Well, the game I loved is dead and gone.

[lazs2]

well... 70's or 1500's asside... I havbe been doing this for about 10 years.

Maybe I lack imagination and am to stuborn to live but when I started I was even worse than I am now.   I died a lot.. the more I died the more I went after the guys that were killing me..  

I reached a point where I feel I have a chance.   I didn't reach it by flying "missunz" with the horde..  we didn't have perk points or need em.

With my lack of imagination I still have fun in a large furball... NOTHING else a flight sim offers comes close to that... even after all this time... a large furball makes an hour turn into 10 minutes of forgetting to blink cotton mouth immersion.

nopoop is right... the new guys go with the flow and it is the flow that has changed.   The individual has been replaced by the hive.  

banana... not sure I will go to any cons that are large... for kinda the same reason..... no individuals left... just a faceless mass... buncha numbers.

lazs

[Oldman731]

Originally posted by _Schadenfreude_
four of us that were either higher or at co-alt saw him and set a trap  

Four on one.  Admirable.

I think this might be just the thing Urchin really is talking about.  And the notion that "it's a team game."  I'm with him.

- oldman

[beet1e]

Originally posted by Toad
Funny, I don't feel like I've changed.

I still like the same thing I liked in AWDos, the thing that made me run up $250/mo bills on GEnie.

Mr. Toad! - long time You haven't changed for the same reason that Lazs and myself haven't changed: We're too old to change!

But the gaming scene has changed. When you mentioned those $250/mo bills, I remember back to WB. I had a few of those doozies, but I can't remember exact amounts, but certainly 3 figures of $.

A problem for the noobs is that there is no real training. It seems a lot of them don't even try, but simply go the pork-n-auger route. In WB they had official trainers right there in the MA, easily identifiable by the = at each end of their handle. My favourite trainer was a guy called ==sd==. These guys got their gameplay time free of charge. Because of that, there were many applicants to become trainers - far more than the available places. But that was a good thing. Because people would work on their game to stand a chance of becoming trainer, and that would elevate the standard of the game in the MA. So guys like myself would have to work at it to compete at that higher level.

With a flat rate of $14.95/mo, no such trainer incentive programme is viable. OK, you could save a guy $15 a month, but not $250.

We can't go back to $2/hour, but as well as the training hierarchy that pricing plan engendered, it sure as hell kept the tardz out. I remember a little bit of smack talk in grey text, but nothing like the p**sy/studmuffing/potato/your momma/your sister/racist crap we have now.

Lazs! Someone at the con said that you and I were flip sides of the same coin. I can't remember who said it. But I thought about it when I read your post.

[SlapShot]

"banana... not sure I will go to any cons that are large... for kinda the same reason..... no individuals left... just a faceless mass... buncha numbers."

Lazs ... do not not go to the con for those reasons.

Go to the con to meet faceless friends/individuals and share comraderie and good times in person.

I went to last years con and will be going to this years con for just those reasons.

[Kutt]

Well things obviously have changed, but the new guys aren’t to blame. It’s those of us that have been flying for years that are to blame. I think at times some of the “all stars” of the game spend too much time banging heads with the other top pilots, and not enough time passing along the art of ACM to the “nuggets”.

If we want to have more good fights, then grab a noob and take him flying with you. Teach him the finer points of ACM. Teach him how to pull a reverse. Allow more people to experience the aerial chess match that takes place when two ***** hot pilots tangle.

Blowing up buildings and chasing points leads to fast burn out IMHO. Really learning ACM and teamwork goes a long way. It is fun, and builds camaraderie.

This doesn’t have to be a formalized training program. Just grab somebody who wants to get better (there are tons of them) and go flying.

[Max]

What about this...take the NDIsles map, eliminate the 3 outter mainlands, leaving the center isle and surrounding islands. Leave the center isle bases uncapturable. Add to the arena line-up until TOD rolls out. If that doesn't reduce the lemming hordes, make everything uncapturable.

Thoughts?

Dmdmax

[Dead Man Flying]

Originally posted by Steve
*He had E most times but outflew me regardless.  A couple of times I got on his 6, DMF wandered by and shredded me.  

He was setting you up for me.  

-- Todd/Leviathn

[humble]

The more I think about it the more I realize that the fundemental nature of the game has changed in a couple of ways...

