a few questions about DCS

[sgtsev3n]

hello, im new here and im searching for a new wargame or warsimulator since i left arma 3 because of performance reasons. i found DCS on youtube and it looked very interesting but i have a few questions before getting DCS:

 

- is DCS World the newest DCS ?

- does DCS allows modding like scripting, adding new vehicles and infantry and terrain making ?

- does DCS has 64bit support (meaning it use more than 4gb ram) and proper multi-core / multi-threading support (i mean if the game runs all cores properly, not like arma where only the first core runs almost to the maximum and the rest cores are barely used) ?

- can i have massive battles with hundreds of tanks, infantry, jets, helicopters etc in DCS ?

- can you play as infantry and entering jets, tanks and all the other vehicles like in arma ?

[BIGNEWY]

Answered your questions in red

 

hello, im new here and im searching for a new wargame or warsimulator since i left arma 3 because of performance reasons. i found DCS on youtube and it looked very interesting but i have a few questions before getting DCS:

 

- is DCS World the newest DCS ?

Yes however DCSWorld 2 is comming soon

 

- does DCS allows modding like scripting, adding new vehicles and infantry and terrain making ?

Modding forum here http://forums.eagle.ru/forumdisplay.php?f=89

 

- does DCS has 64bit support (meaning it use more than 4gb ram) and proper multi-core / multi-threading support (i mean if the game runs all cores properly, not like arma where only the first core runs almost to the maximum and the rest cores are barely used) ?

DCS is 64bit, more improvements will be seen in DCS World 2

 

[color="Red"]Minimum system requirements: OS 64-bit Windows Vista, 7 or 8; CPU: Core 2 Duo 2.0 GHz; RAM: 6 GB; Free hard disk space: 10 GB; Video: 512 MB RAM card, DirectX 9.0c - compatible; Sound: DirectX 9.0c - compatible; requires internet activation.

Recommended system requirements: OS 64-bit Windows Vista, 7 or 8; CPU: Core i5+; RAM: 8GB; Hard disk space: 10 GB; Video: Shader 3.0 or better; NVIDIA GeForce GTX560 / ATI 6950 DirectX 9.0c or better; Sound: DirectX 9.0c - compatible; DirectX: 9.0C; requires internet activation.[/color]

 

- can i have massive battles with hundreds of tanks, infantry, jets, helicopters etc in DCS ?

Yes (as long as your machine can handle it)

 

- can you play as infantry and entering jets, tanks and all the other vehicles like in arma ?

No you can not play as infantry, however you can control them via combined arms module

[sgtsev3n]

Answered your questions in red

 

thank you.

 

but about the last part with the controlling:

does it mean that we can play DCS like a real-time strategy for example world in conflict ? and can we control vehicles too like click on them and send them anywhere and the AI will drive/fly/walk then to this point where i send them to ?

[BIGNEWY]

 

 

http://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/products/combined_arms/

 

you can control them on the map and most vehicles can be used in first person, however infantry can not currently be used in first person.

[zaelu]

Actually you can play as infantry with manpad IGLA :)

[sgtsev3n]

thank you all very much, this is a great game, idk if i should wait for dcs: world 2.

 

this is like a advanced and more realistic world in conflict where finally jets can be shot down and greater maps etc.

[BIGNEWY]

Actually you can play as infantry with manpad IGLA :)

 

how could I forget the manpad!! I am normally on the receiving end of it :)

[Flagrum]

hello, im new here and im searching for a new wargame or warsimulator since i left arma 3 because of performance reasons. i found DCS on youtube and it looked very interesting but i have a few questions before getting DCS:

 

- is DCS World the newest DCS ?

Yes. There is only one world ... :o) It is constantly being updated by Eagle Dynamics for free.

- does DCS allows modding like scripting, adding new vehicles and infantry and terrain making ?

Yes! You can use the very capable mission editor to make your own missions, you can add all kinds of functionality to them by means of LUA scripting, you can mod the look and the function of existing aircraft, you can add new ground vehicles, you can even add your own new aircraft (but then it really gets a bit complicated - not really due to the limitations of the DCS engine, but more because of the complexity of such an endeavour as such).

- does DCS has 64bit support (meaning it use more than 4gb ram) and proper multi-core / multi-threading support (i mean if the game runs all cores properly, not like arma where only the first core runs almost to the maximum and the rest cores are barely used) ?

