Future expansions

[fraczek 4]

I thought we are the QA Department :p

Yes, and we expanded, did't we ;) ?

[Nicholas 5]

That's my point :). A standalone is the better option from the financial point of view. BIS might have good post release product support, but they still need the $$$ to survive as a company a.k.a sold game units. If I recall corectly they expanded their QA department, less chances they will have a bumpy ride in future vanila-stand alone exp. fusions.

maionaze, most of the BIS customers are not going to give a shit about "supporting" BIS. They just want to purchase the game to enjoy it and have a smooth experience, which is why most people purchase the game, it is entertainment not a donation. Of course the hardcore BIS fans just want to support BIS and play their awesome games, but most of the people don't care.

And as I said, the many different versions, even when it was just ArmA 2 and OA, scared away many potential buyers because they were not sure which version to get. And if you're so worried about BIS making money, then you'd better hope they do start catering more to the masses rather than just the hardcore fanbase.

[NeuroFunker 11]

ArmA 2 CO Steam user here, CO works like charm through steam, but with some mods, i had trouble runing CO, only OA were runing without arma 2 content. But many people are not smart enough to figure out, you can run arma's without steam. So what i did was copying Arma 2 OA over Arma 2 vanilla, then applying latest 1.60 patch - result is, it works like charm and no steam is necessary, only regedit tweak was necessary to show that OA is not in Arma 2 folder. So yeah, standalone is kinda confusing, especialy when your buying it through steam, it does install it in separate folders, and forces you to run this games through .bat file, not rly i was happy with. Why not make arrowhead as arma 2 expansion only, and only BAF and PMC as stantdalone games, which are called REINFORCEMENTS together? My point is: no need to make all addon's standalone, it's imo less pain in the ass.

[pathetic_berserker 4]

And as I said, the many different versions, even when it was just ArmA 2 and OA, scared away many potential buyers because they were not sure which version to get..

Realy? how can you prove that? And since when did BIS reinvent the wheel here? Same situation applies to other top quality games that have expansions be it stand alone or otherwise. And the same rule applies, if you get confused, do your homework, read the material, or ask someone. Perfectly reasonable life skills that most of us here have aquired.

I simply followed the readme when i got OA and viola! had A2:CO working no problem.

[NeuroFunker 11]

And if you're so worried about BIS making money, then you'd better hope they do start catering more to the masses rather than just the hardcore fanbase.

oh god! I hope you were sarcastic about this.

Why should all fucking games be mainstream like BF and COD? Let at least 1 game exist, which differs from them, and gives you a different level of experience.

Can you say BA or COD could be a hobby? Unlike many Arma 2 fans saying, arma 2 isn't a game - it is a hobby! Thats exactly what arma is!

Edited February 12, 2012 by NeuroFunker
neibet

[Nicholas 5]

oh god! I hope you were sarcastic about this.

Why should all fucking games be mainstream like BF and COD? Let at least 1 game exist, which differs from them, and gives you a different level of experience.

Can you say BA or COD could be a hobby? Unlike many Arma 2 fans saying, arma 2 isn't a game - it is a hobby! Thats exactly what arma is!

I was not being sarcastic. I'm being serious. I don't mean make it like Call of Duty or Battlefield. What I'm saying is they need to make it a smoother experience for the masses, instead of having all these little fixes and other programs that users need to download to "fully enjoy the ArmA experience". What's wrong with that? And you are correct about the fans believing that ArmA is a hobby, but to the masses, it is just another game. And Bohemia Interactive can't make money only off of the fans.

I simply followed the readme when i got OA and viola! had A2:CO working no problem.

Most people are not going to do this. They don't buy the game to learn. They buy the game to have fun. Also, take a look at the "How to Combine OA + ArmA 2" thread and see how many people are confused. Although, thankfully Bohemia Interactive finally released a patch to fix it.

I'm a longtime OFP/ArmA fan. At least with OFP, they had a publisher (Codemasters) pushing them to iron out bugs and fixing other issues. With ArmA, they release it however the hell they want to and now they have been branded as the company that releases buggy games.

