

Why don't you pick up.a full.copy of CFS2 and go that way? I mean, they're all over the place on the Bay for cheap, and all of the 'fixes' are floating out in the ether.

It'll be a more rewarding experience for a real test drive, and if you like it, so much the better.

In its day it was considered one of the best Combat Sims ever made, and the ACES Team had former Fighter Aces Joe Foss and Saburo Sakai as consultants.

If you can, get a Copy with the Manual; it's almost a template on how the Campaigns are modeled.

Good Luck!

[RichNagel]

Why don't you pick up.a full.copy of CFS2 and go that way? I mean, they're all over the place on the Bay for cheap, and all of the 'fixes' are floating out in the ether.

It'll be a more rewarding experience for a real test drive, and if you like it, so much the better.

In its day it was considered one of the best Combat Sims ever made, and the ACES Team had former Fighter Aces Joe Foss and Saburo Sakai as consultants.

If you can, get a Copy with the Manual; it's almost a template on how the Campaigns are modeled.

Good Luck!

Ummmm... I actually own TWO copies of the game, complete with manuals, as well as the two published strategy guides for the game. I also play the game on a daily basis, and have for many years now The purpose of this thread was simply tracking down the beta version of CFS2 for historical purposes

[ViperPilot2]

Ummmm... I actually own TWO copies of the game, complete with manuals, as well as the two published strategy guides for the game. I also play the game on a daily basis, and have for many years now The purpose of this thread was simply tracking down the beta version of CFS2 for historical purposes

Rich,

I was mistaken; after perusing some of the other CFS2 Threads, I came to the realization that you're a long time User of CFS2, and your post here explains the reason for your Search. My sincere apologies!

I have reloaded CFS2 recently, and am rediscovering how much enjoyment I got from running this Sim! I look forward to reading many more informative posts from you!

Alan

[CH_OldZeke]

I doubt MS did any CFS2 betas as a d/l. We received beta cds for CFS3 for the 1st 2 betas. As even FSX the first few betas were mailed on cd to us.

[Sbob]

Just to muddy the waters some more, the Demo included with FS2002 is "Fighter Ace 2" from 1999 and not CFS2.
Both games were from M$, but "Face2" was more of an on-line "stadium shooter" (I never tried playing it on-line) and a lot more simple than CFS.
You could play it offline in Training Mode.

[RichNagel]

I was mistaken; after perusing some of the other CFS2 Threads, I came to the realization that you're a long time User of CFS2, and your post here explains the reason for your Search. My sincere apologies!

No problemo Hehe, 'long time user', as of modern times... I got into CFS2 WAY after it wasn't sold anymore in stores, and way after the MS Zone was shut down LOL. Really a shame, I would have had a BLAST playing on the Zone if I had the game (and a PC powerful enough to run it) back then

I doubt MS did any CFS2 betas as a d/l. We received beta cds for CFS3 for the 1st 2 betas. As even FSX the first few betas were mailed on cd to us.

Yeah, I don't think that they had a download for the CFS2 beta. Only the elusive CD that I just barely missed on Ebay before someone had bought it

Just to muddy the waters some more, the Demo included with FS2002 is "Fighter Ace 2" from 1999 and not CFS2.
Both games were from M$, but "Face2" was more of an on-line "stadium shooter" (I never tried playing it on-line) and a lot more simple than CFS.
You could play it offline in Training Mode.

That would be similar to the Fighter Ace (1) that came with CFS2. Just like you said about FA2, a 'stadium shooter'.

[ViperPilot2]

No problemo Hehe, 'long time user', as of modern times... I got into CFS2 WAY after it wasn't sold anymore in stores, and way after the MS Zone was shut down LOL. Really a shame, I would have had a BLAST playing on the Zone if I had the game (and a PC powerful enough to run it) back then

Yeah, I don't think that they had a download for the CFS2 beta. Only the elusive CD that I just barely missed on Ebay before someone had bought it

That would be similar to the Fighter Ace (1) that came with CFS2. Just like you said about FA2, a 'stadium shooter'.

I bought my first copy in the Computer Store, along with CFS1. I'm so old skool I can remember the days of the first Wikipedia writeup for CFS2, when some wrote that it was "the finest Combat Simulator on the Market, and with the Open Source nature of the Community, it has the potential for massive Expansion of its simulated Environment."

After cutting my teeth on Sims such as Fighter Duel, X WING and TIE FIGHTER, and US Navy Fighters, CFS 1 and 2 were a welcome change.