Ai moderation?

[nrshida]

Call Hitech and talk to him about it. I don't think it would mater, nor work the way you hope it would. "Monday Night Madness" runs every Monday, its been around a long time, it is well known yet they barely get more than a dozen players to last an hour or two. There just isnt that many "fighters" left that fly just for the fun of fighting.

That's a pre-arranged once weekly use of the SEA2 arena with a restricted subset of planes. I fear you've missed my point. If there's somewhere else to play away from the early morning mindless base-taking grind then maybe people would fly and go to the MA when the hordeing stops, which is does abruptly once the ringleaders log off. If it's a persistent HiTech-hosted Arena you are offering parallel opportunities to fly.

Yes I would expect it to be largely unpopulated at first for reasons Shane said. To be fair so are the WWI arena, and that bizarre Steel the Sheep arena which have been permanently hosted since AH3 and also typically empty.

I find it bizarre with all the work and emphasis on a realistic flight model than HiTech doesn't host such a room already in a game named Aces High. Why on earth would any new OR RETURNING player find the low-number MA gameplay attractive?

[JimmyD3]

With all due respect, I STILL find the MA attractive game play. I believe those that do fly the MA feel pretty much the same way. Can it be improved? Yes absolutely.

Seems everyone one liked the DA in AH2, I see no reason that could not be duplicated in the Special Events Arena. Once the map is made it can be administered by almost anyone. Of course I never went to the DA, and I suc in a fighter any way. 

[Max]

Why was Furball Lake DA removed as a player option?

 I agree with nrshida's consensus: morning EST hours between 7:00 & 10:00 in Melee always involves a horde of Bish, capturing base after base until the map is won & reset. The morning Bish (read: Joker's Jokers) claim this time frame best suits their' needs and say it's their way of having fun. I get it.

Presently, there's no real alternative to this scenerio. For those who enjoy air to air combat vs toolshedding, GV battles etc, the options are few...go up against the 4+ to 1 horde or duke it out with AI in Match play.

If it's a matter of server limitation, ditch WW1 & Steal the sheep.

My guess is that it would drive more income. What would be the downside of resurrecting Furball Lake for 6 months and weighing the pros & cons?

[Shane]

Why was Furball Lake DA removed as a player option?

 I agree with nrshida's consensus: morning EST hours between 7:00 & 10:00 in Melee always involves a horde of Bish, capturing base after base until the map is won & reset. The morning Bish (read: Joker's Jokers) claim this time frame best suits their' needs and say it's their way of having fun. I get it.

Presently, there's no real alternative to this scenerio. For those who enjoy air to air combat vs toolshedding, GV battles etc, the options are few...go up against the 4+ to 1 horde or duke it out with AI in Match play.

If it's a matter of server limitation, ditch WW1 & Steal the sheep.

My guess is that it would drive more income. What would be the downside of resurrecting Furball Lake for 6 months and weighing the pros & cons?

The MPA which was supposed replace DA/Furball to have a more formalized structure/options was never completed.




I also said this back on page 15: "I'm also seeing fatigue set in with other [morning] non-bish players; they just express it more politely. Hope they stick around."

[nrshida]

 

Why was Furball Lake DA removed as a player option?

Dale did mention once it was deserted when they closed AH2 which is a false-positive I think. AH3 had been beta-testing in parallel for 9 months I think and a lot of the regulars were on old PCs and were openly saying they didn't want to spend the money upgrading. I should know. I lived there. As I said I wouldn't expect miraculous re-population. That sort of do-it-yourself flying has been bred out. Getting some old players back might be a possibility.

[Max]

Going back more than 10 years to the days of AH2 may leave some margin for error but I tend to recall mid afternoon Furball Lake population #'s generally in the 30's - 40's range.

Again I ask, what's the down side of making it available again?

[LilMak]

I agree with nrshida's consensus: morning EST hours between 7:00 & 10:00 in Melee always involves a horde of Bish, capturing base after base until the map is won & reset. The morning Bish (read: Joker's Jokers) claim this time frame best suits their' needs and say it's their way of having fun. I get it.

Presently, there's no real alternative to this scenerio. For those who enjoy air to air combat vs toolshedding, GV battles etc, the options are few...go up against the 4+ to 1 horde or duke it out with AI in Match play.

The biggest problem I have with hordes is not that they exist. It’s that they have a distinct irreversible advantage over anyone who wants to take to the sky to defend against them. Your options are immediately being overwhelmed or simply deciding not to participate. It didn’t used to be that way.

For me it’s about time. Time to have a bit of success (or failure) before the entire group is bouncing me. Time to get my gear in the wells before all enemies are zeroed in on me. Not having to waste the 10 minutes to get to a reasonable altitude to fight before the base is taken and everyone lands. Time to get a pass or two on a set of bombers before I’m picked. Time to help the another defender before they’re overpowered and consequently get overpowered myself. Time to get one more pass on a M3 before I’m decimated. Surviving long enough that a teammate in the tower might decide that all is not hopeless and try to help. Tying up a group long enough to get some help. Time to enjoy, to the maximum extent possible, the limited time that I have to play.