I consider myself a Bohemia Interactive fan (I own all BIS games and multiple copies of ArmA: CWA (3), ArmA (3), ArmA II (3), OA (2), & TOH (2).) and I'm glad to see that with ArmA III they are at least trying to streamline it.

[NeuroFunker 11]

So your saying:

I don't mean make it like Call of Duty or Battlefield. What I'm saying is they need to make it a smoother experience for the masses, instead of having all these little fixes and other programs that users need to download to "fully enjoy the ArmA experience".

but to the masses, it is just another game. And Bohemia Interactive can't make money only off of the fans.

But yet you still wish BI Studio going close to BF like mainstream games?

[Nicholas 5]

So your saying:

But yet you still wish BI Studio going close to BF like mainstream games?

I never said I want it like BF or COD, did I? NO, I said that most people just believe it is just another game.

To me, I consider it a hobby, but to the MASSES (not me) they consider it another game. I do not want it like BF or COD. They need to streamline and make it simple to use, BUT NOT simple in terms of GAMEPLAY.

[NeuroFunker 11]

I don't think it it's possible, to stay simulation and yet being popular by masses. If you mix black and white, it becomes gray. What i mean is, it can be only one or another way: simulation or mainstream. And as you and i know, making simulation is sowhat harder then making a mainstream.

[Nicholas 5]

I don't think it it's possible, to stay simulation and yet being popular by masses. If you mix black and white, it becomes gray. What i mean is, it can be only one or another way: simulation or mainstream. And as you and i know, making simulation is sowhat harder then making a mainstream.

Dear lord.....How many times am I gonna have to explain until you understand?

I'm saying they need to make it simple to use, I'm NOT talking about gameplay here. I never said to make it popular to the masses, just EASIER TO USE! You can still have a simulation while making it easy to use.

[pathetic_berserker 4]

Most people are not going to do this. They don't buy the game to learn. They buy the game to have fun. Also, take a look at the "How to Combine OA + ArmA 2" thread and see how many people are confused. Although, thankfully Bohemia Interactive finally released a patch to fix it.

I'm a longtime OFP/ArmA fan. At least with OFP, they had a publisher (Codemasters) pushing them to iron out bugs and fixing other issues. With ArmA, they release it however the hell they want to and now they have been branded as the company that releases buggy games..

Well I wouldn't deny that there have been issues with steam, and as BIS had agreed to use them it was their responsibility to fix it, but I think the lenghth of time it has taken an otherwise highly supportive studio like BIS to fix it is an indication of how difficult steam can make things for game makers.

I think your confusing issues here, steam is a seperate issue to the concept of standalone releases. And blah blah blahing about how BIS would benift from having a publisher to prevent buggy games is simply absurd. Have you forgotten Codies last foray into the OFP genre? Do you realise how many creative games studios have been swallowed up and spat out by publishers like Codemasters/EA/Activison forcing them into unreaistic time lines then still publishing the buggy crap. At the end of the day BIS has survived its ups and downs and still still strives to do better. If releasing standalone packages has meant a better profit margin for them them that is what they should follow.

[BobcatBob 10]

How the hell does a standalone expansion automatically make BI more money? As a person who only had limited interest in TKOH before that 16.99 Hind DLC came-along I probably wouldn't have bought it (assuming I still had a gaming PC IRL) but now, I would seriously consider it. If it was stand alone I would just pay 16.99 and be done with it. But since it isn't I'd have to (and would, mind you) bite the bullet and just buy the 58.99 bundle anyways so I can enjoy a badass hind combat sim that I want so much. So by making it non-stand-alone you just made me spend way more money and ALSO made it slightly less idiot proof. Whats not to love?

[antoineflemming 14]

It's the idea that a standalone product will cost more than a DLC, or even that the standalone product will cost close to the price of the original.

[pathetic_berserker 4]

How the hell does a standalone expansion automatically make BI more money?

