Any old farts playing Arma 3?

[-IC-Bugs 10]

We've got quite a few "old farts" over here in International Conflict (Although they'll probably beat me for calling them old!) if that's something that would interest any of you in this thread?

Edited August 14, 2013 by Maio

[icarus99 15]

I know I'm resurrecting a thread here.

 

Just wanted to add my name to the list of 40+ gamers looking for mil-sim clans where the teenage exposition of identity isn't a nightly thing.

 

Currently I've only found Response Force Alpha, who are min age 30, but the time slot doesn't work for me.

 

If I could join a clan just like theirs but evenings EST, I'd be so happy.... to use a meme that the youth are fond of.

[OMAC 254]

I am another "old fart" Armaholic, 50+.  I don't feel that FN old, but Arma makes me feel younger anyway. ;)  

[kickbuttakis01 14]

51 years young here! Atari 2600 to Atari 400 to Atari 520ST. Added a memory board to it to bump ram up to 2.5 mb! Even built a programmable voice synthesizer from plans in a magazine. Bought a 1040ST and linked them together with the printer ports so me and my brother could play 'Falcon 1.0' . Still remember our first dogfight, coming head-on at each other, cannons blazing!! Those were the days! Then moved over to the dark side, (PC with Win 95), Apache, Air Warrior on AOL...

I digress.

[cosmic10r 2331]

you guys are reminding me of the times I was modding f12000 ... lol... what year is this....  :huh:

[bigshot 64]

I turned 50 this year myself...from an Atari 2600 to an Apple IIc, then onto pc clones and MS Flight Simulator in the late eighties. My entry into the fps genre came around 1995 with Quake95 and then Quake2 shortly after. Half Life and then onto Unreal Tourney and it's military mods around '98-ish.

 

Mil-sims weren't really on the scene much until 2001 with the original Arma (Operation Flashpoint) and Ghost Recon. Took quite awhile for folks to like and accept Flashpoint since it was overwhelmingly unforgiving and you couldn't adjust or change much of anything to your liking without learning how to edit the missions themselves. Most people shied away from it back then but it very slowly caught on with the simmers among us.

 

It was the first easily accessible game where you could not only get to play in multiple first person perspectives (infantry, vehicles, air) and multiple real world weaponry, but also use all of that in maps that were ground breaking in size... and then to top it all off you could even play it in MP with a friend, just wow!

 

It was truly revolutionary back then...and to this day there's still no other title that offers the same size, scope and freedom that you get with the Arma series.

 

...and the best part is that it historically always focused on coop/bot play instead of PvP....which for us "50 something's" is always a good thing :-)

 

Makes me sad though, when I see the new young Arma Devs (who I'm guessing have taken over a few years back from the original team), losing sight of the old "Warfare" coop missions and seemingly leaving it for dead. That mission style (CTI coop) was the most popular from 2001-2010 and was paramount in obtaining Flashpoint a real following. I feel it was responsible for helping to make them more of a household name in mil-sims over the years. They (the new devs) should have stuck with that mission type and worked to improve it from it's modded beginnings instead of abandoning it. That move alone could have killed the game off if it weren't for their deal with Steam. Still they lost plenty of old timers.

 

...and so it goes without proper DLC, instead of getting to pay for a new snow covered terrain with effects such as falling/drifting/blowing snow and a kick-ass coop warfare mission to go along with it this xmas season...we instead ended up with a few rifles for $15 and a new PvP game mode. Lets not forget the disaster that Zues and the go carts turned out to be.

 

At this stage I only have interest in Arma3 to play 1 specific mission, and that's it. Mostly, because while the graphics, lighting, terrain, weapons and models are all looking fabulous, there is little to no good "professional" quality content. For too long now, the new arma devs have relied way too much upon huge Steam sales and 3rd party amateur mod makers IMO. They received a ton more sales from the Steam deal...but that's not what will keep people playing and coming back next time around I'm afraid. They need to stop fiddling with things as if it's still an Alpha and concentrate on what made the game a success years before they took it over....ground breakingly good CONTENT & MISSIONS.

