kiska / skira ,does anyone want to see this island in A2 ? (the OFPDR island)

[Hvymtal 1251]

Needs some work, but your skira would be pretty cool

[9thAircav 0]

a very small but important update. we have the island mesh terrain looking good and working at 10km view distance, with plenty frames to spare, YEYWOO ! currently its 20km long which is shorter than the real island but we feel its necessary to do this in order for the island to work to its potential, its heighest peak reaches about 600 metres.

2 things i like so far, the range of distance between the mountains does split the area up into zones, meaning lower view distances should work without detracting the user from feeling necessary to make him believe hes on a large-ish island. Edit- hovering around the middle of the island and sweeping the view from west to east and seeing the whole extents of the scenery is incredible.

the island gives a good feeling of situational awareness, you seem to know where you are at all times, unlike my experiences with cher. on kiska u know where N.S.E.W are instantly.. ! feels good.

Edited October 19, 2009 by 9thAircav

[Delta 51 10]

The map on Dragon rising is better than any map produce by or for arma + ofp.

It has decent geography in terms of cracks and crevices which allow for superb and unsurpassed infantry firefights.

I personally think bringing it to arma would make for some really good fights.

[[GLT] Legislator 66]

Yeah! Bring this island to ArmA II :D I bet it'll look better than in Dragon Rising. Can't wait to see PLA units and russian units in action with each other :p WITHOUT american units :p

[9thAircav 0]

The map on Dragon rising is better than any map produce by or for arma + ofp.

It has decent geography in terms of cracks and crevices which allow for superb and unsurpassed infantry firefights.

I personally think bringing it to arma would make for some really good fights.

geographical features.

We have optimised alot so far. and thus it has changed to some degree, personally im unhappy with jaggy landscapes, pointy ridges etc, we are trying to retain a natural feel and at the same time trying to produce this addon in line with what is technically possible within arma2 and without going overboard. Whilst it does retain some un-natural features theres a certain degree of them that have to remain. The task thereafter is to conceal these visual deficiencies as much as possible.

I hope you will be pleasantly suprised, and we meet your expectations. the outcome being that many geographical features have been preserved and optimised in order to provide a large a viewing distance as possible. i cant really explain how essential it is to feel that your on an island simply by being able to view the last geographical feature present (the coast or mountain ridge).. when fogging creeps in its just not right. this is what we must avoid imo. u can make the weather bad and add that atmopshere, which i believe chernarus uses effectivly. but for Kiska its our aim to not have to go there. ofcourse that option will be possible and should be used for the purposes of optimisation thereafter. i like non diffused light and direct sunlight :) for our addon. i like the warm feeling not the cold dank depressing stuff.

i gota give my thanks to Rstratton, his recent optimisation of the heightmap is outstanding. After a quick test in traversing the scenery in an m1a1, i believe this island is going to provide some seriously good gameplay.

Edited October 19, 2009 by 9thAircav

[rstratton 0]

runs smooth as silk flying an av8b at 800kmph with 10k view distance

[11aTony 0]

Wow, nice. I really look forward to see this myself. Keep it up.

[tsb247 0]

a very small but important update. we have the island mesh terrain looking good and working at 10km view distance, with plenty frames to spare, YEYWOO ! currently its 20km long which is shorter than the real island but we feel its necessary to do this in order for the island to work to its potential, its heighest peak reaches about 600 metres.

2 things i like so far, the range of distance between the mountains does split the area up into zones, meaning lower view distances should work without detracting the user from feeling necessary to make him believe hes on a large-ish island. Edit- hovering around the middle of the island and sweeping the view from west to east and seeing the whole extents of the scenery is incredible.

the island gives a good feeling of situational awareness, you seem to know where you are at all times, unlike my experiences with cher. on kiska u know where N.S.E.W are instantly.. ! feels good.

I must admit that I am sad that the island is not its actual length, but I am elated that you are recreating it in ArmA II. Keep up the good work! I am anxious to give it a try.

[velzevul 32]

looks like another one Skira otw: http://www.armaholic.com/forums.php?m=posts&p=67541 :j:

[9thAircav 0]

same one :)

[Master gamawa 0]

Well I think it would be very interesting if you "copied" the CM campaign missions for Skira as well.

Imagine if a few Arma2 modders managed to recreate Dragon Rising in Arma2 and made it better than the original.

Provided that Dragon Rising doesn't handle very complicated stuff (like large wars and dynamic scripting) it would be easy enough.

Then you should send this to CM to show them what their game should be like.

In fact CM shouldn't even use Operation Flashpoint in their title. The true sequel of Operation Flashpoint is Armed Assault and Arma 2.

Oh look ! Incoming car analogy !

