The trouble with getting people into Arma

[tacticalnuggets 24]

Wait, who posted this? Cuz multiple people have posted why their friends haven't gotten into ArmA. There isn't one sole reason that people don't get into the game. There really isn't one answer.

I just want to add to this interesting thread.

I'm new to ARMA2 - as in 1 day. Bought Combined operations on Steam yesterday.

Played the training missions and 1 Mp mission and I'm hooked. i have been wanting a game like this since the old DeltaForce landwarrior games.

just to add.. I am a BF3 player on PC...I like the game but it gets boring after I played them on console ( 1943, BF2, Bad Company, Bad Company 20 then i got back into PC gaming and got BC3. I don't like CoD. I was browsing around and found some ARMA3 footage on youtube. Then i decided to look at the devs and found Arma 2. looked on Steam and found A2:CO.

The main reason why I am now an Arma 2 player is BECAUSE of the Sandbox, MIlsim and type of gameplay it offers. It's a damn breath of fresh air in this stale game industry. I seriously hope BI doesnt want to the BF3 / CoD etc etc type gameplay. That market is catered for and saturated. BI has a GEM here.

yes make it a little more sleek. for goodness sake add a Mod Updater/packager type tool to make the installation easy to do and you will have MATURE, audience that actually spends money on your products here.

i tell my friends (All of whom are 26+ and more towards 30) of ARMA, i show them stuff and i have 3 of them lining up to buy it.

1 problem... seriously complicated to get mods going and find out what to do on servers cause they use this or that pack. So Google is needed to look for info. 1 or 2 of them will go through the trouble. We are serious Milsim Airsoft players... so they love the idea of ARMA but the others will lack the patience and technical skill/time to go through all of it.

Don't change the milsim and sandbox (modding) stuff!

The point is that a post like this, which is a mini gold mine, was completely ignored because everyone is bickering over the stupid command menu. Something which is ill-relevant in an entirely human mission, and most people I know prefer entirely human fighting.

[pathetic_berserker 4]

^^ I'm a little confused here tacticalnuggets. I cant see where Omninorm quote supports your argument against fighting AI. And I'm not sure what your proposing to do about AI either?

What I do see is that Omninorm a qualified noob (respectfully) at ArmA has declared that its ArmAs sophistication that got him INTO IT, and the only flaw is with mod installation. Folks here need to keep thier eyes on the ball.

And though being a long term BIS gamer means MOD installation for me is a piece of cake , (now with sugar coating in terms of 6updater) I can see it being worth BIS's time to improve Mod installation.If they are serious about it it should be as easy as installing the mod folder then ticking a box on the front end before the game loads. The current system of having to restart the game after selecting mods is a bit dodge.Though of course having a BIS version of 6updater would be great I don't realy expect them to go so far as providing mod updates. As for controls, dumbing down commands will only water down the series' strengths, hell I still order most of my commands the old fashioned OFP way. I like being able to simpy tap a few hot keys to make my AI run in circles ;P

Edited March 7, 2012 by Pathetic_Berserker

[tacticalnuggets 24]

^^ I'm a little confused here tacticalnuggets. I cant see where Omninorm quote supports your argument against fighting AI. And I'm not sure what your proposing to do about AI either?

What I do see is that Omninorm a qualified noob (respectfully) at ArmA has declared that its ArmAs sophistication that got him INTO IT, and the only flaw is with mod installation. Folks here need to keep thier eyes on the ball.

And though being a long term BIS gamer means MOD installation for me is a piece of cake , (now with sugar coating in terms of 6updater) I can see it being worth BIS's time to improve Mod installation.If they are serious about it it should be as easy as installing the mod folder then ticking a box on the front end before the game loads. The current system of having to restart the game after selecting mods is a bit dodge.Though of course having a BIS version of 6updater would be great I don't realy expect them to go so far as providing mod updates. As for controls, dumbing down commands will only water down the series' strengths, hell I still order most of my commands the old fashioned OFP way. I like being able to simpy tap a few hot keys to make my AI run in circles ;P

I dont have an argument against AI, its just if you want more PEOPLE getting into the arma series, you need to stop bickering about AI command menus in a "getting people into Arma" thread.

