Please forgive the rambling nature of this post, I had alot of thoughts to cram in and its busy today at work, no time to really sort them out. I hope its readable and understandable.
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I think it was successful enough for what it was. A chance to furball, free of other obligations. The problem is, thats not what we pay 15 bucks a month for. Or at least I dont.
I want some hint of realism in my gameplay. Or I should say, AT LEAST a hint of it. Its nice to fuball mindlessly sometimes, to break stress or monotony, or just for the pure fun of pushing your luck. And for that, I think a small Furball Arena or Fightertown, would be an excellent addition to the HTC lineup. I mean, they had room for a second MA, why not use it as such if they dont need it all the time? With a dedicated map designed for such things, we would have it all. A "training" arena, for new guys to go learn to fly, learn ACM, and practice what they learn anytime without the stress of scores or squads, or strat targets, or being shot down; a "dueling" arena, for setup fights between small numbers of people at a time, for specific purpose; a "furball" arena, for mindless ACM fun anytime, where guys can go to test their SA and gunnery skills in a free-for-all atmosphere; a "historical" arena, for more realistic, "historic" matchups (what I see as free form scenarios); a "special events" arena for scenarios; and a big Main Arena where we can wage war back and forth in any plane we want, and experience the entire spectrum of fighting and land grabbing at its best.
I think the Rangoon map has its limitations as a Fightertown map, and people moved on. It was a novelty, and at first people were willing to overlook the shortcomings of the terrain to play with the new idea. A painting is a painting, a picture is a picture. But you put either one in the proper frame, and it becomes more attractive. You frame something right, you can call almost anything art and sell it as such. What I'm saying is, presentation is everything. How it looks, how it hangs, and how it's advertised will turn a paint-by-numbers sheet into valuable art.
Alot of people put down the BBS as a means of advertising. I admit its not the only tool. But it IS effective. When people are discussing an issue on the boards, interest is piqued in the game setting as well. People test and try and poke and prod if they think it will give them something to use in a post later on or tomorrow on the BBS. Face it, we all like being part of something bigger. Its human nature. Which is why the MA gets most of the numbers. If you want to draw MA customers, you have to provide them with the feeling they are PART of something. Thats partially why our CT numbers keep dropping, is because MA folks get the feeling the CT is a private club and they have a visitor's pass. We have our own forum on the BBS. We have our own "stars", whether they are famous or infamous. And with the fading of the CT squads, we have fading of the CT numbers. There is NEVER going to be more than a visitor mentality from regular MA folks in the CT. What we need is not to draw more MA folks who occasionally fly the CT, but to recruit our own crowd who flys mostly in the CT and maybe sometimes in the MA. For that, we need maps gentlemen, and we need squads. Pure and simple. Instead of vilifying and breaking up the JG54, we should be using them as a model (minus the grouchiness lol) to build more squads. They fly together. They watch each other's backs. They prevent the stuff we gripe at them for doing from happening to their members. Thats not bad, thats what a squad does! We need something that captures the imagination and lets people feel they are part of something again. We had it in AH1, we can have it again. But running Ackinawa and BoB over and over again isnt going to get it, nor is treating every new guy that comes in for a flight like he's unwanted. He's not.
