Consolidate and simplify servers please

[Pikey]

I'm just posting some of my own feedback to those running multiplayer servers right now as I think we can get higher server populations with a few small changes. There were 89 servers on at midnight tonight, 35 under 100 ping form the UK but about four I'd consider and this is why:

 

1. The Server description should say something about the server. What you actually get is confusing. Multiple languages, lots of punctuation, numbers and dashes, meaningless words like "training" or the name of the mission which could be anything.

 

If you want to get people to come to your server you have a few lines to sell it. People want to know what planes and what theme immediately to match their mood. Lets compare two: "Mike's aerobatics server - weapons off - all aircraft". And: 13_0.0 +. What does the second one mean and how will it attract visitors?

 

2. Multiple languages dividing the player base. I don't think knowing a language should be a prerequisite for joining a server. English is still the worlds second language and the primary language of ATC. Having said that, we don't need to text-talk to each other in a combat arena for a public server at a basic level. I would sugegst English only briefings to maximise the amount of people who will visit that server and at least contribute towards the flying. I enjoy joining Russian servers when I can read a briefing and server rules. There were servers with briefings in at least four different non English languages tonight; Czech, Russian, Spanish and French. None of them I wanted to join because I didn't know what I was supposed to do.

 

3. Over complex or irrelevant briefings. I understand the desire for artistic license to set a scene but actually that adds nothing and takes away valuable space from describing what the objectives are in the mission.

 

A couple of examples: "Destroy the bridge near Poti". The guy that wrote that mission knew which bridge, but the thought of searching for it without a TGP put me off instantly!

 

There was another one about secret agents and escaping somewhere but honestly after I'd finished chapter one I still didn't know what planes were available, what i was shooting at and where. It's great that folks have fantasies but remember they are personal things that not everyone shares and rarely paint any better understanding of the objectives.

 

4. Mission complexity and diversity. I've seen a few of these that are mixing up aircraft on servers for the sake of getting every plane in one mission. Please stop. No, I'm not going to take off in my Dora and go head to head with that F-15, no matter how great your fantasy briefing is for getting us there together. I've seen other ones where you can dogfight in one part of the map, one for props, one for jets, one for helicopters. Yet all you see is people strafing their own airbase because these places are all 15 minutes flight from each other. P-51 vs Dora is great fun. But don't add Mig-29's. Likewise keep planes together logically where there is player versus player or competitiveness.

 

Then comes the really complicated mission that has a string of events and different things going on. You need to know what area is active where to go and so on. "What site is active?", "Dunno."

 

There is a good reason why there are only a handful of successful servers and it's not always performance. I'd like to see a more constructive way of focusing players renewed interest in this game.