I don't think anyone, said is was automatic.

I said

'If releasing standalone packages has meant a better profit margin for them them that is what they should follow.'

[Flogger23m 2]

I would like more large expansions for $20-30 that offer new features, updates, and engine improvements. Though it would be nice if they required the base game and the base game was simply updated with these new changes. Small DLCs like BAF/PMC I do not care too much about.

[Maio 293]

How the hell does a standalone expansion automatically make BI more money?

I don't think anyone, said is was automatic.

I said

'If releasing standalone packages has meant a better profit margin for them them that is what they should follow.'

Yup.

Scenario:

Fabio walks into the retail store/ browses the digital store. He notices Stand-alone Expansion X. Fabio reads. "Does not require ArmA3 to play". He also reads " SEX can be combined with ArmA 3 and form ArmA3: DP. Fabio also spots that SEX costs 30$. Fabio's interset is peaked and he keep on reading about what SEX has to offer in terms of features,content,gameplay, etc. The low price combined with the posibility of a future expansion via the purchase of ArmA3 if he likes what ArmA has to offer, makes Fabio pay for SEX. - Both BIS and Fabio win here.

Edited February 13, 2012 by Maio
Mushrooms and soy sauce -

[maddogx 13]

Yup.

Scenario:

Fabio walks into the retail store/ browses the digital store. He notices Stand-alone Expansion X. Fabio reads. "Does not require ArmA3 to play". He also reads " SEX can be combined with ArmA 3 and form ArmA3: DP. Fabio also spots that SEX costs 30$. Fabio's ineterst is picked and he keep on reading about what SEX has to offer in trems of features,content,gameplay, etc. The low price combined with the posibility of a future expansion via the purchase of ArmA3 if he likes what ArmA has to offer, makes Fabio pay for SEX. - Both BIS and Fabio win here.

I'm Commander Shepard and this is my favorite post on this forum.

[onlyrazor 11]

People would totally pay up for a SEX expansion.

[NeuroFunker 11]

Yup.

Scenario:

Fabio walks into the retail store/ browses the digital store. He notices Stand-alone Expansion X. Fabio reads. "Does not require ArmA3 to play". He also reads " SEX can be combined with ArmA 3 and form ArmA3: DP. Fabio also spots that SEX costs 30$. Fabio's interset is peaked and he keep on reading about what SEX has to offer in terms of features,content,gameplay, etc. The low price combined with the posibility of a future expansion via the purchase of ArmA3 if he likes what ArmA has to offer, makes Fabio pay for SEX. - Both BIS and Fabio win here.

so you can buy arma in a sexshop? I see...

[160thSOAR 10]

I'd prefer it if BIS released its expansions as DLC's, doing it like BAF and PMC. BAF and PMC didn't give the community any trouble, but there was still a reason for people to buy them. (Those who have seen the NLAW scope before and after buying BAF will understand me.) OA made problems for servers because half the people couldn't see Vanilla vehicles. Certain servers just took off their ArmA2 Vanilla vehicles, which is a shame, because the Marines' stuff is awesome.

Tl;dr: Standalone Expansions = Bad.:(

[BobcatBob 10]

Though I appreceaite your train of thought maionaze, and your double-entendre, If after looking up S.E.X I find I want it. I would buy surely buy any other base video-game that required me to get the expansion along with it. If I can just get SEX I would as it would be cheaper to buy one "game" then the base game as well as the add-on. So there. :{)

[CameronMcDonald 146]

People would totally pay up for a SEX expansion.

That's sexpansion. :)

[NoRailgunner 0]

"A3 Sexpansion the ultimate hardcore version... Buy the biggus All-in-One edition - now only 666 Euros!!" :cool:

[carlostex 38]

Arma 3: Double P******tion

Czech babes not included....

[purepassion 22]

Czech babes not included....

Why not? I could see this working

:D

I also see no major problems but rather advantages with the "classic" standalone expansion and would certainly welcome one for Arma 3