The unofficial "2025 and Beyond" video hype / speculation & discussion thread

Badger1-1 · January 5

I wonder why the date for the video is on the 16th, I guess it takes a good two weeks to make it, so they didnt start in December for whatever reason.

Avenger31 · January 5

Dynamic campaigne for sure “beyond” but faaaaaaar away in beyond realm. They have to work so hard on core in future period to make DC available in any time 4+ years from now. Ground units behavior is more than awful, also 3d models of soldiers, transporting of troops something that works only on luck, somethimes does and mire of the time NO JOY! So whatever will come in this hear it is more than welcome but DC wont be here. I personaly waiting for C-130 to be released in this year and Balkans map to be announced for some time in future, will be happy even knowig that they will work on it.

Beirut · January 5

1 hour ago, Badger1-1 said:

I wonder why the date for the video is on the 16th, I guess it takes a good two weeks to make it, so they didnt start in December for whatever reason.

They've been planning/making this for quite a while, I'm sure. Probably for months.

I wonder if the format will change a bit and we get a longer presentation. The shortest "...and Beyond" was just under 3 minutes and the longest ran over 6 minutes. I see 8 to 10 on this one. Maybe ED feels like they need to punch up after the last year with all the negative talk.

YoYo · January 5

2 hours ago, Convoy said:

90% of this is WW2 stuff specifically in the Pacific. I have a feeling it's all being released at the same time. The map, an asset pack, the Hellcat, and maybe even the Corsair. It needs the map and assets at a minimum, or you can't do anything realistic with a plane. So my feeling is they're waiting on the map and/or assets and/or plane(s) to be ready, to release everything at once.

It was once mentioned that the Hellcat would come out with the carrier, WWII Maraians, and Zero AI. Otherwise it wouldn't make much sense, although the Hellcats did appear briefly over Europe.

YoYo · January 5

Of the planes that are notoriously omitted in DCS are bombers (the exception is the fighter-bomber Mosquito), it would be nice to finally see something from heavy bombers for WWII or the Cold War.

Since so much has been happening recently from the Cold War, maybe someone (ED/3rd Party) would finally be tempted to make the IL-28, it is one of the most beautiful machines used by the entire Eastern Bloc, from Egypt to Vietnam.

Edited January 6 by YoYo

TheFreshPrince · January 5

Maybe we will get something on the Tornado as well

Weta43 · January 5

9 hours ago, Avenger31 said:

Dynamic campaigne for sure “beyond” but faaaaaaar away in beyond realm. They have to work so hard on core in future period to make DC available in any time 4+ years from now. Ground units behavior is more than awful, also 3d models of soldiers, transporting of troops something that works only on luck, somethimes does and mire of the time NO JOY! So whatever will come in this hear it is more than welcome but DC wont be here. I personaly waiting for C-130 to be released in this year and Balkans map to be announced for some time in future, will be happy even knowig that they will work on it.

You don't see 'opinion stated as fact' more strongly than that very often - even here...

Beirut · January 6

I wonder if it is scheduled for so far into January this year because there's an "Available now!" included?

Ooooohhhhhhh!

YoYo · January 6

Maybe we will find out something about DCS Me-262 too finally!

"A flyable Messerschmitt Me.262A-1"

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/508681281/dcs-wwii-europe-1944/description

Edited January 6 by YoYo

Gunfreak · January 6

21 hours ago, YoYo said:

It was once mentioned that the Hellcat would come out with the carrier, WWII Maraians, and Zero AI. Otherwise it wouldn't make much sense, although the Hellcats did appear briefly over Europe.

From what I understand the AI zero is a Mag3 project, and so not directly related to the Hellcat

YoYo · January 6

1 hour ago, Gunfreak said:

From what I understand the AI zero is a Mag3 project, and so not directly related to the Hellcat

Unfortunately, this has not been fully explained by either side. Because once Rudel actually showed the Zero AI model, but then it appeared in the ED movie, and Wags announced that there will also be a Zero as a flyable. You may be right that this is only supposed to apply to Corsair and is only related to it, but Im not 100% sure.

cfrag · January 6

On 1/5/2025 at 1:31 PM, Badger1-1 said:

I guess it takes a good two weeks to make it, so they didnt start in December for whatever reason.

