Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => Aces High General Discussion => Topic started by: JOACH1M on September 10, 2014, 01:03:28 AM
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If the MA had over 1000+ people in it?
I often wonder how the game would be if that was the case. :joystick: :airplane: :uhoh
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I often wonder how the game would be if that was the case. :joystick: :airplane: :uhoh
Fun.
Don't have to wonder that much, 'cause I was there when we went past 700 in one arena :old:
Of course, on a small map like ndisles it's getting ugly, you really need large maps for that.
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Aww yes, I'd get up early on a Saturday and log into LW Orange and already have 200+. Just couple hours later it would be near 400
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Used to literally wait in line to get into the MA.. hoping someone would log off so you could get in
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Used to literally wait in line to get into the MA.. hoping someone would log off so you could get in
That was either with the dual LW arena setup (which never had numbers that huge in a single arena), waiting to get into LWO,
or during a previous very short test run where an alternate method for arena balancing was tried :old:
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That was either with the dual LW arena setup (which never had numbers that huge in a single arena), waiting to get into LWO,
or during a previous very short test run where an alternate method for arena balancing was tried :old:
I think it was in 03 ..my memory is a bit Fuzzy lol I think arenas were color coded and the popular one was the hard one to get in...I'm thinking it was orange.
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I think it was in 03 ..my memory is a bit Fuzzy lol I think arenas were color coded and the popular one was the hard one to get in...I'm thinking it was orange.
September 2006 to June 2011
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If the MA had over 1000+ people in it?
I often wonder how the game would be if that was the case. :joystick: :airplane: :uhoh
It would be awesome sauce.
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Waiting in the Lobby for a break so you could get on, then furballs everywhere and fields getting taken and re-taken.
V-Tards going like locusts everywhere. Seeing "oink oink" on 200 when POTW landed kills. 250 middle aged men <S> Betty. Many complaints about HOing and picking (that hasn't changed).
More compact towns, NOEs that really were NOE. Radar coverage that resembled WW2 and not Star Fleet. Instant country swaperoonies (oops).
But numbers, big numbers. Maybe one day again. I hope so.
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If the MA had over 1000+ people in it?
I often wonder how the game would be if that was the case. :joystick: :airplane: :uhoh
Of course. Giant hordes fighting on every front. ACM would be next to useless, SA would take its place.
The most i have ever seen was ~550, on Trinity. Madness, targets and threats everywhere, constant and instant action.
Not saying that it would be bad, but would be totally different for sure. I wouldnt mind it any ways.
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How do we get there?
I think the free trial needs to be extended so the addiction needs to really get its claws into new players. Or maybe the first few months for a reduced amount (seems to work for cable companies),
Expanded training so we can get the noobs up to speed quicker.
Advertising.
More welcoming community to bring new players into the group.
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How do we get there?
I think the free trial needs to be extended so the addiction needs to really get its claws into new players. Or maybe the first few months for a reduced amount (seems to work for cable companies),
Expanded training so we can get the noobs up to speed quicker.
Advertising.
More welcoming community to bring new players into the group.
I agree the two week trial isn't very much at all it should be extended to one month, it can't hurt can it?
More welcoming community to bring new players into the group.
And trolls shouldn't be allowed to talk to noobs. :old:
Only people like 'trobe. :old:
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If the MA had over 1000+ people in it?
I often wonder how the game would be if that was the case. :joystick: :airplane: :uhoh
Expect one hell of an escorted bomb run. ;)
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I remember the 600+ nights well, that's the reason I'm sticking around and still subbing after all these years, I'm hopeful the new version will be both good enough to attract new players over from WT and elsewhere, as well as bring old/retired/etc players whom have been lurking about back out of the woodwork. I think HTC can get there, altering some game policies and gameplay stuff may not hurt either, but I still think everything standing pat as it is, with a new version without any new gameplay adjustments, stands a decent change of pumping the numbers back to the days of yore.
