Next DLC and Expansion Speculation

[Jona33 51]

I think the issue there is that it's difficult to create engaging characters when you don't know they're going to be alive. Which puts you in the position of forcing you to keep your team mates alive or the mission fails (a no no, especially when the AI does dumb stuff), set the team mates to invincible (pretty immersion breaking when you see them getting shot and they're fine as well as making it easy as no one ever dies on your team.) or creating dialogues for every single character depending on who survives, a lot more work (especially when you have to get voice acting in. It's a tricky balancing act overall I'd say.

[maddogx 13]

I think the issue there is that it's difficult to create engaging characters when you don't know they're going to be alive. Which puts you in the position of forcing you to keep your team mates alive or the mission fails (a no no, especially when the AI does dumb stuff), set the team mates to invincible (pretty immersion breaking when you see them getting shot and they're fine as well as making it easy as no one ever dies on your team.) or creating dialogues for every single character depending on who survives, a lot more work (especially when you have to get voice acting in. It's a tricky balancing act overall I'd say.

All true. Some improvements to AI cover-seeking ability (among other things) isn't too much to ask from a full expansion I think, if it doesn't happen during some update beforehand. There is also the possibility of adding back some version of the advanced medical and battlefield-clearance modules that they had in ARMA2, which - while somewhat arcadey - would also improve AI survivability. (Why these modules were removed in A3 I will never understand. They were extremely cool.)

Those things being given, I think adding AI team mates that must be kept alive like in Harvest Red would be do-able. It even sort of worked back then - the main frustration was that the AI were often too stupid to revive the player when he went down.

It is also possible to keep story characters alive simply by not putting them in danger, e.g. in "story sections" like the intermissions in the ARMA3 campaign.

Invulnerable NPCs are definitely not an option, because players always notice and it's always an immersion killer.

[Jona33 51]

Definitely agree with you there, I would certainly like the first aid modules back, especially if AI were a bit more prone to healing you. The best option for story characters I think is keeping them out of the player missions and into intermission sections.

[Sub-Human 10]

Those things being given, I think adding AI team mates that must be kept alive like in Harvest Red would be do-able.

Maybe do-able, but very boring and frustrating. In the end it'd come down to telling them to stop and then proceeding to do the mission with the non-vital NPC, which is every bit non-immersive as having unkillable AI.

[maddogx 13]

Maybe do-able, but very boring and frustrating. In the end it'd come down to telling them to stop and then proceeding to do the mission with the non-vital NPC, which is every bit non-immersive as having unkillable AI.

That's just the absolute worst-case scenario - not necessarily how it has to be. You can look at anything from such a pessimistic perspective and make it sound bad, but it's not really a valid objection.

[Sub-Human 10]

That's just the absolute worst-case scenario - not necessarily how it has to be. You can look at anything from such a pessimistic perspective and make it sound bad, but it's not really a valid objection.

It's the most likely scenario too. Given how frequently my AI die from very silly mistakes (the same ones that happened in OFP - that is 13 years later) having vital NPCs is very frustrating.

[.Taffy 10]

I agree that memorable characters are important, though I think it's best to have several playable characters than one do everything. In OFP there were several memorable characters in the early missions and if they were killed the game kind of glossed over it and continued to use them in subsequent missions (it was kind of difficult to tell who was who during missions anyway). As immersion breaking as that could be, I much prefer it to the frustration that sometimes occurred in the Harvest Red campaign.

[maddogx 13]

It's the most likely scenario too. Given how frequently my AI die from very silly mistakes (the same ones that happened in OFP - that is 13 years later) having vital NPCs is very frustrating.

Then the goal should be to finally improve the AI, not to dumb down everything else in order to compensate for them.

[Bouben 3]

Definitely agree with you there, I would certainly like the first aid modules back, especially if AI were a bit more prone to healing you. The best option for story characters I think is keeping them out of the player missions and into intermission sections.

Now that you are discussing the first aid modules.

Is there any mod for Arma 3 that will give AI the ability to revive you? I would love to have it.

Edited July 9, 2014 by Bouben
grammar

[CaptainAzimuth 714]

Now that you are discussing the first aid modules.

Is there any mod for Arma 3 that will give AI the ability to revive you? I would love to have it.

In the Arma 2 Demo, AI would revive you when you go down in mission.

[Jona33 51]

In the Arma 2 Demo, AI would revive you when you go down in mission.

Technically yes, but in reality they just didn't, you'd go down, even if AI were 5m away 9/10 times they didn't heal you. After a while I just ignored them and went back to the save point.

[CaptainAzimuth 714]

Technically yes, but in reality they just didn't, you'd go down, even if AI were 5m away 9/10 times they didn't heal you. After a while I just ignored them and went back to the save point.

