We recently received the MiG Alley 1.11 patch, and along with it news that the 1.2 patch is expected to be released roughly a week from now. The current build of MiG Alley is 1.1, and since 1.2's release is imminent, Rowan isn't going to release 1.11 to the public. The 1.11 and 1.2 patches are focused primarily on fixing the multiplayer issues that have plagued this otherwise excellent simulation. We've spent the day playing MiG Alley here in the office, and if the 1.2 patch works as well as the 1.11 patch we currently have does aside from one bug, players attempting online and lan play will at long last have a more stable environment to enjoy.

Below is an excerpt from the readme.txt from patch 1.11.

MiG Alley Version 1.11
----------------------

Multiplayer Fixes

• Removed a Warping Bug (very noticeable on dialup connections)
• Tested from Italy->UK both dialup 56k connections across the Internet
• Numerous other edits in the M/P area.

Other Fixes

• TnT+VooDoo2 graphics selection problem Fixed
• Target Lock stutter fixed
• F51 Speed Indicator Fixed (acurate up to about 500 Knots)

Dave Whiteside from Rowan also told us that the 1.2 patch will resolve some of the campaign mode issues, however we don't have any specific information regarding this.

Why fly a Sabre when you can fly a MiG

After several hours of head-to-head and team play flying, it would appear that MiG Alley is about to come into its own. In our opinion MiG is as good a game as EAW, and only lacks the online popularity that EAW has. This oversight is about to be corrected, and I for one can't wait to play some online MiG Alley. While flying on our LAN, we did run into the bug that caused our aircraft to swap places instantly, while the cockpits remained in the previous aircraft's view. This only occurred a few times. Some of the readers have posted this problem in the forums, and it is occurring less frequently in 1.11 than in older versions, and we'll have to wait and see if Rowan irons this one out in the 1.2 patch. Remember that the work on 1.2 isn't completed yet, and Rowan is likely still tweaking the multiplayer code.

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We also tested MiG Alley over the Internet using a dsl to dsl connection, and during an hour's flying we never experienced any warp or other problems MiG Alley has had in the past. The previous bug we mentioned did occur once, but after a quick reboot it didn't show its face again. Both PC's were set to high data rate transmit in the multiplayer configuration panel, and after spending ten minutes just flying around padlocking the other aircraft, we were very impressed with the fixes in the netcode.

Below are some screen shots of COMBATSIM.COM's editor and administrator duking it out over our LAN (guess who is in the MiG).

One of us is in trouble

Alright, one of us is in BIG trouble

That damn 37 mm!!

MiG Alley is a popular simulation, and you have to look long and hard to find someone really knocking the single player aspects of the game. If Rowan does indeed fix the multiplayer woes with the 1.2 patch, we think that this game is going to be elevated from an excellent sim to a true classic.

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