Even though I play WT nearly every day, I still consider myself a casual gamer. The friends I play with aren’t comfortable in air battles, so I don’t get as much time in planes as I might like. I have planes of every nation, and up and down the ranks, so I rarely get to spend time with any particular plane. The J29D falls in the BR range that I probably enjoy most, however.
Anytime I get into the seat of a plane, there is a period where I have to refamiliarize myself with its capabilities and limitations. I have to relearn things like its wing rip speeds, where it has compression issues, its energy performance, and gun velocity. Depending on the plane, that might only take one battle, others can take a few (I’m looking at you, F4D-1.)
When I look at the J29D, you get an additional issue that is only found on a very few, very Swedish, jets: no tracers. On top of all the other things a player has to refamiliarize themselves with when they get into the cockpit, they have to, somehow, figure out the gun velocity and aim of the jet with nothing to guide them. I have the J35A, so I have some experience with this issue, even though I don’t have the J29D. Learning how to lead the guns isn’t something you can do in a few battles, let alone one. As far as I can tell, these are aircraft that you have to commit to, and play singularly for extended periods in order to get the feel for their guns. Making shots will forever be a matter of guesswork, unless your opponent gives you a head-on, or is kind enough to fly straight while you’re on their tail.
When I look back on my original post, this was what I was considering when trying to decide whether to purchase the plane. I could test its flight performance well enough, and highlighted the issues I readily saw. The plane’s handling isn’t bad, but it does have some quirks that take getting used to. I can’t test the guns in test flight, however, because the AI only gives you that “flying straight for the enemy” experience that doesn’t tell me anything.
Which brings me to the question that haunts me with the J35A, as well. “If no other jet has this issue at this BR, what do the Swedish jets offer that offsets the problem?” In my mind, for them to be balanced against other jets at the BR, they should have something. If their performance is within the range that they are on par with other aircraft, the guesswork of aiming is a liability that puts them at a disadvantage. Based on my testing of the aircraft, I don’t see anything to suggest a performance improvement to offset that disadvantage. Were it me, I’d reduce the BR a smidge to compensate.
Thanks to everyone that has provided feedback regarding the plane. As much as I like the look of them, I opted against buying it during the limited time it was on sale. The time I get with which to play any particular jet made me decide that I wouldn’t likely have a good experience with it. The comments you’ve provided will come back into the equation the next time it becomes available, I’m sure.