[froggyluv 2136]

The point is that a post like this, which is a mini gold mine, was completely ignored because everyone is bickering over the stupid command menu. Something which is ill-relevant in an entirely human mission, and most people I know prefer entirely human fighting.

Hmmm, but Co-op still seems to be the vast majority of servers in my experience. Don't get me wrong, I actually enjoy both but finding good PvP is generally harder (yes I know about Cerebus :) )then getting a few friends together and jumping in on a co-op mission. Thats why AI is MOST critical to me in terms of making firefights fun (and the AI has gotten much better).

Edit: Ahh, I see your point in last post. But maybe there needs to be dual threads: Getting people into Arma SP/Multi ;)

[tacticalnuggets 24]

Hmmm, but Co-op still seems to be the vast majority of servers in my experience. Don't get me wrong, I actually enjoy both but finding good PvP is generally harder (yes I know about Cerebus :) )then getting a few friends together and jumping in on a co-op mission. Thats why AI is MOST critical to me in terms of making firefights fun (and the AI has gotten much better).

The reason why everyone plays coop is because the AI is very good in this game, and at the same time, there is a lack of raw MP numbers to support prolific PVP.

EDIT: To make myself more clear, AI is good, no need to drastically improve and focus upon it. More important things need to be fixed in the actual human experience of getting into the game and using mods.

[velouriam 1]

I am new to arma and so if you all will permit me I will state my thoughts on this whole discussion. And as a new player to the game my feelings on this might be similar to many many other gamers.

I've been playing games for a long long time. I'm 29 years old and I've played them all. Shooters, rpgs, tactial shooters, rts, etc etc. I mostly play the popular mainstream games because they all share the two most important principles. Advertising, and accessibility. This means that i can go about my life and catch the occasional commercial or internet ad and find a game without much effort, and a game that I know my friends will be playing for the same reason. In the case of arma 2, I happened to be messing around the internet and found a video of a team playing an arma 2 mission. I was instantly hooked. I said to myself "What is this game?! It looks very interesting!". After doing my research I decided to hold off on getting it because it seemed waaaaay to overwhelming. I mean there are so many mods, and different ways to do this or that. It scared me off. Finally after a year of this i decided to get it anyways. After climbing the steepest learning curve that i've ever seen in a game, I must say that i love it. I love the sandbox. I love that really the possibilities are endless. It's a game that gives you an experience unparralleled by any other.

That said, I think arma 3 needs two things. Much better advertising. And a better multiplayer/noob friendly coop system (as a new player without any other friends in the game I have no one to play with and no servers to play on. I would love the ability to perhaps join a dedicated coop mission server with other players with the click of a button).

Thats really all it needs.

[ShenArcanyx 10]

The primary issue that I've had getting my friends into the ArmA series is the lack of mod auto-patching when joining servers (as in: having to explain to them how to use SIX Updater & Spirited Machine's ArmA2 Launcher...keeping everything up-to-date, etc).

[pathetic_berserker 4]

......as a new player without any other friends in the game I have no one to play with and no servers to play on. I would love the ability to perhaps join a dedicated coop mission server with other players with the click of a button....

BTW. Welcome

I can understand why playing with 'freinds' is important to many and theres a few games wich I only play with mates. But I have found with ArmA that I'm quite a bit less concerned about it. Generaly the maturity level is quite high so for me it becomes more a choice betwen what missions are on offer on the servers I know are run well.

Though as a fuction that a great many online games have offered for years it maybe time to for BIS to catchup on that one.

[antoineflemming 14]

Maybe ArmA III needs to have official dedicated servers, maybe even a matchmaking system. BIS could implement the most popular community game modes, like TVT and Domination, and host official servers. That way there are vanilla servers that players can hop into without having to worry about whether they have a certain mod. And, maybe a matchmaking system could be implemented, so that new players aren't lost trying to scroll down the server list through countless mod/addon servers to find one they can play. That, or BIS could add some sort of line separator between the official servers and the community servers.

Edited March 8, 2012 by antoineflemming

[PuFu 4600]

Maybe ArmA III needs to have dedicated servers, maybe even a matchmaking system.

and what sort of servers does ofp, a1 and a2 have now if i might ask?

