DCS: A-10C Warthog

Digital Combat Simulator: A-10C Warthog

DCS: A-10C is part of Eagle Dynamic's DCS series, a series of programs whose target is to simulate modern and legendary aircrafts as realistic as possible. Other parts of this series include DCS: Black Shark, DCS: Black Shark 2 (who both simulate the Russian Helicopter Ka-50) and the upcoming DCS: P-51D Mustang.

Should I really buy a DCS game?

That really depends. Do you like flying but want a quick action-style game like ARMA 2 or even BF3 then probably not. But if you're not afraid of a so called study sim, if you want to learn how to really fly a plane and if you not only get your fun by defeating the enemy, but also by the way to get there. Then, yes, you should have a look at the DCS series.

But be warned, even for starting up the aircraft you'll need to take a very thorough and repeated look at the (very good) tutorial and some YouTube Videos, probably even at the 700 pages handbook. DCS: A-10C is a great and addicting game, but in the DCS series fun comes from realism, it is in no way comparable to games like BF3 which trade realism for authenticity.

What do I need to play?

You definitely need a joystick, better an HOTAS (Hands on Throttle and Stick), that is a joystick consisting of two parts (a throttle and a stick, obviously). The most frequently mentioned choice for beginners is the Saitek X52 which quality-wise is ok and reasonably priced . You also should think about buying a TrackIR: this piece of head tracking technology allows you to look around the cockpit without taking your hands of the stick. It is very useful and can be used in most flight sims and some others games (mostly racing games, but also ARMA2, for example).

While rudder pedals are great to have, you do not need them in order to fly the plane, as long as you have a joystick with an intergrated twist option

Where to buy?

You can buy the game either on Steam or directly on [1]

Note that you also can use your Steam key to download a copy directly from the developers website.

Non-English speakers who want to play online should think about downloading the English version from the developers website. Experience has shown that both Steam patches and the patches for the translated version of the game arrive with a delay.

Savegames / Screenshots / Tracks / Config Location

All of the above can be found within the following directory:

C:\Users\USERNAME\Saved Games\DCS Warthog

Recommended Programs

Teamspeak 3: Most used program for multiplayer communication in the DCS community. Mostly due to the existance of

TARS: An addon for TS3 which simulates radio frequencies and only allows talking between players using the same frequency.