SIX! New planes for IL2-GB announced!

[Aapje]

I think that plenty of people will keep playing GB, especially those with older hardware and no ability to upgrade it. But it will gradually decline. However, even now some people are still playing IL-2 1946.

[Kubert]

I think days of GB will be numbered only after next WWII content, in a new engine, will be released. When someone likes BF-109, Spitfire or Yak-1, new technology and features of the game don't need to be enough to abandon GB. WWII have its own unique charm.

[AndreiTomescu]

First of all, for nowadays and letting the "edges" drop, like in any Gaussian function, the flight modelling and graphics for GB & FC are pretty decent. Haven't heard much complaints regarding these.

The main issue of complaint is the AI, and for the next iteration (Korea) this element is still in the shadows. So we don't know the level of improvement of the future AI.

The background&settings of GB is unique and unrivaled so far. This time frame, covering the 1916-1945 period, is still overwhelming. The available content is also rivaled only by the 1946+CloD+RoF combined.

Korea is the next level, but on a different time frame and in its birth right now. Many summers and installments are to come until its full blooming.

For these reasons I don't see the GB&FC going into oblivion any time soon. Kubert is right.

Running GB on the new Korea ready rig, with all settings to max, I've run into ground a couple of times watching my plane's shadow on the snowy ground. It's still impressive.

Edited June 15 by AndreiTomescu

[AndreiTomescu]

P.S. what the devs achieved from the Rise of Flight to the last GB DLC is actually impressive, and a good share of this results goes also to the private developers of campaigns, mods and other content. Their resilience is comparable if not greater to that of 1946's ones.

[Dash,Polder]

Yup, pushed it over to the secondary M2, hence forth I'll be firing with M3's. 

After a long time in Korea I may hop in just to refresh how much better we are having it.

Edited June 15 by Dash,Polder

[catchforusthefoxes]

10 hours ago, Aapje said:

I think that plenty of people will keep playing GB, especially those with older hardware and no ability to upgrade it. But it will gradually decline. However, even now some people are still playing IL-2 1946.

i hope IL2 GB can become like the modern modded IL2 1946, if, after all, support for this game will stop, just give it to the modders to continue it 

[PaperPilot]

15 hours ago, Aapje said:

At the end of the day, the most important factor is whether enough people will buy them. I'm sure that they'll look at the sales of the Bomber DLC, the P-47M and the P-39Q to see whether it makes sense to release more.

Well that’s a very logical way to think of it. Hopefully they do sell at least as well as they hope. I’m probably beating a dead horse at this stage, but I do hope we get some more collector planes for Great Battles. I’m not overly concerned with aircraft that were built in limited numbers or saw limited service in the war, but I would like to see some that were numerous and had a prominent impact on the conflict. But I could write a long list of aircraft I would like to see until the cows come home. Still though, it’s nice to speculate from time to time.

Edited June 16 by PaperPilot

[PaperPilot]

9 hours ago, AndreiTomescu said:

First of all, for nowadays and letting the "edges" drop, like in any Gaussian function, the flight modelling and graphics for GB & FC are pretty decent. Haven't heard much complaints regarding these.

The main issue of complaint is the AI, and for the next iteration (Korea) this element is still in the shadows. So we don't know the level of improvement of the future AI.

The background&settings of GB is unique and unrivaled so far. This time frame, covering the 1916-1945 period, is still overwhelming. The available content is also rivaled only by the 1946+CloD+RoF combined.

Korea is the next level, but on a different time frame and in its birth right now. Many summers and installments are to come until its full blooming.

For these reasons I don't see the GB&FC going into oblivion any time soon. Kubert is right.

Running GB on the new Korea ready rig, with all settings to max, I've run into ground a couple of times watching my plane's shadow on the snowy ground. It's still impressive.

It will be interesting to see how the AI evolves in this new series.

[Avimimus]

  

1 hour ago, Kubert said:

I think days of GB will be numbered only after next WWII content, in a new engine, will be released. When someone likes BF-109, Spitfire or Yak-1, new technology and features of the game don't need to be enough to abandon GB. WWII have its own unique charm.