 

I absolutely LOVE this franchise, but I'm not entirely convinced that a change of the guard wouldn't help to improve things a whole lot.

[Jackal326 1181]

Makes me sad though, when I see the new young Arma Devs (who I'm guessing have taken over a few years back from the original team), losing sight of the old "Warfare" coop missions and seemingly leaving it for dead. That mission style (CTI coop) was the most popular from 2001-2010 and was paramount in obtaining Flashpoint a real following. I feel it was responsible for helping to make them more of a household name in mil-sims over the years. They (the new devs) should have stuck with that mission type and worked to improve it from it's modded beginnings instead of abandoning it. That move alone could have killed the game off if it weren't for their deal with Steam. Still they lost plenty of old timers.

Whilst I'm not what I would describe as "an old fart" (I'm only 30!) this thread has taken my interest since its recent resurrection. This paragraph in particular caught my eye and I'd just like to address it.

I too miss the 'CTI' style of mission that was popularised in OFP, and saw many ports through the years. Its one of the first MP experiences I had with the ArmA series (having had a few years of Delta Force 1 & 2 under my belt by then) and is what got me interested in MILSIM in the first place. Quite why they didn't bring back an official port of Warfare instead of that aborted foetus 'Endgame' is anyone's guess... 

[swtx 42]

Yep, I turn 50 in January.  Been playing since the OFP Demo came out back in 2001.  

I look forward to another 50 years of ARMA series.  Just think what this game will be like in 50 years :)

[cosmic10r 2331]

Yep, I turn 50 in January.  Been playing since the OFP Demo came out back in 2001.  

I look forward to another 50 years of ARMA series.  Just think what this game will be like in 50 years :)

I keep thinking of the quantum based pc I will need to run it ;)

[sergeant rock 3]

I'm 44 and have been playing this series since the OFP Demo. I formed our gaming group, Rock's Raiders, in 2001. Many of the original gang still play, though we are more limited in time with families, careers, etc.. Glad to see some older gentlemen enjoying the game. Cheers.

[KeyCat 131]

Another "half century" old fart here and played OFP since the demo was released back in April 2001.

 

It was the first easily accessible game where you could not only get to play in multiple first person perspectives (infantry, vehicles, air) and multiple real world weaponry, but also use all of that in maps that were ground breaking in size... and then to top it all off you could even play it in MP with a friend, just wow!

 

It was truly revolutionary back then...and to this day there's still no other title that offers the same size, scope and freedom that you get with the Arma series.

 

Totally agree with you! OFP was revolutionary and I think A3 still is in many ways.

 

IMO the "new gen" of A3 developers are doing a good job and it really shows they are dedicated bunch of guys even if there are stuff that could be improved on. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you but I don't feel they have abandoned the co-op fans (I play co-op as well as PvP) since they are still putting work into AI etc. and Zeus is a tool made just for co-op missions allowing a human/s directing/adding things/events happening in a co-op mission and make it really dynamic each time you play it.

 

If you haven't tried playing a Zeus co-op mission with a game master that knows what he is doing I recommend you to try it out.

 

Personally I was pretty much against STEAM but I also see the benefits with it. Mainly the auto update when playing with friends that have limited time and don't want to hunt  and DL new patches. It makes things much easier to keep versions synced.

 

Just my 0.20 SEK

 

/KC

[Rich_R 1087]

Love the stories!

 

We built Response Force Alpha from the older gaming types and currently have the minimum age set at 30. Why that low? We figured someone has to help the young'uns along :) Personally I'm over 50 as quite a few of our members are and we often have the conversations in TS I've read here.

 

I programmed my first text game on a Commodore Pet at school, went onto a Commodre 64 for gaming. My favorite never say never story, I bought some RAM (taking me to 8 MB) and a 14.4k modem. The sales guy said, you'll never have to upgrade again!

