Active Players

[Eagler]

AH is too macho for the youngin today..

They can't handle getting their rear ends handed to them over and over and over again like we did years ago that is needed to learn the principles of the game and get better..

So let's concentrate on smaller maps/ closer bases to make it better with the 100 a night we get now

 

Eagler

[Dadtallica]

<S> to all,
In my personal experience, I'm unable to transfer my joy for this game to young guys around me. Most of them are not interested in planes that didn't exist anymore -except on museums or aerial exhibitions-; neither the combat maneuvers required to be a good pilot on the game. The challenge or learning the principles of fly and kill on this game is another wall that the newcomers have.
The cost of the game doesn’t look like a big deal in many but some type of deal for new players could be an attraction point

This is probably the biggest hurdle AH will have and can do almost nothing about. WWII is not as top of as it was when we were all 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s; even earlier for others. I have teenagers and they are not taught about WWII enough to build the fascination.

[JimmyD3]

This is probably the biggest hurdle AH will have and can do almost nothing about. WWII is not as top of as it was when we were all 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s; even earlier for others. I have teenagers and they are not taught about WWII enough to build the fascination.

Agreed, and yet, Band of Brothers, Search for Private Ryan, and Midway all did very well in the box office as I recall.

[CptTrips]

This is probably the biggest hurdle AH will have and can do almost nothing about. WWII is not as top of as it was when we were all 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s; even earlier for others. I have teenagers and they are not taught about WWII enough to build the fascination.

Yet there are still plenty of successful WWII titles out there. 

Hell Let Loose
Post Scriptum
Battlefield 5
IL2 Box still sells millions
WWII planes don't seem to hurt WT bottom line

Even new WW2 combat sims being developed like Combat Pilot.  The $millions a project of that scale would require would be hard to green light if WW2 was a dead genre that couldn't be profitable.  That show industry insiders and investors don't see WWII as a unprofitable if properly approached.

IMHO, WWII is a perfectly profitable genre if you do everything else right.  I just don't think that is AH's main problem, due to the continued success of other WWII titles. YMMV.


[Edit]  Which is intended to be taken as a good thing.  If you love WWII, it appears you are not alone and it is not a deal-breaker of a genre.  What ever other challenges you face, the genre isn't going to stop you.

[Dadtallica]

True but all those games, even IL2 to some extent, are much more arcade driven than simulation. It’s the appreciation for the period hardware and tactics. This is where the distance from WWII will show the most. I don’t know the sales demos of those games but I’m guessing the WWII driven have less younger buyers but who knows.

You don’t see a lot of WWI game around these days.

Battlefield 1942 was one of my first big WWII purchase and I was so enamored that I could go from a first person shooter to a flight sim or otherwise. It also has some cool Africa maps. The later Battlefield Vietnam version was pretty cool too. I spent a lot of time flaming people in the F4.

[CptTrips]

True but all those games, even IL2 to some extent, are much more arcade driven than simulation.

You consider IL2 more arcade than AH?  I wouldn't describe either that way.  True there is a gradation.  No choice on the spectrum is wrong, just a different focus.  I'd put it on the spectrum like:


Less Arcade>------------>More Arcade
=======================
DCS..IL2.AH.............WT

Number of separating dots should be interpreted as distance on the scale.  So in between IL2 and WT but way closer to IL2 and both are pretty far from WT.

@0.02.

[Animl-AW]

DCS is being rated top by graphics, not game play, in fact it's rated low for game play. It's a SIM, not much more.

AH, because of MP, is much more fun then DCS and IL-2, no matter how you cook it. People who like strictly sims with a touch of game play kewl, have at it, you're in heaven. When is DCS going to decide on a single FM?

AH players are about game play and numbers in a single arena. DCS can't and will not touch that. DCS and WT are money pits that are slowly losing their numbers. Their peak is over. they have who they have. Some have returned here.

The human eye needs 1-2 seconds to focus,... ultra detail of an AC doesn't matter at all when it's gone in 1 second.

No matter the subject,....DCS. Usually a slightly negative thread of AH, DCS! I think some spend more time here then playing it. I do believe the subject was Active Players in AH. <smh>

[Dadtallica]

You consider IL2 more arcade than AH?  I wouldn't describe either that way.  True there is a gradation.  No choice on the spectrum is wrong, just a different focus.  I'd put it on the spectrum like:


Less Arcade>------------>More Arcade
=======================
DCS..IL2.AH.............WT

Number of separating dots should be interpreted as distance on the scale.  So in between IL2 and WT but way closer to IL2 and both are pretty far from WT.