True. If they do a Pacific module first than it will probably be at least five years before we have both Western European and Eastern European WWII modules. Furthermore, there is the question of WWI.

So the Great Battles engine will remain relevant for at least half a decade. Even if they increase the number of aircraft released per module there will still be many aircraft that only exist in Great Battles even at that point.

 

[PaperPilot]

On 6/19/2026 at 7:09 AM, Avimimus said:

  

True. If they do a Pacific module first than it will probably be at least five years before we have both Western European and Eastern European WWII modules. Furthermore, there is the question of WWI.

So the Great Battles engine will remain relevant for at least half a decade. Even if they increase the number of aircraft released per module there will still be many aircraft that only exist in Great Battles even at that point.

 

Agreed. I think Great Battles will still hold it's relevance for at least the next five years. I would be so happy if they were to announce a late 1944 Eastern Front module for Great Battles, as the series would finally feel chronologically complete, but I don't think the dev team would be managing their dev time or money wisely as they continue development on Korea and (likely) the Pacific. Still though, I hope they make more collector planes after these six are released.  

Edited June 20 by PaperPilot

[Snowball]

Too bad the Fw-190 A9 wasn't added, it's the last an the best of the Anton series, produced in significant numbers 

[jeanba]

Yes, and it played a significant role during Boldenplatte

[Jojy47]

10 hours ago, Snowball said:

Too bad the Fw-190 A9 wasn't added, it's the last an the best of the Anton series, produced in significant numbers 

Yes, that and the final, 109G10. Also, to finally close the GB chapter with the final battles, if possible or the final parts of the timeline near to late 1944 and till the end. Also, it does kinda look like the end of GB version and they are going full steam ahead with Korea platform and this being the outdated platform. There are still other theaters than can be observed like the Mediterranean front or late Africa where new Italian planes can be brought in...but I doubt all this could happen seeing as this GB platform is outdated compared to Korea platform.

 

I think this current 6 plane is the final closing to the GB platform. I do not know if any new features can be added to this platform other than just 2 more planes, the 190A9 and G10 or even He-162.

[BlitzPig_EL]

Find a capable 3D person and have them build the planes you want, The devs would accept a third party model if it met all the criteria needed to be included.

It would only take a couple years.

[PaperPilot]

2 hours ago, BlitzPig_EL said:

Find a capable 3D person and have them build the planes you want, The devs would accept a third party model if it met all the criteria needed to be included.

It would only take a couple years.

Well that's true.

[Snowball]

16 hours ago, Jojy47 said:

Yes, that and the final, 109G10. Also, to finally close the GB chapter with the final battles, if possible or the final parts of the timeline near to late 1944 and till the end. Also, it does kinda look like the end of GB version and they are going full steam ahead with Korea platform and this being the outdated platform. There are still other theaters than can be observed like the Mediterranean front or late Africa where new Italian planes can be brought in...but I doubt all this could happen seeing as this GB platform is outdated compared to Korea platform.

 

I think this current 6 plane is the final closing to the GB platform. I do not know if any new features can be added to this platform other than just 2 more planes, the 190A9 and G10 or even He-162.

The g10 would be really similar to the k4 in performance, same engine right? But worse aerodynamics, because of the non-retractable tail wheel and other details regarding the landing gear. Still a cool addition though. On the soviet side the yak-9u is also missing as a late war fighter, shame. I have no hopes of seeing this planes honestly, GB is an old game and korea just dropped

Edited June 22 by Snowball

[PaperPilot]

14 hours ago, Snowball said:

The g10 would be really similar to the k4 in performance, same engine right? But worse aerodynamics, because of the non-retractable tail wheel and other details regarding the landing gear. Still a cool addition though. On the soviet side the yak-9u is also missing as a late war fighter, shame. I have no hopes of seeing this planes honestly, GB is an old game and korea just dropped

I change my mind after seeing the exquisite gameplay from Korea. Work on Great Battles has run it's course once the six announced planes are out. Why did I have a change of heart? Because at this stage I realize I have been beating a dead horse for years. Look, Great Battles is a good game, it's just dated now. I have come to realize that we can't have everything. But hopefully we will see at least some of the old titles remade into the new series, though it would have to be from scratch of course. I imagine a Battle of the Bulgle/Bodenplatte remake is innevitable because it was an important part of the Western Front of WWII, so hopefully we will have a Bf-109 G-10 in there next time round.

