Why are they leaving?

[bongaroo]

Why? Its part of the game.

Keeps you on your toes, and if you notice it soon enough, POOF!!, great fight ensues.

Negative.  You up, kill a few, and they go off to find a different base to steal with no defense.  I've hardly ever seen a good fight follow a failed NOE sneak. 

The whole reason they are going NOE is to avoid a fight.  It doesn't bother me much that it happens from time to time.  But entire groups of people in game think they have mad "skillz" for doing it over and over again.

[dedalos]

Its funny that everyone has a theory, but they wont take the word of the people that don't play any longer 

[bongaroo]

Its funny that everyone has a theory, but they wont take the word of the people that don't play any longer 

I know what Corky, Raptor, and a few other friends of mine have said.  Most revolve not on the game as provided by HTC but on what the mindless masses do in it.

[Animl]

Lately several old timers have put their planes up in the hanger for good. And a few others have said they're close to doing the same. This bothers me. I feel like the old guard is leaving in masses, taking with them skill and class that this game sorely needs.

Most of them say they don't like the way the game is turning. But what does that mean? Is it the large maps,split arenas,hordes,smack taking,hoing, running,toolshedding,vulching,and milking?
Is it all of those things,just one or a combination of things? Is it the negative vibes on these boards. The witch hunts and shade vulchers. Or has the game just run its' cotomato with them and they just want to move on.

I suspect they are tired of the gangs and the dogeatdog mentallity of the MA. Folks more worried about ranks and K/D or K/S. I wasn't around for AW. But from the things I've read from them about it, 1 on 1 fights were the norm and all the stuff i listed above didn't exist. They just didn't do it for the most part. I came in as AH1 was ending and it was always a massive hoarde on one huge map. So to me the MA mentallity has always been insane most of the time.

So my question is, why do you think they're leaving. Is it the player base or the game itself.

As an old AW old timer you nailed it. Although I have only been back for a while so it hasn't gotten to me yet. But it's working on it. The cry baby stunts and perpetual whining is way over nauseating, and makes some of us embarrassed FOR some of those whiners. Too much testosterone over load and not enough class. No country is any different then the other, and we are all here for the same reasons....why slam each other to death? And before I go on yes it DID exist in AW,... but the difference is, when you got out of hand in AW, the masses let you know and shamed you back in line, or a GA like me would come along and straighten it out, properly. This stuff where everything is automated and no personal touch has it's draw backs. Sometimes you need to pull a player off to the side and explain things to them, AT THE MOMENT, not days later in some BB. *I* think the game needs visible GAs who give a human touch to issues and take time to make sense to the players. A voice of reason. I don't think hiding moderators is the answer. If you need to be hidden then you're not doing something right IMO. Make GAs visible and it has a much different effect.

Some in here just keep provoking more of the same as if that's the way. I can name a few perpetual buzz kills in the game but I won't, they know who they are and we all know who they are.

But that's just me

Animl

[Animl]

Maybe when they go back to the "good ol' days" they only remember the good fights they've had, never the bad ones. I don't know if there was like 1000s of players on each server of AW, but I would probably have to say, there either wasn't that many people playing AW, or they had many arenas.

I always have, and always will like this game, very fun, and always has been.

At one point there were 10s of 1000s enrolled in AW.  AW Bigweek still holds the record of the most players in one arena... that I know of unless AH topped that. It was a sick but cool amount of people.

Animl

[SlapShot]

I have said since the week of the arena splits that I don't see how the concept of players finding a "home arena" is possible with unique arena setups along side the same old open plane set arenas.

Maybe I am I don't understand what you are saying here ... but I have made MW my "home". I will on occasion, venture into the LW arenas, but when I first log in ... it's the MW that I go to first.

There is a "core" of people in MW, that I would be safe in saying that they would call it "home" ... over the other arenas.

As far as I am concerned ... the "split" was a God Send for me ... had that not happened ... I probably would have hung up my gear quite some time ago.

[Animl]

I think it is just because of the same old boring crap...Same basic game same old thing everyday...

Every single night, without exception, there is more then one person complaining about HOs they line themselves up with. It's putrid and lame. If you don't want to be HOed stopping lining up in the HO. There are a zillion ways to avoid an HO,.. but you have to actually USE them. Whining about it without doing anything yourself just means you're a cry baby. <shrug> I say "you as in people in general, not you yourself. Stop being cry babies and "fly your plane my way or you're a loser". Some people take the game entirely too serious, ralax, humor yourselves, be humble,..enjoy the game. When you enjoy provoking people more then fun in the game you need to check yourself, not others.

