1.2.3 first impressions

[Doughboy]

My Squadron flew a mission last night to try out the new JTAC improvements at night on A-10C. We had overcast with the base at about 9,000FT. The NVGs seem to be utter crap now. The max range with them turned all the way up was .5 mi. The pod was even worse in BHOT WHOT. The picture was totally washed out. We tried everything we could do to get a good picture in the pod to no avail. It was marginally better than using EO mode in total darkness.

 

Any one else having this problem?

[MadTommy]

My Squadron flew a mission last night to try out the new JTAC improvements at night on A-10C. We had overcast with the base at about 9,000FT. The NVGs seem to be utter crap now. The max range with them turned all the way up was .5 mi. The pod was even worse in BHOT WHOT. The picture was totally washed out. We tried everything we could do to get a good picture in the pod to no avail. It was marginally better than using EO mode in total darkness.

 

Any one else having this problem?

 

I flew a quick night mission in the Ka-50.. I soon quit as i could not get the NVG to work where i was able to see the pit & the outside world. The NVGs seem knackered but i did not spend long trying and somewhat assumed it was user error as i have not flown with NVGs for ages. NVGs were very grainy and no fun to use.

[Darkwolf]

Being poor quality doesn't mean it's bugged. I wonder how was russian NVG technology when that Ka-50 was inaugurated. Can someone with good knowledge update us if it's a bug or a feature ? I'm not an expert with this.

[luza]

Flares make a sound when dropped now! :)

[Speed]

Just noticed in the ME that the distance measurement was in NM instead of FEET now... thank you!

 

Wouldn't have really mattered if you had used a more intuitive units system :P

 

When in intuitive units system mode, the ruler units will also automatically switch from meters to km :)

[zaelu]

Flares make a sound when dropped now! :)

 

 

and the missiles go boom!... boom! like they rich supersonic speed after launch and you hear the second boom! :thumbup:

[Rotorhead]

So, my first impressions after doing few quick flight tests mostly with the Shark, not much in-depth though:

 

First and foremost: The G940 FFB bug is finally gone and I can fly DCS properly again!:thumbup: I have to thank ED for that, but seriously, it should be fixed some three months ago. As a loyal ED fan, I understand there were more issues to be fixed, but as a paying customer, I don't. :mad:

 

Next, the new Su-27 model looks fantastic! This is the way to go ED, can't wait to see more planes detailed like that! Rocket exhausts finally have the right color, and FPS impact of P-51 gunfire is smaller now. Mission editor skin looks nice too.

 

On the other hand, dust from helicopter rotors is still slowing the game down enormously (haven't tried to drop some CBU's yet), which is pretty annoying.

 

As I haven't found any major bug yet, my impressions are fully positive so far.

[DayGlow]

TWS in MiG29S not working...no 6dof for all aircraft's...in general- to much noise about nothing! I keep holding to my Mustang and Warthog...FC3 grounded!!!

 

Beta is still beta. Don't expect a finished product.

[beers]

Beta is still beta. Don't expect a finished product.

 

you seem to suggest that some day it will not be in Beta. That, I think, is a point open to debate.

[Rusty_M]

Parts of the product are in beta. Other parts are not. The parts mentioned in the post to which DayGlow was replying referred to Flaming Cliffs 3 mainly, which is very much a beta. Also, the improvements such as further 6DOF cockpits had not been mentioned as part of 1.2.3. In fact it had been stated that features such as that were going to take longer to implement.

[con3para]

keep getting kicked in when in on-line multi-player not sure if this is a ..been happening for a while now, it worked before with 1.1.1 , also history not working when you have connected to a server.

Edited March 2, 2013 by con3para

[Hamblue]

If you're getting kicked in 1.2.3 you should post a track file for the testers.

[norcal bear]

We're not impressed. Flying in a LAN with 1.2.3 and constant server crashes. One of our members is a beta tester so he will be posting crash logs to the appropriate people. Hopefully they can narrow down the problems.

[Dejjvid]

Never had any crashes in 1.2.3.

The net code still doesn't like connections with packet loss though.

