Think of it this way Spade.
Are you playing this game to meet people? Is this some kind of dating service?
Of course not. What is it that you like about this game? Weren't you playing AH because you liked the action and thrills of flying a vintage WW2 aircraft against other types?
Spade. I have seen many simular instances pass by. The usual AH gamers are a toughened bunch, weathered and hardended wiith age.
They are hard-hitting sumbitc*es, but that doesn't mean they hate people outside their "seal of approval".
In my own country, the flight sim genre itself isn't very popular. In the Western countries there are a lot of seasoned and mature pilots. Most of the AH population is between 30~40 years of age. However, in my own country the genre is itself much unpopular, and besides a few dedicated AH freaks the only other players are youngsters, teens. There's a gap between me and most of them, but I try hard to understand them as they are. A little difference in opinion and/or behavior sure doesn't disappoint me, and ultiamatley people come to understand that there is more to this special game genre than just the usual point-and-click FPS bullshi* games.
Spade, you are pretty much uncommon, in the fact that you are a young player in the Western states. However, try to understand the differences in what the old players of AH are like. Some of us have been here since the DOS Air Warrior days. I consider myself a second generation of flight-sim gamer, I've been playin these types of games since 1994. I consider people like you to be the third generation.
Please, don't be discouraged by some people that may intimidate you. Ultimately, whether some may like it or not, people like you are the third generation of flight sim gamers, and people who will carry on this genre and see through all the changes - good and bad. Most people may ridicule or go hard-ball agaisnt young gamers, but I am 100% sure that they don't really mean it. All this may be disheartening for you, but think of it as the ages and burdens of life the players are showing.
Some may hate you. I'm pretty sure a lot hate me, when it comes down to love or hate. But that doesn't bother me in the fact that I like my Luftwaffe planes, I love the feel of the sim itself. I'll probably be playing AH until Judgement day, if AH lasts that long.
So keep chugging on, Spade. You are not alone. You are still like a padoowan, not necessarily in gaming skill, but in social connections and friend-making. It could be tough, but keep the game going - and try to understand that most of us may not think or react in the manner that you feel friendly.
For one thing, whatever solace it may be, I don't hate 'cha Spade.
ps) Man, I'm drunk. i'm going all soft!
You guys wouldn't believe what Korean rice-wine can do to a person. *hic!*
