Air Combat..

[lone.wolf 80]

Hi all,

I have just invested in a Saitek Cyborg Evo Force, and want to use ArmA as a Sim/Arcade Air Combat Game, because of the lots n' lots of mission creation possibilities...

But want to listen if anyone has experience with making pure mission for Air Combat and the use of a Flightstick in ArmA... Since the game is a FPS i dont know if its possible at all to "convert" it to my needs...

Thanx in advance

[max power 21]

There are air combat missions out there. The aircraft in arma are difficult to fly- they lose energy like nobody's business; the view controls are conducive to anything but aircombat; they kind of seem to float around illogically; they stall harshly but don't pitch downwards to recover, they just fall like a rock without warning; and they are very fragile to land; the throttle is set up in an illogical manner so controlling your speed during acm or landing is difficult. If arcade air to air is what you like, then the tab lock missile system will certainly fit the bill. I don't really find the jets in arma to be the most satisfying. IMHO they are nice for something different in the support of troops, though. Making an arcade shoot'em up is certainly not outside of the realm of possibilities.

[The-Architect 0]

Sorry but the flying characteristics of ArmA aircraft are way too far out to please any flight sim guy.

What Plaintiff said is totally correct. Aeroplanes do the most unrealistic things.

I wouldn't bother if I were you. Unless you got a really broad opinion of what a flight simulator is.

[SteelyDan 0]

While i agree Armed Assault is far from optimal as a flight sim, it can still be fun flying in it.

I recommend this little mod (addon+mission pack, if only more addons got released with missions):

http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=2980

[Daniel 0]

And here's the Eaglets campaign for that MiG-15.

http://www.armedassault.info/index.php?cat=news&id=680

Brilliant campaign, very well done and suits ArmA perfectly. Works especially well with 6th sense tracers.

[spooky lynx 73]

Agree with plaintiff1. And the second reason against ArmA as flight sim - small flying space. ArmA islands are too small for jets and air-to-air battles.

[sparks50 0]

CAS Daniel: Yes that campaign was amazing. Its the only time Ive had fun flying jets in Arma.

[memphisbelle 99]

A further bad reason why ArmA doesn´t really fit for a flight Sim is the fact that up to a certain speed one doesn´t has the possibility to slide the Aircraft. When you are twisting the Joystick the Jet doesnt slide, it starts to roll, thats a further reason why landings are not impossible but difficult.

If you are loocking for a godd flight sim to perform A2A then get Lock on and join one of the lots Squadrons. Lock on is not really Arcade but nevertheless a great expirience...

[subs17 9]

As it is Arma needs to be modified to better support air combat. For a start the visual distance needs to be from much further away, the FM would need to be improved, cockpits would need to be clickable/6dof and a extra interface needed for joystick mapping buttons etc. It would also need to support multicontrollers like Saitek pedals etc.

The radar would need to improved to reflect the scan range and elevation not 360. Missiles would need realistic limits and countermeasures would need to be added. The maverick missiles need a opitcal sight in the MFD and the right procedures modeled. IMO if Armas A-10 was modeled like lockons it would be good enough question is could it be done properly in a FPS or is it necessary to run a separate simulator with a MP interface the better option.

700 000 square kms is the amount of space needed for a decent flight sim although Global terrain is prefered.

[GAU-8 0]

Now its not a "flight sim" the way you would like it to be (as others have posted)

But even with some rudder control issues, arma makes a very good helicopter sim!

Pop up targeting, and nap of earth flying makes it a very challenging, and rewarding experience! A "moderate" amount of realism that foregoes some of the "this is too realistic" features of lets say "BLACK SHARK" heli sim. Seeing the faces of troops on ground, and directly supporting them makes it "hit home" where more technical sims cant do that (due to blocky figures, and actions being dumbed down, to save resources for better flight characteristics, and other features)

[eble 3]

Get a couple of mods and Arma can be quite rewarding flying A2A missions.

Steer clear of the standard BIS aircraft except for the Su-34 and you should be fine (the A10 and Harrier fly like house bricks)

Off the top of my head, use the F16, F14, F15, F4, F-35,Su-47, Su-27, Su30, Su33, Mig21/23/27/29 - Eurofighter, Mirage 2000 Mirage III

I know for a fact all of the above aircraft use a totally modified flight model, they basically fly much better than standard BIS aircraft (excluding the Su-34)

You can get the instant viewdistance mod, the higher you go the further you see etc, set that to 10000m and you'll be fine.

These all have the special effects package included, and if you run in ACE mode they all come with Flares as well.

special effects package (vapor trails/sonic boom/afterburners)

Is arma a proper flight, not by any stretch, but you can have a hell of a lot of fun with the stuff we got already.

Once a map the size of Australia is finished or on second thoughts download the Normandy map from the WWII mod and you can as much A2A action as you can handle.

The standard BIS maps are too small well travelling supersonic

Southy