Suggestion List
It is great he wants to get a flight simulator he might learn something from! Played from when I was little and turned into a career. Here are suggestions from a long time flight simmer who loves things about arcade versions and "hardcore" simulators.
What kind of PC are you running with? I'd be careful what game you get and find out you are not able to run the game you got. Feel free to PM me if you want any more help to make sure your PC can run it and such:
PC Games.... ( You should be able to find these at Best Buy)
My Current Favorite:
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Lock On: Platinum: A great mondern jet combat flight simulator that has realism settings so that it can be as easy or as realitic as you want. It's a steal right now:
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DCS Black Shark - ultra realistic helicopter simulator
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Flight Simulator X - non-combat general flight simulator - be aware that Flight! (the new flight simulator version will be out early next year)
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IL-2 1946 - combat WW2 simulator with tons of aircraft, realism from arcade to full simulator
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Falcon 4.0 Allied Force - Upgraded version of the greatest flight sims out there, ultra realistic model of the F-16 but has dificulty settings so that you can make it easier to fly and shoot at things
PS3
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IL-2 Birds of Prey - A console version of the above IL-2 1946 but with much less aircraft, can be very realistic depending on the dificulty set
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HAWX2 - Modern jet arcade flight sim, tons of action not much sim
PS3 or PC
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Apache Air Assault - Amazingly fun arcadish helicopter game with a decent flight model and fun missions
It sounds like he wants a decent flight sim, and for the best balance of fun, learning, realism, I would go for Lock On - Platinum.
Oh and I forgot to mention, for the PC it is really important to get a flight stick with it. The games are super cheap compared to latest games standards ($10-15 for PC flight sims vs $60 for newest console games).
Logitech Extreme - Has all the basics, twist for rudder, small slider for throttle, and for a great price. of course, you could go crazier, much crazier, but that would get you going. So assuming the PC can handle it, Joystick + Lock On for under $50 isn't bad