Hello everybody,
Today's update is focused on Steam support, it brings required functionality to support Steam requirements for the distribution of a new content. In addition to purely technical stuff 'under the hood', this will make running the game through Steam more streamlined, without entering login and password.
Linking the Two Systems
In the past, the two systems could not talk to each other very much and we had to devise a way for Steam users and Website users to both use our system. We managed to do that and this worked fine until Valve changed the rules which prevented us from listing our newer products on Steam. This forced us to do a new closer integration and we had to fit it into our already tight schedule.
For those of you who like to play through Steam you will be happy about this change, but please understand that to be able to also purchase products on our site and fly using your unique IL-2 User Account nickname you will need to perform the linkage which is a one-time event. Once they are linked they are linked forever. Currently ALL Steam customers have separate Steam and IL-2 User accounts, but new Steam users will not automatically have an IL-2 User Account and must create one to link them. The process is short, but it involves a few steps and there are different paths you can follow.
Benefits and Limitations
This new integration allows our database to recognize your Steam account as an IL-2 user and negate the need for a separate login when you want to play which is what we require currently. During the linkage process and afterwards our system only sees a numeric code and we DO NOT see any critical Steam account data. This linkage process cannot be abused and your Steam account info is safe. If you choose to not link your accounts you will be assigned a generic computer-generated name. For those that don’t care about their name in the game or making purchases from our webstore you can ignore linking the accounts, but if you do want to have your current handle in the game and not have a generic name you’ll need to link them. There is a no way around this limitation.
If you are an existing Steam user and have already purchased content from our website you will not be able to use that content with your Steam version unless you link the accounts. Again, it's a one time thing and takes just a few seconds.
If you are a new Steam user and wish to purchase content on our website you will need to link the accounts before you will be able to use that content with your IL-2 Steam install.
It's Live
Now, when you launch the game in Steam, you'll see a prompt asking you if you want to link your IL-2 and Steam accounts (if you have launched the game from this install before) or ask you if you're a new user (if there is no local login data found). It's highly recommended to link your accounts especially if you have bought content both on Steam and our webstore, but if choose not to do it now, you can click 'Steam login only' (in this case, you'll see only the content you have bought on Steam in the game).
Please see the chart below and identify which scenario best suits you as a player and customer.
The linking process isn't complex, but here's step-by-step guide just in case:
https://il2sturmovik.com/m/SteamAndIL2AccountGuide.pdf
From now on, Steam users can launch the game without entering login and password each time and we'll be able to release the content on Steam which wasn't available there previously.
Also some minor fixes were done in the game:
1. Phosphorous instruments and ventilation intake position corrected on Bf 109 G-14
2. Minor 3D model corrections for Bf 109s
3. Remaining issues with MP locks were addressed
4. Skip dialog for mission or campaign creators should be fixed now (but existing missions need to be edited to point to the new location of this tool: swf\extensions\skip)