Changes to come.

[RAPIER]

Is AH a war game or a WW11 flight sim?
 I think of it as wargaming, otherwise why have capture devises like C47s, and bombers to level ememy abilities to react, and so on.
If people just want to fly and dogfight, have a dog fight arena, and for others have a war game arena.
Opps, think we already had that choice before.  Just that almost everyone went into the MA to win a war.  MY, MY!
I loved the ability on one night or within one night to find fights, or join with friends to capture the other guys (and girls) stuff.  I enjoyed going off to hit troops and ord at rear bases while others did their thing.
Now, last night I flew rook for the first time, I had fun, killed 5 or 6 Bish, but I didn't know any of the rooks, and none of the Bish I killed were known to me either.
People are spread all over the place now, so having comrades you know and understand, is gone.  Is that a good thing?
Change the game to make it more balanced, sure!  Take away what it is people seem to want, hmmmm, maybe not so good.  Hope it all works out.
There may not be a right answer for all the "self interest" going on, but hopefully there is a right way to accomodate all. (or most)

[68KO]

Hitech,
Great stuff, we had some minor problems 1 guy waited 15 min and 1 waited 5 out of all the people in the squad. After that no problems what so ever.

Just an idea you might concider.
Is there anyway possiable that when a person is waiting in que for there time to come up and fly they can man a gun somewhere on a field,bomber or CV. This way when a person is waiting they can do something until there number comes up to fly.

just an iadea like on squad night that 1 guy had to wait for 15 min and we still switch country and tried to get him in. We where in about 21 b24's and it would be great if that pilot could of maned a gun in one of the bombers or field ack until his number comes up. Is this possiable with out throwing off the side balancing system?

Thanks and keep up the good work:aok

[JB89]

Jim Beam, they have turned this game in to nother one i knew (EA) 7 years ago it was all squads squads and now it has turned in to to (EA sports) lmao and it will be no more squads just fur balls sad to think after all hitec has been through it ends up like this sad very sad we had i total of 4 squad members out of 12 thats could fly with us because of this set up arenas with early ,late years we all pick one and this happends bad enough with the arena change but guess this is what it turns in to and you wont change them its all about the money for every old timmer they think they will get 3 noobe and they might but this is the same thing we old timers went through in the other game, god to fly wit ya see how long it last <>

[john9001]

i keep hearing about people who don't want to fight, i havn't found them , everyone i come across wants to fight me , in fact they all want to fight me at the same time, they must just be looking for "fun".

[killnu]

See Rule #4

was actual question...not response to anything...post was made late on monday...day they said changes was going into effect...in first post of this thread.

Thanks for play on name of squad...cute.

[Gunston]

I started playing aces high after seeing a commercial on the discovery wings or maybe the History channel sometime in 2001 or 2002. I thought “great a way to use the computer to in some small way get a sense of what it was like to fly in WWII”. I love aviation, my dad is a private pilot, (I got my pilots license in 2004 mostly because of my love for the game). I live near the U.S. Air force museum and had been there hundreds of times in my life. But it took on a whole new meaning after the game I truly felt that I had an understanding of the aircraft, how they stacked up against each other, their strengths and weaknesses.
When I started playing I thought it was the greatest thing in the world, really I did. I drove anyone who would listen crazy with talk about its realism. A friend of mine, who’s dad was a B-24 pilot would never believe that it wasn’t “just a video game played by a bunch of kids” I would tell him “most of these guys are my age (41 or so then) or older. They know a lot about the planes, pilots, and history of WWII. He would literally lose his patience and say things like “they are kids lying to you about their age”. I played the game constantly making me exhausted every day at work because of playing so late the night before. And I might add my wife was the classic Aces High widow.

The game made me a knight by default the first time I played it. I have never and will never play as anything else because in my Walter Mitty world of aces high that was where I was born. If I were born in Germany and came of age during WWII I would have fought against overwhelming numbers but I would not have quit or changed countries. If I were born an American or Russian I would have been part of an overwhelming horde, a simple matter of chance.
I told my cousin (SirPyro) about the game on Christmas in 2003 I told him "it’s like a drug don’t start if your not willing to devote a lot of time to playing it". The first time he got on he played for 72 straight hours. He joined the squad I was in the 113th Lucky Strikes. And he was always on. Another of our squad members was GunRunner he could always be counted on to show up for our Saturday Squad night.
 I haven’t seen SirPyro on for a couple of months, since the changes started kicking in. GunRunner sent the squad an email last week that “the game had lost its luster” and he had cancelled his account. I myself signed up for the free trial of Warbirds and WWII online to check them out but didn’t really like either of them. So now I never play except on Saturday Squad night mostly out of a since of obligation to the 1 or 2 guys that still show up.

You guys and my friend are right,  it is just a game now but man it used to be so much more.