Hope it is possible for the devs to tweak it so the server doesn't drop the session and only "pause" the client.

[norcal bear]

Well, glad to hear you aren't having problems. I know they worked hard to increase M.P. stability but we aren't seeing it.

[Jona33]

Much better loading times and the new rocket/missile motors look nice. Haven't tried MP yet.

[Der_Fred]

Program abort.. not bad!.. better than a crash.

After installing the new version in a different folder (it wouldn't overwrite the previous installation) .. it bombed and when i tried to play the previous version I ended up with the same scenario.. wow !

 

I think Eagle/DCS should take a few notes from IL2 installations and patches - might learn something.

[BRooDJeRo]

It must have been a lost Higgs particle and bounced of your HD.

[Eihort]

Tell it to Bosoff.

 

*badumching!*

[luza]

Russian tanks have green tracers! Woopity woop! Keepy finding small improvements that make me smile all the time!

[BRooDJeRo]

Tell it to Bosoff.

 

*badumching!*

 

Hey Bosoff.....it must have been a lost Higgs particle and bounced of your HD.... :huh:

[bn880]

I have to give it to ED, the client crashes I had with HDR active are apparently resolved. Played some good hours over 2 days and not a single Client crash. (just now we got those server crashes reported everywhere)

 

On the other hand, what happened to 30mm cannon power, tanks are nearly invincible now? Maybe I'm imagining it, but those 30mm rounds were made to bust tanks...

[EtherealN]

On the other hand, what happened to 30mm cannon power, tanks are nearly invincible now? Maybe I'm imagining it, but those 30mm rounds were made to bust tanks...

 

Which 30mm? Ka-50 or A-10C?

 

Also, depending on the tank in question, you really need to get the rounds properly on-target, from close range, on rear/high aspect. Attack rear-aspect with fires from 0.7 to 0.4nm slant range if A-10C. (And if the target area is too hot for that, use a different weapon.)

 

Remember: the GAU-8 was made to bust not "tanks", it was made to bust T-62's, 64's and 72's. Results against more modern tanks will vary.

 

If Ka-50, your weapon is theoretically capable of action against MBTs, but rate of fire is such that even though it is a fairly precise weapon, you shouldn't excpect quick kills against modern tanks. (That is the same gun as on BMP's.)

 

http://www.simhq.com/_air/air_053c.html

 

If you are within the mentioned parameters, give me a track and I'll look at it.

[bn880]

A10C, but yes you make good points.

[EtherealN]

I'd say one of the "problems" in this department is one of detail: it isn't feasible to simulate tank damage to the level of calculating that a round entered and killed a gearbox or flamed a fuel tank or holed the radiators etcetera: what there is is differing armor on various aspects and components, and this is calculated against the energy and properties of the ordnance (closer in = faster bullet = more energy, this is taken into account). After this, there are HP reductions. When HP reaches zero: tank is dead. A damaged tank will however have reduced effectiveness, though this might not be immediately apparent unless you really really study it closely.

 

Thus, we miss out on something that really covers most real-world tank kills: the "mission kill". In reality, swooping in and taking out a tank's engine while it's moving has that tank out of the fight - yes, it'll be repaired later if recovered and you might have to hole it again in a week, but it's not fighting more today. Thus some of the apparent effectiveness from the real world can seem lost in the simulator, and striking a good balance to compensate isn't easy. (Having "random" failures depending on hit areas is a possibility I suppose, could be cool.)

 

One other thought though: did you doublecheck that your plane was loaded with Combat Mix? Just to be sure you didn't accidently get an all-HEI load and then run up against MBT's... That would certainly serve to give the tanks the appearancee of invincibility. Also, when using Combat Mix, remember that the two types of round have slightly diffeerent ballistic properties, which is why you have the two dots in the gun reticle when at longer slant ranges. Accidently placing the HEI dot on the target instead of the AP would essentially have your effective ammunition land somewhere else whilst the tank crew find out why they are issued with hearing protection equipment onboard. (I'm told the sound of ordnance exploding harmlessly against a steel plate 2 feet away from you is LOUD.)