Somebody mentioned in another thread something about adding small infantry groups. I've made that suggestion years ago myself. Squad sized units controlled with the old FPS "wsad" system, with various armament selections (anti infantry, anti armor, etc). Also it would give the jeep and other infantry vehicles more of a purpose in the game, plus adding towed artillery would be very cool for attacking towns and such. It would add a huge fun dynamic to the game, and IMO, THIS feature could attract a lot of players, especially if it was made free to play. Infantry guys playing for free would see what fun the rest of would be having strafing them, bombing them, and crunching them with tanks, that it would IMO probably add at least 10 percent of these free guys to the paying roster, which I think would be a profitable venture bandwidth cost wise and such. Just an idea, but I think it would be great fun, and give more meaning to the existing ground units, and ground attack units as well. I don't know beans about the coding of the game, but I'll bet that it would pretty easy for HT to implement such a feature, and would again, add a massively fun new dimension to the game, something that could be ftp and would absolutely attract piles of potential new subscribers to the full game.
I know it's against some of the ethos and policy of what I've read from HTC way back about not opening up a premium subscription based game to the masses, but times have changed in the world of net gaming enough IMO to warrant such a venture. Look at the WoT and WT numbers, they are insane. Then look at Eve, a game with nearly 100k subscribers. Then the new Star Citizen venture, with 500k investors at 50 million bucks. I believe a blending of these idea with something along the lines of what I just described could only help propel HTC forward. With larger numbers, a ton of the negative waves from various players over various issues would take care of themselves for the most part IMO.
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September 2006 to June 2011
thanks lusche :salute
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I remember the 600+ nights well, that's the reason I'm sticking around and still subbing after all these years, I'm hopeful the new version will be both good enough to attract new players over from WT and elsewhere, as well as bring old/retired/etc players whom have been lurking about back out of the woodwork. I think HTC can get there, altering some game policies and gameplay stuff may not hurt either, but I still think everything standing pat as it is, with a new version without any new gameplay adjustments, stands a decent change of pumping the numbers back to the days of yore.
Somebody mentioned in another thread something about adding small infantry groups. I've made that suggestion years ago myself. Squad sized units controlled with the old FPS "wsad" system, with various armament selections (anti infantry, anti armor, etc). Also it would give the jeep and other infantry vehicles more of a purpose in the game, plus adding towed artillery would be very cool for attacking towns and such. It would add a huge fun dynamic to the game, and IMO, THIS feature could attract a lot of players, especially if it was made free to play. Infantry guys playing for free would see what fun the rest of would be having strafing them, bombing them, and crunching them with tanks, that it would IMO probably add at least 10 percent of these free guys to the paying roster, which I think would be a profitable venture bandwidth cost wise and such. Just an idea, but I think it would be great fun, and give more meaning to the existing ground units, and ground attack units as well. I don't know beans about the coding of the game, but I'll bet that it would pretty easy for HT to implement such a feature, and would again, add a massively fun new dimension to the game, something that could be ftp and would absolutely attract piles of potential new subscribers to the full game.
I know it's against some of the ethos and policy of what I've read from HTC way back about not opening up a premium subscription based game to the masses, but times have changed in the world of net gaming enough IMO to warrant such a venture. Look at the WoT and WT numbers, they are insane. Then look at Eve, a game with nearly 100k subscribers. Then the new Star Citizen venture, with 500k investors at 50 million bucks. I believe a blending of these idea with something along the lines of what I just described could only help propel HTC forward. With larger numbers, a ton of the negative waves from various players over various issues would take care of themselves for the most part IMO.
Good point. Be willing to pay 15 a month to fly planes. Or free to gv and have fps. Make it kinda like Arma 2. With guns.
Right now the market is wide open for a WWll FPS. Not only that but you will have better graphics than Europe at war. Or whatever the name of that game is.
I have $300 to give to a kick starter campaign for that. How much you guys willing to chip in
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Make Spit I free. But only 25% fuel. Lol :)
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Make Spit I free. But only 25% fuel. Lol :)
Would it be that terrible to have anything 40 ENY free, no ords? Just trying to imagine what the arena would look like with masses of free players.
Wiley.
