New Clouds Discussion

[Lenux]

As they initially were planned for this year, I don't think we will have to wait more than a year. My bet is Q1 2020

 

I agree with you

[Fri13]

2020 unless something raises as block.

 

Q1-Q2 is my guess, so in 6 months timeline.

 

I am really hoping to see those, as I do want to fly between clouds, get possibilities to hide visually from enemy, get a radar problems when flying through rain clouds, thunderstorm to limit radars capabilities by causing echoes and hiding targets, radios getting limitations, all limitations to FLIR and IR anyways.

[River]

most important update to me, aviation means proper weather modeling in the first place. fingers crossed they do it right.

[Airhunter]

I wonder if this'll be like the Scud they show it to people but months and months later still not released or even really info on it either. Hope not but this is a pattern with ED.

 

Same as the new "reworked" ground vehicles and SAM's. Nothing yet.

[Silver_Dragon]

Scud launcher require INS guiadance and SRBM balistic profile to release. Other "ground" AI units has in progress and no release date yet.

[Mizzy]

I know it wasn't a promise or a commitment for the new WIP clouds but are there any WIP screenshots. This will be the biggest update for me in DCS so sorry I am requesting again.

 

Mizzy

[pimp]

I know it wasn't a promise or a commitment for the new WIP clouds but are there any WIP screenshots. This will be the biggest update for me in DCS so sorry I am requesting again.

 

Mizzy

Back in October, Silver Dragon had one posted on his thread from ED's Facebook page but it's no longer there. I wonder why he/ED took it down.

[Dav IRL]

I’m surprised the cloud/weather feature is still not there yet. The immersion and realism proper weather adds is so important. It would be great when ED release the update that we can preview weather templates in some way, also, that there is lots of weather templates. Currently you can’t save your weather settings, even though there is a save button there, so even when you find a great setting you need to take a screenshot on your phone and dial it all in again! This is inconvenient. It would be nice to have a ton of preset weather templates with previews but I guess the night lighting has to be correct before they commit to weather settlings. At the end of the day the weather is as important as the cockpit detail and it’s taking a long time to see any progress.

 

 

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[Ironhand]

I’m surprised the cloud/weather feature is still not there yet. The immersion and realism proper weather adds is so important. It would be great when ED release the update that we can preview weather templates in some way, also, that there is lots of weather templates. Currently you can’t save your weather settings, even though there is a save button there, so even when you find a great setting you need to take a screenshot on your phone and dial it all in again! This is inconvenient. It would be nice to have a ton of preset weather templates with previews but I guess the night lighting has to be correct before they commit to weather settlings. At the end of the day the weather is as important as the cockpit detail and it’s taking a long time to see any progress.

 

 

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You can save it... Just type a name in the box and click the save icon (floppy disk).

[Dav IRL]

You can save it... Just type a name in the box and click the save icon (floppy disk).

 

 

 

Type name in what box? Seriously I cannot believe I’ve missed this lol

 

 

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[Ironhand]

Type name in what box? Seriously I cannot believe I’ve missed this lol

 

 

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Where it reads: DEFAULT. It’s an odd way of doing it because you expect a new dialogue box when, actually, the entire weather page is a dialogue box already.

[Dav IRL]

Nice one will give it a go

 

 

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[wilbur81]

The clouds with Dynamic weather look pretty good, imo

Of course, there is room for improvement.

Different type of clouds, more layers, etc

 

Agreed.

[Dav IRL]

Where it reads: DEFAULT. It’s an odd way of doing it because you expect a new dialogue box when, actually, the entire weather page is a dialogue box already.

 

 

 

Tried this, you can rename it and click save but the saved template doesn’t appear when you go to load it? Any advice?

 

 

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[Ironhand]

Tried this, you can rename it and click save but the saved template doesn’t appear when you go to load it? Any advice?

 

 

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Hmmm...it does for me.

 

I saved this this morning--Happy New Year! BTW. It's the current winds in Butami. Added a snowstorm for fun. Place it in your Saved Games\MissionEditor\weather folder and try to open it in the ME weather tab.

