DCS World Beginner Guide – Your ULTIMATE FAST TRACK to DCS.
This DCS World beginner guide will help you get started with all aspects of DCS WORLD from what it is, how to get it and start flying.
- What is DCS World
- Who plays DCS WORLD
- Where to Download DCS for Free
- Why is DCS World Free
- What to Buy First?
- System Requirements
- User Interface
- Basic Graphics Settings
- Can I fly DCS WORLD in VR?
- Learning to Fly – Tutorials
- Learning to fly – Multiplayer
- DCS WORLD vs DCS OPEN BETA
- Additional Aircraft
- Additional Maps
- Freeware Aircraft (Mods)
- Ground Warfare
- Mission Editor Create your own missions
What is DCS WORLD is a broad question but simply it is an incredible Air and Ground combat simulator. DCS takes you to the edge of fighter combat realism in your own home. Who Plays DCS WORLD – People play both in single player missions on their own computers as well as online on the huge number of multiplayer (Player vs Player) PvP servers around the world.
Where to Download DCS FOR Free!
DCS World is a free download from WWW.DIGITALCOMBATSIMULATOR COM. There are two options for new DCS World pilots and that’s the stable version, currently Version 2.7 and the Open Beta Version. If your new I would recommend getting the stable version to start with. The stable version is the most complete and everything is going to work! The Open Beta version does have some preview testing items like new aircraft that are not available for the stable version on occasion. You can download both if you wish and have separate installs. It is your choice. Many of us do use both versions. There are some other differences but I’ll discus these latter.
Why is DCS WORLD Free?
You may ask why such a quality and popular program is free to download and use? The creator of DCS World is Eagle Dynamics. Eagle Dynamics use this business model as do quite a few other game developers to introduce you to their simulator and you can decide if you want more. This they will then sell to you and make their very well earned money. The free option allows you to get a taste for the game/simulator and allow you to design your own path. They know if you like the basic game you download you will want to download further aircraft of your choice.
There are also quite a few maps available with more in the works. They know once you fly in DCS you will want the F-16 Viper or the Messerschmitt BF-109 or Mig-15 because your a fan of these aircraft. Yes, it’s a smart way to get players interested and spending their money to broaden their game options. Be warned it is addictive with the modules being incredibly detailed as well as the maps. When most really quality aircraft are around the $70 mark you have to consider what you want most.
What Should I Buy First?
In this DCS World beginner guide I want to help you get started the easiest way possible. So what to buy first once your sure you want more is a very subjective question. So a lot will depend on your own passion. If your a World War II buff it may first be a good idea to spend some time in the Default P-51 and fly it around. Learn to start, takeoff and land the aircraft before spending cash on a Spitfire or Messerschmitt Bf-109 or FW-190.
If you lean towards Korean or Modern Jets then maybe taking the same path with the SU-25 to see how you handle a jet. Downloading Free Mods is also an option providing they don’t need another aircraft to operate. This is common. I’ll talk more about mods in a bit. The most cost effective path I believe is the Flaming Cliffs 3 pack. I did this initially and was very happy with the FC3. Buying the Flaming Cliffs Pack gives you the F-15 Eagle, Mig-29, A-10A, all included in one inexpensive pack.
These aircraft are also used as a basis for many Jet Mods the community creates. These are not full fidelity and don’t fully clickable cockpits. The commands are simpler and need key binds to you controller and standard key commands to fly them. I highly recommend this as a fantastic starter pack. You can learn to take off, land and fight with these aircraft and have an awesome time. When your ready to move on, then yes look to your next dream aircraft.
System Requirements
DCS World beginner guide system requirements are very important to have a great experience. Flight simulators always demand the best of the best to give you fluid crisp visuals and smooth consistent frame rates.
The DCS website has a system checker as well so you can test your system to see if it will run. DCS is surprisingly accessible with lower end systems but you must have a GPU as built in graphics with a CPU won’t run it. If your planning to fly in virtual reality which I cannot recommend enough. It’s just INCREDIBLE! Yes I am confident even with some of the deficiencies in clarity which are mostly fixable you will never want to fly any other way again.
My own system gives me excellent performance and pretty high settings so maybe use this as a guide.
- CPU – AMD Ryzen 5600x 3.6 – 4.3 GHz
- GPU – Nvidia 2060 Super 8GB
- RAM – 32 GB DDR4 3000 Mhz
- SSD – 512 GB
- VR – Oculus Rift S
- Sidewinder Joystick (No HOTAS)
It’s simple, get as good a system as you can afford. Fast CPU & as good as a GPU as you can. It doesn’t matter if it’s Nvidia or AMD.