Ye..."yes". DCS World is 64 bit and supports as much RAM as you possibly have installed. Multicore support is a bit ... lacking. The sim runs basically on a single core, but the true bottleneck is more the graphics engine (using DX9, iirc). But with the upcoming DCS World 2.0 and the new grapics engine ("EDGE"), this should get better as well (i.e. using DX11).

- can i have massive battles with hundreds of tanks, infantry, jets, helicopters etc in DCS ?

Yes. Well, maybe not hundreds of everything, but more than you possibly will be able to see and admire when you fly your mission. That is, if you plan to survive your mission at least ... ;o)

- can you play as infantry and entering jets, tanks and all the other vehicles like in arma ?

Sort of. There is an add-on available ("Combined Arms") which allows you to jump into any ground vehicle and control it from a 1st person view. But the simulation depth here does not really reach the level of the simulated aircraft, tbh. Well, not yet at least. Oh, and no, no infantry (except MANPADS) ... you need to understand that this is not a FPS and not ArmA. ;o)

Some remarks in red directly in the quote.

[BIGNEWY]

thank you all very much, this is a great game, idk if i should wait for dcs: world 2.

 

this is like a advanced and more realistic world in conflict where finally jets can be shot down and greater maps etc.

 

No need to wait, DCSWorld is free to try

 

 

http://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/world/

 

@Flagrum, way more info than my reply, but I was doing it with one hand while eating a sandwich :P

[sgtsev3n]

No need to wait, DCSWorld is free to try

 

 

http://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/world/

 

thanks.

 

but in your previous post, you posted DCS combined arms, does it mean that in DCS world it isnt possible to control ground units or are all features from DCS combined arms already integrated in DCS world ?

[QuiGon]

Hi sgtsev3n, I'll answer your questions one by one:

 

- is DCS World the newest DCS ?

Yes, although DCS World 2 is planned to be released in February. For further infos see here: http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=135473

 

- does DCS allows modding like scripting, adding new vehicles and infantry and terrain making ?

I'm not really into modding, so I don't know exactly what is possible and what not.

Scripting is very much possible and very easy thanks to the architecture of the game (using LUA a lot).

Adding new vehicles is possible as well. In regards of new flyable aircrafts their are professional licensed 3rd party developers to develop new aircrafts besides Eagle Dynamics.

Creating new maps is not possible yet, but it will be with DCS World 2. There are already new maps in development for that. I don't know if the map tools will be available to everyone though.

 

- does DCS has 64bit support (meaning it use more than 4gb ram) and proper multi-core / multi-threading support (i mean if the game runs all cores properly, not like arma where only the first core runs almost to the maximum and the rest cores are barely used) ?

DCS World indeed uses and recommends at least 8GB RAM and was one of the first 64Bit only games.

DCS World is not using CPU-multithreading to my knowledge and also DCS World 2 won't support that from what I've heard. But DCS World 2 will feature better support for GPU-multithreading though.

From the feature list of DCS World 2: Better use of multiple GPUs (CPU multi-threading is not being pursued as it will provide little if any gain)

 

- can i have massive battles with hundreds of tanks, infantry, jets, helicopters etc in DCS ?

Yes, in theory. In fact it is limited by your hardware. The more units are on the field, the better your hardware must be.

 

- can you play as infantry and entering jets, tanks and all the other vehicles like in arma ?

DCS World is a modular game with different modules available. There is currently one module (DCS Combined Arms) which is not about a new aircraft, but about ground combat. With this module you actually can play tanks and other ground units (even JTACs) as well as command them like in a RTS game. The simulation of ground units is rather simple though but rumors are that Eagle Dynamics is developing a hardcore tank module.

 

 

I hope I could help you a bit. It's sad that you gave up on ArmA though. The Performance of ArmA will only get better since the game gets more optimized and the hardware more powerful. It's been improved already since the early days in the Alpha and Beta.

[Flagrum]

thank you all very much, this is a great game, idk if i should wait for dcs: world 2.

 

this is like a advanced and more realistic world in conflict where finally jets can be shot down and greater maps etc.

No, no need to wait. The update to DCS 2 will be free - you wont lose anything if you jump in right now.

 

One main improvement will be the new graphics engine which supposedly allows better graphics (duh!), new maps (search for "Nevada" and "Strait of Hormuz") and better performance (due to more modern technology used in the graphics engine). There might be much more coming ... but the available info about that is, well, still a bit foggy atm.