 

EDIT: ALERT! Just noticed that the weather LUAs that come with the sim no longer contain the current date/time in the LUA. However, the ME saves it in your saved weather LUA. This means that you won't get the default date/time back until you exit and re-enter the ME. Don't know if this is a bug or part of the new weather work-in-progress.

1-1-2020 Current Winds-Butami.lua

Edited January 1, 2020 by Ironhand

[Mizzy]

Nice to see this subject addressed in the newsletter. Knowing ED with limited resources (compared to other games studios) it will be worth waiting for.

 

P.S. This is my 15th year on this forum, where has the time gone !!!

 

Mizzy

[Worrazen]

But it's not just "clouds", it's a whole weather system, with other parts later on, so it's a bigger technical deal.

 

"new clouds" is a heavy understatement, not that simple at all, so I would relax and give it more thought in a few months.

Edited January 27, 2020 by Worrazen

[QuiGon]

But it's not just "clouds", it's a whole weather system, with other parts later on, so it's a bigger technical deal.

 

"new clouds" is a heavy understatement, not that simple at all, so I would relax and give it more thought in a few months.

It is indeed some bigger stuff, but they haven't just started working on it yesterday. The new clouds and weather have been in development for years already and have been mentionaed a couple of times over the past few years ;)

[BIGNEWY]

Hi all,

 

This is an important task for us with a high priority, as soon as we have more news we will share it with all of you in our news letters.

 

thank you

Edited January 28, 2020 by BIGNEWY

[Pikey]

Clouds and Multiplayer are more complex than most understand. Clouds and to a lesser extent weather absolutely change mission planning and especially weapon delivery. And this is where the problems start getting complex.

 

 

DCS human and AI detection. IR, visual, Command guidance.

 

Anyone here remember when you could lock a TV guided Maverick and climb through clouds and fire it through with perfect accuracy?

Does anyone really think how IR and Command guidance SAM's behave through the 9/10 and 10/10 cloud base? The observable take away is that DCS uses two sets of clouds. Full cloud layer and invisible fluffy ones for candy. There isn't a technical in between when it comes to weapons.

 

Start making clouds as objects and AI having obstructed view all synchronised in multiplayer and it loads up an existing Core sim with difficult to simplify line of sight checks.

 

The challenge is huge. We have a large single player audience who rely on AI to fill the gaps. We have a small Multiplayer audience who desperately need to look through the same gaps in cloud cover. Those coversations are fun...

"your two o clock low" ... "2, No Joy, I'm in cloud..." .. "Um, clear here" ... "3, raining where I am"

 

I think I could permanenly give up on AI if we had human synchronisation and good cloud, but it's close, the extra CPU for all those IR and CG SAM's, the problems with Laser spot tracking, the additional object filter checks... Sometimes I do not know if this is all a pipe dream on this generation of computing...

[Mizzy]

Yes it's been in development for some time as we know, plus it will definitely bring in the 'arcade' FPS lot in from Ace Combat 37. However, I would have thought ED may bring in the new weather system (including clouds) in single player mode first as most people play single player. Then after that bring the new feature in for the multiplayer bunch after all the issues are resolved or at least most of them.

 

Mizzy

[GunSlingerAUS]

Dear God, I hate to think of the issues a better weather system will bring to aircraft AI. Even if we do get a cloud upgrade sometime in 2020, I think it's going to take many years before the AI operates properly in differing weather conditions. I predict some epic threads complaining about this if and when the weather systems are improved.

[M1Combat]

it will definitely bring in the 'arcade' FPS lot in from Ace Combat 37.

 

Clouds will?

[Mizzy]

Clouds will?

 

Er, yes. Why do you ask? Do you know something I don't ?

 

Mizzy

[Pizzicato]

Er, yes. Why do you ask? Do you know something I don't ?

 

Mizzy

 

 

It's more a question of "Do you know something that we don't know?"

 

I can't imagine why fancy clouds would be the key to converting "the 'arcade' FPS lot from Ace Combat 37" over to DCS. :huh:

Edited January 31, 2020 by Pizzicato