Single Players: What would win you over to a multiplayer server?

[Dangerzone]

I've read that most DCS players prefer Single Player. I've also seen many posts from people who tried Multiplayer but, for various reasons, decided it wasn't for them and stuck with Single Player.

If that describes you, I’d like your input:

What would make you consider joining a DCS multiplayer server? Or, what would a multiplayer server need (or avoid) for you to try it?

For example:

A PvE campaign where you only play with friends you choose.

A community that carefully selects members to ensure maturity, or one that offers real human ATC 24/7.

Servers that automatically match you with players of similar skill for fair PvP.

Or do you simply prefer flying alone, with no interest in playing with others?

I’m curious whether players avoid Multiplayer just because they prefer flying solo, or because a suitable Multiplayer environment doesn’t exist for them.

[Don Rudi]

I for one am simply not interested in MP.
Speaking PvE:
I want to fly, when I have time, not when a server happens to be full.
I want to fly what (plane and mission) I want, not what is on the menu for some virtual squadron.

Speaking PvP:
I am in no mood to spawn, do a time consuming cold start only to be blown to pieces on the taxiway, by friend or foe.
And yes, my aged brain is simply too slow to compete with teens who spend all their time in front of screen.

In short, I simply don't miss anything in my SP world.

Edited 6 hours ago by Don Rudi
typo

[speed-of-heat]

Likely the first two would be closest… however, the reality is i have a life and a family, even though I’m retired and I play most days, turning up at a regular time just doesn’t work for me… which it does for most other people… I have little or no interest in PvP never have in any game.  

I’m introverted by nature and whilst I have friends and enjoy their company, but, I grew up gaming solo, and honestly have very little interest in gaming with others.

[MAXsenna]

Nothing.

I did enjoy that helicopter SAR server, and I dable into other servers from time to time. Not at all interested in joining any squads, because I fly whenever I feel like it, without constraints and commitments.

MP can be lots of fun. My first experiences were EF2K, some DI and Janes games over Kali, before IP was widely supported. Yeah, and FPSs like Doom, Descent, Nukem 3D, some Starwars etc. But that was way back in the 90s. There was a warbirds game that supported IP and only MP. The name escapes me, and was subscription based, so I gave that up very quickly. After the 90s I was a console user for 10+ years, and played a lot of MP with my X. But we had multiple TVs and consoles. Spent countless hours in MP on some PS3 game pleasing her I can't remember. Some FPS something.

I have nothing against MP, and I will probably eventually come back to it. But I have too much fun learning all the modules in SP.

Cheers!

Sent from my SM-A536B using Tapatalk

[VR Flight Guy in PJ Pants]

Totally immune to MP. I have no friends, none of them plays flight sim, I play the game the way I want, at my own pace, enjoy my own win and failures. I have games which have great AI, and play those when I wish to be on my own. I don't want friendly fire on myself and on others

54 minutes ago, MAXsenna said:

There was a warbirds game that supported IP and only MP. The name escapes me, and was subscription based

It was called Warbirds, irrc. Because I was there with a friend, and constantly get slaughtered. Then we moved on the Flanker 1.0 (Yes, I am this old)

http://www.totalsims.com/info_warbirds.php

Edited 4 hours ago by VR Flight Guy in PJ Pants

[Rudel_chw]

3 hours ago, Dangerzone said:

Or do you simply prefer flying alone, with no interest in playing with others?

yes, this is my case, I enjoy learning each plane or helo, dcs is not a game on my case so no need for other players 

[Dragon1-1]

I want to play at my convenience, not when others have the time. MP is always a commitment (unless you play with total randoms, which I don't care for), with SP I can play or not, and nobody else will care. My at times unreliable internet connection (I'm on a radio link) also doesn't bother me, nor am I affected if someone else doesn't make it, or has connection problems. Playing with others just adds a whole other level of fuss that I'm unwilling to deal with. Plus, as a VR player, I don't have performance to spare, and MP is poorly optimized in DCS.

[AdrianL]

So what is missing from the original post is that people avoid the public servers.

A lot of people will host a server from their machine, for 2 or 3 friends, where they are free to play how they like. 

 

Edited 3 hours ago by AdrianL

[MAXsenna]

34 minutes ago, AdrianL said:

So what is missing from the original post is that people avoid the public servers.

A lot of people will host a server from their machine, for 2 or 3 friends, where they are free to play how they like. 

 

Fair point!  

 

1 hour ago, VR Flight Guy in PJ Pants said:

It was called Warbirds, irrc. Because I was there with a friend, and constantly get slaughtered. Then we moved on the Flanker 1.0 (Yes, I am this old)

Ha! So the title was that simple? No wonder I couldn't remember it.  

[bies]

MP generating missions, like in other flight sims, even really old ones.

Not a long-ass list of random airfields and aircrafts. Where you have to spawn not knowing where or why. Chosing some random weapon, flying to some random place, doing some random stuff, invent your mission by yourself in your head. Like every pilot is forced to be an air force general with detailed knowledge about the whole battlefield and air mission planner, which feels lika a chore, like a mission editor. Such random missions equals subpar experience and often close to no interaction with the world.

It should be like in other sims, where you can see a map with airfields and automatically generated missions to chose. Where you have route & nav points already in your nav computer/cardridge, you just set proper weapon suited your mission. Naturally cooperate with other elements of your flight. This equals great experience even in much technically worse sims then DCS.

 

       

    

[Raven (Elysian Angel)]

I also avoid public servers for a variety of reasons - one of which being certain behaviours I have observed there (and have been subjected to) that I don't care to repeat.
AirQuake simply doesn't interest me, and loading entire SAM sites on a Huey to drop them off using scripts is a bit... err immersion breaking  

I have joined a few squadrons back in the day, and I have had a few of my own as well, but these days I fly SP with the occasional hop on a privately hosted mission with a friend of mine. That works just fine for me.

[draconus]

What puts me off MP?

• schedule and time dedication
• reliance on 3rd party apps like Discord or SRS
• poor or no briefing/mission plan (public servers)
• unrealistic mission settings and randomness of powers on both sides (public servers)
• DCS MP performance and visual weirdness (jumping/warping aircraft)
• no RL friends playing
• risk of meeting griefers, trolls and cheaters (public servers)

What I miss in SP?

• unpredictability and skills of human opponents
• much better interaction with wingman and other friendly flights
• more realistic comms between flights and services (ATC or JTAC)

[Lace]

I like the idea of a virtual squadron carrying out semi-realistic PvE missions, however, the main obstacle for me is the inability to commit to a particular mission push time, or to stay connected for several hours at a time.  Perhaps this is something to save for retirement, or at least until the children have moved on.  At the moment SP suits my needs, and the EDDCE will (hopefully) provide much of what I am looking for without relying on MP servers.  I also don't like the fact that some groups require additional software/apps like Discord or SRS, rather than just using the integrated comms.

I have zero interest in PvP 'Air-Quake' with unrealistic respawns, instant rearming, air starts, etc.