ED aren't youtubers that put out some shoddy content every day. Production quality of those ED videos is much higher, and I wager that just finalizing the video takes more than two weeks. An educated guess: a video production project like this runs 3 months plus: from the definition of the message, over storyboarding, production of "b" footage, main footage, music composition/selection/licensing, audio recording (ED Nick has a cool voice, yes, but there little chance that he can do that in a single, 1h session), audio mixing, to post/mastering. 3 Months seems tight to me, so yeah, let's hope that they hit the 16th. This video is going to be viewed by millions and impacts their reputation directly. Worse, the footage will be dissected frame-by-frame and analyzed by certified nutcases like me that hang around here, just waiting for a single mis-rendered blend that "obviously" confirms half-life 3.

And yeah, I'm looking forward to that video, too.

Edited January 6 by cfrag

Silver_Dragon · January 6

On 1/4/2025 at 10:44 PM, TheFreshPrince said:

I'll speculate then that MIG29 is officially being announced for this year, Eurofighter later on (2026 maybe). Mariannas 2 and Vietnam also this year. Maybe some new infos on Vulcan. Dynamic campaign also this year. Dunno about other stuff, but that should be enough already...

Mig-29A module was officially announced on "2024 and Beyond" has no surprise, and December newsletter show progress and "plans" to a Q2 release, the same with Marianas WW2, appears on 2023 and 2024 videos and talked on previous newsletters.

On 1/5/2025 at 12:07 PM, Convoy said:

90% of this is WW2 stuff specifically in the Pacific. I have a feeling it's all being released at the same time. The map, an asset pack, the Hellcat, and maybe even the Corsair. It needs the map and assets at a minimum, or you can't do anything realistic with a plane. So my feeling is they're waiting on the map and/or assets and/or plane(s) to be ready, to release everything at once.

WW2 is in progress by ED (WW2 Marianas map, F6F module and some Pacific assets like Enterprise CV, some IJN ships and Zero AI) and M3 (F4 Corsair module, and its Pacific assets like Essex class aircraft carrier and USN, IJN/IJA assets). ED will most likely add the Pacific assets to the WW2 asset pack. WW2 Marinas will be released as a free map (pending confirmation). M3 assets will most likely come with the Corsair (possibly for free). Neither ED nor M3 have said anything about a joint release.

On 1/5/2025 at 9:51 AM, toni said:

Not a new plane by ED ? They could post a poll just to see what platforms the community wish .

My first vote goes to keep on with the Boeing F-18F Super Hornet

ED is working on the Mig-29A, and yes, it’s possible that there will be a sneak pick of a future module, but a Super Hornet, if it’s not a Block 2/3 version (currently restricted), is a waste of time as Skatezilla explained, because only a Block 0/1 can be made, an aircraft that is inferior in capabilities to an F/A-18C Block 20. I’ve already suggested that it could be either another helicopter (I wouldn’t rule out an AH-1/UH-60), or a new mid-Cold War module (blue or red).

On 1/5/2025 at 9:43 AM, TheFreshPrince said:

IDK, there is so much missing in DCS that would be needed for a somewhat realistic Fulda-gap battle.

Fulda Gap / Germany, has been featured in the CH-47 Pre-Order video. No DCS World map has a "full set" of AI units, they have always been separate, so it is not a priority. The same will happen with a Vietnam or Korea map. And without being M3 or RAZBAM, no 3rd party has a team of AI units.

Edited January 6 by Silver_Dragon

Sunbather · January 6

vor 48 Minuten schrieb cfrag:

This video is going to be viewed by millions and impacts their reputation directly. Worse, the footage will be dissected frame-by-frame and analyzed by certified nutcases like me that hang around here, just waiting for a single mis-rendered blend that "obviously" confirms half-life 3.

Wait... Half Life 3 confirmed? Star Citizen releases this February into 1.0? You got any source for that?