The Graphical User Interface (GUI)
The GUI in DCS is quite a simple an affair. The top of the GUI has options for modules and options to purchase new ones. The next option is system settings where you can set up graphics levels with a number of presents. These are low, medium and High quality settings plus a VR setting. I would recommend trying these and over time you can tune further as you work out what you can run. The menu on the right has options to fly quick missions, take tutorials for different aircraft. There is also an option for multiplayer where you need a good internet connection for a great experience.
Please be aware if you choose mutiplayer that you can see all the modules available but you must own them to be able to fly them. If you have the FC3 pack only then you can only choose the F-15, Mig-29 or the A-10 on the server. If you choose an aircraft you don’t own you will end up in a view watching random aircraft and not in the one you chose.
Basic Graphics Settings
Getting started with DCS World beginner guide looking at graphics is pretty easy. Getting the best graphics settings using the presents initially is best before starting to tinker is a great idea and then look to the many forums and Discord sites for further guidance. If you have a good system try the high settings and if your trying VR for the first time select the default tab and go for a fly. If it’s very smooth then add to the level of detail with the sliders adding longer visual distance. If trees are building as you fly make the tree area larger so they populate the whole area. Shimmering in the aircraft you likely need some antialiasing and there are some selections you can try on the lower part of the settings menu.
Can I fly DCS WORLD in VR?
Flying DCS WORLD in VR (Virtual Reality) is just incredible. The system settings for VR are very simple and are on the last tab of the graphics UI. There you can set VR on by just ticking the VR box. There is also an option for how you want to control switches in the cockpit. Yes you can click switches with your virtual hands. You can also use them to fly by grabbing the controls if you wish. I would recommend traditional controls personally. A good HOTAS is ideal.
There is an option for mouse as well as hand contoller which show up as gloved hands in the simulator. Pretty cool stuff! The last important setting is the IPD (Inter Pupal Distance) which is your which is simply the distance between your eyes. Getting this right can improve your visual quality quite v a lot. An optometrist can do it for you or you can check it yourself. With a small ruler close one eye and standing in front of a mirror line up the 0 on the ruler with your right eye. Next close your right eye and open your left and see what your pupal lines up on the ruler. Generally it’s around 60 to 63 mm. Adjust the figure as needed to change the setting.
Clarity in VR can be an issue so there is one setting you can change to improve the clarity. This setting is the Pixel Density slider below the VR tick box. Moving the slider to the right from 1.0 to say 1.4 is like adding antialiasing and helps to improve your clarity. It should ear up the writing in the cockpit for you if it’s blurry. It’s super sampling your picture. It takes up some performance but worth it if you can add some. There is a limit to how much is effective though. Once your set up OK hit the green OK at the bottom of the page and DCS will restart by itself into VR mode. Get ready to be amazed.
Learning to Fly – Tutorials
Learningbto fly can be a challenge and thisnis why I created this DCS world beginner guide so you get the most out of DCS fast. I recommend the FC3 Aircraft as an ideal starting point for jets at least. If your planning to fly WWII aircraft fly the free P-51 default aircraft included with DCS. DCS gives you a whole series of tutorials to help you start up your aircraft, taxi then take-off and land. Once your happy then try learning navigation as well as weapons systems. There are great tutorials included with all the payware and default aircraft.
Learn to Play Multiplayer
Learning to play multiplayer is one of the most exciting things you can do in DCS. There is nothing like playing against an unknown pilot in your favorite aircraft. There a multitude of options when playing PvP or PvE (Player vs Environment). PvP is generally dogfight servers where you can choose out of a number or arenas where you drop in already flying. The other players spawn in a fixed point and you dogfight. Check the rules before you start. Generally you fly toward your opponent till I you pass each other and this is where the fight starts. It’s a lot of fun.
IMPORTANT NOTE: There will be red and blue sides. Make sure you DON’T shoot anyone on your own side. It will get you banned from servers. Not what you want. Check out this Video of online combat on my Letsflyvfr.com YouTube Channel to give you an idea of what it’s like. Enjoy. Remember it’s just fun! PvE is a different animal and more challenging because you have to do everything yourself! You can choose one of the PvE servers like Growling Sidewinders Open Combat server based in the Caucuses (default map). You will choose your aircraft which will be cold and dark. Ie not started. First you will need to load weapons as the aircraft will generally have none. This must be done before you start engines. Select the menu F12 and select fuel and weapons.
Next task is to start the aircraft. If your very new you can use the AUTO START which can sometimes not work as servers won’t let you.
To Auto Start hold Windows Key and Home. Sit back and everything will come to life. It’s not faster but will do everything for you.
Personally I want to spent time flying and not going through a complicated start procedure. It may be that’s your thing, that’s fine. When you know how to start the aircraft go ahead and start it on your own. Taxi out and check the F10 MAP to decide where your going to fly to. Where are the bad guys? You will see only your guys on the map. If they are all going to an area you know the bad guys are there too. Situational awareness is pretty hard when you first get started. Take off and start looking for targets.