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I know it's against some of the ethos and policy of what I've read from HTC way back about not opening up a premium subscription based game to the masses, but times have changed in the world of net gaming enough IMO to warrant such a venture. Look at the WoT and WT numbers, they are insane. Then look at Eve, a game with nearly 100k subscribers. Then the new Star Citizen venture, with 500k investors at 50 million bucks. I believe a blending of these idea with something along the lines of what I just described could only help propel HTC forward. With larger numbers, a ton of the negative waves from various players over various issues would take care of themselves for the most part IMO.
Or offer player controllable destroyers and submarines and open up the naval side? Or add player controllable landing ships that act as spawn points for tanks and ground vehicles...or FPS troops like you mentioned?
I think Dale and Doug could really expand the game and dramatically increase the player base with this new graphics engine by offering a more dynamic game-play with Air, Sea, and Land elements. And with the increased player base generating more revenue, they can add more builders and designers to make the game even more better.
And then Hitech can get all the Scotch whiskey he wants, and Pyro can finally buy that island off Costa Rica.
But what do we know Gman? ;)
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Subs have been a wishlist thing since Hitech first brought them up on the BBS probably 14 or 15 years ago, for me at least. I know HT's father is an x-submariner that was in the pacific on a US boat. Pretty cool stuff. It'd be just another great addition that is possible, which would only serve to expand the greater game at large IMO. What could be better than the old Microprose Silent Service vs real life opponents: make the destoryers have actual ASW WW2 technology like early sonar and depth charges and ASW mortars and the like. Stalking CV groups with your sub, using sonar and periscope and such. ASW missions from all the various aircraft of WW2 that performed that mission, dropping depth bombs, skip bombs, and fighting them off with deck 20 and 40mm guns. So much potential is still out there, I hope there is rapid success with the new version which keeps the lit fire under HTC burning hot - if that ends up being the case, the sky is the limit IMO.
I do still believe strongly that the time has come to blend both FTP and subscription in this game. There isn't many games out there that would have something like this, a FTP set of units like my infantry/ground idea, and I also could get behind what others just mentioned, maybe the Storch and a couple really really high ENY planes that would be free with 25 percent fuel from certain bases or something for the FTP crowd. That is a great idea whoever just mentioned that, another great vehicle for hooking FTP clients into the "meat" of this game, which is still the fighters and bombers and their superb flight, damage, and armament models and the combat which results from that. I truly hope HTC is considering something like this, as there is no better time to strike than right now IMO, what with the response that Star Citizen has gotten, and the fact that there is only one competitor, WT, which has nothing on AH in terms of current and future potential gameplay.
Another idea I have, which will be controversial I'll bet, but is current with the times with online gaming, is things like perk points and perhaps some very specialized aircraft, available for extra costs. I know a lot of the "fairness" brigade won't like this, but in terms of a revenue function, allowing subscribers to pay on a sliding scale for single use or even stockpiles of points, whatever form they be in, is a force all its own nowadays so far as driving customer retention and commitment. World of Tanks does this, while not being a monthly sub type of game, there is the ability to spend real life $ to get points others choose to grind out in real life time for. Again, controversial, but overall a very good feature IMO for the health of the company. I would in a second personally spend an extra 10 or 20 bucks or whatever for a couple thousand perk points in order to fly the 262 or perhaps future stuff like the P51H, or the L/W Arrow - stuff like that. Again, it'd be a huge change from how things are done now, and as many long term guys wouldn't necessarily be fans of it, with new players, it serves as a feature that further invests them into playing the game, and to keep playing it. Just my opinion, not a feature high on the list for me personally, but I've heard others mention it and feel that it should be put on the table at the very least.
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If the MA had over 1000+ people in it?
I often wonder how the game would be if that was the case. :joystick: :airplane: :uhoh
Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today...
Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace...
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one
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If the MA had over 1000+ people in it?
I often wonder how the game would be if that was the case. :joystick: :airplane: :uhoh
back in the day, sunday nights would have close to 1000.... I'm pretty sure I saw over 900 one time...