1)  Most visable is the already mentioned focus on landgrabbing/building bashing instead of "air combat". Int my 1st 6-7 years in the game the bases "fed" the air war. Now the primary focus of the game for most seems to be striclty "winning" the previously secondary "war".

2) the "knights of the air" have been replaced by the "bowmen of the air" simply stated individual skilldset gets buried under a mass of arrows...er la-7's and such.

3) Certain elements of game design have helped this along...ie "enhanced" buff gun damage. One reason you have hordes of low alt B-26/B-17 runs is because you can....here's a game that struggles for realism that creates a completly phoney ability for low alt bomber only strikes against "front line" targets. IN WW2 bombers of any kind without escort simply got hammered...this is simply a connsession to noob....er game play.

I'm sure others could add lots of other specifics...



I would sugest that it is you who changed more than the game urchin. Very simply you showing clasic burn out, your not having fun any more and searching for a resone why. And you come up with that it is the game that has changed from it's "Glory days". ...

I've always admired the open nature of this BBS and Hitech and Pyro's willingness to participate on "equal footing" her...In this one case I would beg to differ....I think Hitech & Pyro have changed more than they see or care to admit. I know the realities of the situation they face and have experienced success first hand...as your firm grows your structure grows and your vision solidifys...you become less flexible as a "corporate mentality" seeps in....your individual customer becomes secondary to your bottom line...which looks better and better. After all your "vision" has been validated...your balance sheet proves it...the squeeky wheels that fueled your initial growth are now distractions that simply take you away from the "big picture"...it's tough but its a part of success...so in as polite a way as you can you let em know "don't let the door hit you in the A@@ on the way out"....and for a long time the gentle thunk is overshadowed by the continuing growth ....


The best example of this is the failure to respond to the Ki-84 or other plane requests....they were there along time before the big AH-2 push....customers are a lot like horses....they will forgive you and even continue to love you...but they never forget your transgressions.  How much would it really have taken to throw the dog a bone or two??

So instead of a playerbase thats predominatley loyal to AH you have a player base that will judge things on AH2's merits. If I was out there as a consultant for anyone looking to take a run at this market I'd have an open beta timed for the release of AH2. The old guard has heard just how unimportant we are...and the 90 day wonders....well they'll follow the slickest commercial on wings....

[Sikboy]

Check out "the golden age of Airwarrior"

Reposted from: http://www.hitechcreations.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6688

Originally written by Blue Baron
None of us has any idea when we're fooling around in the simulated skies just how important the relationships we're developing are. The bonds we develop with one another happen insidiously and, despite all the explosions going on around us in the game, quietly. None of us has any idea just how much we'll miss those guys we flew with after they're gone. The human heart can't tell the difference between virtual and face to fact worlds. Shared emotion bonds people, no matter where or how that emotion takes place.

Thus, there is only one golden age - the time when YOU first learned the game, and played it for long hours every day or every week. Each of us has his own good old days. And for each, they were just as good.

And for the so-called veteran who complains to me how my latest release killed the game he loved, I can say, "Yes, and you killed the game I loved. You and your kind chased away all my buddies seven years ago." In both cases the accusation is unfair. That's another thing all players from all eras share: the good old days can never last forever. Enjoy yours while you have them. Remember them fondly when they're over. In either case you are experiencing or have experienced something evermore rare in this world.

The whole article is at the spam hole linked above.

I think that's a pretty accurate portrayal of what happens to a lot of us.

-Sik

[Steve]

I  figured... was hoping to land killing rounds before you could.

[kj714]

I know it takes so long to make them, but everybody gets invigorated with a new map.

Fester, eating and sleeping is way overrated. Grab some Red Bull and get it on, mang.

thanks for the last new map!

[Urchin]

Sorry it took me so long to get back to this thread... had about a 16 hour day yesterday and then went straight to bed.  

DejaVu... I think that is the first nice thing you've ever said about me, I'm touched.  But actually, something that DejaVu said rang true, and reinforced something I said (albeit not as well) earlier.

He get's down low and fights regardless of what he's flying. He definately improved from the flappy flying he used when he first showed up (classic LW pitfall). There just have never been many people that fight that way. Now, when there's even more people on, you can barely find them at all.

