Probably because it’s a Phantom. People with even a passing interest in military aviation know the Phantom, and so I imagine a lot of people are going to beeline towards a plane they recognize over a much more niche one like the F-8s.
It’s also in a line with a lot of other notable aircraft (P-51s, P-47s, F-86s), so there’s a good chance said players are intrinisticly grinding that line over the naval aircraft line, which really only has the Corsair as a well known aircraft, at least until the F-4J and F-18.
Additionally, it’s a bomb truck, and a pretty decent one at the tier. So there’s probably quite a few players who just spam it to farm RP by dropping napalm on bases.
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This is the only reason why it has so many games played. Everytime I fly Ayit, some of my primary food are just F-4C who ping it towards bases trying to be the first one to bomb it. Some people just wanna bomb their way up trees, i guess. An F-8 (or similar) would require these players to actually put some thought into how they approach the battle.
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Seeing people carry bombs and/or napalm on absolute beast of a ASF; together with missiles clearly shoving that they have them unlocked, will never stop being funny.
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And then they reach top tier with absolutely no idea of how to use their shiny jet, and come cry on the forums that they get annihilated game after game because “muhuh insert most common opponent is op they always kill me I can’t do anything”
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I prefer to call it a “jack of all trades,” as it’s a very versatile aircraft. It has its weaknesses, but the negative reputation it gets here is undeserved. It’s not a two-dimensional plane, even when it’s often used that way.
Even after spading, the pain doesn’t end. Yes, it can be learned and played better, like any combat vehicle, but is that masochism really worth it? The main reason is the environment it’s placed in right now - it simply doesn’t fit.