Business as Usual...

[arkaeldren 0]

Hello to the community.  

I have been watching this forum for a year or so in response to the possibility of getting a decent sim for the Xbox 360, and yes the PS3 and 360 are Next Gen Consoles.  Speculation on this is only brought up from “ PC and next Gen consoles TBDâ€.  I played F-19 stealth fighter on a Monochrome monitor with an IBM that had a 40 meg hard drive.  But I played Atari and pong to.  I am a 38 year old  disabled guy that loves simulation style gaming and I understand that each platform has its needs.   But since when does that give some one the right to bash on a console player.  Now before this gets closed or flamed, my main point of this post is not to start another argument,  but to express my concerns for the future possibilities of our needs as gamers.  I have read many comments from Console players regarding their needs/desires for ArmA II to be released on the console market.  In response to those many comments,  I have read TO many disrespectful,  not to mention, ostracizing responses. The reason this is so intensely disrupting to me is because for the sake of future gaming,  we need to be One gamming community to support all options.   This will only allow us the best results.   BIS will release ArmA II to the console market,  its for the company’s  survival in the future.  But this will only allow more financial support for the future installments.   The last thing I want as a gamer,  is for the market to stop producing games for the PC,  or to dumb down games for the “general marketâ€.  Doing this would only reduce the general quality.   If you believe the console market is a bad thing,  that’s your opinion,  But lets not encourage people to leave, or to make fun of the fact that they are “unintelligent†or don’t deserve Sim style gaming because they play on consoles.  The difference in financial terms for the Console vs. PC market is Monumental.   But that doesn’t have to mean we don’t get Highly technical Sims/games with Depth.  If this company doesn’t succeed in ArmA II, there is a chance no one will see the next installment.  

What does the community think about the financial/general  impact that the console release will bring to BIS?  If your going to input something,  Make it legit....

Thanks...

My PC  :  Alienware Area 51 7500

Console:  360

PC knowledge = none

Please excuse my writing skills…I have none.

[HKFlash 9]

The console market is essential to BIS. PERIOD!

[sparks50 0]

I agree fully. But I can also understand realism oriented PC fanboys anger towards consoles.

Ghost Recon, Rainbow six and a bunch of other games have turned away from realism in recent years to serve a bigger audience.

But I do think theres a market for realistic games on the consoles.

[walker 0]

Hi all

BIS must pursue every market it can. Then it will have more money to develop better and better products. Some of us have watched BIS develop for many years and we trust them to do what is right. Plus because they have secondary military market they need to build and test a quality simulation, producing two core engines would be pointless and expensive.

Also in several threads I have pointed out how the constraints of building for consoles forces you to build more optimised code.

Besides it really upsets BIS's competitors.

Kind Regards walker

[Maddmatt 1]

I agree fully. But I can also understand realism oriented PC fanboys anger towards consoles.

Ghost Recon, Rainbow six and a bunch of other games have turned away from realism in recent years to serve a bigger audience.

I wonder though, could they have achieved that bigger audience without dumbing it down to such a ridiculous level? And why use the name of a game that was originally geared towards a different audience anyway?  

I guess Ubisoft is the main cause of all this anger that comes up when a 'realistic' game heads towards the console, as they turned them into lame action games and stabbed the original fans in the back in the process.

Remember the console port of OFP didn't lose the realism though

[arkaeldren 0]

Sparks…. I am concerned of this situation myself. Many publishers have forced company’s to reorganize their strategies for the general Market. EA has been one of the worst at 6 month releases. The good news is that the gamming industry will be THE major source for entertainment in the future. This will allow all niches to be stroked. I can only hope that we can have dedicated company’s that will not sacrifice to much for the general sales in today’s market. I believe BIS is such a company. But balance is very difficult when you see $$$ sending you to South Pacific Atolls on Million dollar yachts.

[Alex72 1]

Its true that many simualator oriented people get upset when they have seen first hand how good games been dumbed down when they went to consoles. This would be one of the things that creates that anger. I saw some devs that made realistic programs for PC and then had to turn to the console market to get food on the table. That many (not all) console players settle with short flashy shallow games opens up possibilities for devs to make more money and faster. And then when you turned that way and money starts pouting in the passion for that hard work with less money coming in might fall away. Not that they dont want to do that anymore (i think that is coders and artists dream to make the deep and technical programs), but the money is good and comes faster if they succeed. And we live in a world where money is king most of the time.

It sounds good with one community but there will always be gamers and simmers i think. Many gamers think simmers are complete nuts, and the same goes for many simmers that think the same of gamers that settle with "easy" games.

I have a small fear when i look a bit into the future. Im wondering what will happen after ARMA2? Who will step up and create this level of entertainment again? Scares the living daylight out of me. Hopefully BIS comes back after Gaia. And if they dont, someone needs to make sure the military market get their training sims i reckon. And hopefully-maybe-who-knows if those programs gets available to us.

My little anger i can feel sometimes is the uncertainy of where this is going. Will it all fall out on consoles in the end with games used by a handcontrol and cheap joysticks? Thanks to pirating and a shrinking market than consoles, i just dont know where it all will end. I love building my own computers and adapt the hardware for high resolution/lag free gaming. I cant do that on a console. Im stuck with a box i cant do jack with custom wise. It scares me and also makes me angry at times that there are so many out there that settle with shallow crap in lack for better words.

But i hear you. I have nothing against titles being on both systems as long as it doesnt lead to the negative i wrote about. And its ofcourse very refreshing to see console owners wanting the ArmA experience. Very refreshing indeed. I hope for your sake you will get your wish granted. And i dearly hope simmers will have a bright future as well.