AI, as an alternative to players is a waste of my money and…time. I pay to play with all of you. I desperately want to continue to do so. But the amount of fun I can extract as a defensive fighter pilot flying an average plane in the MA continues to diminish. Something needs to be done to combat the punishment of defending pilots before the MA devolves completely to base rolling hordes and defenders hopelessly running nothing but M3s and manning 88s.

The morning time is preview of what’s to come if it’s not addressed.

[Max]

The biggest problem I have with hordes is not that they exist. It’s that they have a distinct irreversible advantage over anyone who wants to take to the sky to defend against them. Your options are immediately being overwhelmed or simply deciding not to participate. It didn’t used to be that way.

For me it’s about time. Time to have a bit of success (or failure) before the entire group is bouncing me. Time to get my gear in the wells before all enemies are zeroed in on me. Not having to waste the 10 minutes to get to a reasonable altitude to fight before the base is taken and everyone lands. Time to get a pass or two on a set of bombers before I’m picked. Time to help the another defender before they’re overpowered and consequently get overpowered myself. Time to get one more pass on a M3 before I’m decimated. Surviving long enough that a teammate in the tower might decide that all is not hopeless and try to help. Tying up a group long enough to get some help. Time to enjoy, to the maximum extent possible, the limited time that I have to play.

AI, as an alternative to players is a waste of my money and…time. I pay to play with all of you. I desperately want to continue to do so. But the amount of fun I can extract as a defensive fighter pilot flying an average plane in the MA continues to diminish. Something needs to be done to combat the punishment of defending pilots before the MA devolves completely to base rolling hordes and defenders hopelessly running nothing but M3s and manning 88s.

Which is why pure and simple air combat offers an alternative, and Furball Lake satified that craving.

This isn't a plea for new planes, bombers or vehicles...or a rewrite or newly built graphics engine. We're simply asking for something we enjoyed and had fun doing be made available again.

 

[LilMak]

Which is why pure and simple air combat offers an alternative, and Furball Lake satified that craving.

This isn't a plea for new planes, bombers or vehicles...or a rewrite or newly built graphics engine. We're simply asking for something we enjoyed and had fun doing be made available again.

 

You’re not wrong. But I think the MA requires maximum contribution from all of us given the numbers. The sandbox is still pretty decent but there needs to be more of a focus on defensive air combat rather than offensive operations. As there always has been. As it stands right now, that balance is biased towards hordes having the advantage of numbers and situational awareness that defenders don’t have. Rather than curtailing offensive operations, defensive operations need a buff to encourage the conflict. One setting will help fix that.

[Max]

You’re not wrong. But I think the MA requires maximum contribution from all of us given the numbers. The sandbox is still pretty decent but there needs to be more of a focus on defensive air combat rather than offensive operations. As there always has been. As it stands right now, that balance is biased towards hordes having the advantage of numbers and situational awareness that defenders don’t have. Rather than curtailing offensive operations, defensive operations need a buff to encourage the conflict. One setting will help fix that.

Not to diminish your viewpoint, but..........in the heydey growth period of AHI & II (2002 - 2009) I recall dogfighting to be the meat & potatoes of the game.  Squads such as The Damned, AK's, BlueKnights, Muppets, The Few and another dozen I'm forgetting at the moment didn't give a rat's belly button about destroying strats, fighter, bomber or vehicle hangars, etc.; it was about air combat. I have no qualms over bettering game play...just asking for a dedicated arena where like minded people can up a plane (limited ride access is OK..the Mid War plane set was IMHO damned near perfect) Offer it as a stand alone or side by side subscription of $9.95. Drop a blitz email campaign to all former subscribers affering them a month's trial. Lord knows that any increase in player #'s is sorely needed. All I'm askinf for, and I don't think I'm alone here, is an alternative to the same old, same old win-the-map gameplay...which IMHO has gotten stinkier than a beaten, dead mule.

[Dadtallica]

It just doesn’t feel like there are that many to make it worth the hassle. Maybe Lusche has some data to share.

[nrshida]

You’re not wrong. But I think the MA requires maximum contribution from all of us given the numbers.

I don't think adding the DA back would subtract numbers from the present MA. Quite the contrary.

[nrshida]

It just doesn’t feel like there are that many to make it worth the hassle. Maybe Lusche has some data to share.

What hassle? It'd be an adjustment to the environmental configuration of an existent arena. If you don't want to fly at the lake don't. Some of us do is the point and there were a lot more of us before the game tipped way too far into the full-on base-taking focus. What a waste of a decent flight model.

[Max]

It just doesn’t feel like there are that many to make it worth the hassle. Maybe Lusche has some data to share.

What hassle? Implementing a set of already written code? Replacing a Steal The Sheep arena option that no one has set foot in for 10 years with a furball option instead? If it onlyu drew 10 - 20 players a day, what's the harm?

[nrshida]

Look at this: 2017, not even started by me:-

https://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/index.php/topic,389335.0.html

Not one concension since AH3 came out. Complaints about the MPA from the get-go. NOTHING to stem the flow of hordes ruining the gameplay for others. Three tiny bases turned back on to re-inject some fun back into what was once a fantastic hobby. Can you not empathise how bloody frustrating it is. Just give us back the lake is the tiny request we're making. Flying AH away from the hordes, ack-runners, bloody 88-mm, FLAK guns parked at the ends of the runway, score-potatos and bombers at 36k. FFS.