The demo session will be hosted by Mark Allen, European Communications Manager for 505 Games, who will guide viewers through a selection of some of the fifty missions available in the game that take place in locations as diverse as Battle of Britain, Stalingrad and the Battle of the Bulge. An exclusive UStream channel (http://www.ustream.tv) has been created to broadcast the demo to attendees who will be able to engage in live chat with other viewers throughout.

A Q&A session will also follow the demonstration to give fans the chance to pose questions to the developers on the inner workings of the title. For anyone who misses the event as it happens, all chat posts, questions and answers will include the hashtag #IL2LiveDemo for easy reference. The demo session will go live from 12:30 on Thursday 13th August. For further updates and details on how to view the live stream please refer to http://twitter.com/IL2BirdsOfPrey

Based around large-scale aerial combat over the ground-based military operations of World War II, variety is at the heart of the action in IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey. Players participate in the most famous confrontations of the era piloting fighters, battle planes or heavy bombers across a range of missions. There are 6 theatres of war in which to engage – The Battle of Britain, Stalingrad, Berlin, Sicily, the Battle of the Bulge and Korsun – representing the main airborne battles of World War II in Europe.

As well as taking environmental and landscape visuals to new heights by incorporating satellite technology, IL-2 also boasts a tangible damage effects engine. Players will see real-time damage to the aircraft such as holes in the wings and trail lines during dogfights.