An odd encounter leads to a profound question

[Masherbrum]

   Actually, the beta arenas at this point is to look for bugs and post findings in the open beta forum.  This allows HTC to address the issues so AH3 can move forward.  Players in the testing arenas should ask other players if they want to engage or not.  Someone may be setting up a certain scenario to test something and another player trying to kill them hinders the tester's efforts.  Please keep this in mind.   

Finally!    Another competent person who understands what the beta arena is for.   

[LCADolby]

The particular Arena is under a tab called "Melee".

[PJ_Godzilla]

I'll offer some feedback on this, as a part-time and very definitely non-elite cartoon pilot:

Sometimes, the match is so asymmetrical that the only thing you CAN do is log - or stay on and watch your ratio get pounded down.

I remember once when I was just starting out, I kept running into Gumpsta, and he shot me down about 5 times in a row - and without much fuss. I logged, but only after vowing revenge.

Since then, I've learned a lot and found that, at least when I'm flying well, I'm much less likely, given that I have retained a lot of information about relative strengths (on the lines of, KI-84! Quick, what advantages does g-14 have relative to it) and weaknesses, to get stomped on as frequently. That said, there are still bad days. For example, ACB - a guy who's been around forever, schooled me in a series of happenstance 1:1s recently, even beating me in a Spit XVI with a g-14 ( I know what I did wrong). Or, also recently, the anti-horde boys, especially when they're together, usually hang my scalp, often more than once. However, even with those guys, there is a chance at redemption. I've managed at least one kill on several of them - including one on their most notorious members, albeit via a lucky crossing shot. Those guys spend so much time in-game, it's nothing to them. 

But, that's the challenge. I actually like the way acb handled it via mute combat, showing me where I was screwing up in each instance: SPit XVI vs G-14 (me)Spit XVI vs K-4 (me), G-14 vs Spit XVI (me). He killed me each time, then fired off a salute. Each combat was instructive. I actually considered the possibility he might be cheating... but, in retrospect, seriously doubt it. I mean, in the last combat, I'm certain my speed in the XVI was way off corner.

Ultimately, adulthood is about being able to take the abuse... Why? To get to the good stuff..? Maybe. Or maybe it's just to take more abuse.

But, if you love air combat, it's worth it. I still remember the first time I successfully executed a rolling scissor in a d-9 and flew my opponent, who was in a Jug, into the ground. Priceless.

[NatCigg]

yes, people log out for losing.  yes, people get upset when losing.  any normal person would quit after being beaten repeatedly.  Especially if the abuser plays this game well and for the win.  Enough alt, speed, plane and tactics used by one player and this game becomes extremely boring and difficult for the opponent.  my god then they vulch.  through such madness it is a miracle there is more than insane dweebs that continue to subscribe.

That said, I personally would hold fire in the beta area if i had control of the fight.  It is just more fun that way.  sure it is playing with your food but still funner for both in the end.  be aware that refraining from shooting a bear in a cage has its risks, i never once saw a bear refrain from biting back if given a chance.  Nevertheless,  consider the higher ground and fun for all when flying with minimal company, it is more rewarding than the kill imo.

 

[bustr]

During the closed alpha, the only way I could get other alpha testers to help me test gunnery, damage modeling and gunsights when Waffle was working on them, was if I agreed to let them all shoot me as the test plane. Otherwise it was yeah well ok maybe later Uh I gotta go do something. The majority of players treated allowing anyone to shoot them as the test plane like they were admitting they liked guys and not girls in bed. So yes, I can believe what your player said in the beta Dolby.

Most of the time gunnery testing was a crap shoot anyway. Most players couldn't control how they aimed or shot so you could look at the damage incrementally several rounds at a time from F3 mode. Very few could just plink an outboard wing panel on demand as a tester. Most often it was all or nothing. And then there were the usual jokers who just liked easy kills how ever they got them, even if it was during a testing session in a half finished alpha arena.

He was probably under the delusion that beta still meant testing and looking for bugs, not MA as usual game play. A fish bowel with a single guppy and a bunch of sharks is not fun for the guppy any way you try to spin it. We may have an issue with that until numbers pick up again to make up for those guppy's not staying past the 2 week trial over shark related issues.   

[Arlo]

Hell, code alternating side log-ins with no country switching. 

[Ack-Ack]

A good way to get more people into the beta is to offer some form of incentive, like beta testers that logged XXX amount of hours in the beta get a bunch of free perks.

