Plane Markings

[jmccaul]

     Sorry i've suggested this before it's just i never got an answer about feasibility or possibility of this idea (or even if you lot at HTC would even consider it):
     A "ranking" system by points or a simple K/D ratio where players would get a small distinctive marking on there plane dependant on their score which was visible at close range so you would know if your mixing it with one of the games best players.
Mabye also players would get extra points on this system for participating in a sucessful bombing run i.e. being near the target when all or part of it is destroyed (just to give a bit of light encouragement for buffing and escorting)

P.S. I'm not suggested it is included in the beta or anything but is it possible in the forseeable future?

[Ping]

 I think it was already discussed on plane skins as regards to custom paint or markings.
 IF I remember correctly (which I don't) it would require too much download and everyone would be required to download all these files  and so on and so on.
 -ping-

[jmccaul]

No you've slightly missed the point, these wouldn't be custom skins they would be a generic marking for players of a certain status e.g. a yellow nose so you could tell roughly what stanard opponent you were fighting. So if you came into a level co-e merge and saw you were playing one of the games top aces there might be a bit extra excitement.  

[dogsta]

or you could just run away,eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!
 

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when you least expect it.
there I'll be....        A perfect target

[Wizard]

If you see a yellow prop cover it will be behind you and on my plane.  

[nastee]

or maybe just a big target so all the jelous
( me being one of them ) Pilots know which kong monkey to go after or to hate  hehe

[JoeMud]

Why not just put the players rank on there icon????

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Gijoey,Joetwo,JoeMud=me
 DHBG!!

[Downtown]

As to skins and marking, there was quite a discussion.

To the best of my recolection there were basically three tracts requested.

Custom Skins developed by players.

Squadron Stripes/Nose Cones/Tail Sections.

Postage Stamp 32/32 Icons.

The skin issue would require bandwith and download.

HT said he would consider players to modify the skin of their aircraft and that skin would only be visable to their Front End.

This would appear only in Screen SHots and possibly Gun Camera type footage.

NO DEFINATIVE ANSWER.

Squadron Markings/D-Day type Stripes, Color Nose Cones, Tail Sections, Wing Stripes.

NO DEFINATIVE ANSWER THAT I SAW.

IMO I don't know why this would be more difficult than the postage stamp icon.

Many suggestions as to limiting the locations and numbers of the stripes, and keeping it down to 8 colors.

Postage Stamp.

Here is another that HT Said he would consider for ONLINE Play.

No Definative answer that I recall.

I want the ability to fly the Beta, and get this here Game/Sim Launched, so all the eye candy stuff can come later to me.

Perhaps if HT or Pyro respond to this thread, the can inform us how often the wish to be annoyed on this topic, so we can keep it fresh in their minds.

Its not like I want them to lose sleep over this.

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"I could feel the 20MM Cannon impacting behind me so I made myself small behind the pilot armor" Charlie Bond AVG

[Curly]

> Why not just put the players rank on there
icon????

 I believe this will have two ill effects.
People will swarm the higher ranked person
feeling they need to shoot down the high scoring/ranking pilots first.
 In combat you really never knew who you were
going up against short of color markings on a particular groups aircraft.

 Or in the second case folks worried about
thier own points will run the other way and
avoid fights.

 Something to this effect WAS tried in WB's
many many moons ago....
 Not a good thing.
 
 --Curly
 
 
 

[-free-]

I would be happy to just be able to see squad marking logos on the cowlings of ac.

That wouldn't be a large download even if there were 300 squads out there.

The CO could submit the Logo to AH.  They could incorporate it into a Squad Logo dl.
I couldn't see it going over 1k.  With a 32 plane limit with 32 different squad logos (worse case scenario) that would equate to 31k in additional information (you wouldn't see your own logo from the cockpit and you would only see one side of the enemies logo), not to mention compressing the logo so that it could be even smaller than 1k.

Just replace two of the polygons that are located on each side of each a/c to represent the logo chosen (one for each side).  

I just don't see how this could be that difficult or unworkable.

But beside that, I would opt for better flight modeling over pretty pictures on airplanes anyday.  

-Free-  aka Freebe in WB

[jmccaul]

Is it not possible just to change the set colour of part of the aircraft? i.e. rudder is blue if you are a certain rank or rudder is normal if you are not. Even if this is not possible there would definatly be under 20 rank divisions so a few stripes of colour couldn't be that hard could it? It could always be an optional add-on to download.  

[JoeMud]

What ya mean the people with higher ranks do need to be shot down and most guys I go after run anyways.
Or just have the rank tag for the players own country to see and not the enemy.


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Gijoey,Joetwo,JoeMud=me
 DHBG!!

[jmccaul]

The advantages of plane markings (e.g. yellow nose)

1) There cool

2) They are a bit more realistic than icons, i don't know if aces got custom paint jobs or not?

3)You only see them when you get really close so are usually committed to a dogfight

[Razorback]

I think that kill markings is a cool idea but not very realistic in the world of gaming.  See, pilots could have 400 kills a month, depending on their skill and time.  Adding new markings to the aircraft in real time just seems that it would rob us of bandwidth.  The only thing that I think would be a good idea is that AH could impliment an award system where every month the best few players are given special markings on their AC's.  Maybe the top 10 receive different tail markings or something.  That might not require too much bandwidth.

Razorback

[This message has been edited by Razorback (edited 09-28-1999).]