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Aces Series: A primer

9 hours ago
11 min read
Aces Of The Pacific title.

The Aces series was a classic set of flight sims developed by Dynamix and published by SIerra in the early 90's. This article will be taking a look at the released versions and patches of the two Aces games, Aces Over The Pacific and Aces Over Europe. Due to the high degree of commonality between them, it makes sense to consider them together.


Contents


Strategy


The strategy will be to look at each game individually. Each game will also feature some patching strategies to provide an overview if and how a particular release should be patched. Compilations featuring Aces Of The Pacific and Aces Over Europe are then covered.


For the rest of the article the following abbreviations are used:


  • AOTP: Aces Over The Pacific.

  • AOTP: 1946: Aces Over The Pacific: WWII: 1946 (expansion).

  • AOE: Aces Over Europe.


The following abbreviations are used when referring to floppy disks:


  • HD: High Density

  • DD: Double Density.


Aces Of The Pacific


Aces Of The Pacific (AOTP) was released in floppy disk based DOS only editions from May 1992 until August 1994. A CD-ROM 'complete' edition featuring the DOS game, expansion and Win3.x manuals and config utilities was released in August 1994. This CD-ROM release would be used in the compilations, Aces: The Complete Collector's Edition (April 1995) and Aces: Collection Series (April 1997).


The floppy disk based DOS only releases can be installed into a standard DOSBox environment. The CD-ROM releases can use a standard DOSBox environment to install the DOS based game and/or a Win3.x environment (in DOSBox) to install the DOS game and Windows manuals and utilities.


Version and patch history


The first patch for AOTP was never publicly released and instead was pre-installed with later versions of the game. This AOTP Patch A can still be found within AOTP Patch B, however, this should not be mistaken for the expansion patch, WWII: 1946 Patch A.


Versions are present in the game and often, slightly different version numbers can be found in release notes.


Aces Of The Pacific box.

Aces Of The Pacific (May 1992)


The initial retail release occurred in May 1992 and only included the DOS game. The game version listed in release notes is v1.0 and in-game it is Aces Of The Pacific, ver. A3.0. File timestamps give a date of 22 May 1992.


It was distributed on:


  • 4 x 1.2MB HD 5.25" floppy disks.

  • 3 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disks.


Aces Of The Pacific (June 1992)


The June 1992 release was pre-patched with the Aces Of The Pacific Patch A and only included the DOS game. The game version listed in release notes is v1.01 and in-game it is Aces Of The Pacific, ver. 1.01. File timestamps give a date of 4 June 1992. It was distributed on:


  • 4 x 1.2MB HD 5.25" floppy disks.

  • 3 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disks.


Aces Of The Pacific: Patch B disk (September 1992)


September 1992 saw the release of AOTP: Patch B. Patch B was a cumulative patch including the unreleased Patch A. Prior to the pervasiveness of internet distribution, suppliers would occasionally supply patches on mail order patch disks. After applying the patch, the game version became v1.2 and Aces Of The Pacific, Patch B is listed in-game. The patch disk was distributed on:


  • 1 x 720KB DD 3.5" floppy disk.


The release notes for this patch cover multiple changes, can be found below, including:


  • Manual corrections and additions.

  • Joystick/controller changes.

  • Flight model changes.

  • Time scale changes.

  • Frame rate/performance changes.



During the patch update process the game is updated from v1.0 to v1.01 (running Patch A, if necessary) and then updated from v1.01 to v1.2 (Patch B).


Aces Of The Pacific: Patch B (September 1992)


Alongside the patch disk, Patch B was also distributed online. Supplied as either a zip archive or self extracting zip archive executable. Versions, release notes and the patching process remains identical to the patch disk. This patch is available from:



Aces Of The Pacific (September 1992)


A re-release of AOTP occurred in September 1992, pre-patched with Patch B and only included the DOS game. The game version listed in release notes is v1.2 and in-game it is Aces Of The Pacific, ver. 1.2. File timestamps give a date of 10 September 1992. It was distributed on:


  • 4 x 1.2MB HD 5.25" floppy disks.

  • 3 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disks.


Aces Of The Pacific: WWII: 1946 box.

Aces Of The Pacific: WWII: 1946 (November 1992)


The first and only expansion, Aces Of The Pacific: WWII: 1946 (AOTP: 1946) was released in November 1992. The expansion added additional alternate history scenarios and new jet aircraft of the period.


It also included AOTP: Patch B. The expansion version listed in release notes is v1.0 but in game it remains Aces Of The Pacific, ver. 1.2. File timestamps give a date of 16 November 1992. It was distributed on:


  • 1 x 1.2MB HD 5.25" floppy disk.

  • 1 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disk.


Aces Of The Pacific: WWII: 1946 (January 1993)


A re-release of AOTP: 1946 occurred in January 1993 and continued to include Patch B. The expansion version is listed as v1.01 but in game it remains Aces Of The Pacific, ver. 1.2. File timestamps give a date of 19 January 1993. It was distributed on:


  • 1 x 1.2MB HD 5.25" floppy disk.

