ArmA is just ... disappointing

[guerilla -MCY- 0]

++just fyi BIS, the reason this game bugs me (sorry the pun) is not the bugs. After many weeks of tweaks on my end (faster computer, custom keybinds, trakIR) the UI is just so non intuitive and sloppy it makes playing it a chore. Fix your keybinds, fix the AI, and get rid of the goofy animation cycles. Out!~

you speak out of my heart and there is still hope as ArmA seems to be still under development

http://www.bistudio.com/games.html

[Dudester 0]

Since my post was deleted about CTF "I'll SAY AGAIN" this game needs to get real. Even though we have had a new patch, 1.08, CTF numbers still suck. I log in tonight 8pm and find 4 CTF servers with players on them, the most had 18 the others between 8 and 4 players. Now that tells me alot of players still don't like CTF, or why is it then that there's not lots of servers and people playing. Have BIS by now realised that they made a big mistake (animations) when they dont see alot of CTF players? The slow player animation is a joke, unless you are camping you just have to hope the animation stops in time to kill sombody.. wich = crap CTF play, it means whoever is sitting still (camping) has a very good chance of always killing somone on the move. And while this might sound relistic in real life, in a game it makes for shit play. In OFP, the animations allowed faster players on the move to easy take out campers wich is how CTF should play. I mean after all its all about getting a flag and moving. I used to play OFP, and i can tell you that alot of clans i know have already given up on this. Thats a shame, i really wanted the ofp community and feel back in this.

[vilas 477]

after this patch AI was told not to waste all ammo on vehicle of enemy, but still does it :/

i made mission in which you are guerilla in afgan war, ambush on soviet convoy, UAZ, Ural with troops and second UAZ with high-officers

AI was still firing at one of UAZ till it was in flames

while they were waisting ammo on empty UAZ other soviet soldiers get out from Ural and killed rebels firing to empty UAZ :/

still AI fire RPG to soldiers :/

when it will be made good ?

[Major Fubar 0]

To EVERYONE: enough with the "fanboy" BS. Anyone calling someone a fanboy for saying they like the game is flaming, and will be punished.

And what about that "whiners" BS mate? Will those which will call the others a whiner for saying they don't like the game be punished aswell? If you check this thread I'm sure you'll find that 'whiner' word earlier and more often than a 'fanboy' word (in fact this word was a reacton/defence on that 'whiners' calling/flaming).

Absolutely - I will treat any calling someone a whiner exactly the same as calling someone a fanboy: flaming.

It just find it incredibly disappointing that people can't discuss the good and bad points of a game without bickering and namecalling like spoiled children...

[seba1976 98]

I'm tired now from people going constantly offtopic here.

This thread is not about fanbois, whiners, the best way for distributing or for troubleshooting! This is also not the place for a whishlist. The only thing you post here is why you're disappointed with ArmA.

Skullburner I don't know nor care for what you received your boxes, but the next time you going offtopic here surely increases the chance you collect another box.

Consider yourself warned, that goes to anybody else here constantly trolling, flaming and posting offtopic.

Wolle, I remind you again that it was you who CLOSED all other posts having variations of this topic, and now you pretend to enforce the on-topic law. So, you have to make your choice. Either allow people to say what they want here, and keep closing any other topic related, or allow people to get out of this (now your) thread and open new topics where the topic starter regain the right to allow people to say what they want.

What is it gonna be?

[heliosjet 0]

do you mean the colours look more saturated and, well, colourful?

I noticed that as well when I first played 1.08 - I've gotten used to it now, even thought its ever so slightly more cartoony/computer gamey that before.

not only. the contrast is not natural in 1..08. BIS said they increased the contrast of light. I think it was a wrong decision. The rendering is not natural anymore (my LCD is hardware calibrated) and sometimes it is even "painful" to watch the scene (too much black with the HDR / hard to see things). Very disappointed.

[W0lle 1052]

Wolle, I remind you again that it was you who CLOSED all other posts having variations of this topic, and now you pretend to enforce the on-topic law. So, you have to make your choice. Either allow people to say what they want here, and keep closing any other topic related, or allow people to get out of this (now your) thread and open new topics where the topic starter regain the right to allow people to say what they want.