BIS could implement the most popular community game modes, like TVT and Domination, and host official servers. That way there are vanilla servers that players can hop into without having to worry about whether they have a certain mod. And, maybe a matchmaking system could be implemented, so that new players aren't lost trying to scroll down the server list through countless mod/addon servers to find one they can play. That, or BIS could add some sort of line separator between the official servers and the community servers.

there will NEVER be servers hosted by BIS and i have explained numerous times before the reasons why

[antoineflemming 14]

and what sort of servers does ofp, a1 and a2 have now if i might ask?

there will NEVER be servers hosted by BIS and i have explained numerous times before the reasons why

I actually meant official dedicated servers, not just dedicated servers (will update post). I honestly have never seen you post that. I've never brought it up before. Could you send me a link to such a post (PM would be fine)? NVM, didn't realize you were talking about years ago. I understand. Makes sense that BIS won't host official servers.

Since that's the case, then there can never really be a completely user-friendly multiplayer system, and one in which there is some standard, baseline vanilla server that is always available to players, especially new players.

I am new to arma and so if you all will permit me I will state my thoughts on this whole discussion. And as a new player to the game my feelings on this might be similar to many many other gamers.

...

That said, I think arma 3 needs two things. Much better advertising. And a better multiplayer/noob friendly coop system (as a new player without any other friends in the game I have no one to play with and no servers to play on. I would love the ability to perhaps join a dedicated coop mission server with other players with the click of a button).

Thats really all it needs.

So, velouriam, I doubt there will be a better multiplayer/noob friendly coop system for new players to jump into or a dedicated coop mission server accessible with the click of a button (the most general use of the word accessible); at least you can't expect that from BIS. Maybe, after ArmA 3 is released, you could petition some community squads to host dedicated, vanilla coop servers. I'm sure there will be some who do have vanilla coop servers (like they do now). But, taking what PuFu said, it's not something that can be taken care of pre-release. Only thing you can maybe request is that BIS includes some standard MP modes (sure I'll get flamed for this too), so that players don't have to download the most popular mp modes (although, downloading mp game types doesn't take that long).

Really, even mod-autopatching shouldn't be something that BIS is responsible for. It's not their mods. It's the community's mods, and it's the community's responsibility to take care of that. Honestly, there's not much on the side of servers that BIS is responsible for. Only thing multiplayer-wise that they are responsible for is bugs/glitches and making sure that it actually works.

Edited March 8, 2012 by antoineflemming

[NoRailgunner 0]

antoineflemming what do you really know about OFP/Armaverse?

[antoineflemming 14]

antoineflemming what do you really know about OFP/Armaverse?

I'm sorry, this is the Armaverse. What do multiplayer features have to do with the Armaverse?

NoRailgunner, do you even know what you're asking? Why do you have to try to instigate something?

[NoRailgunner 0]

No need to be sorry, I was just a little curious. Carry on...

[antoineflemming 14]

No need to be sorry, I was just a little curious. Carry on...

OK. I know the Armaverse spans 50 years... Wow, never thought about that before. By the way, I definitely apologize for completely missing the point of your question...

[PuFu 4600]

Since that's the case, then there can never really be a completely user-friendly multiplayer system, and one in which there is some standard, baseline vanilla server that is always available to players, especially new players.

That is sooo untrue. Having BIS host dedicated servers have absolutely nothing to do with having vanilla servers and a user-friendly multiplayer browser, with a lot more options that we have today.

There are, TODAY, tons of vanilla servers running a wide variety of COOP missions, from the long and winded ones such a Domination and the likes to more custom ones. Now you make me wonder: what is your own experience with servers and hosting? Because, for instance KH hosts 4 servers atm. One of witch used to be straight vanilla, but nobody seem to have used it anymore so it was switched to ACE. But there are plenty others to choose from (in fact there are more servers than players atm). Anyhow...

I really don't see the connection, maybe you can enlighten me since i can see you are very certain of your own opinions.

Really, even mod-autopatching shouldn't be something that BIS is responsible for. It's not their mods. It's the community's mods, and it's the community's responsibility to take care of that. Honestly, there's not much on the side of servers that BIS is responsible for. Only thing multiplayer-wise that they are responsible for is bugs/glitches and making sure that it actually works.