When I first started playing... I sucked horribly.  Then for about a year or so, I just sucked.  Then I learned how to fight.  It didn't all come at once, but I learned constantly for about a year.  That drive to learn, and improve, seems to be competely gone now.

Urchin came cruising over to a base that had just been taken on pizza at about 8k in a 190a5, four of us that were either higher or at co-alt saw him and set a trap that any noob should have been able to see from a mile away.

He engaged a La7, was forced to break and whilst rolling I zinged his left wing causing him to break again losing the little alt he had and all of his E. I got a good solution on him as he was climbing and blew him apart.

I was in a heavy P51d and he started to comment about the "excellent ganging" - in all honesty it was, we worked as a team, destroyed the threat and he never even got to fire - but not one to let arrogance go unchecked I commented on his excellent SA that led to his demise.

He told me that I was just a noob ( albeit with his scalp) and that I should suck his dick....

It's a team game boys and girls not medieval jousting.......and if you can't take lumps for your own stupidity then there is no need to indulge in sexual profanity.

 

While I can't comment about the "sexual profanity" (I don't recall saying it, but I wouldn't put it past me either, if it would go through the filter), that is a fairly accurate re-cap of a typical engagement in the MA.  

If I recall correctly, there was a spit and a P-51 low, and a N1K2 and an la7 high.  I engaged the La-7 and N1K, missed a shot on the N1K, dove away from the La-7.  Hit the deck, reversed on the La-7, checked 6 and reversed on the N1K, checked 6 and reversed on the Spit, and got hosed by our hero in the runstang.  Awesome SA?  Don't be a ****ing idiot.  You see, this is the difference between me and your typical chicken**** MA player like our hero Schadenfruit.  I take off in a 190a5.  Well... I guess that was my first bit of stupidity... I should have used an La-7, N1K, or Spit, right, hero?  

Oops.. second bit of stupidity...  actually trying to find a fight.  Well, perhaps some of the extenuating circumstances will excuse me for this stupidity.  Rooks had two bases in the area, knights had about 4 or 5, with a port and two airfields being the closest.  Darbars in the area?  One large red bar over one rook field, one middling sized red bar over the other rook field.  One small green darbar over the field south of the one I took off at.  So yea... if I am looking for a fight... I've got to go where the red planes are.  I know... it is stupid to want to fight enemy planes, but I'm a stupid person, what can I say.

And I'll be damned, third bit of stupidity.  Find four enemy planes over their field.  Well, it'd be stupid to engage four superior planes all by myself... but it is that or turn around and fly home, since you guys sure aint going anywhere.  Please note that during the 10-15 minutes it took to get to that base, the darbar neither shrank nor grew.... nor did it move.  So I guess it would be safe to assume that they had been in the same general area the whole time it took me to fly there.  Safe assumption, hero?  You were there, you can tell me.

So no.. my SA is fine.  In fact, it is probably a few orders of magnitiude better than our hero's vaunted "SA".  

And if that were an isolated occurance, that would be one thing.  But it isn't an isolated occurance, it is the new way the game is played.  Hell, just looking at our hero's post...  he is ever so proud to hold "my scalp", no matter how many people it took to get it.  You guys split that scalp up 4 ways, so you each have a piece to put on your fridge?  Look Ma, I killed the vaunted Urchin!  Really I did!  

I'm not sure how many of the faceless newbies (to me anyway) post on the boards, but I'd be very interested to hear their comments on a few of their other "hard-fought victories" in the past week or so.  

I honestly can't even understand the motivation.

[hitech]

When I first started playing... I sucked horribly. Then for about a year or so, I just sucked. Then I learned how to fight. It didn't all come at once, but I learned constantly for about a year. That drive to learn, and improve, seems to be competely gone now.

And that is exactly how you have changed urchin, not the game.


HiTech

[airbumba]

That's it, i made up my mind....i'm never getting 'good'. I don't want to loose interest. I admit i fly less hours by at least half, but that's cause i fixed my car  

Seriuosly, i don't stick to just trying to be the best at anything, i'd  rather be good enough for enjoyment purposes. The day I started loosing interest in competitive hockey, was the day I made the AAA team.  Then it all started to be too serious, it wasn't just kids playing hockey anymore.

I hope by spreading out my interests, i will keep them longer....one can always hope.

[Urchin]

After reading your post, and thinking about it while I smoked, Hitech.  Yes, you make a very good point, actually.