What is it gonna be?

First it will be +1WL for you because of discussing how the forum is moderated in public.

Second, I closed/merged all the other "ArmA is disappointing" topics because one is by far enough to allow people posting what they think is disappointing with ArmA.

Everyone can say here what he wants, as long as it is related to the "ArmA is disappointing" theme.

Everything else will be deleted without further notification.

[OldGeezer 0]

I'm disappointed in ArmA because it doesn't have animals. It would be so much more realistic if there were natural wildlife around.

In real life, when possible, soldiers will often airdrop big bunches of bananas into enemy encampments where there is a large gorilla population, causing them to invade the encampment and instinctually attack the military personel. Hopefuly someone will make a gorilla warfare mod.

Even cattle could make things intersting with a couple of well-placed gun rounds causing strategic stampedes.

I thought there was going to be wildlife.

[Gisen 0]

I loved OFP and I still like Arma. But it's getting incredibly frustrating to play. The worst thing is the grass. Apart from the hideous slowdown that you get when prone, the second worst thing is the lack of visibility. And that is compared to real life, not what OFP was like. IRL there are always humps and hollows and bare patches where you can rise up enough to see over the grass. The absolute worst thing about the grass is that the AI are still unaffected by it. I wish the grass rendering was just removed from the game, it's eye-candy for the sake of it and it ruins what could be a much better game.

And setting terrain grid is not the answer either because for one it is set by the server/mission in multiplayer and for two I still want to have actual cover in terms of lumpy ground, not a runway covered in grass.

[Rommel 2]

These are all aimed at the turret. Not the general armour.

40 Bullets of M2 Machine Gun disable a BMP Turret

120 M2 bullets disable a BMP (explode).

75 M2 bullets disable a T72 (explode)

70 M240 bullets disable BMP Turret

under 800 M240 bullets disable a T72 Turret

:P

Else, I love the game, but not sure if this is reallistic...

EDIT: More bugged stats:

4 M2 shots to disable bmp treads

30 M16 shots to disable bmp Treads

15+ M240 to disable bmp treads.

= Ai jump out. = BMP disabled.

You also can explode the T72 in 800 M240 shots, however not the BMP.

Though, it takes 600 m249 shots to disable tank treads on a t72,

[CanadianTerror 0]

Quote[/b] ]I'm disappointed in ArmA because it doesn't have animals

Thats creepy

And besides that, vbs1 had the animal pack, one of the biggest wastes of money ive ever seen.

Pure novelty that wears off in 5 mins.

I just dont see missing livestock as being a legit gripe.

[xxbbcc 6]

So far I tried to keep a positive attitude towards this game, but frankly, I've yet to see an AI implementation as thoroughly worthless, incompetent and effed up as in ArmA. I started with 1.06, and with 1.08, it's still pretty much like playing a proof-of-concept. I cannot even begin to imagine what it must've been like for those who started with 1.0.

I promise to BIS that I will not buy any expansions for this game until all AI-related and wall-hack problems are fully fixed, to my satisfaction. This game is almost next to unplayable in SP mode, because enemy AI can shoot through walls (not fences but entire buildings, for God's sake! ), while friendly AI cannot find their way through a bridge as wide as the entire island of Nogova. Reloading a saved game is - for all practical reasons - a nonexistent feature. I could go on with all the problems, but there is no point.

I find it absolutely unacceptable and insulting that mission makers like Kronzky, MrN, etc. invest a lot of time in making good missions and then the incomplete game engine destroys them. I really, really wanted to love Arma (and still want to, as much as I love OFP), but I flat out refuse to support this kind of a ripoff.

I really hope that BIS management reads these messages and they fully realize what kind of a strategic mistake it would be to send an expansion to manufacturing before fixing the game, because again: I refuse to support this.

Over time (and maybe after another 5-6 1GB patches) I might change my mind, but right now, I beginning to really hate this game.