 

Wish I knew where he lived now :)

 

The older types should stop by, you might like what we have :) I'm sorry Icarus99 can't join us on our scheduled Sunday practices, what little interaction I've had with him has left a great impression.

 

http://responseforcealpha.enjin.com/forum

[grab 4]

Some great comments here and it reminds me of my Commodore64 days playing NATO Commander.

 

I now play regularly over at Response Force Alpha. If any one here is looking for a friendly and mature group of gamers you would not be wasting your time giving them a look see. By the way I'm a 62 year old who still thinks he's 18, sound familiar guys?

[jas4921 13]

I am nowhere near as old as MustangDelta and grab but I have to admit that between them they have over a century of knowledge and wisdom. In a lot of these Arma3 servers and groups, it would take about 100 members to reach the level of experience that just 2 of our members possess.

 

Response Force Alpha is a fantastic group for all the seasoned veterans....

[Gunter Severloh 4064]

Anyone remember the old farts clan in RO?

Any of you from that clan?

I know its off topic but since were all talking about farting and being old, lol,i mean old farting dudes playing games, anyone here 60+ ? like grab above?

dab nabbit sonny shakes his cain at me, lol with gun in the other hand.

[road runner 4344]

another "old fart" here, 53 years young !!

[ProfTournesol 956]

I feel young finally :)

[vdog01 4]

What a great thread, I feel so at home here :) . My age? We were using punch cards to program in highschool... ugh! But I didn't have to walk miles to school barefeet :D . Presently I have been running with a group called Responce Force Alpha and have never looked back. The stories here are very similar to what we discuss on TS. Its good to know they're more of us in the Arma-verse. So if you can spare some time, come by and check us out. We look forward to meeting you and hope to see you on the battlefield...Vinny

 

http://responseforcealpha.enjin.com/home

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGELl121iHAGlIvmnfcIa9A

[ineptaphid 6413]

I'm 30 but my lungs and knees belong to someone three times my age.Does that count?

[h - 169]

I'm old. And I fart.

[chiefboatsret 14]

When I first checked in this thread I was 71 and now I just turned 74, still playing with the same community I joined in 2009. The mind and spirit are still willing  but the AI are getting even harder to spot and I get more of the "Hey chief, over here...No this way!" than I seem to remember from a couple of years ago. Good thing there are no mess hall or pencil pusher slots in the game, I would never see any action.

[icarus99 15]

You guys from Response Force Alpha are killing me.  Start an evening mil-sim event, I beg you.

 

The website is organized.  The conditions and expectations are spelled out exactly.

Every bit of information I was looking for was there.  Times, time zones, organziation, expectations, age limit; there's a mission statement.  It's organzied like a business.   

I have every reason to believe that you start training and events on time, and when you say they're going to run.

 

If there are enough other older mil-sim guys looking for two nights a week, 20:00h EST, speak up.  If you know of a group please let us know.

 

I played in the 15th MEU and they have excellent people, run on time, and provide excellent training framework.  The only part I didn't like was how far the mil-sim went out of game.  I don't really need to track my ammo count from when I played Arma.

Some hard core mil-sim clans have members that hang a bit too much on the ranks as well.  I would take a dressing down for not knowing my job in the military since it follows months of day in, day out training.  I don't need a dressing down in arma because the boat mod deploys strangely and I'm not familliar with it, and we've never trained on them.

 

My Arma unit is out there somewhere.

[ratszo 17]

When I first checked in this thread I was 71 and now I just turned 74, still playing with the same community I joined in 2009. The mind and spirit are still willing  but the AI are getting even harder to spot and I get more of the "Hey chief, over here...No this way!" than I seem to remember from a couple of years ago. Good thing there are no mess hall or pencil pusher slots in the game, I would never see any action.

 

I plan to be just like you,

 

--'Cept drowning in pussy at Clark Field ....

[braconej 11]

Great group of guys! We get better with age :)

 

http://www.responseforcealpha.com