  • 1 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disk.


WWII:1946 Patch A (March 1993)


The expansion was given its one and only patch in March 1993. Confusingly called Patch A (as the first patch for the expansion) after applying the patch the in-game version remained, Aces Of The Pacific, ver. 1.2. This patch was only distributed digitally on-line, no patch disk was made available. This patch fixed saving single mission tapes and fixes related to the career mode. The release notes are shown below:



This patch is available from:



Aces Of The Pacific (CD-ROM edition, August 1994)


The game was re-released in August 1994 on a single CD-ROM. This would be the first and only dedicated CD-ROM release of AOTP, other CD-ROM releases would be compilations. It included the base game and AOTP: 1946 expansion. The version listed in-game is Aces Of The Pacific, ver. 1.2. File timestamps give a date of 1 August 1994. This edition features both a DOS installer for the base game plus expansion and a Win3.x installer which installs AOTP plus AOTP: 1946, Windows manuals and config utilities.


Aces Of The Pacific (August 1994)


The game was also re-released on floppy disk at the same time as the CD-ROM release. This release only included the DOS base game. The version listed in-game is Aces Of The Pacific, ver. 1.2 but the release notes list it as v.1.21. File timestamps give a date of 2 August 1994. It was distributed on:


  • 3 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disks.


Despite the later version number it remains compatible with the AOTP: 1946 expansion and WWII:1946 Patch A (expansion patch). During the AOTP: 1946 expansion installation, the installer will skip the included AOTP Patch B.


Aces Of The Pacific: Patch B disk (August 1995)


Another version of the Patch B disk was released in August 1995. This featured the same Patch B as earlier releases, with a slightly later update app. It continues to patch to v1.01 and then patch to v1.2. After applying the patch the in-game version is listed as Aces of the Pacific, Patch B. The patch disk was distributed on:


  • 1 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disk.


For further information see the earlier Aces Of The Pacific: Patch B disk (September 1992).


Patching strategies


Standard DOSBox refers to a 'standard' DOSBox Staging DOS environment. The alternative is using a Win3.x installer app using Win3.x running in DOSBox.


Floppy disk releases (no expansion, May/June 1992)


  • Install AOTP with standard DOSBox.

  • Apply AOTP Patch B (from patch disk or downloaded patch).


Floppy disk releases (no expansion, September 1992 and later)


  • Install AOTP with standard DOSBox (already pre-patched with Patch B).


Floppy disk releases (with WWII: 1946 expansion)


  • Install AOTP with standard DOSBox.

  • Install AOTP: 1946 with standard DOSBox.

  • Apply AOTP: 1946 Patch A.


CD-ROM release


  • Install AOTP (DOS game only) with standard DOSBox and/or...

  • Install AOTP (DOS game, Win manual and apps) with Win 3.x running in DOSBox.


Documents


The CD-ROM release will install a manual in a legacy Win3.x mvb format when run from Win 3.x. The following AOTP documents are available digitally:






The following AOTP: 1946 documents are available digitally:



Aces Over Europe


The floppy disk editions of Aces Over Europe (AOE) ran from November 1993 until August 1994. The was a CD-ROM release in July 1994 and a budget re-release in September 1995, with further CD-ROM bases releases occurring as part of the Aces: The Complete Collector's Edition (April 1995) and Aces: Collection Series (April 1997) compilations.


The floppy disk based DOS only releases can be installed into a standard DOSBox environment. The CD-ROM releases can use a standard DOSBox environment to install the DOS based game and/or a Win3.x environment (in DOSBox) to install the DOS game and Windows manuals and utilities.


Version and patch history


Versions are present in the game but only ever report, Aces Over Europe ver. 1.0. Different version numbers can be found in release notes, setup scripts, on disk labels, inside executable files and derived from MD5 hash comparisons.


Aces Over Europe box.

Aces Over Europe (November 1993)


The initial retail release occurred in November 1993 and only included the DOS game. The game version listed in release notes is v1.0. File timestamps give a date of 8 November 1993.


It was distributed on:


  • 3 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disks.


Aces Over Europe: Patch A (December 1993)


December 1993 saw the release of AOE: Patch A. Patch A would be the first and only patch for AOE. Patch A was only distributed as a download, until much later. This would upgrade the version to v1.01. File timestamps give a date of 27 December 1993. The patch release notes below cover the following fixes:


  • Issues with Packard Bell computers.

  • Joystick issues.



This patch is available from:



All later versions would be pre-patched with Patch A.


Aces Over Europe (January 1994)


A re-release took place in January 1994, including only a pre-patched version (to v1.01) of the DOS game. Since it includes Patch A, but does not have a later version label, the version is thought to be v1.01.  File timestamps give a date of 25 January 1994. It was distributed on:


  • 3 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disks.


Aces Over Europe (CD-ROM edition, July 1994)


The first CD-ROM edition was released in July 1994, distributed on a single CD-ROM. This would be the first edition to include both the DOS game and Windows manuals/utilities. This edition is pre-patched with Patch A. The version number listed within an executable files is v1.0.001.


