The Perfect Tactical & Strategic FPS

[MUTILATER]

Since there is a lot of talk and hype starting regarding new FPS games coming out, I decided to remind all what it "Was" like to play one of the premium FPS games. Here we leave all the notorious individuals behind to have a game with a sense of Teamwork and Satisfaction, achieving the maps goals and keeping all the team alive till the very end. Once this level of game play has been seen and you the individual have experienced a game with like minded players you get a great sense of achievement when you finish the map. The general FPS game suddenly becomes very mundane to say the least.

 

The type of game I'm referring to here is the likes of "Flashpoint" "Arma" "VBS" and possibly "Ground Branch" (This last title i know nothing about) These games are designed for TEAMWORK, Individual score mongers should exit through the door to the right immediately. If the final score card is what you consider to be your defining guidance of how well you did the job at hand , Your not going to enjoy this type of game, Why ? ... Because score means absolutely diddley squat.

 

The focus is on team tactics and getting your WHOLE team home alive, For this there must be balance among the team, Someone has to be the engineer, Can you blow the objective if you all are snipers. The team medic is the most vital position as that person alone can make or break your day, Keep your medic alive and you in turn stay alive right. Lone wolf runners and gunners last all of about the first 1km ... Sometimes only to the top of the first hill. These positions may not appear to be the "Fun" deals however when your crawling along the ground with shattered legs, Oh boy are you glad to see your team medic. If a player needs ammo or a change of weapon, Help them to get this done done just say are "Screw You" if your flying a little bird at the time, Pick him up and fly him to the ammo crates. It costs you nothing to be a team member and player in a supportive role even thou you may be a gunner. Teamwork is the key element.

 

So since you get the point about the teamwork balance of roles and working together here comes the hardest point that many new players don't see upon the box, the learning curve ... yes it's huge. No your not going to jump into this and be good by any means your going to get pawned since your normal bunny hopping running gunning and spawning days are over, finished kaput !, Tactical shooters require the players to interact on a whole new level which the average game player has yet to experience.

 

Which title will be the winner ? ... My crystal ball isn't working however from my game knowledge i can presume there points, OFP/OFP2 ... Don't mix them up together, Code masters has never produced a FPS game like Flashpoint before this will be there first effort. Bohemia produced the first OFP, they also produce Arma and VBS, VBS is a military training simulator only and OFP 1 and Arma were there general game play versions to the masses. Maybe they will get the next title correct, Arma is actually playable except for 2 major issues still plaguing it being the vegetation issue where the enemy see you through it yet you don't see them and the second is the horrible sound. Considering there past performances maybe Arma2 will be there winner. (I favor Arma over OFP2 ATM) Ground Branch is from Red Storm who have a long history of great FPS games ... This should be a winner as it comes from a premier game development group but will it be as immersive as Arma ? Time will tell, Remember OFP/Arma/VBS have insane learning curves, maybe Blackfoot (Ex Red Storm) will be tone it down a bit to appeal to the general masses and produce a game similar to original GR or even Delta Force.

 

Now this point is the most hit and miss, Will the game have a community ?, OFP had a huge community making mods and maps in abundance, My OFP folder was 20 Gig ... no shit. The community was what made Flashpoint not the game. Same as with OGR the community made this the game it was to become. So an Editor and SDK is a MUST have from day one, not a broken promise as it will come soon rubbish we all have seen this before hey.

So to reiterate it in simple terms ... No friendly editor or SDK INCLUDED ... 3 months later a dead game. Must have this fact to grow to what we experienced with OFP.

 

Lets assume all titles have great out of the box player ability and support and a nice editor which will become the leading game, Obviously the one which has the largest community correct ?, Time will tell in this regard. Also will you be able to play several games, simple answer NO, the learning curve is so steep and the game content forever changing will only add to the delemer for the prospect of which title to choose. MY experience of many years in online games tell me to say this fact " Wait and see what develops and make a choice after you consider all aspects from the leading three contenders After you see the game and where the community is heading". This type of game will have you the player entertained for a very long time in the future if the title really is exceptional and you will not have time to split yourself among two or more game titles.

 

These games require a high level of interaction on a team basis and the objectives take a great deal of strategy and tactics to complete, not to mention the time to finish a map also, they are not your 10 minute rounds like in most FPS games and therefore will not appeal to many players for this fact alone. So there you go, an unbiased account from the past for all of you Spartans to consider with the new titles coming around in this type of game. Hopefully you can decide what to play as a group which will give countless hours of enjoyment and a fun game experience for many months to come, even to the point of producing game content to make other groups or clans want to play on your "Professional Strategic/Tactical FPS Server".

 

Time to discuss the future prospects and pick the winning title to improve on what it means to be a Spartan.

 

Regards Mut

[Zathrus~SPARTA~]

NEVER SURRENDER!!! MAINTAIN THE PHALANX!! PROTECT THE MAN TO YOUR LEFT!!

[Zebb]

AACF: SOUNDPACK is one to look at. Also the HiFi Sound FX is looking good. There are so many mods to add whatever additional experience your looking for, from arty fire to laser designators.

 

Trues mod improves on most of the ironsight's/interface and Matt's ARMA Effects for the Hollywood explosions.

 

Now this is just a tiny list of things that can GREATLY enhance your ArmA experience. Most of the above links provide a clip to give you a idea of how it effects gameplay. But even without all the additional eye candy and toys, ArmA hands down is the only true Battlefield Simulator out there. Closest thing to being back in the field for most of us prior military. So close that the USMC adopted a older version of the engine for its men on carrier deployment, called it VBS1. VBS2, which is currently used, was born from ArmA and will grow with ArmA 2.

 

This sim isnt for everyone. Fact you cant "jump" cleared out about 65% of your avg gamers. But if its a tactical hardcore experience your looking for, especially with some squared away mates who approach combat the same way you do, there is no substitute. 6-12 men on a mission with some of the same variable dynamics that happens in the field (random patrols, weather, etc) can be a blast, war story worthy even.....as long as no one makes a mistake lol

Edited July 8, 2008 by Zebb~SPARTA~