You sure the Medic didn't go down? Because ounce the medic is down, your pretty much screwed at that point. But if they could add maybe something like that for the AI in Arma 3, it would be cool. Then again, i think that's what the Armor makes up for. Someone shoots you like... 6 times with 6.5, i think chances are reviving you is no longer an option...

[Jona33 51]

From what I remember in ARMA II using the first aid modules any one could help anyone, atleast I could certainly help my team mates when I wasn't a medic. AI would be assigned to heal me but they would just never do it, instead they seemed to get distracted rather easily.

[PenguinInATuxedo 18]

At the end of the prologue this message is displayed.

Could it confirm the chosen island for the expansion is in fact in the pacific?

[barakokula31 10]

At the end of the prologue this message is displayed.

http://i.imgur.com/f9uFx2A.png?1

Could it confirm the chosen island for the expansion is in fact in the pacific?

It confirms it the same way the Survive Intro does.

[wolf359 19]

I would like to see the guided bullets for the .50 rifles in the Marksman DLC. Look like this technology could be mature soon

http://gizmodo.com/self-guided-bullets-that-change-course-midair-are-now-t-1603985159/+TylerRogoway

the old information from Prof. Ron Barett on laser guided bullets:

http://www.google.com/patents/US5788178

http://proceedings.spiedigitallibrary.org/proceeding.aspx?articleid=1312944

http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a432910.pdf

[kilroy the nerd 14]

Hm. Looking back at this, it says they are going to add a "fully-featured 3D editor". Better yet, they are apparently "looking carefully at making investments in civilian life and diversity", so that's awesome. I hope that means more outfits with pants for civilians. Almost all civilian wearing shorts is kinda lame.

Besides, looking at the fact it says new experience and gameplay, what is there we haven't had before? We've had beachheads since the very first Arma. We've had forest fights in Chernarus, and even on Altis around Zaros. Mountain pass ambushes in Takistan have been done, as well as village CQB. Maybe we should be looking for an even larger urban environment, with new units like emergency services, VIPs, new modern vehicles, and new urban buildings like banks, supermarkets, restaurants (not like Bluking huts on Altis now) capitol buildings, etc...

...or maybe I'm getting a bit too optimistic about the future of Arma 3 because I looked back and saw some words I missed. Still, I'm putting my money on a place like Hong Kong!

[roshnak 41]

I would like to see the guided bullets for the .50 rifles in the Marksman DLC. Look like this technology could be mature soon

http://gizmodo.com/self-guided-bullets-that-change-course-midair-are-now-t-1603985159/+TylerRogoway

the old information from Prof. Ron Barett on laser guided bullets:

http://www.google.com/patents/US5788178

http://proceedings.spiedigitallibrary.org/proceeding.aspx?articleid=1312944

http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a432910.pdf

Sounds like it would make for a pretty boring game, though.

Besides, looking at the fact it says new experience and gameplay, what is there we haven't had before? We've had beachheads since the very first Arma. We've had forest fights in Chernarus, and even on Altis around Zaros. Mountain pass ambushes in Takistan have been done, as well as village CQB.

Zero G: Arma In Space

It's what the underwater gameplay was really about.

[CaptainAzimuth 714]

In the Armaverse, Altis is in the Pacific, Oddly enough. This may be what that script at the end of the Bootcamp Pre-Campaign was talking about. So the new map being in the Pacific is possible, where as in my opinion, i'd rather change things up and bring us to some sort of mainland, instead of more islands.

[cozza 24]

In the Armaverse, Altis is in the Pacific, Oddly enough. This may be what that script at the end of the Bootcamp Pre-Campaign was talking about. So the new map being in the Pacific is possible, where as in my opinion, i'd rather change things up and bring us to some sort of mainland, instead of more islands.

Altis is not in the pacific.

The video at the start of survive showed that. It zooms in on the clouded area in the Mediterranean and then shows Stratis.

Plus noone speaks Greek in the pacific.

[2nd ranger 282]

Yeah, also MEDCOM. Mediterranean Command.

[drebin052 323]

Taken from the dev branch SITREPs:

http://iheartwallstreet.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/248257131_72dcbea4eb3e.jpeg (124 kB)

http://guidepal.blob.core.windows.net/article-mainimages/aphoto101355.jpg (138 kB)

Anyone want to have a guesstimate on the location of the last photo? There's like a dozen places in Taiwan and from the mainland itself that it could be from.

Then again, I might be grasping at straws here but remember the hints from this prior to A3's announcement? Surely it couldn't just be a coincidence...

[vegeta897 13]

Anyone want to have a guesstimate on the location of the last photo? There's like a dozen places in Taiwan and from the mainland itself that it could be from.

Is its location relevant? It's just an photo from google images.

[cozza 24]

Its the tea house in the Yu Yuans gardens in Shanghai.

Was there a few months ago.

[chortles 263]

Someone is really driving the Pacific angle... or the project lead just so happens to be both vacationing in China and feeding the speculation on purpose, but not as an announced ARG.