Aces Over Europe (August 1994)


Around the same time as the first CD-ROM release another floppy disk re-release took place in August 1994. This edition was pre-patched with Patch A but disk labels listed a new version, v1.02. This edition only included the DOS game, with file timestamps giving a date of 2 August 1994. It was distributed on:


  • 3 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disks.


Aces Over Europe: Patch A disk (August 1995)


A year after the last releases, Patch A, (previously only available as a download), was also released on a patch disk in August 1995. The patch disk was only applicable to the November 1993 releases and would upgrade to v1.01. The patch files are identical to the earlier Patch A (with a timestamp of 23 December 1993) with the latest file timestamp on the release notes listed as 2 August 1995. It was distributed on:


  • 1 x 1.44MB HD 3.5" floppy disks.


For further information on this patch see, Aces Over Europe: Patch A.


Aces Over Europe (Sierra budget release, CD-ROM edition, September 1995)


A budget re-release occurred in September 1995, on the SierrraOriginals label. It used the same version as the earlier CD-ROM release, v1.0.001 and was distributed on a single CD-ROM. This edition includes both the DOS game and Windows manuals/utilities and remains pre-patched with Patch A. File timestamps list a date of 26 September 1995.


Patching strategies


Standard DOSBox refers to a 'standard' DOSBox Staging DOS environment. The alternative is using a Win3.x installer app using Win3.x running in DOSBox.


Floppy disk release (November 1993)


  • Install AOE with standard DOSBox..

  • Apply AOE: Patch A.


Floppy disk release (January 1994 and later)


  • Install AOE with standard DOSBox (already pre-patched with AOE: Patch A).


CD-ROM release


  • Install AOE (DOS game only) with standard DOSBox and/or...

  • Install AOE (DOS game, Win manual and apps) with Win 3.x running in DOSBox.


Documents


A CD-ROM release will install a manual in a legacy Win3.x mvb format when run from Win 3.x. The following AOE documents are available digitally:





Aces Over Europe: The Official Strategy Guide.

Official strategy guide


An official strategy guide, Aces Over Europe: The Official Strategy Guide, was written by Paul Schuytema and published by Prima Games in 1994.

It is available digitally as a pdf download, from:



Compilations


The compilations Aces: The Complete Collector's Edition (April 1995) and Aces: Collection Series (April 1997) were both CD-ROM compilations. Both compilations featured the following games, distributed on a single CD-ROM:


  • A-10 Tank Killer.

  • Aces of the Pacific

  • Aces Over Europe

  • Red Baron


The Aces: Collection Series also included Aces of the Deep and Silent Thunder: A-10 Tank Killer 2 on a second CD-ROM.


Version and patch history


Both AOTP and AOE use the latest CD-ROM editions in the compilations, so there are no applicable patches.


Aces: The Complete Collector's Edition box.

Aces: The Complete Collector's Edition (April 1995)


The Aces: The Complete Collector's Edition was released by Sierra in April 1995. It includes Aces Of The Pacific, ver. 1.2 with the expansion included. and it uses the CD-ROM edition of Aces Over Europe, v1.0.001.


Both games include a DOS installer (for the DOS game) with a Win3.x manual, installer and setup apps.


Aces: Collection Series box.

Aces: Collection Series (April 1997)


The Aces: Collection Series was released by Sierra in April 1997. It includes Aces Of The Pacific, ver. 1.2 with the expansion included. and it uses the CD-ROM edition of Aces Over Europe, v1.0.001.


This compilation only includes Win3.x manual, installer and setup apps so must be installed using Win3.x. The DOS games can be run in a standard DOSBox DOS environment and do not required Win3.x to run.


Patching strategies


Both compilations feature the latest versions of both AOTP and AOE so there are no patches to apply.


Aces: The Complete Collector's Edition


  • Install AOE (DOS game only) with standard DOSBox and/or...

  • Install AOE (DOS game, Win manual and apps) with Win 3.x running in DOSBox.


Aces: Collection Series


The Aces: Collection Series omits the DOS installation apps, so installation with Win3.x is required. In addition due to the speed of DOSBox Staging the CD-ROM speed check will generate a 'divide by zero' error unless the CPU cycles are reduced when using Win3.x to 10000.


  • Install AOE (DOS game, Win manual and apps) with Win 3.x running in DOSBox.


Documents


As both games use a CD-ROM release in the compilations, a manual in a legacy Win3.x mvb format is installed, when run from Win 3.x.


For digitally available documents see AOTP Documents and AOE Documents.


Finally...


Credit and thanks goes to:


  • The Internet Archive for hosting patches, manuals, images and game information for AOTP and AOE.

  • The Sierra Help Pages for hosting patches, manuals and game information.

  • Old-Games.ru for hosting manuals.

  • The Patches Scrolls for hosting patches.

  • DOS Days for hosting manuals.

  • The Video Game Library for hosting the AOE strategy guide.


Good hunting!

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