Now What?

[ZQuickSilverZ]

Well I saw this coming a mile away. DCS A-10C comes out and now the servers are all but empty. What about the future of the servers? Are we going to have some servers that are DCS A-10C / DCS KA50 and some that are DCS KA50 / FC 2.0? I really wish ED would consider making both DCS titles compatable with FC 2.0 until they have at least one fast mover. My fear is that this is going to divide an already niche community. My vote is that when a DCS fast mover comes out they just drop FC 2.0 compatability all together, but until then they need to keep them compatable. Any thoughts on this? If ED does not do this I expect to play on some very low populated servers. I would appreciate some official ED feedback as well as some community support.

[Spartan1-1]

I hear you man. I'm having fun with A-10 now. But losing FC2 compatibility is going to be a loss until we get some more modules. With that said. I'll still be flying BS and FC2 from time to time. Miss my Mig.

[KeyCat]

I really wish ED would consider making both DCS titles compatable with FC 2.0...

 

+1

 

My vote is that when a DCS fast mover comes out they just drop FC 2.0 compatability all together...

 

If possible I would like to see FC 2.0 compatable in MP also after DCS fighters are released since it allows people that don't wan't (or have the time) to spend X days with a manual combined with Y weeks training for one plane/heli to take part in the fun!

 

I know some argue that it's unfair bla bla since the planes in FC 2.0 is easier to fly but in co-op's that doesn't matter IMO (main objective is to have fun together). For those still feeling it's an issue in PvP it could be solved with mission design (i.e only DCS planes/helis available to fly).

 

IMHO, FC 2.0 is a good entry level flight sim and a perfect way to bring in new blood to this seemingly diminishing hobby - tried to get my brothers 4 boys into flightsims for years but all they care about is "trollhunting" in WoW it seems :music_whistling:

 

/KC

Edited October 14, 2010 by KeyCat

[Napa]

I think they already dropped FC2.0 compatibility.

[Arrowhead]

I think they already dropped FC2.0 compatibility.

 

What? Why? I thought everything was getting upgraded...

 

Is it really so hard to port things over? I thought the engine was designed to be upgraded. They always said DCS would be continually evolving. No sense leaving good stuff behind... :(

[STP Dragon]

http://spare-time-pilots.de/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=81&p=17277#p17277

 

Q: Will DCS: A-10C Warthog be online-compatible with DCS: Black Shark and Flaming Cliffs 2?

A: We hope to be able to release a compatibility patch for DCS: Black Shark after release. This would give Black Shark all the features of A-10C, except the flyable A-10C. Compatibility with FC2 is unlikely.

 

In my point of view there will be some squadrons which will not patch the BlackShark and will be still comaptibel with FC2.

Maybe you are able to install two BlackShark and patch only one.

[Arrowhead]

I don't get what the big deal is. I would even pay to have just the multiplayer assets ported over. Call it FC 2.5mp. :music_whistling:

[sobek]

I don't get what the big deal is.

 

The big deal is that it would delay the next DCS module for another year or so. There's already (most likely) going to be a patch for BS that will eat up dev time. Doing the same thing for FC again would be a lot of trouble.

[Arrowhead]

The big deal is that it would delay the next DCS module for another year or so. There's already (most likely) going to be a patch for BS that will eat up dev time. Doing the same thing for FC again would be a lot of trouble.

 

Hmm, well I figured you guys had different staff capable of working on slightly different projects concurrently. Did development of the A-10 module cease while FC 2 was being worked on?

[KeyCat]

There's already (most likely) going to be a patch for BS that will eat up dev time.

 

Don't know how to interpret that comment!?? So do you mean FC 2.0 is EOL?

 

FC 2.0 and DCS:BS both have some serious bugs/issues that needs patching.

 

/KC

[ZQuickSilverZ]

To me if they don't make DCS KA50 and DCS A10C compatable thats a deal breaker. I thought the whole idea behind DCS was to have a high fidelity flight sim that had ONLINE compatable modules. Also, don't all the games share the fighter collection engine? I'm no programmer, but I don't understand why its such a huge ordeal to make something compatable that uses the same engine. I also understand that DCS A-10C has graphic upgrades. I totally get that. But to me your already overwriting the part of the game that displays terrain. Can't they just use the same code (on the same engine mind you) for FC 2.0? Also if there are DCS KA50 / A10C and DCS KA50 / FC 2.0 servers both running at the same time how are we supposed to know which are which? Also how do we even know that ED even HAS a next module lined up? They have not announced anything. So a year wait may not even matter if they have nothing planned right now. Im not totally opposed to paying for a DCS A10C comptability patch for FC 2.0 either.

Edited October 14, 2010 by ZQuickSilverZ

[Steel Jaw]

While combining the different sims into a common battlefield would be nice, not doing so is not a deal breaker for me. (1) I do not care about the BS (though I bought it 2 years ago to supprt DCS) and (2) I care even less about lite weight FC2.

 

IMHO.

 

I been waiting for years for a good hardcore A10 sim and that's all I care about. And many hardcore simmers I know feel the same way, especially over at my VFW.

[SNAFU]

If online play should be a major point of DCS, then it will be necessary to make them compatible. I don`t care much about FC2 when I am in my BS or in my WH, but there will be not enough or WH pilots to have fun making an combined airstrike anywhere on a random base.

 

Sure 2 WH pilots can make an appointment a week ahead and fly together for 1h. So can 2 BS pilots, but the chance of getting online the hour you like and have time and finding a server where you can jump in random team at once will be slim. At the moment it is FC2 that dictates DCS online playing. BS is only a side effect, appearing randomly, often only in shape of some target drones for FC figthers. Getting strikers like Su25 und Ka-50 to a coordinated stirke is quite pleasant and I think A-10C and Ka-50 in combined missions would be even more fun. Sure A-10 can play on their own on an empty server, like Ka-50s did before FC2, no problem, the Ka-50 pilots didn´t gain much of the merge on the standard airquake server.

