Having the help/advice of real helicopter pilots in relation to the FM is the way to go, this game has so much potential, there are so few helicopter games out there! Having both civil and military helicopter missions in one game is a master stroke by BI but IMO there has to be far more variety of civil missions in the career mode. 
As for being a game or simulator, this game can be everything to everyone, it's just down to the difficulty levels being offered, beginer level (game) expert level (simulator), in which case you cover all bases and have far more sales!