1990 clouds in 2017 sim?

[Lange_666]

Re-installed latest release version 1.5.7 to fly some campaign again after only had 2.x with only Nevada installed.

Took some free flight A-10C mission for starters and was amazed by the clouds, how they looked and how they behaved.

 

It flet like i was flying a 2017 (oh well, what's in year) sim with 1990's clouds in it. I really could not remember them being this bad...

They all looked the same, popped up and dissappeared again, flipped back and forth and i had a very hard time to "catch" one of them because i wanted to look how they looked up close.

 

Up close was rather good and the way i remembered them but from a distance... oh boy...1990 seemed back. Do they really looked this bad over the last couple of years or do i get Alzheimers...

 

From a distance...

 

 

 

 

From up close:

 

 

[NineLine]

If you watch some of the new screenshots and videos coming from Wags, you will see the new WIP clouds we will be getting soon. So its a well known issue. I dont think you will see the new clouds in 1.5.X though.

[Sryan]

You can get a good look at the WIP clouds in

.

[Fri13]

1.5.x needs to be understanded to be "dead in the water" as development is in 2.5...

 

Edit: And for the WIP clouds in that video above, I really hope they ain't limited to be so "soft" or "hazy", but would get the sharp good edges visible from far if so wanted.

Edited August 5, 2017 by Fri13

[MikeMikeJuliet]

The rest of the sim has gotten such a facelift (espevially the alpha branch) that the old clouds are more and more noticeable. So yes, they were always this bad, just that the rest of the sim has been updated.

 

Regards,

MikeMikeJuliet

[razo+r]

you can still activate the other, forgotten clouds if you want...

[Precog]

As long as the clouds don't rotate when you turn your head I'll be happy

[Nooch]

You can get a good look at the WIP clouds in

.

 

Thanks, I couldn't find them. Good to know they are WIP cause to me they look nearly the same as the ones we have right now. :noexpression:

[Buzzles]

Lol, 1990 clouds.

 

I wish clouds in sims in 1990 looked like they currently do.

[Fri13]

Has anyone seen is there a WIP clouds that would resemble these kinds?

 

 

[Lange_666]

Lol, 1990 clouds.

Had to pick a date :music_whistling:

[funkyfranky]

Totally agree with the OP.

 

Flying around in VR is already absolutely stunning in DCS - especially with the new lighting. Better clouds will put a big smile on my face :D

Probably a big task, though, to minimize the performance hit. In VR every FPS counts. Life is about (good) compromises, I guess.

[aceviper]

When your fps is cut in half you promise not to complain?

I like nice clouds too but the fluidity and high frame rate is more important in this combat flight sim.

Think FSX with REX2 and VRS FA-18

.A dream combination...hell no.

Not enjoyable because of sluggish feel and poor frame rate.

And frankly not played because of it.

ED has to balance performance with good visuals.

The visuals that are coming with the Caucasus update and the many exciting modules on the near horizon show that DCS is sim heaven for most who play it.

I think you can expect better looking clouds in the future but the photorealistic ones in the pictures are for the next iteration of DCS world.

[exil]

Dont forget performance. Nice looking clouds would be perfect. But if it hits performance i would rather keep the clouds as they are.

[Fri13]

When your fps is cut in half you promise not to complain?

I like nice clouds too but the fluidity and high frame rate is more important in this combat flight sim.

 

Wait a minute.... How about current hype for VR?

 

The VR problem currently is that:

1) You can't spot the enemies as far as you should and you were able with displays

2) You can't even read most of the cockpit labels or values correctly, meaning you need to remember every switch label

3) Engaging the ground units on a desert is "dot on dot" game where you just try to get a gunsight aligned with a larger dot and hope you are close enough.

 

So how it is so great for combat simulation when you can't do the combat so well?

Sure, to suffer from that and then getting even 15FPS and it would be no go. But even 120FPS that doesn't change that combat ain't so great as it is a dot-game in dog fight as air-to-ground.

 

Think FSX with REX2 and VRS FA-18

.A dream combination...hell no.

Not enjoyable because of sluggish feel and poor frame rate.

And frankly not played because of it.

 

So many enjoyed from 20FPS in those just to get the nice visuals. But VR ain't about visuals so much as it is the feeling "to be there". And then there is change to get a higher framerate in normal single screen setup.

 

ED has to balance performance with good visuals.

The visuals that are coming with the Caucasus update and the many exciting modules on the near horizon show that DCS is sim heaven for most who play it.

I think you can expect better looking clouds in the future but the photorealistic ones in the pictures are for the next iteration of DCS world.

 

"Better looking clouds vs more realistic clouds" is like "better looking missile, that's guidance is broken vs working missiles that no one sees when they are firing at them".

 

It is interesting that even today we have problems to know exactly how the cloud formations are built up. How they maintain the shapes and suddenly they can change it. And then there is just this illusion that all clouds are "fluffy" kind haze and it should be "good enough" or "good looking". As that is more like a artificial limitation in the computers development that you don't draw the grass so far as you could, just to keep it easier. Like in a ARMA where you engage the targets from 25m to 600m and your grass is drawn only to about 50-100m and everything outside that pop-up like a christmas tree on night. So they needed to do the "3D model transparency" trick so the parts that should be covered by grass, gets transparent, but it doesn't fix the model against background problem as it should then be so that you make the whole model semi-transparent so it is difficult to spot.

 

And this is same thing with the DCS, we have LOD problems where units can pop-up as dots if too high or in good angle. Instead that we shouldn't be able spot a camo-painted ground vehicle that is stationary against fitting background and lighting from further than 1500m etc.

 

The same is with the clouds that they are there to offer cover, to be able conceal yourself from the line of sight, but as well cover you from IR tracking and even partially from radars etc.

 

So yes, clouds are at the moment pure eye candy, but at this point 2017 we shouldn't just have that but more use from it than just "oh, pretty cloud".

[NineLine]

Has anyone seen is there a WIP clouds that would resemble these kinds?

 

We have had a very limited look at the new clouds so far...

[NineLine]

Dont forget performance. Nice looking clouds would be perfect. But if it hits performance i would rather keep the clouds as they are.

 

Yup, has to be a balance, clouds are obviously important for a flight sim, but realistic expectations need to be made. ED will give us the best clouds they can.