This is a guide on running the original Simis Limited 1992 sim, AV-8B Harrier Assault, in DOSBox Staging. This is not a guide for the remake, Super-VGA Harrier.
A broken UN resolution and a politically limited US task force, form the backdrop of AV-8B Harrier Assault campaign.
Not just a flight sim of the AV-8B but a strategy game as well, as you can stick to or modify the battle plan, to try and tip the scales of the conflict.
This guide is for DOSBox Staging v0.82.0, the latest version at time of writing.
Versions
There are at least two versions of AV-8B, the version number doesn't seem to be listed in game. However the earlier version uses a blue/monochrome install utility while a later version uses a colour install utility.
It's not known if the changes are limited to just the install utility or if additional bug fixes or enhancements were made to the later version. However it is recommended to use the later version in case changes were made.
Both versions came on either 2 x 5.25" 1.2Mb High Density (HD) floppy disks or 2 x 3.5" 1.44Mb HD floppy disks. For the purposes of this guide, it is assumed the disks have been ripped into disk images, (.img or .ima files).
HOTAS Config
As it is a DOS based sim a maximum of 4 axes are supported. AV-8B supports all 4 axes, including throttle and rudder, although the manual states a Thrustmaster joystick and throttle is supported, but doesn't mention anything about other devices.
When using HOTAS/controller profiling software to limit the controller to a maximum of 4 axes the following device axes to Windows axes mappings were used:
Physical axis | Windows axis |
Joystick x-axis | DX_X_AXIS |
Joystick y-axis | DX_Y_AXIS |
Throttle | DX_Z_AXIS |
Rudder | DX_XROT_AXIS |
DOSBox config
This DOSBox Staging config for AV-8B assumes the latest version (at time of writing), 0.82.0 will be used. The changes to the default config are shown below:
[sdl]
host_rate = vrr
vsync = off
presentation_mode = vfr
[dosbox]
dos_rate = 1000
[cpu]
cpu_cycles = 20000
cpu_cycles_protected = auto
cycleup = 100
cycledown = 100
[voodoo]
voodoo = false
[mouse]
dos_mouse_immediate = true
[mixer]
reverb = large
chorus = normal
[midi]
mididevice = mt32
[mt32]
romdir = "D:\Midi\Versioned"
joysticktype = 4axis
timed = false
swap34 = true
deadzone = 0
[autoexec]
imgmount a "D:\Games\Dos\AV-8B Harrier Assault\fdd\*.img" -t floppy -ro
mount c "D:\Games\Dos\AV-8B Harrier Assault\hdd"
c:
cd av8b
call av8b.bat
exitThe [sdl], [dosbox] and [mouse] settings are suitable for high frame rate gaming as described in this article by Omniclyde. These settings aren't strictly required and can be omitted to use the default settings.
In [cpu] settings, 20000 cycles seems appropriate, you may need to tweak this setting but this seems like a good starting point.
The cpu_cycles_protected setting will use the same cycle count as cpu_cycles and must be set to auto, otherwise the sim will run far too quickly at the default 60000 cpu_cycles_protected setting.
Voodoo emulation isn't required and can be disabled.
The [mixer] settings can be changed to enhance sound and music to personal preference.
The [midi] and [mt32] settings enable high quality Roland midi music. The model value, auto, will default to a CM32L device. AV-8B supports the LAPC1 sound card which is equivalent to a CM32L device. The midi roms folder is described in the DOSBox midi article.
The [joystick] settings are appropriate for my HOTAS setup so you may need to alter these. The swap34 setting is recommended to be set to true, due to the calibration process (see Setup and running below). The deadzone setting is a personal preference.
The [autoexec] has example imgmount commands for the floppy images. As there are multiple floppy images the imgmount command uses the '*' wildcard. The imgmount and mount commands make use of a folder structure described in my DOSBox game management article.
You may wish to change the batch command used to run the game (see Setup and running below).
Installation
There is an installation utility (install.exe) that should be run from within DOSBox. The install utility allows selection of the installation drive/folder and sound card. You will also be asked to choose between a full install with intro animation or a small install without the intro. It's recommended to choose the full install, the sim can be run, skipping the intro movie.
Once selections are made the installation will begin and should complete without issue.
The install utility will only unpack the sound files it needs, based on the selection, (not all sound files). This means changing the sound card means re-installing the game and choosing a new sound device.
The DOSBox config, will allow Roland LAPC1 or Soundblaster sound to be used. It's recommended to use Roland sound.
Alternatively a Roland sound version of the game can be installed into one folder and the Soundblaster sound version of the game, installed into a different folder, if you wish to try both out.
Setup and running
There is a choice of running with the intro movie:
call av8b.batOr if you want to jump straight into the game, without intro:
call av8bfly.batWhen starting the game for the first time, you'll need to configure and calibrate axes. There is a config page available from the command page in-game. The throttle and rudder pedals should be set as shown in the screenshot.
Rudder should be on channel (axis) 3.
Throttle should be on channel (axis) 4.
Thrustmaster stick and throttle should be left as no.
The DOSBox config swapped axes 3 and 4 to ensure when the calibrate option is used the throttle appears in the vertical calibration scale and the rudder appears on the horizontal calibration scale.
When calibrating, the throttle and rudder pedals will need to centred and should either be able to reach (or come close to) either end of their respective scales. You may need to adjust the throttle centre position and calibrate a couple of times. Once calibrated to your liking, click (channel/axis) save,
Documentation
The following documents are available from various websites:
The manual in pdf format.
The reference card as an image.
The campaign map as an image.
Finally...
This guide covers the original AV-8B Harrier Assault, in the future, a later guide will cover the SVGA remake, Super-VGA Harrier.
I wanted to cover the original because, it's often overlooked in favour of the later SVGA remake. However, the VGA 320x200 resolution is very reminiscent of the MicroProse sims around the time, e.g. F-117A Nighthawk Stealth Fighter 2.0 and Gunship 2000. In fact it feels a lot like a slightly higher fidelity MicroProse sim with a comprehensive dynamic campaign added, which is rather ironic given MicroProse's own Harrier sim, Harrier Jump Jet was released the same year, (nothing for ages then two come along at once!)
So hopefully any MicroProse fans will take a look and maybe give AV-8B Harrier Assault a try. It has a charm of its own.
Good Hunting!
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