Introduction

REX Simulations are at it again with their well-known sim-changingtools and utilities - this time they've added even morecustomizability with their release of the new REX 5 - EnvironmentForce.

With the ability to change sim shaders mid-flight, with no need tostop what you're doing to make changes, Environment Force really doesadd another level of flexibility to sim customization and put morepower in the hands of flight simmers.

From water details to cloud models - all the options to create yourperfect scenario are now at your fingertips, courtesy of the handysliders and the advanced in-sim menu. Not only this, but EnvironmentForce takes it one step further in providing you with a synchronizedweather engine - injecting changes to the sim whenever they happen inthe real world.

I've always been a huge fan of REX products, and I'm excited tohave gotten my hands on this new piece of kit courtesy ofFlightSim.Com.

Interface / Ease of Use

When I first opened Environment Force, I was expecting to see adifferent interface than the same old design of other REX productslike SkyForce and Texture Direct, etc., however the interface stillworks great regardless, and that's the main thing.

The initial screen asks you if you'd like to work in AutomationMode, or in Manual Mode. Automation mode being where you can allowEnvironment Force to automatically control the environment visualssuch as clouds and lighting, etc. or Manual mode being where you havethe ability to manually tweak each and every one of the differentsettings to your liking.

I prefer to use Manual mode when using Environment Force -Active Skydoes a great job of controlling the weather for me, so I prefer toleave that as is, but you can choose whichever option is best for yourneeds.

The sliders in the interface are extremely handy. If you're like meand have multiple monitors, you can drag Environment Force over toyour second screen and adjust things in the sim without the maininterface blocking your view, but the program also has an advancedtweaking menu which can be accessed by clicking the small REX logo inthe bottom-left side of your screen when Environment Force isrunning.

A small gripe of mine is the small REX logo I mention above. Itworks great and it's a handy tool to have, however I couldn't find away of hiding it when you don't need it, and this for me is a littleannoying. Some people might not think much of it, but for me I had toknock a point off the final rating for that but trust me - that's justme being VERY critical in an attempt to provide the best review I canof the product which is otherwise absolutely fantastic.

Customization Options

I was very impressed with the range of different optionsEnvironment Force provides. Not only do you have the ability tocontrol weather parameters and visibility, but you also have theability to change water reflection and refraction, terrain coloring,cloud size, sky textures and a lot more too - it provides probablymore customization than I have ever seen in any other product from REXor otherwise, and it allows you to do it in a very simple and basicway without the need to know all the technical stuff.

One factor I really like is that once you're done, you can shareyour preset with the community. I know this feature isn't "new" to theworld, and other REX products allow this too, but the ability toimport and export your presets and to modify others to your own likingwithin such a heavily featured product is just great.

Obviously sometimes we make mistakes, and you might not like theway a certain modification has made your clouds look. This isn't aproblem - all of the options have a handy "reset" button next to them,and a "Global Reset" button on some too, making it easier than ever toswitch back to default if you need to.

Advanced Options

As well as the options inside of the program itself, we also havethe advanced options which are available by clicking thebeforementioned little REX icon whilst using the simulator. Clickingthis brings up a fantastic mini-menu allowing easy customization andadvanced tweaking of the visuals in the sim, again - without having toexit the simulator or use a second screen if you don't have one.

If you prefer to fine-tune things rather than use sliders, thenthis little interface is perfect. Of course, you can save all of theoptions in here the same way that you can in the main interface, andyou can load them back in whenever you want should you decide tochange things along the way.

One thing I do like about the mini-menu is the fact that it allowsyou to enter values in via the keyboard, which means you can beextremely precise and exact with your tweaking.

Textures And Models

One of the disadvantages (if you can call it that) I found was therequirement for you to ownSkyForce 3DorREX Texture Directfor Environment Force to work properly. This is because EnvironmentForce uses the models and textures from these other tools instead ofcoming packed with its own set of models and textures. Some peoplemight see this as a disadvantage and they may need to go out and buyanother product just to get Environment Force working.

Luckily for me - I already have both SkyForce 3D and TextureDirect, and by the looks of it, there is also going to be support forthird-party tools as well. There is a greyed-out box which says"3rd-Party, Coming Soon".

The models and textures can also be customized in terms ofresolution for the clouds. You can choose between 4096 x 4096Textures, 2048 x 2048, 1024 x 1024 or 512 x 512. This is great forthose of you who need to be able to customize this for the sake ofperformance.

Conclusion And Final Verdict

So perhaps not the longest review of all time, but the simplicityand easy-to-use nature of this product speak for itself. There isn'treally a need to go into much more detail, and I found the entireexperience of using REX 5 - Environment Force extremely enjoyable andexciting. I was slightly disappointed with the inability to move orhide the tiny REX logo in the bottom-left hand corner of the screen,and it could have done with maybe a new interface instead of copyingfrom previous products, but these are more aesthetic than anythingelse, and I'm happy to say I won't be taking too many points off myfinal verdict.

REX 5 - Environment Force is an absolutely fantastic andrevolutionary piece of software which changes everything. No more dosimmers have to close the sim if they want to change visuals, and nomore do we have to spend hours finding the perfect combination.

I am happily giving the product a solid 8 out of 10, with the onlygripes being the abovementioned issues relating to the advanced menuicon, the lack of a new interface, and the requirement to need anotherREX product in order to use Environment Force properly.

MrYorkiesWorld

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