[MachNix]

Originally posted by NoBaddy
Actually, there is a 4th. The group that just wants to have some fun. This type of player will generally tolerate the actions of the other types. That is, until those actions begin to impact the fun.

There is a 4th but not as you describe and they are not worth mentioning.  A person can have fun flying/GVing alone.  They can have fun flying/GVing in a group.  What else is there group-wise?

I definitely see that the race to the reset as being a problem.  I think requiring a percentage of the other country to win the war address this problem.  What I see, or rather hear about on the BBS, is the solo pilot running into two other guys flying as a team.  The solo pilot gets shot down on the second move and then starts screaming about “hordes” and “number imbalance” ruining his fun.  Then the solution to this issue is to not allow those two guys to fly together.   And no one cares that those two guys where having fun working together because, after all, they where ruining the game for all the other 700 members that where logged on at the time.

Maybe that is an over simplification but I feel that having HTC dictate what you can fly, where you can fly, when you can fly, and who you can fly with hurts more than it helps.

[MWL]

Greetings,

What I see, or rather hear about on the BBS, is the solo pilot running into two other guys flying as a team. The solo pilot gets shot down on the second move and then starts screaming about “hordes” and “number imbalance” ruining his fun. Then the solution to this issue is to not allow those two guys to fly together. And no one cares that those two guys where having fun working together because, after all, they where ruining the game for all the other 700 members that where logged on at the time.

Exactly.  To me this game is about having a wingie and working as a team.  Not about 'turning and burning'.

The squad / communittee aspect is exactly what is missing for me.  That was the heart of the game.  Heck if I was only interested in kills I wouldn't be flying Jugs all the time!

I just think we can design a map that will encourage the type of play that HTech wants without the mandatory fly with x team to even the numbers and balance the needs of the Gamers and the War Gamers!

Regards,

[NoBaddy]

Originally posted by MachNix
There is a 4th but not as you describe and they are not worth mentioning.  A person can have fun flying/GVing alone.  They can have fun flying/GVing in a group.  What else is there group-wise?

I definitely see that the race to the reset as being a problem.  I think requiring a percentage of the other country to win the war address this problem.  What I see, or rather hear about on the BBS, is the solo pilot running into two other guys flying as a team.  The solo pilot gets shot down on the second move and then starts screaming about “hordes” and “number imbalance” ruining his fun.  Then the solution to this issue is to not allow those two guys to fly together.   And no one cares that those two guys where having fun working together because, after all, they where ruining the game for all the other 700 members that where logged on at the time.

Maybe that is an over simplification but I feel that having HTC dictate what you can fly, where you can fly, when you can fly, and who you can fly with hurts more than it helps.

Sorry, but not all of the people that I am talking about are your version of 'solo' pilots.

I will agree that the 'race to reset' is the part of the problem. However, another part is that too many players these days are unwilling to play the game without the crutch of superior numbers. Whether it's because of a lack of skill, low virtual testosterone, simple laziness or a desire to "play the game realistically" makes no difference. When those players decide to dominate the game, "fun" will often disappear for their opponents. When those players try to dominate the game on a long term basis....HTC decides to try some behavior modification.  

The point is that what HTC is attempting to do is to make the game fun for as many people as possible. As with any change that has come in this (or any other game), the changes bring out a storm of pissin' & moanin', threats to cancel accounts and prepubecent temper tantrums. If you want to change things here, come to the table with clear, well thought out suggestions. The "this sucks, change it back" and "I'm gonna quit if...." posts are guaranteed to be ignored.

When it comes to your oversimplification, HTC has always, in one fashion or another, limited game options for the good of the game. Nothing new there, excepting of course that these are the most draconian limits thus far. Since this stuff started a few years ago, HT has made numerous attempts to 'encourage' behavior changes....all to no avail. Well, doubtless these changes have gotten the attention of the horde monkeys. Now, I plan to kick back for a bit and see what happens.

Who knows, HT might actually have a few clues. (Heater..if you read this...note I said a "few")

[2Slow]

What is next?  No fair, no fair!  I keep getting killed due to lack of ability and SA.  We need to balance this.  If one sucks, then the enemy can only shoot rubber bullets (low velocity, will always bounce and do no damage).  On the other hand, you get a positive balance of a hit bubble of 300 feet around the enemy.  Close would count for you.

Warfare, balance, fairness.  Sounds like peace to me.

[Stiletto]

Originally posted by hitech
Stiletto:

How much do you make a year.
How much have you paid in taxes last year.
How much did you pay for your house.
How much do you spend on drinking each year.
How much do you spend on food each week.
Can you please post all your bank account transactions for the last month?


Hope you  understand the drift of my post.