@0.02.

I guess it depends on if we are talking about IL2 multiplayer or single player. I was more referring to the single player side where you can make the game arcadey.

[CptTrips]

I guess it depends on if we are talking about IL2 multiplayer or single player. I was more referring to the single player side where you can make the game arcadey.

I'm not sure I am understanding your point. 

Are you saying because IL2 has settings to enable game mode and relaxed physics stuff if you choose to select those options, that makes the IL2 franchise more arcadey?

That's confusing because I can do the same thing in AH.  I  can go offline and set unlimited fuel and ordinance and set invulnerable and enable easy mode flight model.  I wouldn't say that in any way made AH arcadey.

I guess it is a philosophy on how you want to measure a game at its highest possible settings, or it's lowest possible settings.   I'll judge a games arcadeyness (giving the spellchecker fits  ) by the realism that can be achieved at the highest settings possible.  Like I would judge the potential of a racer car driver by his best possible lap time and not his lowest.  I'm measuring for max possible performance.

I don't care if a game can be configured more arcadey than another.  What I care about is can a game be configured to higher realism than another. 

And then we can argue about what should be the criteria. 
And then we can argue about our qualifications to evaluate. 

[edge12674]

DCS is being rated top by graphics, not game play, in fact it's rated low for game play. It's a SIM, not much more.

AH, because of MP, is much more fun then DCS and IL-2, no matter how you cook it. People who like strictly sims with a touch of game play kewl, have at it, you're in heaven. When is DCS going to decide on a single FM?

AH players are about game play and numbers in a single arena. DCS can't and will not touch that. DCS and WT are money pits that are slowly losing their numbers. Their peak is over. they have who they have. Some have returned here.

The human eye needs 1-2 seconds to focus,... ultra detail of an AC doesn't matter at all when it's gone in 1 second.

No matter the subject,....DCS. Usually a slightly negative thread of AH, DCS! I think some spend more time here then playing it. I do believe the subject was Active Players in AH. <smh>

In the "hayday" of 600 players (even +200) you are correct that AH was the place to be.  Unfortunately, that has not existed for a long time, for a variety of reasons.  When the numbers in AH are low there really isn't much to do, so AH and your sim gear sits idle. 

Where DCS and IL2 endure is a decent A/I that allows for PvE and single player.  With combat flight sims being a niche, the more you have to rely on participation of others the less "bang for the buck" you are going to get.  You only need a couple players with PvE to have fun and the comradery.  If you only prefer going against humans then both DCS and IL2 have smaller maps and therefore you only need about 30 players, which is not hard to find at all. 

When I could carve out some time to play AH my routine was to log in and see if there were enough players with  a decent dar bar indicating a good fight.  Those instances became fewer and fewer, which resulted in logging off and finding something else to do.  With DCS/IL2 I can check for the same things and, if it is not available, I still have a wealth of single player missions available in whatever aircraft I feel like flying.  In short when I feel like I want to fly combat it is available 24/7.

With WWII aircraft, the graphic detail becomes much more relevant.  Not long ago I was flying a pony mission in DCS and lit up a 190 at point blank range.  Quite something to SEE the 190 canopy fly off and the pilot animatedly climb out of the aircraft to bail out.  Detailed ground terrain and ground units, along with good smoke/fire affects, increase the immersion and that is why we are all playing.

Bottom line is playtime is one of the most precious human commodities and everyone has to choose what gives them the most satisfaction.  Don't let any one game make you hang up you flight gear without checking out the others.

[waystin2]

(Image removed from quote.)

We are tasty! 

[icepac]

It would be cool to see a graph of subscriptions along a timeline detailing dates of changes.

[CptTrips]

It would be cool to see a graph of subscriptions along a timeline detailing dates of changes.

Lusche has posted one before.

Hard to draw conclusions from correlations, but it was interesting.  There was an interesting inflection starting with the cancellation of Tour of Duty (or whatever it was called).  Of course that was also proximate with the after effects of the GFC.

Lies; damned lies; and statistics.

[LCADolby]

The Gentlemans Flying Club has nothing whatever to do with anything, they are fine fellows.

[RichardDarkwood]

Aces High is the " Minecraft " of flight sims