Edited June 23 by PaperPilot

[Snowball]

6 hours ago, PaperPilot said:

I change my mind after seeing the exquisite gameplay from Korea. Work on Great Battles has run it's course once the six announced planes are out. Why did I have a change of heart? Because at this stage I realize I have been beating a dead horse for years. Look, Great Battles is a good game, it's just dated now. I have come to realize that we can't have everything. But hopefully we will see at least some of the old titles remade into the new series, though it would have to be from scratch of course. I imagine a Battle of the Bulgle/Bodenplatte remake is innevitable because it was an important part of the Western Front of WWII, so hopefully we will have a Bf-109 G-10 in there next time round.

I'll stick to GB because as many players probably I don't own a gazillion dollar pc capable of running korea decently

[Enceladus828]

15 hours ago, PaperPilot said:

I imagine a Battle of the Bulgle/Bodenplatte remake is innevitable because it was an important part of the Western Front of WWII, so hopefully we will have a Bf-109 G-10 in there next time round.

I’d argue that the devs would focus on places that IL-2 GBs didn’t cover like the Pacific Theater and maybe WW1 Italy down the line rather than immediately remaking existing places.

[PaperPilot]

4 hours ago, Enceladus828 said:

I’d argue that the devs would focus on places that IL-2 GBs didn’t cover like the Pacific Theater and maybe WW1 Italy down the line rather than immediately remaking existing places.

True, but I think it is only a matter of time before they decide to return to Europe under the new series. I think for them to make the WWII 1944 Western Front, they cannot afford to omit the Normandy landings and the Battle of the Bulge from the new series. Otherwise, we'd be missing a huge part of the 1944 Western Front. But I must say that they might want to do a Battle of France and Battle of Britain scenario before they fast forward to the Channel campaign, Battle of Normandy and the Benelux campaign. 

But this is years away. 

[PaperPilot]

13 hours ago, Snowball said:

I'll stick to GB because as many players probably I don't own a gazillion dollar pc capable of running korea decently

Honestly, neither do I and I'll wait a few years until I have the money to spare. That is why I had been reluctant to move on from Great Battles. I would really love to see them do a late war Eastern Front module as it would make sense for several reasons:

1. It would address this problem.
2. It would be another source of income.
3. It would satisfy many before they return years later to the Eastern Front. 

But I believe that it is not enough of a justification. 

[PaperPilot]

On 6/24/2026 at 11:04 AM, PaperPilot said:

Honestly, neither do I and I'll wait a few years until I have the money to spare. That is why I had been reluctant to move on from Great Battles. I would really love to see them do a late war Eastern Front module as it would make sense for several reasons:

1. It would address this problem.
2. It would be another source of income.
3. It would satisfy many before they return years later to the Eastern Front. 

But I believe that it is not enough of a justification. 

Wait, I realized yesterday I can run the game. Sorry everyone

[MDzmitry]

7 часов назад, PaperPilot сказал:

Wait, I realized yesterday I can run the game. Sorry everyone

[Avimimus]

On 6/21/2026 at 10:28 PM, BlitzPig_EL said:

Find a capable 3D person and have them build the planes you want, The devs would accept a third party model if it met all the criteria needed to be included.

It would only take a couple years.

Oleg Maddox once said that he'd implement a Nikitin-Shevchenko IS-4 if I'd made the model... and I didn't... 😞I doubt a serious modern sim would implement such a 'what-if' design these days! So the opportunity may have passed forever!

[catchforusthefoxes]

i hope we can get some news on these planes soon 😭 maybe once the korea hype has simmered down a bit