New Buzzsaw Map

[TheRapier]

I'm not sure where to post this so I'll try here.

I applaud the courage for HTC to release the new BuzzSaw map. It is a step in the right direction, with all three countries meeting in the center so they can battle it out. The map itself is relatively smaller so it makes it possible to have fights just by making it so you can reach them.

The downside is that most of the map is at high altitude. Fields at 7-10k and ridges at 17k. This shoves most of the plane set in to the thin half of their performance curve so a lot of guys are crashing into the ground or hitting compressibility when their eyes say they are too low for that. I get the game design tradeoff but this is just going to work to upset people in the long run.

Most people have only a short amount of time to play. With the numbers and times, this is really about 3 hours per day when its all optimal. For that 3 hours IMHO, people want to play the game they are familiar with, not learning the performance characteristics of everything above 15k.

Creating a similar map with lower overall altitudes would really help to spark good game play. 

Thanks!

[Chalenge]

Probably this belongs in help and training, or general discussion.

I played for 14 hours yesterday. For one third of that time I was in the middle of the map at 20k in a B26. I saw three fighters there. The best fight at high altitude that I saw was at one of the F-fields between tanks. It was a good tank battle, because the aircraft could not come there and bomb repeatedly (they auger).

The long term dogfights occurred around the fleets and were supported by bombers trying to sink the fleets. Traditionally, that kind of fight has been considered to be a good fight. In fact, the one battle that had the largest number of combatants was a CV attacking a field supported by tanks.

The strats that are repeatedly attacked by vehicles had good vehicle/vehicle battles with the occasional mudhen dropping in and also fighters attacking the mudhens. Bombers are everywhere, and I mean everywhere.

My conclusion is that this map is good for business. Furthermore, when there are more customers on an hour-by-hour basis HTC would do well to have a larger version available.

[Shamus]

Its a blast fighting in thin air.

[DaddyAce]

I  like this map.   

[Vulcan]

I hate it.

[JimmyD3]

I don't care one way or the other. 

[popeye]

I don't mind flying at high altitudes, but it is kind of a pain to have to climb from SL over a 15k ridge to RTB.

[bustr]

Aside from the high alt bases which the terrain would probably work just as well if the center of the wheel were squashed to 4k. The design recognizes the problems with the AH2 era terrains purpose created to slow down hoards in arenas with 400+ players. And makes the first positive step towards recognizing the current normal is fewer players for a while. It is a masterful bit of design work at being a GV amusement park. Those high alt bases encourage group greifing and ganging disguised conveniently as country solidarity. 

[TheRapier]

I would agree with bustr. This is a good step in the right direction but the overall alt is so high it is shooting itself in the foot.

We DO need more maps that push the players together rather than apart. The separation thing applied when we had thousands playing and not now when it is scraping things together to get near 200 and generally sits at 120.

No criticism but as a straight fly over ground flight simulator, AH3 lacks a lot. It is the combat and the possibility of running into enemies that makes this work.

Thanks!

[8thJinx]

I would like big ski-jump type ramps at the bottom of some these hills, on the GV paths to the fields or towns.  It would awesome if we could fly into a town or onto a base in an M18.  The hills are certainly capable of promoting high GV speeds.

In all seriousness, I like this map.

[Chalenge]

I was testing the track sounds of the TigerII and got it up to 215mph. At that speed you can get 6k separation real quick!