[ImADot]

A good way to get more people into the beta is to offer some form of incentive, like beta testers that logged XXX amount of hours in the beta get a bunch of free perks.

The incentive should be that nice feeling inside that they helped to bring a new version of a game they like to the market quickly and with as few bugs as possible. If you have to bribe someone with perks, all they'll do is show up, screw around and leave after the allotted time, just to get their reward. Much like staying logged into the MA to get those win the war perks without really doing anything to earn them.

[Masherbrum]

The incentive should be that nice feeling inside that they helped to bring a new version of a game they like to the market quickly and with as few bugs as possible. If you have to bribe someone with perks, all they'll do is show up, screw around and leave after the allotted time, just to get their reward. Much like staying logged into the MA to get those win the war perks without really doing anything to earn them.

This.   

[Arlo]

This.

That. But that being said, apparently good feelings isn't working.

[LCADolby]

Beta arena is just like the MA, 5 TigerIIs and a fighter trolling an airfield for vulches and my handsomehunk in Ju87, pleading for sides to be even for some fun...   

[Ack-Ack]

The incentive should be that nice feeling inside that they helped to bring a new version of a game they like to the market quickly and with as few bugs as possible.

Unfortunately that is not enough incentive for most players to test out a beta.

If you have to bribe someone with perks, all they'll do is show up, screw around and leave after the allotted time, just to get their reward. Much like staying logged into the MA to get those win the war perks without really doing anything to earn them.

Sadly, that is the reality.  You do need to pretty much bribe players with some sort of reward for testing out betas, even those that get that "nice feeling inside" from helping out.  Which is why pretty it's pretty much standard in the industry to offer some sort of reward for those helping to test out major enhancements to the game.

[bustr]

From the closed alpha to the beta now, many people just wanted to see what it looked like then left.

Others were overwhelmed by being alone in a test arena thinking they didn't know what they were supposed to do. When I bumped into people and it was obvious they were stumped at what testing they were to do. I asked them to help me look at things to see what would happen or what changes from the last patch and so forth. Sent a lot of guys to go bail over the new HQ, strats and town object to walk around and look for things to report. We used 200 as the general VOX testing channel and I just kept asking them to poke their noses into things. Then we would talk about what they found, share info on new features we found and I would always tell them to go write a report about it in the forum. Back then at the new HQ object we discovered a pilot bug where one pilot could get his gun arm stuck in another pilots back end while trying to back shoot him. Only fix was to ef out. Had some interesting pistol fights while running around the new HQ object looking for bugs.

I told everyone that where the game was concerned they were experts at doing the game. So go out and do everything you like to do or just try flying or driving every ride to look it all over. Drive Gv's around and shoot at things. Walk and drive around bases, strats, down into the ocean. Just do things to see if the game would break the same as you have invested your last few years in learning how to do. If something is broken, you will know it. A number of those guys have stayed with the testing since 2014 and 2015 with me.

None of you know about Waffle's joke where he put his finger print in the file that created the gunsight reflector plate mask for one of the Me410 rear gunsights. Guess he wanted to know if anyone was really checking the work he had done to the reflector plates and gave as a testing task to check all gunsights. So I found his greasy finger prints on the edges of the Revi16 glass plate back during the alpha. Other wise repeatedly looking in cockpits or spawning every aircraft to walk around all of them gets old after a few months.

The beta is fun and easy compared to the monotony of the alphas for 18 months. By the way, how many of you have found Roy's? It's still a single building in the game with a big sign that says Roy's out front. Can't miss it if you have been driving around TT looking for broken things.

[Kodiak]

any normal person would quit after being beaten repeatedly.

Of course! 

Which then leaves those who stay around long enough to become good at Aces High who are clearly not normal 

[JunkyII]

Unfortunately that is not enough incentive for most players to test out a beta.

Sadly, that is the reality.  You do need to pretty much bribe players with some sort of reward for testing out betas, even those that get that "nice feeling inside" from helping out.  Which is why pretty it's pretty much standard in the industry to offer some sort of reward for those helping to test out major enhancements to the game.

Every game I've seen in BETA or Alpha people in them get incentives like you said....H1Z1 split into 2 games, if you were there before the split you get both free...now you have to pay for each.


I don't log into BETA because A) nobody in there so I don't know what to do and B) when there is people in there they won't fight(I ask them of course first not just up and kill them) which is what I would like to test, specifically the tracers (Shooting AI planes isn't a real test...need to test them in an actual fight against another player for it to be a real good test IMO)