[QuiGon]

thanks.

 

but in your previous post, you posted DCS combined arms, does it mean that in DCS world it isnt possible to control ground units or are all features from DCS combined arms already integrated in DCS world ?

 

It's all one game called DCS World where everything is already integrated. To be able to use everything (all playable aircraft and ground units) you need to buy the respective module. For ground units that would be DCS Combined Arms. But you can already play with other players that are using those modules in multiplayer.

 

Also note that there are 2 different levels of simulation in DCS World depending on the module/aircraft. Some aircraft (like the free2play Su-25t) are on a very simple level with simplified avionics and a simple flight modell and without clickable cockpits. Others are "hardcore" modules where the entire cockpit is clickable and the avionic systems are simulated in-depth.

Edited January 21, 2015 by QuiGon

[sgtsev3n]

thank you guys, for me it isnt necessary to play this game like a First person shooter. its enough for me when i can play this game like the RTS world in conflict where i can control all units (be it infantry, vehicles or aircrafts) on my side and send them to this and this place like here:

[BIGNEWY]

thanks.

 

but in your previous post, you posted DCS combined arms, does it mean that in DCS world it isnt possible to control ground units or are all features from DCS combined arms already integrated in DCS world ?

 

It is all integrated, however to control those units in real time you would have to purchase combined arms module.

 

DCS World includes a free SU-25 and a TF-51 Mustang

 

Below is some other modules that can be purchased

Ka-50 Black Shark

A-10C Warthog

P-51D Mustang

Combined Arms

Flaming Cliffs 3

UH-1H Huey

Mi-8MTV2

F-15C (FC3)

Fw 190 D-9 Dora

F-86F Sabre

Bf 109 K-4 Kurfürst

MiG-21bis

Su-27 (FC3)

MiG-15bis

 

 

http://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/

[sgtsev3n]

It is all integrated, however to control those units in real time you would have to purchase combined arms module.

 

DCS World includes a free SU-25 and a TF-51 Mustang

 

Below is some other modules that can be purchased

Ka-50 Black Shark

A-10C Warthog

P-51D Mustang

Combined Arms

Flaming Cliffs 3

UH-1H Huey

Mi-8MTV2

F-15C (FC3)

Fw 190 D-9 Dora

F-86F Sabre

Bf 109 K-4 Kurfürst

MiG-21bis

Su-27 (FC3)

MiG-15bis

 

 

http://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/

 

ahh now i understand, its like a addon or expansion, thats good.

thanks

[Flagrum]

thank you guys, for me it isnt necessary to play this game like a First person shooter. its enough for me when i can play this game like the RTS world in conflict where i can control all units (be it infantry, vehicles or aircrafts) on my side and send them to this and this place like here:

The focus of DCS is flying and that is what it can do best. FPS gameplay: as good as non-existant. RTS gameplay: rudimentary. It is probably possible to use DCS more in a RTS way, but it will probably not reach the fun level of, i.e. World in Conflict. But people use these features to aid their airborne missions, less as full scale RTS. Think of it as you were radioing some ground commander that he can advance with his tank platoon after you cleared the road ahead. Or calling some artillery strike for an target of opportunity that you have spotted. This all depends on the way the mission is designed, but the focus will be probably always more shifted towards the flying stuff. :o)

[kontiuka]

Just while we're on the subject of 64-bit, kind of a newb question ...

 

I understand the advantage of being able to access more than 4 gigs of RAM but are there other advantages to 64-bit? Being able to pass more data per operation?

[sgtsev3n]

The focus of DCS is flying and that is what it can do best. FPS gameplay: as good as non-existant. RTS gameplay: rudimentary. It is probably possible to use DCS more in a RTS way, but it will probably not reach the fun level of, i.e. World in Conflict. But people use these features to aid their airborne missions, less as full scale RTS. Think of it as you were radioing some ground commander that he can advance with his tank platoon after you cleared the road ahead. Or calling some artillery strike for an target of opportunity that you have spotted. This all depends on the way the mission is designed, but the focus will be probably always more shifted towards the flying stuff. :o)

 

well, i would design my mission to make it fit for a RTS gameplay + since DCS allows modding, im sure its possible to mod some RTS gameplay elements into this game but for me its to early to say "i will mod this and this" because im new and i need to learn how the modding works there.

