ArmA II: Craziest Of All The Games

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » July 26th, 2009, 17:42

The problem isn't really the game or the controls, it's that the map we're using is horrible to get around without someone holding your hand for a start, it uses a lot of non standard stuff to make it easier to play overall.

Try the single player/campaign, it's actually very good and a good way to get the hang of playing.

friznit · Post by **friznit** » July 26th, 2009, 17:42

Mr. Johnson wrote:It might be best for us all to wait for OPF 2, it can't have worse controls then this.
It'll look better too!

Lots of assumptions about what OFP2 will actually be though. It may be little more than a COD ripoff with the Op Flashpoint name applied, and none of the stuff that makes ArmA2 what it is. For all it's many interface faults, the openess of the game and the fact that there is no linear direction (i.e. it's left up to the player to decide what to do) makes it fun. Then again, jumping straight into a Domination multiplayer map having never played at all would be bewildering even for anyone. The campaign is a little more forgiving (although the scripting is a buggy as fuck in places)

Mr. Johnson · Post by **Mr. Johnson** » July 26th, 2009, 18:13

That's basically what I want. I like a bit of realism, but a combat sim is not really what I'm after, so if OPF2 turns out to be COD+BEEF, it will be like a dream come true.
It won't be though, but I really want it to be.

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » August 1st, 2009, 3:57

I love this game.

Proper tank assaults FTW

friznit · Post by **friznit** » August 1st, 2009, 11:02

It's coop at its finest. Not just running around playing a single player game with friends, but crewing tanks together, chopper pilots with gunners laser designating targets for A10's to smash up. Most win.

Must play with that F16

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » August 1st, 2009, 17:59

friznit wrote: It's coop at its finest. Not just running around playing a single player game with friends, but crewing tanks together, chopper pilots with gunners laser designating targets for A10's to smash up. Most win.

Must play with that F16

It's... Different.

Kinda almost feels more MMO dungeon than coop shooter in that respect, everyone has a role, knows what to do and works as a team to get shit done.

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » August 5th, 2009, 20:49

Updates to ARMA 2 have been released. The updates will be applied automatically when your Steam client is restarted. The major changes include:

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Engine
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* New: Functions getPosATL and setPosATL to allow controlling position relative to terrain.
* New: command line option -showScriptErrors introduced to show errors in scripts on-screen
* New: Direct analogue throttle and brake for airplanes now available.
* New: More flexible configuration of Flares in the config (brightness, size)
* New: Mission name (with * indicated unsaved work) displayed in the mission editor
* New: Keyboard shortcuts in the mission editor
* Improved: better handling of gravitation for shots (esp. for grenades)
* Improved: Building destruction
* Improved: Better airplane HUD visibility both night and day
* Optimization: Reduced frame stutter near map borders.
* Hotfix: Players are forced to reconnect after MP Load on server.
* Fixed: no particles effect when hit object with destructNo
* Fixed: grenade could destroy a building just by impact
* Fixed: grenades may explode only on the final impact
* Fixed: when a grenade bounces on a ship deck, the proper particle effects is shown now
* Fixed: missiles should pass through vegetation
* Fixed: Player connected to loaded game was sometimes frozen.
* Fixed: Game crashed when launched on a system with more then 8 CPUs/cores.
* Fixed: Possible crash with laser designator active.
* Fixed: Sometimes crew of a close vehicle was visible through the vehicle.
* Fixed: Infinite looping of commands 'Stop' in radio.
* Fixed: Leaning 'limits' do not work in TrackIR.
* Fixed: Clients were often endlessly stuck in 'Receiving...' window after MP Load.
* Fixed: Rainbow could be visible even with sun below horizon.
* Fixed: 3D Editor - civilian and resistance units did not work correctly
* Fixed: Sea surface was not rendered in NE area out of map.
* Fixed: Terrain surface was sometimes using wrong parallax map.
* Fixed: Grenade could sometimes destroy a building just by impact
* Fixed: Radio messages sometimes echoed
* Fixed: Team switch did not work when player died
* Fixed: Reduced AI detecting slowly moving enemy vehicles by ear.
* Fixed: Prevent killed AI units reporting who killed them.
* Fixed: After respawn in MP, player's tasks, diary content and skills are transferred to the new entity
* Fixed: Leaning 'limits' did not work with TrackIR
* Fixed: MP client frozen in Receiving... screen sometimes
* Fixed: Problems with saving and loading games in cooperative campaign

Missions
---------

* Fixes and improvements in most of the campaign missions (Into the Storm, Harvest Red, Bitter Chill, Manhattan, Badlands, Dogs of War)
* Improved: autosave logic to not save when it was not safe
* Improved: Eye for an Eye in Scenarios

Modules
---------
* Fixed: Warfare fast travel on clients was not using logistic values
* Fixed: Warfare money sending
* Fixed: Warfare HQ multiple reports
* Fixed: First-Aid: Action module caused healing scripts to run twice
* Fixed: Supply drop not ending (wrong vehicle class)
* New: First-Aid modules work with respawn
* New: First-Aid ability to stop healing
* New: Added ability to add Support Requests that do not expire.
* Improved: First-Aid modules more robust and faster
* Improved: Better support for side Resistance in SOM / ACM.