There IS a huge difference between BIS hosting (as you call them) official MP servers, which means a monthly fee for keeping those servers up, as well as maintenance and the like. Most other games developers have this sort of money by one or all of the following:

1. selling YOU DLCs every couple of months,

2. having a subscription of some sort (COD for instance),

3. allowing only a small number of hosting companies to rent servers to other ppl (hence i am sure the misunderstanding between said parties also includes hosting a +insert company+ Official Server.)

all of the above makes them the only ones who controls what happens to these servers. You, as a customer of all the kiddie-shooter games should know best.

This sort of free servers and the likes doesn't come without a price, a price that is paid in the end, in many and varied different forms, by the consumer, NOT by the company.

Now, back on the automated mod-downloader, i was trying to prove your logic flawed, once again).

Opposed to BIS hosting servers all over the world and getting a monthly bill, developing (or working with the developer(s) of the existing ones) is a one time jobbie.

Since BIS games life-spawn is so long primarily because of their community (and they know it fairly well, even if it isn't confirmed per say) and the content (in forms of missions and mods) they develop, allowing BIS to sell games such as A2 even 3 years after its initial release, such a move will actually happen to improve everyone's life and the MP accessibility/usability, mainly because we already know that there WILL be mods for A3...

Moreover, i foresee more creativity since ones_hard_work_in_his_own_free_time=addon will have quite an improved reach, opposed to now, when your best bet (but far from being the only option) is to get together with a group and release your content as part of that, especially for MP (talking about individual vehicles, units and the likes).

To conclude: you are acting like a spoiled child, moreover one who can't really grasp what BIS game are all about in the very end - a fucking sandbox.

Edited March 8, 2012 by PuFu

[antoineflemming 14]

That is sooo untrue. Having BIS host dedicated servers have absolutely nothing to do with having vanilla servers and a user-friendly multiplayer browser, with a lot more options that we have today.

There are, TODAY, tons of vanilla servers running a wide variety of COOP missions, from the long and winded ones such a Domination and the likes to more custom ones. Now you make me wonder: what is your own experience with servers and hosting? Because, for instance KH hosts 4 servers atm. One of witch used to be straight vanilla, but nobody seem to have used it anymore so it was switched to ACE. But there are plenty others to choose from (in fact there are more servers than players atm). Anyhow...

I really don't see the connection, maybe you can enlighten me since i can see you are very certain of your own opinions.

There IS a huge difference between BIS hosting (as you call them) official MP servers, which means a monthly fee for keeping those servers up, as well as maintenance and the like. Most other games developers have this sort of money by one or all of the following:

1. selling YOU DLCs every couple of months,

2. having a subscription of some sort (COD for instance),

3. allowing only a small number of hosting companies to rent servers to other ppl (hence i am sure the misunderstanding between said parties also includes hosting a +insert company+ Official Server.)

all of the above makes them the only ones who controls what happens to these servers. You, as a customer of all the kiddie-shooter games should know best.

This sort of free servers and the likes doesn't come without a price, a price that is paid in the end, in many and varied different forms, by the consumer, NOT by the company.

Now, back on the automated mod-downloader, i was trying to prove your logic flawed, once again).

Opposed to BIS hosting servers all over the world and getting a monthly bill, developing (or working with the developer(s) of the existing ones) is a one time jobbie.

Since BIS games life-spawn is so long primarily because of their community (and they know it fairly well, even if it isn't confirmed per say) and the content (in forms of missions and mods) they develop, allowing BIS to sell games such as A2 even 3 years after its initial release, such a move will actually happen to improve everyone's life and the MP accessibility/usability, mainly because we already know that there WILL be mods for A3...

Moreover, i foresee more creativity since ones_hard_work_in_his_own_free_time=addon will have quite an improved reach, opposed to now, when your best bet (but far from being the only option) is to get together with a group and release your content as part of that, especially for MP (talking about individual vehicles, units and the likes).

To conclude: you are acting like a spoiled child, moreover one who can't really grasp what BIS game are all about in the very end - a fucking sandbox.

