how can i improve my situational awareness?

[okarr 10]

following problem...

90% of the time i die to something that i have not even seen.

i guess i m not alone with this and the fact that AI does not have to stand up to shoot through vegetation is one part but the other ...

what are your tips and tricks to better situational awareness?

i always proceed cautiously, i scan whats ahead of me, i move slowly if there is the slim chance of enemies about, i use the map to check for anything red (bit unrealistic but so be it).

what other tricks are there.

it is so bad sometimes that i know i m being shot at, i can figure out the rough direction it is coming from but still i can not see it :(

[ovendelon 10]

Wait for this i guess :). At least I'm waiting for it.

[hoak 0]

And/or, vote for this, I think it may help some Players on some systems considerably...

:b:

[dvolk 10]

Use cover, walk for faster response time, move after sniping, and prone & crawl if engaged in the open.

and most importantly, lower enemy skill level to around 0.7-0.8 or so ;)

[MBot 0]

I can't give any specific tips other than the stuff you most likely already do instinctively (stop to scan, bounding over watch etc.). Also for me it got a lot more difficult to spot the enemy in Arma 2 than it was previously. Additional to the visual complexity of the scenes, no tracers for most guns and no visible muzzle flash at your usual engagement distances makes it very hard to determine the location of incoming fire.

In the end it is part of the fun but at the moment is also a bit frustrating because the AI has various advantages. Not only the missing ground vegetation, also the fact that they don't have to deal with camouflage effects (other than Ghillie suites) and that they are worlds better than me to spot the exact location of incoming fire.

[dmarkwick 261]

Play it as though you really would die. Then you find yourself making decisions like: would I really run across that gap? Don't I have any smoke grenades? Do I already think that there's someone over there?

It's slower gameplay, but if you wish for longer gameplay... ;)

[okarr 10]

thats what i find myself doing already.

the frustration knows no bounds though if after 15 minutes of crouching tiger hidden soldier all you hear is pop and thats it.

especially when you scanned every square inch on a 180 degree angle for the next 2 kilometers ahead :D

i think i will switch back to the red dot settings to give me a fighting chance :)

[pchaxor 0]

Play it as though you really would die. Then you find yourself making decisions like: would I really run across that gap? Don't I have any smoke grenades? Do I already think that there's someone over there?

It's slower gameplay, but if you wish for longer gameplay... ;)

+1

I totally agree. Realism is the key.

BIS will improve on it and eventually make it as realistic as possible.

[luckypsd 10]

Woot first time poster here bout time I did...

I know the TrackIR is a great tool but with its price I got myself the cheap man's version of it in the shape of an N52 speedpad. Puts all my controls right at hand but the bit that raises my awareness is I have mapped the d-pad to the look around option that is normally the number pad. The amount of times a quick flick around has saved my neck means its worth its weight in gold and is a lot cheaper than a trackIR (though admittedly not as powerful).

[moosenoodles 0]

Play it as though you really would die. Then you find yourself making decisions like: would I really run across that gap? Don't I have any smoke grenades? Do I already think that there's someone over there?

It's slower gameplay, but if you wish for longer gameplay... ;)

What he said :D tactical and thoughtfully played out games are the best for immersion.

[montylowe1 10]

Hello

This is how I usually operate in single player missions. Decent sized squad to about 8 and make sure their skill is maxed-up (so they are as good as possible). Keep your AI troops close so they cover you. Run from cover to cover. I love playing capture and hold village missions in editor, its got a good simple method to it. Use smoke when you in the open and don't take risks, it's amazing how you can get carried away. The AI in ArmaII for the most part are pretty smart, when a number of their sqaud has been killed they stay back and wait for you with a PK around a corner, so be carebul and always use '. del' number pad key to look around you. Using Q and E also help to peep round corners but don't use the lavishly, bullet recognition is very good and if your peeping round a fence a high caliber round would kill you :)

Hope this helps

[sic-disaster 311]

If you have some AI you could set them to scan the area as well.

They will check all around them, and are usually better at spotting stuff then a human player.

Other then that, keep low, move from concealment to concealment, ofter take out your binoculars to get a closer look at stuff.

[whisper 0]

thats what i find myself doing already.

the frustration knows no bounds though if after 15 minutes of crouching tiger hidden soldier all you hear is pop and thats it.

especially when you scanned every square inch on a 180 degree angle for the next 2 kilometers ahead :D

Atm with too strong soldier before you, the other advantages they have over you make it too much.

I'd suggest to remove grass, waiting for BI implement the functionnal grass layer.

I also often send AI before me a bit, they are now strong enough to not be killed too fast and they make ennemy react, meaning you can spot their position and act accordingly. Nothing is worst than going into areas you know absolutely nothing about

[sandzibar 0]

how does that old mantra go?

"slow is smooth. and smooth is fast."

patience is the key ive found. that and luck. and smoke grens.. and as someone else said treating it as though its real and whether you really want to risk dying :)

[santafee 10]

Tack IR5 may be a great thing,but u dont really need it.just use alt and look around when u move,that will give u a good advantage.

Always figure out where´s a good firing position and let the enemy advance.If u have to advance do it"quiet and nice";)

[Baff1 0]

The single most important aid to spatial awareness I can think of is this...

http://www.matrox.com/graphics/surroundgaming/en/games/supported/arma/#close

The centre screen is what single screen users see. Extra hardware FTW!