Data
---------

* Fixed: Invisible driver in UAZ (MG and GL)
* Fixed: AI soldiers were able to hear extremely well
* Fixed: various minor problems on buildings
* Fixed: rocks destruction effect changed
* Fixed: penetrability of some vegetation
* Fixed: collision geometry of A_BuildingWIP
* Fixed: react FSM core conversations
* Fixed: cargo animations in LAV25
* Fixed: indicators in Ka52 when using NVG
* Fixed: cargo animations in BTR
* Fixed: Warfare keypoint on Chernarus

Post by **HereComesPete** » August 5th, 2009, 23:09

Hang on, it has missions?

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » August 5th, 2009, 23:15

The campaign does.

Post by **HereComesPete** » August 6th, 2009, 0:49

It has a campaign?

I might try that.

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » August 6th, 2009, 0:52

It does, it's actually not terrible.

bomberesque · Post by **bomberesque** » August 6th, 2009, 5:57

oh, I assumed ARMA2 was a weird shortform for America's Army 2 when Friz mentioned it.

blimey steam wants 50 Euros (like, 300 quid or something) for it.

worth the price of admission?

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » August 6th, 2009, 6:01

Try the demo.

It's also best served as a multiplayer thing, the single player isn't bad, but is quite broken.

It'll probably be more worth having once we manage some scheduled games and stuff, but right now, not so much. (This is where Mr. Johnson mentions OFP2, and Friz whaps him on the head with a newspaper)

Post by **HereComesPete** » August 6th, 2009, 6:26

The controls make a twisted sense eventually, nothing is particularly easy. Satisfying if you've got a spare entire night to accomplish one or two things.

I wouldn't recommend it to 95% of 5punkers who play shooting games.

The demo is annoying, persevere through any training bits you do and it gets better once you stop screaming at the controls (if you ever do, I still scream plenty)

I think OFP2 will be far more 5punk friendly. We'll have to wait and see though.

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » August 6th, 2009, 6:34

too.

Though, the time thing is becoming less of a problem now we're getting the hang of it.

Post by **TezzRexx** » August 6th, 2009, 9:52

bomberesque wrote:oh, I assumed ARMA2 was a weird shortform for America's Army 2

bomberesque · Post by **bomberesque** » August 6th, 2009, 21:35

HereComesPete wrote:The demo is annoying

found that out alright

- I sound like a complete Mong, the only consolation is so does everyone else. Some of the worst voice acting I've ever heard in a game I think
- When I first ran I thought that Forest Gump was following me. I looked around and realised that it was me. Not content to sound like a complete spakker I evidently run like one too.
- feet weld to the floor half the time when picking up the 1st aid victim. Seems only restarting the mission will fix it
- Obstacle course that <s>hehulk</s> svenno could pass
- aiming seems kinda hard
- "Insurgents" attacked and killed me on the tank range and I got the blame for it. Ponces
- final exercise is clearly live rounds and you kill your opponents. Wierd in .. well ... an excercise in what's clearly supposed to be a super-real game

still, I *did* finish it so I will probably try the rest when I get back from hols (off to 7 stanes mountainbiking in the rain for a week tomorrow) if you say it starts to make sense. Seems rather filled with buggies for a game "10 years in constant developement" though

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » August 6th, 2009, 21:49

The big problem with arma is that it's a massive open world, shitloads of AI and the ability to set off in any given direction and walk until you're bored.

Then they try to script loads of stuff in for training/singleplayer, and the AI doesn't like it.

There's other stuff like the aiming which is weird, because they try to simulate the weight of the weapon, so it's pretty difficult to get used to.

I expect a lot of the demo bugs have been dealt with by now, but it's hard to know.

I must agree with the voice acting, it's piss poor, but you pretty much felcher it out after a while, it gives you the info you need, mostly.

friznit · Post by **friznit** » August 6th, 2009, 23:00

The good bits are good, the bad bits are really atrociously aweful, but just not bad enough to be game breaking. Mostly.

OFP2 looks very pretty from what little I've dug up, and they've certainly put alot of effort into making better animations, voice acting, sounds etc than we've been treated to in the ArmA series. If they replicate the good bits of ArmA and don't succumb to the Console D$mon it'll make a very good replacement when it finally hits the shelves.

friznit · Post by **friznit** » August 6th, 2009, 23:18

Sight Adjustment Mod for all you sniper geeks. Let's you adjust for windage and elevation, saves it to each weapon you use and shows the values on a range card.

I might update the 5punk wiki (5piki...5punki....5paki?) with a list of 5punk Approved Addons if I get around to it. Which probably means I won't.

Other good client side only addons are the sound packs (RH Heli, Tracked Vehicle and Vopsound).

So far the F16 is the only really good quality vehicle addon that I've played with.