What IF

[Drano]

Yeah I never could figure out the idea behind the split. Maybe we were approaching the limits the system could bear with the numbers at that time? Only thing I could come up with. You'd think it'd be a "more the merrier" thing. There was, of course, an un-split that happened as the numbers dropped.

The numbers drop didn't come from any single reason, tho those that are still living in 2010 would certainly disagree. The internet and more specifically internet gaming is a totally different universe now than it was then. Sooo many more choices of games. Sooo many different genres of games. Sooo many new games to try. People will generally go for shiny new stuff. That's nothing new. AH, while we all know it to be a great game, is neither new or shiny. It just hasn't kept up and IMO that's what is killing it more than anything else.

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[The Fugitive]

Yeah I never could figure out the idea behind the split. Maybe we were approaching the limits the system could bear with the numbers at that time? Only thing I could come up with. You'd think it'd be a "more the merrier" thing. There was, of course, an un-split that happened as the numbers dropped.

The numbers drop didn't come from any single reason, tho those that are still living in 2010 would certainly disagree. The internet and more specifically internet gaming is a totally different universe now than it was then. Sooo many more choices of games. Sooo many different genres of games. Sooo many new games to try. People will generally go for shiny new stuff. That's nothing new. AH, while we all know it to be a great game, is neither new or shiny. It just hasn't kept up and IMO that's what is killing it more than anything else.

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Basically it was as the numbers rose in the MA it became harder and harder to make friends with everyone in the arena. Community was suffering as their were too many players to get to know. That caused "peer pressure" which was one of the arenas guiding principles to go away. With out that peer pressure toxic game play starts to flourish and other players dont have as much fun. As the fun goes down, so did the subscriptions. Splitting the arenas was an attempt to get the numbers per arena back down to where the fun was up and the toxic play was down without cutting the total number of players. The equipment was and still is able to handle a thousand players per arena but the social side of the game can only handle 300-400.

A quick search found this post from Hitech

[knorB]

multi wing squads.... horde noe base grab over and over..  hordes avoiding each other

removal of the best fighter town map

[DmonSlyr]

Basically it was as the numbers rose in the MA it became harder and harder to make friends with everyone in the arena. Community was suffering as their were too many players to get to know. That caused "peer pressure" which was one of the arenas guiding principles to go away. With out that peer pressure toxic game play starts to flourish and other players dont have as much fun. As the fun goes down, so did the subscriptions. Splitting the arenas was an attempt to get the numbers per arena back down to where the fun was up and the toxic play was down without cutting the total number of players. The equipment was and still is able to handle a thousand players per arena but the social side of the game can only handle 300-400.

A quick search found this post from Hitech

See and that's where their analytics failed them. The current customer base, happy with the large #s in one arena had a much better time during off hours with high #s where they could find good fights late into the night. As the #s got lower in each arena the fights became less fun and the current players left. The huge maps made fights sparse in the off hours and players had trouble finding action. Whatever new players came in would only be an equalizer to the ones who left bored of no action. Their models weren't predicting this apparently...

[The Fugitive]

See and that's where their analytics failed them. The current customer base, happy with the large #s in one arena had a much better time during off hours with high #s where they could find good fights late into the night. As the #s got lower in each arena the fights became less fun and the current players left. The huge maps made fights sparse in the off hours and players had trouble finding action. Whatever new players came in would only be an equalizer to the ones who left bored of no action. Their models weren't predicting this apparently...

You cant compare today with 20 years ago, nor could the management even remotely predict how things would change in 20 years. Today we barely make  critical mass in the MAs let alone have a large enough population to have a good social group. Cross communications are off due to too many bullies, there can hardly be the same type of community that we had 20 years ago.

"Fights got less fun".... LOL!!! Again, you have to realize that the majority of players have fun bombing, ground vehicles, and taking bases and so on. They were, and ARE having fun. If they left the best you could do was 20 players prime time.

[DmonSlyr]

Yeah I just think when you had a standard of 250 in the off hours and that dropped to 150 due to the double arenas, that effected the action of the gameplay and caused more to leave in a chain reaction. And not changing the maps to benefit a smaller threshold of players also had an impact. No one wants to drive away the tanker, bomber, jabo player base, but it did seem like the majority of the fighter base was driven off thus leaving those types of players left mostly. All I'm saying is that reading what hitech says it makes it seem like he wanted to grow the game by making it smaller, in order to not "ruin the community" aspect. Even though it was inevitable that a change in online gamers was coming. And leaving the arena with more players provided better fights for global players outside of US primetime  and thus kept fight larger for most players. Once these fights dried up, the euro and Asian players could not find enough action.

[Animl-AW]

Yeah I never could figure out the idea behind the split. Maybe we were approaching the limits the system could bear with the numbers at that time? Only thing I could come up with. You'd think it'd be a "more the merrier" thing. There was, of course, an un-split that happened as the numbers dropped.

The numbers drop didn't come from any single reason, tho those that are still living in 2010 would certainly disagree. The internet and more specifically internet gaming is a totally different universe now than it was then. Sooo many more choices of games. Sooo many different genres of games. Sooo many new games to try. People will generally go for shiny new stuff. That's nothing new. AH, while we all know it to be a great game, is neither new or shiny. It just hasn't kept up and IMO that's what is killing it more than anything else.

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Ya know, I tried not to believe you in our last convo, but even if we disagree on the whys, everyone will, the fact your insight seems to be correct is a sour reality. It's not hard to imagine that threads like this and a cpl others when the game is not shinny and new has had it's own major impact, that's why it's done, that's my reality you may encompass... and allowing it has changed my attitude 180.

It didn't have to be this way. Efforts could have been made.

Everyone handles things differently in life. Lost my GF to murder in 87. In the last 10 yrs I lost my wife, son, older brother, parents, my last GF about to lose a sister to cancer, all my closest friends, some things I can't even list here. Very few could withstand one of them without one n the chamber, I've had MANY. I've been through so much personal hell in my life but I still have the fire and ambition. I refuse to be defeated like a wet rag doll. I'll never ever throw in ANY towel.  I'm conditioned to coping. Some just fold into lethargic trances and watch their life tick away. I'm not one of them. SO I find it hard to understand why others can't overcome things the same way. If I can do it, anyone can do it. I'm not wearing their shoes, nor they mine.

The dogfighting genre has lost it's way to pretty graphics. When this game dies, MAs, furballs and scenarios with real humans will be gone forever., this too will pass in time.It's a rotten shame to watch some relish in joy to push the king over the cliff thinking they will benefit. These are vexations in life everyone should avoid, for every reason. I don't feel bad for them I feel bad for their spirit that is tainted.

ANYWAY, It's not that I didn't trust your words, We've known of each other for decades, but what I see going on, it nailed it home.

[Eagler]

There's plenty of fun in the evening btwn 8 and 10 est

I get my hour of ah addiction then

I don't need 5 to 10 hours of it a day like some of our favorite yt posters seem to lol

Eagler