Dragon Rising is a lower tier SUV. It looks ok, it handles ok and impresses the common player. Good fun for the whole family. Very safe too. Loads of airbags, airconditioning, cd player and all that crap.

Arma2 is a military Humvee. It's huge, it can fit a lot of people in, it guzzles gas like a mofo, it is a bit uncomfortable at first but it's the right vehicle for war.

[ziiip 1]

It would be interesting to see the whole DR campaign in ArmA2.

[[GLT] Legislator 66]

Well ... a PLA mod is already work in progress :D I'll definately create some missions for this island next year. All I need is a good plot not involving USMC :p ... and maybe no oil!?

[9thAircav 0]

it would be interesting to see the original campaign in there. that woould mean we have to recreate this island like codies did. are we going to do that ? cant answer that just now. we got our own ideas coming slowly.

ive a few ideas for special features, one explcitily for a second base with a real life twist. it should keep all the pilots happy :) as well as test there skills,

Edited October 20, 2009 by 9thAircav

[velzevul 32]

same one :)

oh... :) good to hear.

looks very promissing. thank you for working on it.

[WA Lancer 94]

Is it possible to set up some locations or at least one as a blank template for map makers to make fortifications.

Along the same line of thought, is it possible to build a fortification into the side of the volcano?

[Barely-injured 0]

With this, the PLA mod and some really bored mission designers we will be playing the DR campaign within 2-4 months :p

nice work.....

[EMERY 10]

check it! take that codmasters

7Wkvk0xiob0

[CombatComm 10]

Hey you guys shouldent put a bunch of trees on this island IMO. Variety is the spice of life and we have plenty of maps with trees. Make it realistic like the real kiska. Could be good for open field tank battles and trench warfare with 21st century tech. There is something so beautiful about nice sweeping open planes with nice green grass. Perfect for artillery etc. Keep it true to its real form. plus the less veg the more frames. Reminds me of Iwo jima in its current state minus the volcanic sands. Again all just my opinion.

[celery 8]

I agree with CC. Even though it's nice in theory to have variety within an island, it becomes nonvariety in the big picture. Almost every custom made map is either some middle eastern desert/city landscape or an idyllic jack-of-all-trades-land with a couple of hills, maybe a mountain/volcano, forests, plains, a river or strait and at least one bridge, some villages and one or two big towns and of course an airport and military base.

If Kiska is made like that, it will not stand out in any way except for people getting kicks out of its context.

[9thAircav 0]

interesting regards having no trees. appealing regards performance. i like the naturally wild baron idea but it seems like a cop out, the easy route so to speak, trees were planned as a tool to hide certain bad aspects along with grass clutter doing similar. without them i think this could make travelling around way to hard. and the long distance fighting would be incredibly hard. but on the other hand it could promote air travel as more of a necessity. and give influence on having to use the scenery on a much larger scale than in cher.. im thinking low level bushes and grass everywhere are good idea, currently theres rock, grass, sand, roadside, and asphalt on Kiska

Edited October 21, 2009 by 9thAircav

[thales100 10]

Nice idea hehe :)

[yanquis 10]

I agree with CC. Even though it's nice in theory to have variety within an island, it becomes nonvariety in the big picture. Almost every custom made map is either some middle eastern desert/city landscape or an idyllic jack-of-all-trades-land with a couple of hills, maybe a mountain/volcano, forests, plains, a river or strait and at least one bridge, some villages and one or two big towns and of course an airport and military base.

If Kiska is made like that, it will not stand out in any way except for people getting kicks out of its context.

well sorry to say, isnt that basically the whole idea? to see what the skira island (even if we have to call it kiska) would look like as rendered by the a2 engine?

if somebody wants a wide open map it would surely be extremely easy to create one!

[Tankbuster 1747]

Indeed. If it's a good map, well made, who cares if CM brought it into a game first?

[DerRelienT 0]

I did a google image search for "Kiska Island" and I don't think I've seen a single tree in any of the pictures.

Here's a nice collection of pictures from Kiska and Attu islands

http://jankocian.smugmug.com/Travel/Aleutians/2859070_WvYHy/1/153744618_NpGN6#153744119_F7vy8

Flickr Photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/amnwr/6574180/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/buzzhoffman/3649920115/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/buzzhoffman/3674491656/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/amnwr/7098178/

http://l.yimg.com/g/images/spaceball.gif

http://l.yimg.com/g/images/spaceball.gif

http://www.flickr.com/photos/buzzhoffman/3664872829/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/54378980@N00/2963315639/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aak/3013941430/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/heritagefutures/3933000955/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/heritagefutures/3933962326/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chaparralbrad/2547218766/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rockrabbit/3639386767/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chaparralbrad/2546397041/

I'd like to see this island portrayed as it really exists, rocky with tall grass and no trees.