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Would it be that terrible to have anything 40 ENY free, no ords? Just trying to imagine what the arena would look like with masses of free players.
Wiley.
I would be all for it. More targets. Expanded opportunity to addict new players. It would pull old timers back in...seeing higher numbers.
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Say they could have 35 eny on up with ord full fuel tanks. Make me fill a little better about the slaughter
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If the MA had over 1000+ people in it?
I often wonder how the game would be if that was the case. :joystick: :airplane: :uhoh
I would just drool to see 400-600 on
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I think if you set up a feebie plane set, a few midwar fighters a tank or two and a buff or two as well as the goon you could draw a lot of players in with that and the new graphics and a bit of advertising. Sure I'd bet a number of people would quit their subscriptions to be happy with free and a very limited plane set, but I think the new paying subscriptions would more than make up for it, plus you would have all those midwar rides flopping around out there :devil
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I think if you set up a feebie plane set, a few midwar fighters a tank or two and a buff or two as well as the goon you could draw a lot of players in with that and the new graphics and a bit of advertising. Sure I'd bet a number of people would quit their subscriptions to be happy with free and a very limited plane set, but I think the new paying subscriptions would more than make up for it, plus you would have all those midwar rides flopping around out there :devil
something like the AvA Limited plane set limited ground vehicles, Planeset and terrain rotates once a week. paid members would also be able to fly in the same arena if they say so choose too.
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I think if you set up a feebie plane set, a few midwar fighters a tank or two and a buff or two as well as the goon you could draw a lot of players in with that and the new graphics and a bit of advertising. Sure I'd bet a number of people would quit their subscriptions to be happy with free and a very limited plane set, but I think the new paying subscriptions would more than make up for it, plus you would have all those midwar rides flopping around out there :devil
An exceptionally good idea. The new crew get the bait and get hooked and then once addicted like the rest of us front up to MA. That would also mean that there would be some acquired skill before they got into the MA as well and they wouldn't be so easily dissuaded from throwing their hands up with a collective "too hard".
Bravo
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An exceptionally good idea. The new crew get the bait and get hooked and then once addicted like the rest of us front up to MA. That would also mean that there would be some acquired skill before they got into the MA as well and they wouldn't be so easily dissuaded from throwing their hands up with a collective "too hard".
Bravo
I would do this in all arenas. If the free loaders want to hide in ew, or mw that will help the population in those arenas. If they fly in the mains they get to see everything going on. They have all the time they need to get use to the game as well as learning how to fly and fight. On top of that they will be more targets.
I think the frustration level for a new player would be less as they aren't wasting money getting their butts handed to them.
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Think it would be a good idea to offer like 6 months free with a one year commitment.
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Those were the days.
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I remember there being 450 on the AK pizza map had about 200 tanks attacking across the desert with the damned squad trying to stop them and getting the crap kicked out of us with the ostwinds.
I still have some screen shots somewhere of coach and max flying their typhies escorting me while I was trying to drop bombs on them. It really got the heart racing I tell you.
ab8aac/dmdchief
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We are starting to see old names popping up now, and I have a hunch it has something to do with the new upcoming engine. :) I may hardly play anymore, but I gladly keep paying out so I can do; A) Continue to support HTC; and B) Play whenever I feel like it. I just don't have the time I once had. :(
It is a system I'm happy with though. :aok
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I can remember 600+. It was a hoot
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Good point regarding vehicles. I don't really like GV'ing much at all, and I can't even be bothered to drop bombs on them, as for me personally the game is about a2a combat. Now, that said, when the arenas did have close to 600 players, and I did jump into GVs to see those huge 100 on 100 type fights, I admit that it was so much fun, and gave such a feeling of being in an event while in the MA. Huge numbers of human teamates and opponents made something I disliked, even detested in the game an absolute blast, something I would drop every other entertainment activity to do that day. All I could think of was the Kursk tank battle, and how random the "pa-ting" you're dead out of nowhere must have been like in a huge tank battle. I couldn't click the re up button fast enough.