Animl

[Animl]

And your point of view is what is common and is missing the point some of the old timers are leaving.  Back in the day.... 1995-present online was about the community and not the game itself.  I started in AW DOS but didn't have the funds to play onine on Genie but did when it went AW4W (windows) on AOL and a few other platforms, we even eventually had Mac platform players with us PC players.  The community eventually got so big that the main message BBS was outside of the company and the BigWeek BBS was spawned and is still up today as far as I know.  To us in the day... AW and now AH is not just a video game and those that treat it like it is are why there are so many of the old timers leaving!

All the Best...

    Jay
 awDoc1

> BigWeek BBS was spawned and is still up today as far as I know.

yes it is.

Animl (who played AW in DOS and waited for pricing to go down before picking it back up in 94-95, and finally permanently in 96.)

[Animl]

lol... Popeye was in my squad for a long time.  There was someone else in my squad I can't remember his handle but it started with a Q... he was consistantly the best of all of us.

Moggy used to kick my a@@ although I did win on rare occasions.

Thanks for the trip down memory lane.

Popeye (and moggy) was a class act. just sayin.

Animl

[Murdr]

Maybe I am I don't understand what you are saying here ... but I have made MW my "home". I will on occasion, venture into the LW arenas, but when I first log in ... it's the MW that I go to first.

There is a "core" of people in MW, that I would be fase in saying that they would call it "home" ... over the other arenas.

As far as I am concerned ... the "split" was a God Send for me ... had that not happened ... I probably would have hung up my gear quite some time ago.

I'm talking about players in general.  AKAK is at "home" in MW too, so obviously some have found a home.  That situation appears to be in the minority though doesn't it?

[RedTop]

I haven't left...but spend much less time flying. Hours on a month are no indication of how much time I spend in the tower B.S.ing.

I stay mainly because of my squaddies....If it wasn't for them I would have parked my plane a year ago.

Things have changed in the arenas....gameplay and general attitudes. It's just not as much fun as it used to be but I still log on...fly a few hops with the guys and gal and log off. Spend a few days away and log on rinse and repeat.The hours upon hours I used to spend daily on here have long since gone away.

Between wife, golf and Work....AHII is WAY back on the burner.

Perhaps if some changes happened...gameplay...graphic s....etc. I would once again enjoy it like I used to....But after about 10 years of sims....Fighter Ace for a year or so...then here for the 8.5 or so...I'm winding down.

[LLogann]

FYI........ You are the guy in the tower that has advanced warning of an NOE.......... The base is flashing but no gv spawn in..... Hmmmm, what could that mean?  But you stay in the tower and watch instead of upping.  Why?  Because it'll mess up your score!  NOE's only keep score-potatos out of a fight.  Plenty of good fights via NOE's have I seen.

[/HIJACK OVER]

The whole reason they are going NOE is to avoid a fight.  It doesn't bother me much that it happens from time to time.  But entire groups of people in game think they have mad "skillz" for doing it over and over again.

But none of this has to do with why people leave........

So my 2 cents........ Sometimes people just get tired.  If more of us took a break from time to time, there would be alot less of this kind of thing.  My job forces me to be away for a week here or 2 weeks there.  And that really keeps the game close to my heart.  Try it, hopefully it will for you too!

[Vulcan]

Between wife, golf and Work....AHII is WAY back on the burner.

I have work, wife, and hunting now. Added to that the sprog is nearly 4 and is hogging all the game time on my PC (playing Red Baron Arcade, Transformers, and Bionic Commando). I only get to play when he's sleeping, ie after 8pm which is early early morning US hours.

[Masherbrum]

I see it as more of a player bashing thread.
 I was quite interested in everyones replys. Crap wasn't in the conversation until you brought it in. It would be nice for just once to have a mature discussion without a smart tomato comment from you. But i guess that's too much to ask. Thanks for the comments tomatohat

and i didn't type tomato!

You're one to snipe?       You not only PROVED my post, but it annoyed you, so it had truth.  

As TC said, you bit on a hook that was "never there" in the first place.

[Shuffler]

Every single night, without exception, there is more then one person complaining about HOs they line themselves up with. It's putrid and lame. If you don't want to be HOed stopping lining up in the HO. There are a zillion ways to avoid an HO,.. but you have to actually USE them. Whining about it without doing anything yourself just means you're a cry baby. <shrug> I say "you as in people in general, not you yourself. Stop being cry babies and "fly your plane my way or you're a loser". Some people take the game entirely too serious, ralax, humor yourselves, be humble,..enjoy the game. When you enjoy provoking people more then fun in the game you need to check yourself, not others.

Animl

lol said like a true HO'er.