 

btw some more questions:

- what factions does this game include ?

- does this game has "sides" like in arma (BLUFOR, OPFOR etc) ?

- i saw some picture of naval assets (ships), does this game include naval combat (ships, carriers, submarines etc) or is it planed for DCS: World 2 ?

- the tanks, does they have coax & can the AI use them ?

- the infantry, theyr weapons, are the weapons seperate or are the weapons modeled into the infantry model ?

- how is the damage model of the ground vehicles? are the wheels and tracks etc destroyable and can the driver be killed by bullets when a helicopters fires at him ? or does ground vehicles use a more simple damage model ?

- how many maps are there currently ingame ?

 

some questions about modding & limits:

- what is the maximum terrain size allowed in DCS ?

- is there any limit in adding new custom terrains/aircrafts/factions/infantry/vehicles etc or can a modder add as much as he wants ?

- are the current standard assets modable ?

 

sorry for asking so much

[Flagrum]

well, i would design my mission to make it fit for a RTS gameplay + since DCS allows modding, im sure its possible to mod some RTS gameplay elements into this game but for me its to early to say "i will mod this and this" because im new and i need to learn how the modding works there.

 

btw some more questions:

- what factions does this game include ?

"Blue" and "Red" :o)

There are several countries with their specific ground and air vehicles available that you can assign to either faction when you create your mission. Some country have more assets available as others, but that is just how it is. (USA and Russia have ofc the most, but countries like France, GB, Israel and whatnot are also available).

- does this game has "sides" like in arma (BLUFOR, OPFOR etc) ?

see above.

- i saw some picture of naval assets (ships), does this game include naval combat (ships, carriers, submarines etc) or is it planed for DCS: World 2 ?

Yes. But they are few in numbers and they are not too extensively modelled as of yet (i.e. damage model, weapon and sensor capabilities). Atm they are more like scenery for the immersion than actually really usefull in combat. We expect that this might get better with DCS2, though. At least a decent US carrier should then be available (sooner or later) as that would only really round up the upcoming F/A-18 module(s).

- the tanks, does they have coax & can the AI use them ?

Yes. And, oh boy, the AI knows how to use it ... ;o)

- the infantry, theyr weapons, are the weapons seperate or are the weapons modeled into the infantry model ?

Weapons are part of the model and not changeable in the mission editor. We have troops with AK-74, M4, M249, AKS, RPG-16, Stinger and Igla. Thats it.

- how is the damage model of the ground vehicles? are the wheels and tracks etc destroyable and can the driver be killed by bullets when a helicopters fires at him ? or does ground vehicles use a more simple damage model ?

Damage modelling of ground units is somewhat lacking. Armor thickness may vary depending on the attack angle, but a vehicle is either "alive", "damaged" (reduced speed, longer reload times, etc.), "dying" (i.e. burning and about to explode) or "dead" (exploded).

While I can see that it probably does not make too much of a difference if the tracks get blown away first before the tank explodes .... when I hit it with a Mk-82, this is in fact one of the bigger criticisms of the community. The damage modelling is just hitpoint based...

- how many maps are there currently ingame ?

Atm: exactly one (Georgia). But that map covers about 500 x 500 km, iirc.

The next maps that are schedulled "soon" are Nevada, Straight of Hormuz and Normandy (WWII assets).

 

some questions about modding & limits:

- what is the maximum terrain size allowed in DCS ?

Atm with DCS1: about 500 x 500 km ... (see above).

With DCS2 this might change. But the only information we have right now is, that it is "limited by the detail level and thus development time by the map creator" (and given the detail level that the community expects, I suspect the sizes will be of similar magnitude as what we have now)

- is there any limit in adding new custom terrains/aircrafts/factions/infantry/vehicles etc or can a modder add as much as he wants ?

Terrains: unknown to me. With DCS2 probably no restrictions (but see previous statement). And probably limited by your free disk capacity (those will be HUGE, I assume)

aircraft: unknown to me, but you will probably not reach the limit

ground units: I had seen one case where someone gathered all kind of new units and put them together in one mod. After 100? 200? DCS did not like it anymore ...

But this could also change with DCS2 and the general effords of ED to make DCS more open for 3rd party devs by modularizing all kind of stuff to make it all more flexible. But I don't think you would be running into some walls anytime soon - if you are now starting with it.