This is what numbers can, and will do. Add in some of the changes suggested in this and other threads, even progressively and slowly, and I believe we could all see an explosion of popularity. I'd love nothing more to see a review at some gaming site like PC Gamer or the like, saying "this little known game that has survived 15 years and has a niche market, has now really come up with something to attract the masses as well as the premium subscription players, and you'll love it".
It can be done.
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It can be done.
Open world side based PVP is the killer. As long as that is what the game is, this game will never be popular.
Wiley.
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How do you explain Eve's popularity then? Is it not an open world with many sides, be they corporations, clans, whatever, that has PVP combat as one of, if not the primary game function? Do you mean something like that, where there isn't JUST pvp to do, but other stuff like mining or trading, whatever - to incorporate some other game function into AH to increase popularity? Can you expand/explain more if you have time?
I guess what I'm asking is what would you be proposing instead Wiley? IMO some of the largest and most popular games in the net in recent times are player vs player team based games. Look at Counterstrike, still going strong, still the largest $ maker next to Starcraft at live gaming pro events, and in the last decade, still unseated in terms of numbers of players online at one given time playing it. That from a game 15 years old as well, just like here.
Maybe I'm just not understanding what you're saying is all. If not a side based combat game with a map or "open world", then what else is there for this genre of WW2 combat to do? I don't get it (obviously). Do you mean a non PVP type game would be better for AH? Can you give an example of what you mean, or other game types that you're thinking would better suit the future with AH? I'm interested to hear, and think about those ideas, specifically what current successful non pvp type games you think would benefit things here in the future.
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How do you explain Eve's popularity then? Is it not an open world with many sides, be they corporations, clans, whatever, that has PVP combat as one of, if not the primary game function? Do you mean something like that, where there isn't JUST pvp to do, but other stuff like mining or trading, whatever - to incorporate some other game function into AH to increase popularity? Can you expand/explain more if you have time?
My basic premise is, for one reason or another, open world 'twitch' style PVP only gaming doesn't work. You've got it about right with the other stuff there is to do in EvE, IMO. EvE is also more along the lines of WoW in spaceships, where you simply click to target your target, and another button to fire. It gets more complex, but at the baseline of the game, that's what it boils down to. If you look at WoW, there are open PvP servers, but their numbers are a tiny fraction of the PvE servers. With both games, there's way more to do than just PvP.
The vast majority of the time, people PvE against AIs that are always there, they can always find something PvE to do, where if they had to depend on other players to provide them with opponents they wouldn't always find it. They also wouldn't be able to easily crush them.
I guess what I'm asking is what would you be proposing instead Wiley? IMO some of the largest and most popular games in the net in recent times are player vs player team based games. Look at Counterstrike, still going strong, still the largest $ maker next to Starcraft at live gaming pro events, and in the last decade, still unseated in terms of numbers of players online at one given time playing it. That from a game 15 years old as well, just like here.
Counterstrike is an excellent example. The difference between here and counterstrike and games similar to it, be they CoD, Titanfall, or whatever, is they are on small maps, with equivalent numbers balanced teams. World of Tanks and WT, same deal. Small map, equivalent numbers, vehicles balanced for fairness, simple objectives. WT/WoT is more similar to Counterstrike IMO than it is to this game by far. That is why they're vastly more popular than this, because people can get into instant action, with a somewhat fair fight, and it will be over at a scheduled time, or when the objective is accomplished. Then they can either choose to continue, or log to do something else.
That's what kills this game when a casual gamer is comparing the two. In AH, they log in, and it's completely random what may or may not be going on when they get into the tower. There may be action all over the map, it may be dead. Your side might be all balled up into one merciless horde, or it might be getting horded. You have no control over what situation you are logging into. Your HQ might be down, your strats might be leveled, all completely impossible for you to do anything about it other than resupply.
AH and WT have somewhat comparable gameplay, which to most gamers means "the plane will stall if you get too slow, some planes are faster than others, some planes turn better than others". They're not going to be appreciating the finer details of how aircraft handle. They just want things to feel different going from plane to plane so they have some variety to work tactics with.
