Play F-16 Combat Pilot Online

I first played F-16 Combat Pilot back in 1989, when it came out for MS-DOS. It was published by Electronic Arts, and it was one of those serious flight sims that tried to capture the complexity of real jet combat. At the time, it stood out for its detailed approach, even if the graphics were pretty basic by today's standards. You really had to want to learn the systems to get anywhere with it.

You control an F-16 pilot, and your main job is to complete missions like intercepting enemy aircraft or striking ground targets. The game uses a combination of cockpit view and external map screens; you manage radar, weapons systems, and navigation waypoints. The pacing is deliberate, almost slow, until you get into a dogfight and everything speeds up. It's not an easy game, and you'll fail a lot while learning how to balance all the controls. Flying it feels like a genuine challenge, not just a game.

Each game uses different controls, most DOS games use the keyboard arrows. Some will use the mouse , "Alt" ,"Enter" and "Space bar".