- are the current standard assets modable ?

Yes.

 

sorry for asking so much

Try it out yourself. After all it is free - already the 2 aircraft in the free version will give you surely a better overview of the "look and feel" and the general concepts of what DCS is all about. ;o)

.

Edited January 21, 2015 by Flagrum

[QuiGon]

- what factions does this game include ?

For now: USA, Russia, Georgia, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Germany, UK, Turkey, Italy, Israel, France, Denmark, Canada, Belgium, Australia, Ukraine, Netherlands, Spain, Norway, Insurgents

There might come more factions when we get new maps

 

- does this game has "sides" like in arma (BLUFOR, OPFOR etc) ?

Exactly, it has 3 sides: Blue, Red, Neutral

Unlike in ArmA the factions can be assigned to different sides in each mission

 

- i saw some picture of naval assets (ships), does this game include naval combat (ships, carriers, submarines etc) or is it planed for DCS: World 2 ?

The subtitle of DCS is Air Sea Land Combat like you can see on the logo on the steam website: http://store.steampowered.com/app/223750/

So yeah, it also simulates naval warfare altough to a very limited degree so far. You can't directly play ships yet but you can command them with Combined Arms if I'm not mistaken. But there might come more in the future.

 

- the tanks, does they have coax & can the AI use them ?

I think so. I'm not playing much with the ground forces (they are targets for me first of all :D), so I'm not sure. But they usally fire with their MGs at me when I'm flying by but I guess they're using the commander/loader MGs in that case. I'm waiting for the hardcore tank module to play them more often. Until then I stick to Steal Beasts for that.

 

- the infantry, theyr weapons, are the weapons seperate or are the weapons modeled into the infantry model ?

Integrated into the model.

 

- how is the damage model of the ground vehicles? are the wheels and tracks etc destroyable and can the driver be killed by bullets when a helicopters fires at him ? or does ground vehicles use a more simple damage model ?

Simple hitpoint model. That means there is just a healthbar for the entire vehicle. There is no real armor penetration and destructable parts are also not modeled yet. That's one of the biggest drawbacks of DCS so far. I hope that will change in the future.

 

- how many maps are there currently ingame ?

1 map which is the Black Sea map (georgian-russian border).

DCS World 2 will enable new maps. 3 are already in development by Eagle Dynamics:

- Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR) -> more info here: http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=135321

- Strait of Hormuz

- Normandy 1944

There are other maps in development by 3rd party developers.

 

 

I'm not into modding, so I leave the modding questions for someone with better knowledge of this subject.

Edited January 21, 2015 by QuiGon

[sgtsev3n]

thank you but 500km x 500km is WOW ! very huge, even arma has problems with that size (i increased the size of a custom terrain). i thought that the map in DCS is under 100km x 100km, maybe something like 50km x 50km but 500km x 500km is awesome :D i hope that the devs will release a map editor which allows us to create our own terrains with object placing and stuff so i can make one big island (500km x 500km including water).

 

i wish the devs good luck and keep it up! im interesting in the future of DCS after 2.0 release, especially since devs are updating sea, naval and ground stuff too :) i bet that we will see in few years a DCS which give us proper simulation for ground, naval, submarines and maybe even infantry when the devs are continue working on DCS like they do always.

 

for sure i will buy all your modules to:

- support you

- having more stuff ingame

[QuiGon]

Yeah, the map is big, but it is much less detailed than the ArmA maps since ArmA is a infantry sim and this is a flight sim.

[sgtsev3n]

Yeah, the map is big, but it is much less detailed than the ArmA maps since ArmA is a infantry sim and this is a flight sim.

 

true, but for a flight sim its not necessary to have detailed maps like in arma + in the future when hardware advance and devs advance theyr game, it could also change. in DCS world 2.0, we see that certain improvements made in graphics, terrain and object numbers, so i think we can see more detailed terrains in DCS in few years

[QuiGon]

true, but for a flight sim its not necessary to have detailed maps like in arma + in the future when hardware advance and devs advance theyr game, it could also change. in DCS world 2.0, we see that certain improvements made in graphics, terrain and object numbers, so i think we can see more detailed terrains in DCS in few years

 

Not just in a few years, but also in a few weeks (maybe months) when Nevada arrives. See the link I gave in my answer to your map question for screenshots and more :smilewink: