<s>
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
is	O
a	O
1997	O
flight	B-Application
simulator	I-Application
video	O
game	O
developed	O
by	O
Looking	O
Glass	O
Studios	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
Eidos	O
Interactive	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
player	O
controls	O
one	O
of	O
five	O
planes	O
in	O
the	O
airspace	O
of	O
the	O
San	O
Francisco	O
Bay	O
Area	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
shared	O
with	O
up	O
to	O
600	O
artificially	B-Application
intelligent	I-Application
aircraft	O
directed	O
by	O
real-time	O
air	B-Application
traffic	I-Application
control	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
eschews	O
the	O
aerobatics	O
focus	O
of	O
its	O
predecessor	O
,	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
,	O
in	O
favor	O
of	O
general	O
civilian	O
aviation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
such	O
,	O
new	O
physics	O
code	O
and	O
an	O
engine	O
were	O
developed	O
,	O
the	O
former	O
because	O
the	O
programmer	O
of	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimiteds	I-Application
computational	O
fluid	O
dynamics	O
system	O
,	O
Seamus	O
Blackley	O
,	O
had	O
left	O
the	O
company	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
team	O
sought	O
to	O
create	O
an	O
immersive	O
world	O
for	O
the	O
player	O
and	O
to	O
compete	O
with	O
the	O
Microsoft	B-Operating_System
Flight	I-Operating_System
Simulator	I-Operating_System
series	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Commercially	O
,	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
performed	O
well	O
enough	O
to	O
recoup	O
its	O
development	O
costs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
some	O
considered	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
be	O
inferior	O
to	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Flight	I-Application
Simulator	I-Application
98	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
the	O
completion	O
of	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
,	O
its	O
team	O
split	O
up	O
to	O
develop	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
III	I-Application
(	O
1999	O
)	O
and	O
Flight	B-Application
Combat	I-Application
(	O
later	O
Jane	B-Application
's	I-Application
Attack	I-Application
Squadron	I-Application
)	O
simultaneously	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
is	O
a	O
flight	B-Application
simulator	I-Application
video	O
game	O
:	O
its	O
gameplay	O
is	O
a	O
simulation	O
of	O
piloting	O
real-world	O
planes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
interactive	O
cockpit	O
of	O
each	O
plane	O
is	O
based	O
on	O
its	O
real-world	O
counterpart	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
contains	O
simulated	O
flight	O
instruments	O
such	O
as	O
an	O
airspeed	O
indicator	O
,	O
a	O
heading	B-Device
indicator	I-Device
and	O
a	O
VOR	B-Device
indicator	I-Device
,	O
among	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Players	O
share	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
airspace	O
with	O
up	O
to	O
600	O
artificially	B-Application
intelligent	I-Application
(	O
AI	B-Application
)	O
planes	O
,	O
which	O
fly	O
and	O
respond	O
to	O
the	O
player	O
in	O
real-time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Real-time	O
air	B-Application
traffic	I-Application
control	I-Application
(	O
ATC	O
)	O
directs	O
the	O
player	O
and	O
the	O
AI	B-Application
planes	O
to	O
prevent	O
collisions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Three	O
cockpit	O
views	O
are	O
available	O
:	O
IFR	O
(	O
instrument	O
flight	O
rules	O
)	O
,	O
which	O
allows	O
the	O
player	O
to	O
monitor	O
and	O
interact	O
with	O
all	O
flight	O
instruments	O
;	O
VFR	O
(	O
visual	O
flight	O
rules	O
)	O
,	O
which	O
features	O
a	O
larger	O
windshield	O
area	O
but	O
fewer	O
flight	O
instruments	O
;	O
and	O
Virtual	O
Cockpit	O
View	O
,	O
which	O
allows	O
free	B-General_Concept
look	I-General_Concept
but	O
features	O
no	O
interactive	O
flight	O
instruments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
External	O
camera	O
angles	O
are	O
also	O
available	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
player	O
may	O
ride	O
as	O
a	O
passenger	O
in	O
any	O
AI	B-Application
plane	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
the	O
completion	O
of	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
in	O
1995	O
,	O
project	O
leader	O
Seamus	O
Blackley	O
planned	O
to	O
use	O
that	O
game	O
's	O
computational	O
fluid	O
dynamics	O
(	O
CFDs	O
)	O
code	O
to	O
create	O
a	O
combat	O
flight	B-Application
simulator	I-Application
called	O
Flight	B-Application
Combat	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
a	O
new	O
manager	O
at	O
Looking	O
Glass	O
Studios	O
demanded	O
that	O
Blackley	O
instead	O
design	O
a	O
direct	O
sequel	O
to	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Constantine	O
Hantzopoulos	O
became	O
the	O
lead	O
designer	O
and	O
project	O
leader	O
of	O
the	O
fourteen-member	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
team	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
team	O
eschewed	O
the	O
aerobatics	O
focus	O
of	O
their	O
previous	O
game	O
in	O
favor	O
of	O
general	O
civilian	O
aviation	O
,	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
compete	O
with	O
the	O
Microsoft	B-Operating_System
Flight	I-Operating_System
Simulator	I-Operating_System
series	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
team	O
opted	O
not	O
to	O
reuse	O
the	O
technology	O
of	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Programmer	O
Jim	O
Berry	O
,	O
who	O
had	O
previously	O
worked	O
on	O
simulators	O
such	O
as	O
Falcon	B-Application
4.0	I-Application
,	O
wrote	O
new	O
physics	O
code	O
based	O
on	O
force	O
vector	O
calculations	O
to	O
replace	O
the	O
CFDs	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
James	O
Fleming	O
coded	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
IIs	I-Application
new	O
terrain	O
renderer	O
,	O
ZOAR	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
uses	O
distance	O
fog	O
to	O
limit	O
visible	O
terrain	O
,	O
but	O
this	O
causes	O
pop-in	O
issues	O
that	O
the	O
team	O
sought	O
to	O
avoid	O
in	O
the	O
sequel	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Instead	O
of	O
removing	O
textures	O
that	O
exceed	O
the	O
draw	O
distance	O
,	O
the	O
new	O
engine	O
uses	O
mipmapping	B-Data_Structure
to	O
lower	O
the	O
polygon	B-General_Concept
count	I-General_Concept
of	O
distant	O
terrain	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
team	O
's	O
goal	O
was	O
to	O
create	O
the	O
"	O
best	O
,	O
most	O
realistic	O
civilian	O
flight	B-Application
simulator	I-Application
"	O
,	O
which	O
would	O
provide	O
an	O
immersive	O
world	O
for	O
the	O
player	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Radio	O
communications	O
between	O
ATCs	O
,	O
AI	B-Application
planes	O
and	O
the	O
player	O
occur	O
in	O
real-time	O
:	O
a	O
"	O
sophisticated	O
audio	O
splicing	O
system	O
"	O
gathers	O
pre-recorded	O
voice	O
fragments	O
into	O
contextually	O
appropriate	O
sentences	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
team	O
recorded	O
the	O
engine	O
noise	O
of	O
each	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
planes	O
,	O
and	O
they	O
designed	O
cockpits	O
more	O
interactive	O
than	O
those	O
in	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Roughly	O
300	O
times	O
more	O
terrain	O
area	O
was	O
included	O
in	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
than	O
in	O
its	O
predecessor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
generate	O
the	O
terrain	O
,	O
the	O
team	O
combined	O
digital	B-Application
elevation	I-Application
maps	I-Application
with	O
satellite	O
imagery	O
rendered	O
at	O
four	O
square	O
meters	O
per	O
pixel	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
shown	O
at	O
the	O
Electronic	O
Entertainment	O
Expo	O
in	O
June	O
1997	O
,	O
alongside	O
Thief	B-Application
:	I-Application
The	I-Application
Dark	I-Application
Project	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Looking	O
Glass	O
's	O
Tim	O
Stellmach	O
and	O
Paul	O
Neurath	O
described	O
the	O
merger	O
as	O
amicable	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
former	O
noted	O
that	O
"	O
through	O
the	O
whole	O
deal	O
everyone	O
was	O
really	O
psyched	O
about	O
both	O
The	O
Dark	O
Project	O
and	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
,	O
Eidos	O
took	O
over	O
publishing	O
duties	O
on	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
,	O
as	O
a	O
result	O
of	O
Looking	O
Glass	O
's	O
new	O
business	O
model	O
with	O
Intermetrics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
was	O
placed	O
in	O
direct	O
competition	O
with	O
the	O
Microsoft	B-Operating_System
Flight	I-Operating_System
Simulator	I-Operating_System
series	O
and	O
Sierra	O
Entertainment	O
's	O
Pro	O
Pilot	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
performed	O
well	O
enough	O
to	O
recoup	O
its	O
development	O
costs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
PC	O
Gamer	O
USs	O
Stephen	O
Poole	O
commented	O
that	O
the	O
limited	O
environments	O
of	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
did	O
not	O
create	O
a	O
believable	O
flight	O
experience	O
,	O
but	O
that	O
the	O
"	O
exquisite	O
terrain	O
,	O
impressive	O
flight-physics	O
models	O
,	O
and	O
meticulous	O
attention	O
to	O
the	O
details	O
and	O
procedures	O
of	O
civilian	O
aviation	O
"	O
in	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
created	O
"	O
the	O
closest	O
experience	O
to	O
actual	O
flight	O
"	O
available	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Poole	O
summarized	O
,	O
"	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
is	O
so	O
impressive	O
that	O
to	O
even	O
whine	O
about	O
little	O
details	O
shows	O
a	O
shortsightedness	O
that	O
's	O
all	O
too	O
common	O
amongst	O
us	O
gamers.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
considered	O
its	O
flight	O
physics	O
to	O
be	O
"	O
much	O
better	O
than	O
Pro	O
Pilot	O
,	O
although	O
not	O
up	O
to	O
the	O
level	O
of	O
Flight	B-Application
Simulator	I-Application
98	I-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
finished	O
by	O
calling	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
"	O
a	O
must-have	O
for	O
any	O
general-aviation	O
enthusiast.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
praised	O
the	O
graphics	O
and	O
ATC	O
,	O
but	O
noted	O
AI	B-Application
glitches	O
with	O
the	O
latter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dean	O
Evans	O
of	O
PC	O
Gamer	O
UK	O
called	O
it	O
"	O
the	O
best	O
civilian	O
flight	O
sim	O
we	O
've	O
ever	O
seen	O
"	O
,	O
which	O
makes	O
"	O
Flight	B-Application
Simulator	I-Application
look	O
like	O
a	O
sack	O
of	O
old	O
spam	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Similarly	O
,	O
Edge	O
praised	O
the	O
believable	O
and	O
highly	O
detailed	O
environment	O
,	O
noting	O
that	O
Looking	O
Glass	O
Studios	O
managed	O
to	O
cleverly	O
soften	O
the	O
contrast	O
between	O
photo-captured	O
textures	O
and	O
polygon	B-General_Concept
objects	O
"	O
using	O
haze	O
as	O
a	O
real	O
effect	O
rather	O
than	O
a	O
distance-clipping	O
cheat	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
PC	O
Zones	O
Paul	O
Presley	O
believed	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
be	O
inferior	O
to	O
combat	O
flight	O
simulators	O
and	O
stated	O
that	O
it	O
"	O
is	O
n't	O
nearly	O
as	O
deep	O
or	O
varied	O
as	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
Flight	B-Application
Simulator	I-Application
'	O
98	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
he	O
noted	O
that	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
IIs	I-Application
"	O
underlying	O
playability	O
"	O
made	O
it	O
"	O
worthwhile	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
addictive	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Jonathan	O
Gordon	O
of	O
The	O
Independent	O
wrote	O
,	O
"	O
The	O
original	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
promised	O
much	O
but	O
delivered	O
relatively	O
little	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
's	O
a	O
similar	O
story	O
with	O
this	O
sequel.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
noted	O
that	O
the	O
graphics	O
,	O
while	O
good	O
from	O
a	O
distance	O
,	O
became	O
"	O
disappointingly	O
bland	O
"	O
up	O
close	O
;	O
and	O
he	O
found	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
be	O
limited	O
compared	O
to	O
Microsoft	B-Operating_System
Flight	I-Operating_System
Simulator	I-Operating_System
'	O
98	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
was	O
a	O
runner-up	O
for	O
Computer	O
Gaming	O
Worlds	O
1997	O
"	O
Simulation	O
Game	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
"	O
award	O
,	O
which	O
ultimately	O
went	O
to	O
Longbow	B-Application
2	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
editors	O
called	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
"	O
the	O
first	O
aviation	O
sim	O
to	O
truly	O
capture	O
the	O
environment	O
of	O
real	O
civilian	O
flying	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
1998	O
,	O
Looking	O
Glass	O
released	O
a	O
patch	O
for	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
that	O
included	O
six	O
new	O
adventures	O
,	O
a	O
new	O
plane	O
(	O
the	O
Fokker	O
Dr.I	O
)	O
and	O
an	O
"	O
Adventure	O
Builder	O
Kit	O
"	O
,	O
which	O
allowed	O
players	O
to	O
construct	O
their	O
own	O
adventures	O
and	O
to	O
share	O
them	O
online	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
completing	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
II	I-Application
,	O
certain	O
members	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
team	O
wanted	O
to	O
develop	O
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
III	I-Application
,	O
while	O
others	O
wanted	O
to	O
create	O
Flight	B-Application
Combat	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Flight	B-Application
Unlimited	I-Application
III	I-Application
lead	O
designer	O
Peter	O
James	O
later	O
wrote	O
that	O
his	O
project	O
's	O
development	O
was	O
troubled	O
,	O
in	O
part	O
because	O
of	O
a	O
lack	O
of	O
interest	O
from	O
company	O
management	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Flight	B-Application
Combat	I-Application
(	O
renamed	O
Jane	B-Application
's	I-Application
Attack	I-Application
Squadron	I-Application
)	O
struggled	O
through	O
a	O
long	O
and	O
costly	O
development	O
cycle	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mad	O
Doc	O
Software	O
later	O
completed	O
Jane	B-Application
's	I-Application
Attack	I-Application
Squadron	I-Application
,	O
and	O
it	O
was	O
published	O
by	O
Xicat	O
Interactive	O
in	O
March	O
2002	O
.	O
</s>