When i think about it. I wish consoles were never made, and computer were much cheaper. My personal dreamworld.

Regards

Alex

[ricogs400 1]

Good points evryone.  I am at the point where I don't want to keep upgrading or buying a new PC every year or so to keep up.  I still want the realistic leaning games, but also like to not have to worry that my machine can't run the latest games.  On my PS3 or 360, every game I put in will run as expected since it was designed specifically for that hardware.

Luckily the first OFP came out right when I got a desktop and it was luck that it hit at the right time I had good enough specs.  I haven't been able to play Arma because I went with a laptop as my next PC.  I stuck with consoles.

That doesn't change the fact that I still want the same experience that the PC will get with Arma2 on a console.  I have had plenty of disappointments with clunky and simplistic games that were made too "mainstream".

Here's to hoping we get a solid port of Arma2 to consoles in a short amount of time.

[Placebo 28]

I'm moving this to offtopic because if it's ontopic to ArmA2 then there's already a console thread.

I do agree with you and I find the console user bashing frustrating and disappointing, especially considering how mature a community we have here you'd think that some member would learn to be tolerant and respectful, personally I'd say that nowadays I'm 100% a console gamer, the thought of sitting in my office in a straight office chair at a wooden desk playing some game on the 20" monitor of my PC holds virtually nil interest to me, instead I'd much rather be sat on my sofa in front of my 42" Full HD TV playing something on my 360, all being well the rest of the year will be me on the sofa playing ArmA2, Fifa 9 (then 10 later) and Fight Night 4 on the 360

[Bush 0]

I'm moving this to offtopic because if it's ontopic to ArmA2 then there's already a console thread.

I do agree with you and I find the console user bashing frustrating and disappointing, especially considering how mature a community we have here you'd think that some member would learn to be tolerant and respectful, personally I'd say that nowadays I'm 100% a console gamer, the thought of sitting in my office in a straight office chair at a wooden desk playing some game on the 20" monitor of my PC holds virtually nil interest to me, instead I'd much rather be sat on my sofa in front of my 42" Full HD TV playing something on my 360, all being well the rest of the year will be me on the sofa playing ArmA2, Fifa 9 (then 10 later) and Fight Night 4 on the 360

So you just confirmed that ArmA2 is going to be on the 360 this year?

I don't have any problem with small screens. I use a 40" FullHD TV as my monitor and i can shoose to sit in my chair, bed or sofa. I also have a FullHD projector(93") which I also can watch from my chair, bed or sofa.

edit: I will probably buy ArmA2 for the 360 also just to support BIS, but first I have to buy a 360 but those are so cheap now so that’s no problem.

[Kimmeh 0]

72 @ Mar. 20 2009,05:58)]I have a small fear when i look a bit into the future. Im wondering what will happen after ARMA2? Who will step up and create this level of entertainment again? Scares the living daylight out of me.

But i hear you. I have nothing against titles being on both systems as long as it doesnt lead to the negative i wrote about.

When i think about it. I wish consoles were never made, and computer were much cheaper. My personal dreamworld.

I am _so_ with you here. Both on the fear for where games will go in the future, and wishing consoles were never made.

I saw great game series like Ghost Recon, Rainbow Six, Splinter Cell, and to some degree Hitman go downhill as soon as console versions were introduced. I mean go on the ghost recon, splinter cell and rainbow six forums, last time I checked I was showered with threads how the series has turned into complete elephant turd. Makes me kind of sad when I think about it as I had an incredibly fun time with the earlier ones.

Not that I'm a console-hater(well, I try not to be), I mean I've a playstation 2 and 3, and had great fun playing stuff like Grand Theft Auto games on it, and fighting games like Tekken. They just shouldn't take certain gametypes and port a dumbed down version of the earlier game.

I mean I know I'm also speculating a bit, but from the in-game footage and features I've seen here and there in OFP2, there's quite a few things that make a voice in my head scream 'ah, console-game'.

(about the voice in my head, I've taken my medication thank you very much, it was figural speech)

I've got faith in BIS though, they'll stay true to their core I think.

Hope.

Pray.

Kim

P.s. Just to be clear about it, I don't hate consoles, they can be great fun! I only hate what they made many developers do with their games.

[11aTony 0]

...personally I'd say that nowadays I'm 100% a console gamer, the thought of sitting in my office in a straight office chair at a wooden desk playing some game on the 20" monitor of my PC holds virtually nil interest to me, instead I'd much rather be sat on my sofa in front of my 42" Full HD TV playing something on my 360, all being well the rest of the year will be me on the sofa playing ArmA2, Fifa 9 (then 10 later) and Fight Night 4 on the 360

That's why I bought wireless mouse and keyboard .

Although, ArmA can be a not very relaxing game and usually, once you start playing it you dont stop for few hours, if you know what I mean. So I, would not play it on console.

I find console very nice if few friends come over, you have few drinks, something to eat and you play some simple games like Fifa, NBA or NFS on PS or 360 where you dont have to be so focused.

EDIT: Well hey, if you want to play a sim on console go ahead. Im just saying that I prefer to play sim on PC. That doesnt mean you should too.

[arkaeldren 0]

Some of these replys make me wonder if they read the original Post

[Baff1 0]

I think making a 360 version of ArmA will be a nice little earner for them.

There is a large possibility they will make more money than they will with a PC release.

I'm a PC head myself, it's of no benefit to me to have a dedicated PC developer waste their time on console games when they could be making a new installment for PC instead, but I think they will make it for XboX too.