The participation of Brazilians in eSports championships is nothing new. National teams in games like League of Legends and Counter Strike are well followed with huge crowds. Now, another group of Brazilians stands out in the field, but within a much smaller niche than MOBA or FPS games: flight simulators.
The Brazilian team Harpia, which has about 13 , was crowned champion and runner-up in three categories of the SATAL tournament, in the air combat simulator DCS World (Digital Combat Simulator).
SATAL has Gold and Diamond leagues. The Brazilians competed in both, taking first place in the 4×4 categories of both leagues, as well as 2nd place in the Diamond 6×6 league. The Harpia team also stood out for not having lost a match in the Diamond 4×4 league, finishing this category undefeated.
This was the 2021 edition of SATAL, which ended just this year. In its first participation, in the 2020 edition, the team placed 4th.
Student Rangel Alcântara, nicknamed Trigger, points out that this shows the extent of the championship, disputed by teams from all over the world, where Harpia is the only one in Brazil.
He also explains that SATAL has teams that represent countries, like Harpia himself, or teams with from different nationalities. In the finals, the Brazilians faced virtual pilots from Turkey and another team made up of from several countries.
The electronic game simulation level is high. Heberth Thaylon, one of the team , points out that versions of the DCS are used by real air forces, such as those of and the USA, which have in the DCS an instruction tool for their pilots. Mirage 2000 e A-10respectively.
Harpia began to be formed in 2019 at the initiative of Rangel. At the time, he and another colleague, nicknamed 'Zero', wanted to form a Brazilian team to participate in SATAL. This is a top-level international tournament for teams and squadrons flying the DCS.
“There was no Brazilian team yet in the DCS competitions. I thought it would be cool to have this team represent the Brazilian community in the competitive DCS arena.”, says Rangel.
“It's a highly competitive environment that uses the DCS platform as a means of competition. There are several aircraft available to be used and the combat is done inside a [virtual] arena”, explains Thaylon.
This is a Combat BVR (Beyond Visual Range) competition, where virtual pilots use medium and long range missiles from their fighters against the enemy team. The team that shoots down the other and lands at the home airfield wins.
team aircraft
Harpia use three main aircraft: the F-14 Tomcat, the F-16 Viper and the F/A-18 Hornet. All are paid DCS modules: the base game is free, but the more complete aircraft are not. Prices can range from R$78 to R$413. The Dassault Mirage 2000C is also used sporadically by the team.
The most striking thing about the planes is clearly the painting, which was inspired by another used by an F-5 Tiger II fighter of the Brazilian Air Force to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the 1st Fighter Aviation Group.
The original scheme was adapted by Thaylon, where the characteristic ostrich was replaced by the Brazilian bird, which stands out for its large wingspan.
The expression “Senta a Púa!”, war cry of FAB fighter pilots, remained on the aircraft, as a symbol of the nationality of virtual aviators.
Marcos Costa, called Chuck on the team, completes by saying that it is a way of honoring the FAB. “It is the air force that we ire and are proud of as Brazilians”, says the civil servant.
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The name Harpia is also a tribute to the country, yet another proof that the team wants to carry the Brazilian flag in the virtual air combat environment.
Virtual combat, real tactics
The SATAL competition takes place in the world of pixels, but the of the Harpia ensure that the techniques used by the Harpy in the tournament are the same as those used by fighter pilots in real life.
“Despite being an eSports competition, the DCS is a simulator. For this reason, tactics, maneuvers and communication […] we try to bring the best out of the world of real fighter aviation”, explains Thaylon.
“Fundamentals and concepts of real fighter aviation sand apply in the DCS. Communication, positioning, tactics… Anything you apply in real life, you can apply in DCS and have a positive use”, completed Filipe Fibra, another member of Harpia.
Thaylon says the team does extensive research, using public sources, of formations and combat tactics to enhance and add maneuvers to their matches. These and several other real-life applications were taken and adapted to the virtual environment of the DCS simulator and successfully employed by Brazilian virtual “aviators”.
To maintain proficiency, the team – made up of people of different ages and different professional groups – meets weekly, flying in different scenarios and seeking to simulate the same ones seen in matches of the SATAL eSports tournament.
Another aspect that resembles real life are the debriefings. After practice, players stay together and use software called TacView to discuss mistakes and successes during a simulated flight. The same thing is done by real combat pilots too, but, of course, within their specificities.
"In a Red Flag of life, planes record [combat] telemetry to be studied later in the debriefing. In order to have a good competitive level in the DCS, we also need this telemetry and for that we have the software”, explains Rangel.
In addition to matches
Harpia may have started out to dedicate itself to SATAL, but over the years the member relationship has gone beyond the virtual tournament arena. Outside of computers, team have already met a few times.
Marcos says that the team is now like a family. “Actually, Harpia has become a group of friends where the game is more of a detail. The greatest importance is our relationship. We give more importance to that than to the competition.”He says.
The players' nicknames themselves are jokes between them. Heberth says, just like in real life, “callsigns” arise from funny or embarrassing situations.
Still, the spirit of the Harpy remains. The objective is to expand the Brazilian representation in the DCS community, in addition to participating in other tournaments and championships in the air combat simulator.