HiTech

Do you pay me a monthly fee for a service?
Have you been paying it faithfully, month after month, year after year?
Have I changed the service radically, without sending you a survey to fill out, and without explanation?
Do I have a subscriber-based business that relies on the good will of my subscribers in order to survive?
Would I be an idiot to offend you for no reason?

Hope you understand the drift of my post.

[Mystic2]

 What I see, or rather hear about on the BBS, is the solo pilot running into two other guys flying as a team.  The solo pilot gets shot down on the second move and then starts screaming about “hordes” and “number imbalance” ruining his fun.  Then the solution to this issue is to not allow those two guys to fly together.   And no one cares that those two guys where having fun working together because, after all, they where ruining the game for all the other 700 members that where logged on at the time.

Maybe that is an over simplification but I feel that having HTC dictate what you can fly, where you can fly, when you can fly, and who you can fly with hurts more than it helps. [/B]

<> FINALLY!!!  well said....  

[SKBG Seadog]

Over the years I have posted very little about what I do like and don't about the AH game. I don't get into flaming on the R/T nor on the Fourms.
 When I want to just fly a Flightsim I fly Microsoft FS for General Aviation flying. That is a Flightsim. When I fly AH I'm flyng an Air Combat sim. Without the comradeship of the Sq or Group I wouldn't have paid to fly any online sim. I can just fly a Combat sim against the AI. AH is an Air Combat sim. It take statagy,tatical, leadership,and skill. And yes for the game to keep people to spend money month after month for years it takes people wanting to belong to more than just a sim. I have had the great privage of flying with some very good people over the years. I have learned alot and still learning and enjoying their company when in sad times and good times. At times it has been good threopy as when my wife's heart attack, when my Son in Law was killed and just life sometimes. Also the good times I have shared such as the birth of my Grandsons and Granddaughters. And I have shared The good and bad of those hume I fly and fight with. My Sq.
Those of you who haven't flown in a good Sq I can't explan what it means to be lucky enough to have that comrandship.
When the SkyKnights moved the AH we looked at the countries. Very few wanted the Rooks. The rook were always the lowest in numbers. So we thought it was a good place to start as an underdog. We done good working with other Sqs. Well I can go on and on. But the Sq and country is an important patr of and "Combat Flightsim". I hope Dale, things will workout for AH. I know you work hard. I have watched you work. And I hope this will give at least a bit of reading for you to consider.

                                                       Thank you

                                                 Seadog   SkyKnights Bomber Fighter Group

                                                         Thank you.

[HomeBoy]

Somebody needs to say this...
Great post Gunston!  

Originally posted by Gunston
I started playing aces high after seeing a commercial on the discovery wings or maybe the History channel sometime in 2001 or 2002. I thought “great a way to use the computer to in some small way get a sense of what it was like to fly in WWII”. I love aviation, my dad is a private pilot, (I got my pilots license in 2004 mostly because of my love for the game). I live near the U.S. Air force museum and had been there hundreds of times in my life. But it took on a whole new meaning after the game I truly felt that I had an understanding of the aircraft, how they stacked up against each other, their strengths and weaknesses.
When I started playing I thought it was the greatest thing in the world, really I did. I drove anyone who would listen crazy with talk about its realism. A friend of mine, who’s dad was a B-24 pilot would never believe that it wasn’t “just a video game played by a bunch of kids” I would tell him “most of these guys are my age (41 or so then) or older. They know a lot about the planes, pilots, and history of WWII. He would literally lose his patience and say things like “they are kids lying to you about their age”. I played the game constantly making me exhausted every day at work because of playing so late the night before. And I might add my wife was the classic Aces High widow.

The game made me a knight by default the first time I played it. I have never and will never play as anything else because in my Walter Mitty world of aces high that was where I was born. If I were born in Germany and came of age during WWII I would have fought against overwhelming numbers but I would not have quit or changed countries. If I were born an American or Russian I would have been part of an overwhelming horde, a simple matter of chance.
I told my cousin (SirPyro) about the game on Christmas in 2003 I told him "it’s like a drug don’t start if your not willing to devote a lot of time to playing it". The first time he got on he played for 72 straight hours. He joined the squad I was in the 113th Lucky Strikes. And he was always on. Another of our squad members was GunRunner he could always be counted on to show up for our Saturday Squad night.
 I haven’t seen SirPyro on for a couple of months, since the changes started kicking in. GunRunner sent the squad an email last week that “the game had lost its luster” and he had cancelled his account. I myself signed up for the free trial of Warbirds and WWII online to check them out but didn’t really like either of them. So now I never play except on Saturday Squad night mostly out of a since of obligation to the 1 or 2 guys that still show up.

You guys and my friend are right,  it is just a game now but man it used to be so much more.

[SlapShot]

Originally posted by hitech
john9001:  

Do not believe I have ever said that.

What I have said is more along the lines of it is not a simulation of WWII.

HiTech

What you said is in my signature.