Couple that factor with the round-based short objective fair fights, and it's what the vast majority of people want.
A far more similar game to AH is Planetside 2. The main difference is, PS2 has much more focus on infantry and ground combat in general, though it does have aircraft, but it is the same idea as this game. Relatively large maps, 3 countries, countries control territory and can capture bases from other countries as they are able.
When it first came out, lots of full servers, lots of people. Could always find a fight. After a couple/few months (sorry, I have no head for timeframes) numbers gradually fell off. Hording became popular because people discovered it worked. After a few months they had to start consolidating servers. The server I was playing on got merged twice the last time I checked, which basically means 3 servers were merged down to 1 to keep numbers high enough to not be boring. Roughly equivalent to 75% dropoff in players.
Now there were gameplay issues that people didn't like, aircraft had the capacity to REALLY kill a lot of infantry (surprise surprise) and a lot of people whargarbled and left supposedly over that, but at the end of the day, most of the reasons I saw people leaving boiled down to "x is unfair", regardless of what the actual unfair thing might be. Sound familiar?
I haven't logged into PS2 in a long time, but from what I've seen mentioned in passing, it's declined over time very similar to AH, only more rapidly. Probably still chugging along with a relatively hardcore fanbase and a rolling high turnover bunch of casuals. It's F2P.
GTA online is also similar, and you'll notice people really get bored playing the actual open world part of the game. You can run around, kill the other players, get chased by the cops, steal vehicles, and soforth, but it gets old and is unpopular for most people. Way more people do rounds based things like racing, PvP events that are (again) round based with an objective and a short timeframe, and co-op things that are round based with an objective and a short timeframe.
The free roaming part of the game is far from the most popular aspect of the game.
Maybe I'm just not understanding what you're saying is all. If not a side based combat game with a map or "open world", then what else is there for this genre of WW2 combat to do? I don't get it (obviously). Do you mean a non PVP type game would be better for AH? Can you give an example of what you mean, or other game types that you're thinking would better suit the future with AH? I'm interested to hear, and think about those ideas, specifically what current successful non pvp type games you think would benefit things here in the future.
Not entirely sure what 'working' would entail. Most of this game's strong points are things the majority simply aren't interested in. Relatively detailed flight in a 'stick and rudder' game is great for those of us that are looking for it, but we're vastly outnumbered by the people who just want somewhat different flight between planes and arcade physics, and a lot of people who are looking for more detailed flight wind up looking for stuff like DCS which is too far the other way for most AHers. Sorry, 15 minutes for me to warm up and takeoff my plane is fun like a spork vasectomy for me.
Counterstrike in Planes seems to work well for WT/WoT. They've also added in the skinner box "gotta gain new vehicles/ingame money" hook to keep people playing. Notice also that in WT, the Full Realism Battle part of it is relatively dead. Way more people want arcade than sim.
What I think would 'work' would not be a game I would want to play. What I think would work is either to effectively copy WT, or possibly have a game where it's open world, 2 sides. Only one side would be playable by people. The other side would be populated by AI and they would run really good looking missions that looked impressive, but would be relatively easy to defeat.
People would be able to up to defend their side from the evil AI planes which would make big scary looking attempts to capture our bases that were easy to stop, or they could capture an AI base, which would have a constant stream of AIs attempting to stop them. The key here would be to have the AIs appear fearsome, maybe knock a few pieces off your plane, but you'd still almost always win and be able to take their bases and shoot them down trying to take your base.
People would be able to land their kills and damage, and take bases, and get their attaboys, and nobody would feel bad because the other side did something unfair.
Open world, side based PvP means as long as the other side is another group of humans who have little to no restrictions placed on them, they will have the capability to make things unfair for your side at times, and the vast majority of gamers will not stand for that. It is the lack of restrictions on your enemies that makes it unpopular.
Unfortunately for guys like me, that's what I look for in a game most of the time. I like having to make do with whatever I have available to me in a random situation.
I hope wall of text made sense, will explain further if you'd like.
Wiley.