Remember the IFF, identification friend or foe. Make sure you don’t shoot any of your own side. Hit F1 to return to your cockpit. If you lock someone up and not sure if it’s an enemy you can ask the AWACS through the menu or check the F10 MAP noting how far and the direction of the target is. If the map shows targets they will be friendly but if not you can be more assured it’s an enemy and kill it.
DCS WORLD vs DCS OPEN BETA
When starting with DCS World I would recommend the stable version for you. This will have the best and most stable release. There will be few issues with it and everything will work. Everything in the stable version currently 2.7 works well. Why would you want the Open Beta?
Why would you want Open Beta?
The Open Beta sometimes has new features not yet included with the stable version. Probably the biggest reason to use the Open Beta release is you can use community mods downloaded from DCS website. This is an attraction for many. Flying PvP and PvE is slightly different as there are different servers on stable that are not on Open Beta. This becomes personal preference a the end of the day. You can download both and enjoy them both. They both get regular updates with Open Beta always a bit ahead of the stable version. When new aircraft are released they often will work on the Beta but not the stable while in early access so if you want to fly something new it may only work there while they check for any bugs that need fixing before porting it into the stable version.
Additional Aircraft
DCS has many additional aircraft modules on the DCS World E store.
The list is extensive and many aircraft in production coming in the future.
- Mosquito
- Spitfire Mk-9
- P-51 D
- BF-109
- FFW190
- P47 Thunderbolt
- F-16 Viper
- F-18C Hornet
- MIG-29 Fulcrum
- A-10C
- F-15C
- J-17
- I-16
- MIG -15
- MIG-17
- MIG-21
- F-86 Sabre
- Christen Eagle Biplane
- F-14 Tomcat
- Yak-52
- AV-8B Harrier
- AJS-37 Viggen
- F-5E Tiger
- Mirage 2000C
- L-39 Albatros
- Su-27
- SU-25
- Flaming Cliffs
- Combined Arms (Ground Units for Ground battles)
- UH-1H Huey helicopter
- SUPERCARRIER aircraft Carrier
- WWII Assets Pack ( Ships vehicles etc)
Additional Maps
DCS World comes with the Caucusus map included but there have been many more added with more rumoured to be coming.
- Caucusus (Default Included)
- Normandy
- Channel Map (Includes England)
- Syria
- Marianas Islands
- Nevada USA
There is talk of some more maps as well as expansions to some current maps. If you wish to fly online you may need some of these maps for your favorite server.
Freeware Aircraft (Mods)
The mods selection for DCS is amazing but you will often need the Flaming Cliffs 3 for mods as these aircraft are used as the base for the mod. There are some outstanding community mods you can fly normally in open beta. There are some servers where you can fly them as well. The best Mod aircraft that comes to mind is the Community A-4 Skyhawk mod. It is one of the outstanding stand alone aircraft mods that does not require any FC3 support.
There are a lot more mods from Jet trainers to F-35, F-22 plus PAK-FA-50 Stealth aircraft and many more. Most can be found in the user are in the downloads on the DCS WORLD website.
Ground Warfare in DCS World
DCS World also caters for the ground commanders amongst you. The combined arms pack enables you to drive tanks and vehicles as well as directly control surface to air missiles and guns.
You can work with your A-10 friends or whoever can assist you to achieve your objective. It’s not a common part of the DCS World that I have seen but it’s likely used on some PvE servers. If this is for you then it’s not very expensive and you can add a whole new facet to the online game play.
Mission Editor -Create Missions
The mission editor for DCS World is a great tool for creating from basic to very complex missions for your own use, or to share with friends. If you have a server you can invite friends to fly missions you create. Creating missions can give you other aircraft scenarios or ground defence scenarios to practice your flying and weapons skills. It is a bit clunky to get started but it can be quite a lot of fun making more and more complex exercises. Create your own set of 10 Top Gun missions as per the fighter weapons School on the Nevada map. Re create the six day war with its missiles and ground campaign. The world is your oyster and nothing limits your creativity but you.
DCS WORLD BEGINNER GUIDE
I hope you found this DCS WORLD Beginner guide helpful. There is a lot to learn in DCS and more importantly a lot of hours to be lost flying missions and saving the world. I you need any help leave me a message below and I’ll do my best to assist you.
Author:
Brendon McAliece is a multi lingual expat who brings over three decades of flight simulator/PC building experience as well as over two decades of real world jet fighter experience as a weapons/egress technician. He holds a sport pilot certificate giving him real world flying experience. Hi travels have taken him from Europe to the Middle East, Asia and his home of Australia. He has a passion for travel, languages, flight simulation as well as guitaring and coffee. You can read more in his blogs below.
Learn more @ DreamingGuitar.com – DreamingCoffee.com – LetsFlyVFR.com
As an Amazon affiliate I may earn on qualifying sales.