 

But there are not enough hardcore simmers, and every DCS title on it own, would split DCS in more or less singleplayer gameplay. That is my point of few.

[sobek]

[...]

 

I did not say that there isn't going to be a patch for BS. What i did want to say is ED are going to do the patch until something happens like a volcano erupting in their office or unforseeable HUGE problems arising in the development of the patch. Again, not saying that it won't happen, just as with everything in life, there can be no guarantees for anything.

 

As for future FC development, i do not know what will happen (that means as far as i know, anything is possible, except that wags said that FC2 and DCSW compatibility is unlikely).

 

I know it is very hard to understand for a layman why this patching business means so much work, but these are just immensely complex pieces of software, you change one thing in one part of the software and because of all the complex interdependencies something seemingly totally unrelated stops working. Which has to be tested to be found. Which then has to be fixed. Which might create other problems. You get the picture. It's not like you take this, paste something in, take a few pieces of the old code and voila.

Edited October 14, 2010 by sobek

[Steel Jaw]

A10 is destined to be used by existing or new VFW with their own servers. The "air quake" public servers for FC2 are irrelevant to DCS A10.

 

I do not want to fly a hardcore jet with a bunch of air quakers who shoot wads of missiles at me, rearm, rinse, repeat.

 

Already my long-time Falcon4 VFW is taking on A10. *THAT* is where I will fly.

[104th_Crunch]

I swear if I hear "airquake" again I'll puke. The same server that has people concentrating on nothing but killing can contain people that try to fly in an organized manner. IMO the more the better, least you fly alone. That's just me though.

 

Can't have the cake and eat it to. Of course their advantages and disadvantages to working on FC2 compatibility with future DCS modules, but again IMO only, the wait for a DCS fighter is a long one and as a great fan of FC2 I would rather DCS fighter today. The excellent work on A10 makes me want it more. It is great that the BlackShark works with FC2, but if FC2 was not patched to work with the BS, we probably would already have the A-10C released! It took many months to create FC2. Don't assume since FC and DCS are similar that it would be trivial to patch FC2 to work with A-10.

 

So, I don't want to sim in the more or less same low fi jets that were released in 2005. Use all resources to move on. Patch DCS modules only and leave FC2 as is. Of course this is assuming a fighter is next. For all we know it may not be.

 

Resourses are limited in this niche sim market, this is not EA games.

[Steel Jaw]

I swear if I hear "airquake" again I'll puke..

 

Air Quake.

 

:P

[104th_Crunch]

Air Quake.

 

:P

 

Should have seen that one coming. Think I'll got out for lunch now then puke it out in your honour lol.

[Steel Jaw]

Should have seen that one coming. Think I'll got out for lunch now then puke it out in your honour lol.

 

Just having fun with ya bud.

 

I shoot from the hip.

 

:pilotfly:

[power5]

Same thing that has brought windows down on each new release. Users demand legacy. Check OSX 10.5. Does not work on older PowerPC apples, only the intel generation. I would love to get FC2 to fly other jets, but being low quality, and based on 7 years old software, I have no urge to spend the amount of money needed. I do not want the new DCS modules to have to sacrifice so they can be compatible with FC2.

 

I think they made BS compatible with FC2 as a stop gap. I have plenty of fun playing on BS only servers though, but some people want to use the BS as target practice flying their M-29s. Same people that complain that the AI is not challenging enough and would rather fly against humans. Of course hitting a blind BS from 10 miles is the same as shooting a building. Same awareness of the threat and about the same speed.

 

Bring on the new. No more Air Quake compatibility. ;)

[Total]

Until there is a fighter for both the Soviet and US aircraft that can fly CAP for CAS forces, then I would be against FC2 compatibility.

 

The few times I've flown DCS:BS in an FC2server, some knucklehead in an SU-27, SU-25, or MiG-29 (A-10 & Su-25T too for the servers with all map markers on) was bound and determined to get his rocks off shooting a CAS helicopter. When asked to join comms and work as a team, the reply was the expected: silence.

 

FC2 is a great sim game when used on a specific mission while using teamwork and communications. Anything else, is sadly, air quake. Solo operatives going up for a team death match.

 

Having just the DCS modules compatible, imho, is going to be the best approach.

[GGTharos]

While I don't know what ED's plans are, the last time this compatibility thing was tried, it ended up blowing up - it took too long and cut into the A-10C time line.

 

Frankly, I would not be surprised if ED would like to put the LOMAC/FC line to rest, and I would not be against it either. It is NOT DCS, and there is no reason for it to be compatible with DCS. It is, from the programming side, nothing but the hassle of recombining an old codebase with new things. It needs to go.

 

DCS modules are planned to be compatible with each other, and I imagine that is exactly how things will be.

[Steel Jaw]

LOMAC/FC line ... needs to go.

 

 

Agree completely. I was never a fan of the line anyhow.

[SNAFU]

So we all seem to agree on one point, as long as DCS moduli are compatible to each other all is fine.

 

Some official anoucments sounded rather like "we hope they will be compatible" and not like "it is part of our development plan, to have a compatible set of DCS a/c", what catched my concerns. ;)

[GGTharos]

Don't care what you think of it, I has been my main sim for a while and frankly I didn't miss that make-your-eyes-bleed-to-death flake-on four stuff while playing it ;)

I mean you know, turns out the F/A/E-Pole works just the same in both*!

 

*with some reasonably minor differences

 

Agree completely. I was never a fan of the line anyhow.