Believe it or not, you're not alone in here. I've got a fair share of DCS modules myself.
The F/A-18 is long overdue in that DCS didn't have any effective multi-role aircraft 'til now, so you're either stuck doing CAS and mud-moving, or cleaning up the skies - and god help you if you run into any SAMs unless you're in the Su-25T, since that's the only SEAD-capable aircraft you can fly in the game...
I still need to build some solid HOTAS mounts, though. Force-sensing sticks demand a hard mount, otherwise they'll lift off the desk all the time.
Oh, and how about that AV-8B Harrier, while we're at it? We haven't had a sim centering around that one since Flying Nightmares on the Mac and 3DO, and Combat Air Patrol 2 is still very much in Early Access...
Whoa. So there is hope in here after all!
Gonna sound like a damned heretic here, but I haven't used a HOTAS setup for a long time - either they're too expensive, too time-consuming to set up, or just too clunky (I don't happen to have very much space in the corner of my room where the PC desktop resides). Instead I've resorted to the sin of using either a console controller, or very, very painfully using the keyboard. Also means you don't get to enjoy the more subtle nuances of flying the aircraft...
Hell... come to think of it, the last actual aerial combat game I've played recently was friggin Star Wars: Battlefront 2, and that game is about as arcadey as a flight sim can get (though I do give it credit, the control scheme with the keyboard+mouse setup is surprisingly good!)
But yeah, you're right in that the Hornet's multi-role functionality on the battlefield was a small reason why I was intrigued by this iteration: it means you'll have slightly more diversity in the mission choices, instead of being shore-horned into a pure interceptor or CAS fighter.
I doubt there's many flight simulator fans here on the videogames board (I suspect most of them actually lurk around OTC's The Military Thread, but the trailer for this upcoming sim impressed me enough that I thought perhaps the game could use some further exposure.
edited 14th Jan '18 7:27:52 PM by SgtRicko