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Red Baron

DOS - 1990

Also released on: Mac - Amiga

Year 1990
Platform DOS
Released in United Kingdom, United States (1990)
Germany (1991)
Brazil (1992)
France, Germany, United Kingdom (1994)
Brazil, Poland (1997)
Genre Simulation
Theme Flight, Historical Battle (specific/exact), World War I
Publisher Sierra On-Line, Inc., U.S. Gold Ltd., Wydawnictwo ProScript
Developer Dynamix, Inc.
Perspective 1st-Person
Dosbox support Broken on current version (works best on 0.73)
4.81 / 5 - 58 votes

Download extras files
Manual and misc available

Description of Red Baron

Read Full Description

Arguably the best WW1 flight sim ever made, Red Baron is the legendary game from Damon Slye of Dynamix.

Offering you the chance to be a pilot in World War One, Red Baron featrures 28 different aircraft from both the Allied and the German sides, a superb career mode, and a diverse array of missions including dogfights, balloon-busting, zeppelin hunting, escort, and more.

If my saying "best" multiple times won't convince you, here is a good review at MobyGames that should: "I'm a fight sim junkie, I try them all. Technically this one isn't the best; the physics are only so-so, there isn't a lot in the world other than the planes, and the missions are all canned. And being on a PC in '91 you get lousy graphics and sound too (compared to the Mac of the same era). Normally this would result in me trashing the game, but I can't, it's probably the best one I've ever flown. That's because of the way the game draws you in.

The campaign system is flawlessly executed and follows you through the war, offering promotions, movement to "expert" squadrons, even personal challenges from pilots on the other side. I had two of these, in one a French pilot challenged me and I won after having to hide out in some clouds for a while. In another I showed up and he brought his entire squad with him - but I was flying a Triplane so they didn't last long. An example of the depth is the way your plane is handled. Once you've done well enough you are allowed to start requesting the newest models from the factories, and even get to paint them the way you like in an editor. I haven't seen that anywhere else.

As to the rest it's all "good enough". There's enough planes in the air at once, enough types of them, enough types of missions, enough AI, enough of a flight model etc. They did just enough to make the engine work, and when combined with the campaign system the whole thing just lit up. I think the only real flaw was the rather poor "world" outside the planes. Basically there wasn't one. Dipping below 10000ft put you in this netherworld where nothing happened.

Perhaps more annoying is that the missions are completely hard-wired with absolutely no randomness at all. This gets distracting when you re-play them, which you will. Hellcats had this one beat. Also the AI was good for its day, but didn't show enough variance for different famous pilots. For instance in one mission the Red Baron (I was now a member of the flying circus) got killed by flying directly onto the nose gun of a British bomber. I was stunned so I tried it again,and the same thing happened. That's somewhat annoying considering that the Baron was famous for "hanging out" way above the fight and then coming down when planes attempted to leave combat. I suppose this isn't a trivial issue considering the machines of the day, but I did find it distracting."

If you like flight sims only a little, Red Baron is a must-have. It is an incredibly atmospheric game that is very accessible - I am no pilot, and yet Red Baron is one of a handful of flight sims I was compelled to finish.

Sierra released this game as freeware in 1997 to promote the sequel, but did not also release the rarer Mission Builder add-on disk that allows you to make your own missions - see the screenshot above. You can find both the game and the Mission Builder disk in our download here :)

Too bad the sequel Red Baron II that Sierra released in 1997 is nowhere near as much fun as this classic (not least because Damon Slye was no longer involved). A must-have!

Review By HOTUD

Red Baron has an addon available: Red Baron: Mission Builder, don't miss it!

External links

Comments and reviews

Astonished 2021-08-20 9 points

Wow, I can't believe that GOG and Steam are actually selling this game. It was given away for free by Sierra for years, and those two have the audacity to charge money for it.

endlessbender 2020-05-08 2 points DOS version

Played this for hours and hours as a kid. I thought the graphics were amazing!

Grolf 2020-01-22 2 points

Best game ever! May go look for an old windows computer as I had to hang up the flight suit when I switched to a Mac, Dammit all! S!

Robert Peate 2018-05-21 -1 point

I like RB II much better.

Joe Mama 2017-03-17 1 point DOS version

One of my all time favorite flight sim games! I have wasted countless hours playing Red Baron.

Carillogeddon 2016-10-15 -3 points DOS version

Requester: The game is no longer abandonware, since it can be purchased from GOG.com at least.

Requester 2016-09-19 4 points DOS version

Dear all,
Do you know how to download the DOS version of this great game?
I have only seen the amiga and Mac version here

Thanks
The Requester

fdisk 2015-11-09 -3 points

manual & keys :
EDIT: Thx fdisk !

Fritz Hauser 2013-07-01 0 point DOS version

Get this game NAOW!

randomfarfar 2013-06-21 0 point DOS version

ohh mannnn ...memories...MEMORIES 8)

Billisgay 2013-06-14 0 point DOS version

I played this as a kid. :)

zylog 2013-05-05 0 point DOS version

A great game. Brought it new, and still have it.

gustav 2013-03-22 1 point DOS version

played it 20 years ago

complete knowitall 2011-05-09 0 point DOS version

This is a competent flight sim, with interesting opponents, and satisfying progress.

My favorite part is the video recorder feature which allows you to replay your skillful performances. You can enter the combat at any point in the recording, and turn a failed flight into a victory, if you know what you did wrong. lots of view points. cool game

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Share your gamer memories, give useful links or comment anything you'd like. This game is no longer abandonware, we won't put it back online.

 

Buy Red Baron

Red Baron is available for a small price on the following websites, and is no longer abandonware. GOG.com provides the best release and does not include DRM, please buy from them! You can read our online store guide .

Game Extras and Resources

Some of these file may not be included in the game stores. For Red Baron, we have the following files:

ManualGerman version 5 MB (Amiga) Misckeycard English version 212 KB (Amiga)

Other Releases

Red Baron was also released on the following systems:

Mac

Amiga

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