[vilas 477]

o yes, save/reload mission is disappointing lack :/

sometimes i can load mission (if i died) only twice

third time there is no option "load" just start from beggining

[Second 0]

These are all aimed at the turret. Not the general armour.

40 Bullets of M2 Machine Gun disable a BMP Turret

120 M2 bullets disable a BMP (explode).

75 M2 bullets disable a T72 (explode)

70 M240 bullets disable BMP Turret

under 800 M240 bullets disable a T72 Turret

Well... hmm...

There are events such as these. Piercing optics, some other (classified) weakpoints in armor, gunshield... I mention (again) about test shootings at T-72: 30 mm BMP-2's AP-rounds went thru frontal armor of turret (don't know how many was shot, but couple went thru), causing massive amount of damage inside vehicle and finally exited thru commander's hatch.

M3(A3 if i rememeber right) Bradley has been disabled atleast once with 12.7mm machinegun.

T-72 disabled with .50 cal mg seems quite stupid if it's capable to do that... But odd that T-72 doesn't prove to be any tougher (even weaker) with those bullets and still it performs remarkebly better against many other ammos.

Yes, it's bit odd. Not sure is it bad thing (after fixed) as there seems to be something new-aspects in armor values... atleast hoping for it.

[vilas 477]

as i said before, in ARMA there are no bullet proof materials

400 rounds (2 boxes) of M249 and M113, BMP blow up

normally 5.56 round will do no harm to APC

[ANG3L 0]

I rader not say it's totally disapointing but i think ARMA could be better and improved in:

[*] Animations (more real/natural, transmiting a better/realistic feeling to the player)

[*] Sounds (some are incomplete)

[*] AI behaviour ("inteligence")

[*] AI aim/fire precision

[*] Dense foliage (low FPS)

[*] I feel that i can not have huge battles in ARMA like was said before ARMA came out. ARMA does lag like hell if big battles are involved.

To be honest i don't feel the same pleasure i had when i played OFP.

I don't feel the same inspiration i had while building missions.

Maybe i expected more from ARMA.. maybe im alittle disapointed but not totally, i still have hope for this great game.

Couldn't agree more Bravo 6, Lets hope they spend some of that money on employing more staff, to enable them to deliver what they promised the first time around.

Funny how they manage to create this version of it though;

http://www.vbs2.com/media/movies/vbs2_trailer_4.wmv

and some how that version just doesn't look buggy to me.

http://www.vbs2.com

[colkurtz 0]

I rader not say it's totally disapointing but i think ARMA could be better and improved in:

[*] Animations (more real/natural, transmiting a better/realistic feeling to the player)

[*] Sounds (some are incomplete)

[*] AI behaviour ("inteligence")

[*] AI aim/fire precision

[*] Dense foliage (low FPS)

[*] I feel that i can not have huge battles in ARMA like was said before ARMA came out. ARMA does lag like hell if big battles are involved.

To be honest i don't feel the same pleasure i had when i played OFP.

I don't feel the same inspiration i had while building missions.

Maybe i expected more from ARMA.. maybe im alittle disapointed but not totally, i still have hope for this great game.

Couldn't agree more Bravo 6, Lets hope they spend some of that money on employing more staff, to enable them to deliver what they promised the first time around.

Funny how they manage to create this version of it though;

http://www.vbs2.com/media/movies/vbs2_trailer_4.wmv

and some how that version just doesn't look buggy to me.

http://www.vbs2.com

I can understand your frustration but you must realise that BAS is a different company with a vastly different product targeted at a specific enduser market.

They obviously were able to throw more resources to deliver their product compared to BIS.

You're always welcome to purchase VBS2 if you're so absolutely unhappy about these features missing in Arma.

In time these features may be developed independently for Arma by BIS or modders, so i wouldn't worry about their current exculsion.

[dmitri 0]

My only real complaint with ArmA is the island's terraingrid. I really miss Resistance's high setting. Can't understand why they'd downgrade this in ArmA? If it's part of a compromise between larger islands and higher terrain detail, the choice is pretty damn obvious.

I'm surprised this isn't raised more often on the forums..