TheFreshPrince · January 6

vor 50 Minuten schrieb Silver_Dragon:

Fulda Gap / Germany, has been featured in the CH-47 Pre-Order video. No DCS World map has a "full set" of AI units, they have always been separate, so it is not a priority. The same will happen with a Vietnam or Korea map. And without being M3 or RAZBAM, no 3rd party has a team of AI units.

What's the point of having a map without the assets? DCS is not a landscape simulator. Fulda Gap was not a proxy war (cold war) scenario like other maps and scenarios we have in DCS, it was a full scale WW3 scenario. AH-1 is one big important thing missing since DCS focuses on air assets, but I'm sure it will come at some point. But we're also talking about massive tank and troop battles as well as nukes/ADM (zebra package). I recently was at an military exhibition in the Fulda gap region, which showed all the maps, assets, scenarios and the scale of it. DCS doesn't have the ability for such large scale scenarios. And I don't see the point of doing something on this map that I could do on any other map. Same applies to Korea or Vietnam. ED has shown napalm coming with Vietnam, cause it's obviously important.

Edited January 6 by TheFreshPrince

Silver_Dragon · January 6

53 minutes ago, TheFreshPrince said:

What's the point of having a map without the assets? DCS is not a landscape simulator. Fulda Gap was not a proxy war (cold war) scenario like other maps and scenarios we have in DCS, it was a full scale WW3 scenario. AH-1 is one big important thing missing since DCS focuses on air assets, but I'm sure it will come at some point. But we're also talking about massive tank and troop battles as well as nukes/ADM (zebra package). I recently was at an military exhibition in the Fulda gap region, which showed all the maps, assets, scenarios and the scale of it. DCS doesn't have the ability for such large scale scenarios. And I don't see the point of doing something on this map that I could do on any other map. Same applies to Korea or Vietnam. ED has shown napalm coming with Vietnam, cause it's obviously important.

Since 2014, when the NTTR map was released, no map has been accompanied by any AI units pack to "planesets". The units themselves are not on the maps, they are in separate folders because the map SDK (TDK) does not allow building any of this and the "prop" units on the maps are not EDM files. The EDM for the AI units must be made with the normal SDK via modelviewer from 3DS Max as if it were the external model of a module.

We are talking about different teams, it happens like RAZBAM with the South Atlantic map, the team that builds the map is different from the one that builds the supports and this is shown in the files and directories of the DCS World modules, totally disconnected from each other. On fact M3 has building your PTO assets without a map team, only a assets team.

The WW2 assets pack is made by ED WW2 assets map team (no the modern assets team, and was released later), while Normandy was made by Ugra Media. Making a map of Germany (which looks like it will be modern, not 1980's, very similar to Syria or Sinai), matters little, and yes, DCS World is still a "landscape simulator", since nobody is making closed packs. Another point is that making a single AI unit takes as much time as making external models (example, the updates on the B-1B, B-52, etc. that have taken years), you can't make hundreds of "low" quality units and think that they can be put into DCS World, because ED won't let you add them to the "core" since they don't meet their standards (everything goes through ED's eye before any release). And to make many AI units, you need very large assets teams.

That Vietnam, Germany or Korea don't have their "planeset" is not ED's problem, it's a problem that the AI units go one way, and the maps go another.

Another point, currently ED has not shown any implemented Napalm effects (in itself, that technology is missing in the core by ED yet, and has to come in certain M77 bombs), as seen in the 2023 and 24 videos, they have not shown anything new about Napalm, just some large High Explosive explosions. The same happens with the incendiary bombs, which also have no effects (and are only HE), or like the "nuclear" bombs on the Mig-21Bis, simply playing with the functionality of the current HE bombs (ED has no plans to simulate or implement nuclear weapons).

Other point has been some featured show on previous "X and Beyond" videos, no release yet as paratroopers, or the new infantry funtionality models, and a long etc. When them will be ready, will be release.

Edited January 6 by Silver_Dragon

Cab · January 6

1 hour ago, TheFreshPrince said:

What's the point of having a map without the assets?

Sales. A lot of us will buy it even without assets.