Seriously don't understand how I'm acting spoiled. What part of what I said implies spoiled? I'm not sitting here asking for anything in particular. I just don't see how velouriam can hope for BIS to provide "a dedicated coop mission server with other players [available] with the click of a button" if BIS won't provide dedicated servers at all. That's what I'm saying. I'm not saying there will be no dedicated servers. I actually said there will be those who host vanilla servers "like they do now". About the vanilla servers, I was not disagreeing with you. I take your word for it. I don't need a lesson in how companies make money. I never said anything about the multiplayer browser. I'm saying that there won't be a BIS vanilla server just sitting there release day for players to join with a click of a button. Not only that, but I just don't see why BIS would provide an automated mod downloader. Yeah, the fact that the game is moddable means people still want to buy 3 years after release. But I fail to see why that would motivate BIS to provide their own version of SIX updater. It hasn't motivated BIS in the past. What advantage would it provide to BIS and/or to the community for BIS to have their own "SIX updater"? Plus, since you are so eager to disagree with whatever I post, explain to me how it is BIS's responsibility to provide a mod/addon auto-updater feature?

By the way, nothing I said is counter to the concept of a sandbox. I don't see how ArmA being a sandbox has anything to do with a discussion about the multiplayer system. I didn't suggest TDM or Capture the Flag or some small, corridor map. THAT would be counter to BIS's sandbox games.

To conclude: you are acting a little bit immature. Once again, read my whole damn post and actually understand what I'm saying (read: what I actually post, not what you expect me to post). Because I was actually taking your word for it and agreeing with you, for once. And, please, for someone who always behaves like he has all the answers, don't talk to me about being certain of my own opinions.

[xx_fr0st-w0lf_xx 10]

I have posted this in another thread but it applies here aswell

1) Bad advertisement.

I Have never heard of anyone but myself that knew what arma 2 was before mentioning it to them. Nobody knows what kind of game it is, what platform what style. Sure BI may not big as other companies and rather not spend money on advertisement, which I am Okay with, but there must be a way to get it more known. Maybe youtube or facebook or other gaming sites where they can show off what arma 2 can really do

2) You need a very good PC

Your standerd Joe pc gamer cant play arma 2, hell my friend who just bought his new gaming pc cant run arma 2 with more then 30 frames, imagin back when arma 2 came out. It requires way to much and it is a real pain to run this game with more then 40 fps. When I first got arma i was focusing more on improving FPS then actually playing the game. Sure given time dedication and money you can make arma 2 running like charm (and when you do the game looks beautiful) but there are not many people who are willing to put much hard work to make just one game run

3) Not user firendly

So you found out about arma 2 and you got it tweaked to your perfrence now its time for you to learn the ropes of this game, which is much harder then it seems. The game has so many diffrent controls most that you will never really use. This can be itimidating for the new player looking to enjoy the game. When I first got arma 2 the first thing I started was training missions. On my very first one, while listening to my instructer a insurgent out of no where came and shot him in the face. I had no idea if this was scripted or a bug. I later found out the last part was to kill (or tag) these 3 men. Arma 2 can be very frustrating to learn.

4) Many bugs

So you got used to the controls and your ready for some action. Chances are you going to be riddled with bugs of some sort. When I first started harvest red on one of the first scenes one of the character dissapeard from thin air. It sometimes skips over dialogue or triggers not reacting properly. Some missions are just unbeatable because of the bugs and you cant progress in the story unless you restart everything over. This can be real annoying.

5) Multiplayer

When you first go to arma 2 multiplayer looking for simple match you will constantly get "missing mod....., missing island". You do not know what you need to do to get these things and when you finally do join a match everybody is usually doing there own thing leaving you to do what you have to do. The multiplayer the first time you play it is very unwelcoming. Once I joined a clan that all changed, arma 2 became the funnest game I have ever played, sadly being in a clan takes a lot of your time with scheduled events and training sessions and with manny real life issues I find it hard to keep up (that is why I had to leave )

Don't get me wrong I love arma 2 but not many people are going to go the extra mile to play a fun game. Arma 2 can be amazing when dealing with community addons and fun online clans but not many people are going to take the time and figure out how to do it. Most people say you need phD to play it and who am I to say they are wrong

[arx 1]