This has nothing to do with visuals, and everything to do with gameplay. A grass layer and highres bushes don't provide real cover. Taking fire in Resistance meant going prone, crawling a bit and perhaps finding a section of the terrain that was lower, providing real cover. In ArmA (and pre-Resistance OFP) it's either drop the enemy immediately, or run for the nearest ridge\large poly edge. Travelling the additional 15 meters to that ridge usually means death.

[456820 0]

Well, every time I bring my self to play this game I am ALWAYS let down, admittedly most of the time its performance issues, so maybe I will enjoy this game with a new computer.

For some reason I am recently playing games I haven't played for years but still enjoying my self on them much more then I ever have in ArmA. To name a few of these games... Worms 2 and EVEN Star Wars I mean WTF? ArmA is meant to be an amazing new game but i'm playing Worms 2 over it?

Whats worse is when viewing the trailers before the game was released I knew I was going to be highly disappointed but I would have been lucky if the game turned out how I thought it was going to, it turned out a hell lot worse then I thought it would have.

[vilas 477]

since my game is working (open case of PC, big fan added) and i make missions i am finding another "surpises" of ARMA

i made ambush, i was escaping to the forset in mountains and

i was killed by RPG soldier for maybe 400-500 meters, eh...

[Average Joe 0]

Well, every time I bring my self to play this game I am ALWAYS let down, admittedly most of the time its performance issues, so maybe I will enjoy this game with a new computer.

For some reason I am recently playing games I haven't played for years but still enjoying my self on them much more then I ever have in ArmA. To name a few of these games... Worms 2 and EVEN Star Wars I mean WTF? ArmA is meant to be an amazing new game but i'm playing Worms 2 over it?

Whats worse is when viewing the trailers before the game was released I knew I was going to be highly disappointed but I would have been lucky if the game turned out how I thought it was going to, it turned out a hell lot worse then I thought it would have.

I know the Feeling 456, Im reinstalling oldgames to keep me occupied until something magical happens with ArmA. Unfortunately I was one of the few whos games performance was slaughtered when 1.08 arrived and It knocked me for 6.

I have Hope, and I still visit these forums for news etc but Ive lost alot of interest lately and I just hope something great can be pulled out of the bag, apart from awesome fan videos.

[karantan 0]

For some reason I am recently playing games I haven't played for years but still enjoying my self on them much more then I ever have in ArmA. To name a few of these games... Worms 2 and EVEN Star Wars I mean WTF? ArmA is meant to be an amazing new game but i'm playing Worms 2 over it?

Totally understand you 456820 (and Average Joe); after a god knows how many years (six or seven I think) I've played Deux Ex again and now I'm playing Black & White, and I have exsactly the same feelings as quoted above.

One good thing from this ArmA ordeal for me(us) after all; I've begun to play the good ol' bugless (<- the key ?? ) quality games and I have a same blast with them as then if not even more, and I have so many great games in stock to re-play that I don't think I'll miss ArmA that soon.

[bravo 6 0]

every day im more and more disapointed with arma editor.

i hope i can change this feeling soon with a future patch.

I start editing and building new missions but i never finish them.. due to bugs and bugs and lag and bugs and lag... its really anoying

every time i have an idea i put it in the editor but i end up losing the inspiration because the ideas sometimes don't work due to a bug in a trigger or due to heavy lag on the island.

damn, how long will it be like this?

[seba1976 98]

I'll try to list some things in ArmA that are disappointing, but only those that are the result of design decisions:

1 - They tried to add some sort of bad aiming simulation by using bullet dispersion (a feature already present in some mods for OFP but that not everyone liked, and for a reason). This is a terrible way to simulate the need to aim in real life, and ends up in everyone being bad shooters. This is a good example of going too far and beyond what is needed/possible to simulate in a PC. It may also be called too much realism, but I don't personally agree with that name. It is not too much realism, it is trying to simulate something related with things you cannot - so far - bring into the world game (your own ability to aim a gun). With this thing the designers did, they really ruined the experience for many, many users, who ended up with the feeling they can't shot down anything. To sum it up, good aiming and bad aiming with an assault rifle, cannot be simulated in a PC game, and this is a lame approach to try to do it, and a simplistic way of turning a game closer to reality.

