Over the years, air combat simulations have become one of the most celebrated computer game genres. During that same period of time, World War II flight sims have carved out a category of their own within that genre, spawning such classics as like Their Finest Hour and Aces Over Europe. 1942 The Pacific Air War is Microprose's first attempt at a prop plane simulation, which doesn't include missiles or radar.

	Opening up your 1942 box, you'll find your usual assortment of Microprose goodies - an in-depth manual, a few flyers, and a hot-key keyboard function card.  When you actually boot up the game, the first thing you would normally do is fly a single mission.  After you've made your choice to fly a single mission, you're given a choice as to what type of mission you'd like to fly - air sweep, bombing land or sea targets, among other options.

	If you choose one of the training missions, you'll begin in flight, on the way to your objective.  Hitting "A" for auto-pilot starts your plane in the right direction, and continuous tapping of the "T" key will start your time compression, which can be increased up to as much as sixteen times.  

	Unfortunately, if you've dozed off waiting for your plane to reach your objective, you'll just end up spiraling towards the murky waters of the Pacific.  This isn't a problem when you're in a real mission, because the auto-pilot is disengaged when the objective is within sight. The computer must have some serious eagle eyes, because you still have to fly several minutes before you can actually see something other than the vast expanse of ocean.

	When it comes to the actual combat, 1942 has one of the best engines I've ever seen.  The enemy planes move intelligently and are ever so fast, and the battle gives you the sense of being way up in the air, unlike some simulations out there.  All of this combines to make an extremely exciting battle every time, albeit a long one, since it's so hard to shoot enemy planes down.  In fact, if it weren't for the occasional problems you have controlling your plane, the combat would be perfect.  

	Microprose has long been known for realistic game control, and that reputation isn't harmed by 1942. In a sense it's too realistic, since you still have to battle to control your plane even when the realistic flight option is turned off.  Instead of rolling over and turning when one is trying to bank hard, your plane has a bad tendency to side slip, making it nearly impossible at times to make sharp turns.  

	After you get over the control problems, 1942 becomes a rather pretty game to play.  The virtual cockpit, almost standard on every new flight sim these days, is extremely helpful, letting you look around for the enemy without having to frantically hit the function keys. 

	There's a campaign option available, but I often found myself flying single missions, putting my fighter bomber on auto-pilot and just playing the rear gunner most of the time.  The control, sounds, and realistic fluid movement of the enemy aircraft were great.  I just sat back taking pot shots at Zeros as they did fly-by shootings at me.  Another one of the incredibly enjoyable parts of 1942 was the bombing runs.  Although they were slow, and the only real action was shooting at the swarming enemy planes, the runs seemed incredibly realistic.  When your rear gunner fails to shoot down or deter an enemy plane, your plane will be blown to bits.  Fortunately, when your plane goes down, you're magically get switched to one of the other planes flying the mission, assuming there is one remaining to switch to.  

	Lately, computer games have been taking leaps and bounds in the graphics and sound  department, and 1942 is no exception. With a powerful machine, the graphic detail can be mind-blowing.  The sounds seem to be realistic, and give you a sense of urgency when you're being fired upon. The texture mapping on the islands is terrific, the ripples in the ocean are incredibly realistic, and even the ship trails look good. 

	The rest of 1942's game options don't measure up to the single missions.  The career battle, the game's strategy element, gives you control of either side during a historically based campaign. The mission editor gives you the ability to modify the game to suit your personal tastes. It's a bit too complicated for inexperienced players, but can be a powerful tool in the right hands.

	The pilot career option is very similar to other Microprose flight sims.  That's good for fans of that particular setup, but Red Baron and Aces over Europe fans might find the single missions a little more on the fun side.  Last but not least, you have the film option.  While a UCLA film school grad could probably use this to create a little movie, the film editor isn't exactly user-friendly. I'll take the Dynamix film editor any day.

	Overall, I enjoyed 1942 quite a bit. The graphics were great, the sound was well done, and the whole feeling of realism was there.  It's far from perfect, 1942 The Pacific Air War is a good choice when it comes to World War II flight sims.