Hey folks

I was really into the first OFP back in the day but got into BF thereafter. BF3 is just a tragic console port so i quit that a while back. Really just counting the days till Arma 3 is out. I am not tempted by Arma 2 cos it kinda feels "too late". I did d/l the free to play version but it did seem very confusing on joining multi.. for example people building things - that wasnt happening in OFP. Also the gfx were chuggy as. I get 60fps on bf3 and about 20 in arma 2. Also the movement seemed really clunky, but i dont know if thats due to the fps. So for sure the playerbase for Arma is always going to be lower than mainstream "fun" games. But i think that there will be a backlash for all the dumbing down thats going on across gaming and folks will turn to Arma at least to try it. Well I cant wait and wish there were something else to be playing.

[Omninorm 1]

I have posted this in another thread but it applies here aswell

1) Bad advertisement.

I Have never heard of anyone but myself that knew what arma 2 was before mentioning it to them. Nobody knows what kind of game it is, what platform what style. Sure BI may not big as other companies and rather not spend money on advertisement, which I am Okay with, but there must be a way to get it more known. Maybe youtube or facebook or other gaming sites where they can show off what arma 2 can really do

2) You need a very good PC

Your standerd Joe pc gamer cant play arma 2, hell my friend who just bought his new gaming pc cant run arma 2 with more then 30 frames, imagin back when arma 2 came out. It requires way to much and it is a real pain to run this game with more then 40 fps. When I first got arma i was focusing more on improving FPS then actually playing the game. Sure given time dedication and money you can make arma 2 running like charm (and when you do the game looks beautiful) but there are not many people who are willing to put much hard work to make just one game run

3) Not user firendly

So you found out about arma 2 and you got it tweaked to your perfrence now its time for you to learn the ropes of this game, which is much harder then it seems. The game has so many diffrent controls most that you will never really use. This can be itimidating for the new player looking to enjoy the game. When I first got arma 2 the first thing I started was training missions. On my very first one, while listening to my instructer a insurgent out of no where came and shot him in the face. I had no idea if this was scripted or a bug. I later found out the last part was to kill (or tag) these 3 men. Arma 2 can be very frustrating to learn.

4) Many bugs

So you got used to the controls and your ready for some action. Chances are you going to be riddled with bugs of some sort. When I first started harvest red on one of the first scenes one of the character dissapeard from thin air. It sometimes skips over dialogue or triggers not reacting properly. Some missions are just unbeatable because of the bugs and you cant progress in the story unless you restart everything over. This can be real annoying.

5) Multiplayer

When you first go to arma 2 multiplayer looking for simple match you will constantly get "missing mod....., missing island". You do not know what you need to do to get these things and when you finally do join a match everybody is usually doing there own thing leaving you to do what you have to do. The multiplayer the first time you play it is very unwelcoming. Once I joined a clan that all changed, arma 2 became the funnest game I have ever played, sadly being in a clan takes a lot of your time with scheduled events and training sessions and with manny real life issues I find it hard to keep up (that is why I had to leave )

Don't get me wrong I love arma 2 but not many people are going to go the extra mile to play a fun game. Arma 2 can be amazing when dealing with community addons and fun online clans but not many people are going to take the time and figure out how to do it. Most people say you need phD to play it and who am I to say they are wrong

I am a new player and agree with this post above.

I think the game is awesome, but it needs to get streamlined to get to these awesome features.

i am trying my best to get friends involved and help them see how much fun this game is.

1 or 2 might try it now, they actually bought the game, but i'm actually worried that they are goign to get frustrated with the above mentioned points and then drop the game and this is going to have a DIRECT AFFECT in them NOT purchasing ARMA3...which at the moment they want to get.

I'll try my best though. I think to start the co-op missions online with a password, will ease them into the game.

If BI can do the following with ARMA 3 they will have a winner.

Improve accessibility

Improve Gui

Improve addon installation (not even updates) this can be a manual process. Copy it into a global "Addon" folder. Then as in O.A have the player be able to activate and deactivate the addons where they are browsing the MP games. The MP games list addons in use or needed. then you can click activate addons and it will be enabled before joining the game.