Otherwise I would rapidly scan my mouse form left to right the whole time to keep looking around me, especially when moving from cover to cover.

Edited June 16, 2009 by Baff1

[maddogx 13]

Positional audio (5.1). Saved my life many times.

[okarr 10]

i acctually have a triple head 2 go but i m missing the third monitor (in for repairs). :D

[An Fiach 10]

I don't have the game yet biut some things I would suggest is to lower the difficulty and play the same missions over and over until you adjust to the game and get better at spotting the enemy. It is realistic that often it is the guy you don't see that gets you but it is my experience that games with steep learning curves just take a bit of time to acclimate your senses to so that you know what to look for and your eyes become trained to spot the irregularities that indicate an enemy presence.

[TangoRomeo 10]

Headphones, TrackIR, no grass, custom FOV, Kegetys's no motion blur/bloom mod, very high object detail - on the technical side.

Other than that bounding overwatch and diamond formation when contact is expected. Before approaching an objective, i get out the binocs and carefully scan the terrain, looking for AI patrol patterns and eventually timing them. If AI assets are available in a mission, i mostly use them to draw fire and take the most dangerous/exposed routes.

[walker 0]

Hi okarr

Plan

Crawl

Plan

Crawl

Plan

Crawl

Move in the low ground especially when not crawling

Do not walk along ridges

When you have to cross over a ridge:

1) Do not skyline

2) Crawl or try to use bushes or trees as crossing points

3) Use the opportunity to spot

4) Set any AI in reverse slope positions while you scout the ridge in case you are surprised

When trying to be stealthy only move your head

Plan the contact

Prioritise targets, Officers, Snipers, MGs, Radio men (artillery and CAS support), Grenadiers, Riflemen, Medics.

Be quiet

Concealment is not cover, bushes, trees less than 2 foot thick, and single thickness brick walls will not stop rifle bullets.

The High Ground

In the days of cavalry and the highland charge this was far more important and it will slow a charging tank but in the days of assault rifles things on top of hills are just as easy to hit as things at the bottom. And if you are caught out in an open field on a hill it is no different than being caught in an open field in the valley bottom.

The best bit of the hill is the reverse slope. Fire 1 or 2 shots from the ridge, then duck back behind it and move along to a new spot repeat, when enemy starts to rush the hill duck back behind it into a reverse slope defense.

If you have a flanker have them work OP ie do not shoot except in emergency and observe the enemy, number sections of the ridge and have your OP flanker call out where next enemy over ridge is.

As the enemy skylines them selves they are situationaly unaware, the other side of a hill is new country to them and they are beautiful silhouettes against the sky. As they slack lob grenades over the ridge and either withdraw or counter attack.

Prepared positions on a hill are a whole different kettle of fish.

Kind Regards walker

Edited June 16, 2009 by walker

[cross 1]

the frustration knows no bounds though if after 15 minutes of crouching tiger hidden soldier all you hear is pop and thats it.

especially when you scanned every square inch on a 180 degree angle for the next 2 kilometers ahead :D

There is no point of doing this if you are in the middle of a crop field.

Moving very slowly does not help in open terrain fight. You need to move from cover to cover. Keep you momentum high when in/crossing open field.

Leap-frogging is the keyword. Move to cover, scan if safe, move to cover and if your cover is not good/powerful enough, do not stay there for too long ;) ..

[walker 0]

Hi okarr

Oh and I forgot; buy a TrackIR.

Kind Regards walker

[twisted 128]

Use cover, walk for faster response time, move after sniping, and prone & crawl if engaged in the open.

and most importantly, lower enemy skill level to around 0.7-0.8 or so ;)

move from cover to cover = most important. keep low when unsure. don't shoot unnecessarily as if you miss you just draw attention to yourself. hide in forests, around houses, etc. hide a lot.

hold down alt to freelook around while moving. don't run everywhere - but when you need to gtfo double hit w key for a fast dash to cover.

a good way to learn is play on a great server like tacticalgamer or any realism server. these guys know how to go and they often go slow with great sitreps. i learnt a lot that way.

stay in a group - more return firepower and more bodies for the bad guys to hit instead of yours.

edit - and in SP use your greatest power - the power to save often.

Edited June 16, 2009 by twisted

[berowe 0]

The fear of death (popularly and unfairly labeled as cowardice) is what kept me alive through real deployments and it's what keeps me alive in ARMA/OFP.

For you to survive in these games it takes one of two things: "gaming" the AI (which is like winning the special olympics), or hiding like a leetle baby...

It takes a while to go from the mindset of "zomg I r teh hero of the gam3, i must sh00t 300AIz! i r rambo!" to slinking through the levels, paranoid as a crackhead, checking corners, cooperating, and being lucky to take out even a few enemies. I would play games like evolution or other large-scale coops and stay bullet-hole-free for almost the entire match with "only" a dozen kills or so as opposed to the "l33tb0bs" who were running around with a 5/1 k/d ratio, dying every 30 seconds, sniping for 5 minutes straight from obvious spots and banzai charging all our hardware into the hotspots. I'd usually only respawn if my chopper support left me while I was unselfishly cleaning up some remote objective :p

This game shines when you realize that you are but a cog in the "green machine" and not the action hero, so embrace the suck, keep your freakin nose in the dirt, and don't be scared to call for mommy-- we won't tell anyone! :p