Beirut · January 6

1 hour ago, TheFreshPrince said:

What's the point of having a map without the assets? DCS is not a landscape simulator. Fulda Gap was not a proxy war (cold war) scenario like other maps and scenarios we have in DCS, it was a full scale WW3 scenario. AH-1 is one big important thing missing since DCS focuses on air assets, but I'm sure it will come at some point. But we're also talking about massive tank and troop battles as well as nukes/ADM (zebra package). I recently was at an military exhibition in the Fulda gap region, which showed all the maps, assets, scenarios and the scale of it. DCS doesn't have the ability for such large scale scenarios. And I don't see the point of doing something on this map that I could do on any other map. Same applies to Korea or Vietnam. ED has shown napalm coming with Vietnam, cause it's obviously important.

It's a map?

It's a good map?

Then I'll buy it because it's a good map. :smoke:

Razorback · January 6

I don’t expect anything from the next ED videos.
Just a moment of fun.
Fore sure I will not focus on 2025 but on the « beyond » part of the video title.
C-130, F-4U, Mariannes WW2,….Announced so long ago
When we see how long it was to release the new B-52 & B-1 AI assets we can’t expect any new (ground) assests soon….A lot of vehicles are outdated. So be it….

Yes I am quite negative but after the chaos of the AFG map released in June and announced with updates each tree months (we are still waiting the first one ) I will remain pragmatic. Return to the reality…and reality is what is currently available. All the rest is pure speculation despite ED announcements.
Two more weeks and all is subject to change

Raven (Elysian Angel) · January 6

5 minutes ago, Razorback said:

Two more weeks and all is subject to change

When we have more news to share, we will. Thank you for your passion and support (and dollars/euros/roebls)...

St4rgun · January 6

One word: VULKAN.

It was stated to be ready by Q3 2021, and in the 2024's first year's opening great newsletter it is set to be deployed by the end of 2024. None of them happaned.

At the same time the optimization work the devs done with the terrain engine is outstanding, the sim works really fine right now on current hw.

If only Vulkan could help to do any more special VR optimizations...

MAXsenna · January 6

1 hour ago, Silver_Dragon said:

no map has been accompanied by any AI units pack

So, the SA map didn't come with boats, ships and orcas? Was that just a dream?

1 hour ago, Silver_Dragon said:

The units themselves are not on the maps, they are in separate folder

I'm sure @TheFreshPrince is aware of this.

Keith Briscoe · January 6

Please Gawd, bring the "save game" option. Campaigns are super cool, but too frustrating and long for me to enjoy until a save game option exists.

Gunfreak · January 6

On 1/5/2025 at 9:00 AM, Hotdognz said:

If a Vietnam map is lurking in that poster, it will be no use without ground assets to go along with that map unless some fictional scenario is made using it.

We got a lot in 2024 and I'm grateful for what was released, but this year I'd like to some of the new maps get fleshed out with all new AI assets that suit those maps so we can fly historical battles over the new terrains released, I really can't see the point with all these maps and it started with the SA one, we get no new AI assets to play against that belong to that map, Iraq and Afghanistan very much stand out here as no new assets have been released along with those maps, except the C-Ram and some other type of armored US personal carrier.

A vietnam map without a decent selection of US and VC/NVA infantry models would be a huge waste.

Ideally they could add US and Vietnamese infantry AND add animated troops to the back of the Huey.

Imagine doing a large air assault with 20 Hueys. And seeing vietnam era US infantry jump out of you Huey and run for the tree line.

How Imagine you do the same. But now you have some generic infantry models with modern rifles. Magically appear as you tuch down in your empty Huey.(this is what we have now)

Razorback · January 6

39 minutes ago, Gunfreak said:

A vietnam map without a decent selection of US and VC/NVA infantry models would be a huge waste.

Ideally they could add US and Vietnamese infantry AND add animated troops to the back of the Huey.

Imagine doing a large air assault with 20 Hueys. And seeing vietnam era US infantry jump out of you Huey and run for the tree line.

How Imagine you do the same. But now you have some generic infantry models with modern rifles. Magically appear as you tuch down in your empty Huey.(this is what we have now)

New infantry model and animation....
We have now the UH-1, The Mi-8, the Chinook...and still no fast roping possibilities.
It doesn't seem feasible... unlike opening hatches in certain modules, which add nothing for gaming.

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