The versions of the addons should not be BI's responsibility. If the addon is incompatible it will just say so. If i already placed the addon in the folder, i would know I can just download the addon and replace the content. This is a cool way of doing it as i can then do that, play another mission while the addon is being downloaded with a download helper etc in the background. I can also easily distribute those addons to my friends without issues and just tell them. "Dump this directory into your addon directory".

[wamingo 1]

Despite having suggested the layout of one such rose menu myself, a while back, I don't think anyone would like it much in the long run. There are simply too many, too frequently used options to not be a real bother, compared to the numerical system -- considering a rose system typically steals your mouse - ie make you unable to turn and shoot.

The numerical system is very forgiving also.

So perhaps, instead of suggesting complete replacements, improving on the existing system might be preferable.

For instance, there must be a way to improve on getting units into vehicles, especially with more than 1 vehicle and vehicles far away..

Also, all but num keys 5 and 0 are dedicated entirely to squad leader. That seems wasteful somehow.

Maybe incorporating 5 and 0 under Space would seem fitting?

And the way the Space-menu is different from squad leaders vs members is probably confusing? Maybe use greying more instead of popping commands.

And the action menu...

ok got bored and drew a concept;

- make a proper equipment selection menu, and remove weapon/equipment selection from the action menu, including ammo selection, satchels etc.

- make proper UI for satchels / detonator

Also, is there anyone who thinks the dedicated 'Last Hint' keyboard shortcut, usually occupying the 'H' key, is terribly useful anymore? It seems a relic from a time without easy-to-follow tutorials.

[Panda_pl 0]

I have posted this in another thread but it applies here aswell

1) Bad advertisement.

It's an independent developer. Many games from big publishers cost more to advertise than make nowadays. That's the difference.

2) You need a very good PC

Not true. Turn the details down, start with postprocessing since full scene AO really eats up FPS. Models and textures in the game are higher resolution than other games. The drawing distance is also 10x larger compared to BF3's pitiful <1km.

You blame the game for being higher quality than other games.

The graphics are customizable for lower end machines.

3) Not user firendly

Few things can be improved slightly, but not by much. Allowing to map 1-0 buttons to weapon switching or actions...

I disagree about there being too many commands. It is a simulation, not a shooter and I think you are plain wrong about not using some keys, they all are needed in my experience.

This is PC gaming so you get hotkeys as an alternative to multi-layered menus.

4) Many bugs

Unfortunately ALL games are bugged on release.

Other developers do lots of damage control on gaming forums to convince people it will all be fixed, ridicule them on occasions or just claim "it's still the best game ever".

5) Multiplayer

Cannot be made much simpler.

Mod downloading from server automatically is not an option when your mods are over 1 GB in size. It would cost fortune to put this kind of load on game server.

If you want an easy start play ArmA2Free.

[Minoza 11]

Cannot be made much simpler.

Mod downloading from server automatically is not an option when your mods are over 1 GB in size. It would cost fortune to put this kind of load on game server.

If you want an easy start play ArmA2Free.

Not true! Six updater way would be much simpler, gives you ability to sync with server mods and much more.

[PuFu 4600]

Not true! Six updater way would be much simpler, gives you ability to sync with server mods and much more.

while i do agree with you on the fact that mods and the likes don't need to be hosted on the same server as you are trying to connect, what you, as a user don't see with SIX is where those files are being downloaded from. Which is in fact from a number of community own and paid servers (about 7-8 last time i looked into it.). This is the only aspect i am not sure how it would be handled if BIS implements such a system, as in hosting mods (especially since for armaholics and the likes, deep mirroring without going through the website is bad for business as it doesn't turn into revenue that makes it possible to keep the servers alive).

[Minoza 11]

while i do agree with you on the fact that mods and the likes don't need to be hosted on the same server as you are trying to connect, what you, as a user don't see with SIX is where those files are being downloaded from. Which is in fact from a number of community own and paid servers (about 7-8 last time i looked into it.). This is the only aspect i am not sure how it would be handled if BIS implements such a system, as in hosting mods (especially since for armaholics and the likes, deep mirroring without going through the website is bad for business as it doesn't turn into revenue that makes it possible to keep the servers alive).

I'm aware of how it works, I get your point. Sickboy did mention something regarding that though. Hopefully it's being worked on.

Edited March 10, 2012 by Minoza