2 - Even when you are lucky (and I say "lucky" because bullet dispersion in plain luck in operation) and do hit someone, what I guess is "body armour" and "wound simulation" kicks in, and the fellow enemy soldier do not die. Problem is, instead of dying (or suffering any other sort of trouble) he turns around and shoot you with sniper precision (he experiment no noticeable disorientation, nor any other compromise) and more often than otherwise, he kill you, because it happens that he can shoot bullet after bullet until you fall dead. This is the second example of trying to be more reallistic than before, but unless the first case, more things can be done right in this area. The approach the designers decided to use though, was the more rapidly implemented within the framework of the OFP engine. No work was done. Your shots are less lethal - in case you hit the target, that is -, and that's pretty much all what they have done. If the designers had done something else, we could easily bear with the less lethal shots. I mean, if not dead, the enemy should be delayed by many effects in their capacity to respond to enemy fire. The effects would have needed nothing too complicated, things like falling, showing pain, staying at least 2 second looking for the one who shot him. Otherwise leave it as it was guys, where you could be sure of the first, the second, and maybe the third kill, before everybody start shooting back at you.

3 - Grass. If not kill you, the second thing the enemy does is to hit the dirt, and that's the end of the fun. If beyond 30 meters, he becomes a "fuzzy" target, that you cannot aim to correctly and fast enough, and that then yes, start shooting at you with the usual precision. If you try to go prone too, the grass problem comes in. And again, introducing this real life element, so much wanted before we finally got it, needed a huge amount of work by the developers, that would have been forced to rewrite the adquiring, aiming, and shooting, of every enemy unit. Too much work for someone in a hurry. They did nothing. So you go prone and you of course forget where the enemy was exactly. You shoot, you draw more and more attention, and if you're still alive, some impossible to evade soldier kills you, even with bullet dispersion in his assault rifle. To sum it up, going prone now only blocks your only chance to kill the enemy before he shoots you, and if he shoots you, he kills you.

4 - To make it more real, the designers decided to make helicopters more difficult to fly. How? The fastest way possible, of course. And within the engine they had the fastest and easier way to do it was to take out all the helping routines that were present in OFP helicopters. Well it happens that taking out those helping routines by itself does not make for a flight model, much less a realistic one. So a lot of problem were created for using the fastest way. The helping routines were there to stabilize the helicopters, they were responsible for the tendency of the OFP helicopters to hover automatically, when left by thenselves, for example. But more importantly, they allowed you to make turns without using tail rotor controls - and when cruising, making turns also means aiming. If they wanted to make it more realistic, and leave all the control surfaces to your willing, they should have implemented it, which they don't. Just to make it clear, a realistic flight model for a helicopter (the only way to safely get rid of any programming routine trickery to keep you airborne) would have taken years to develop, and very talented people in physics and mathematics, and helicopters. Time and resources BIS did not had. Helicopter are said to be inherently unstable machines, meaning you have to be flying them all the time. By taking out all the helping hands BIS seemed to be trying to simulate that. Now, please notice that this difference alone would have betrayed many of their user base, who would not like another helicopter simulator, but the thing turned out to be, that no new and good and working aircraft control routines seem to be in operation (besides the lose of complete tail rotor authority above a certain speed - which in turns made aiming almost impossible). So aircraft control is unsatisfactory to me from either point of view: being a helicopter flight simulator fan I cannot apply dedicated flight simulators adquired knowledge; while being a die hard fan of the perfect balance of the OFP approach to helicopter flying, I cannot longer enjoy them.

That'll do it for now. There are many more to me, and I'll try to list them later. I also want to subscribe to most of what others have said here, but I think we should separate the things that are design decisions from the bugs, because in some cases, BIS is trying to fix bugs in the code that even when working as intended, will let down many people.

Cheers.

[chipper 0]

i have amd 3000+ xp ~2.14Ghz

1gb of ram

7800 GS 256mb

and i can barely get a playable FPS on all low settings WTF???

thats disapointing