Custom campaign options - must be

[Double_Tap]

I am a strong advocate for custom settings. I couldn't care less about the points/unlock system but surely you can keep both camps happy.

[ParaB]

I am willing to accept many things in a flightsim.

 

But a campaign without custom settings? This is probably the 1st time I really disagree with a developer decision in BoS.

[SharpeXB]

a real campaign with linked missions, historical squadrons, and player stats?  Madness!

Hopefully a Career Mode can be created for BoS like there is for RoF. Realize it took a few years for RoF to get to that point. BoS at least gets to stand on its shoulders, this campaign generator looks quite similar. It's like RoF career without the personal section.

Scripted storyline campaigns don't work well with sims. RoF has story campaigns, "Hat in the Ring" and "Du Doch Nicht". The trouble is you get stuck in "Ground Hog Day" if you fail, repeating the same action over and over. When set on Expert, achieving even simple objectives is difficult and it's hard to design a mission that would be suitable for a large range of difficulty.

I like what I see so far with BoS

I like  custom campaign options for DID [Dead is Dead]   same like Red Baron 3D   just option for the one who like this style  :D

 

die 500 time for make 500,000 accumulate point  that is  it look good ?  ..... I don't thing so.  [imho] 

 

 

 

I like Desastersoft where "DID" is actually enforced by the game. That really pushes you to be smart.

[SharpeXB]

they foresee a lot of people reducing the difficultly to "arcade" like settings so they can quickly unlock the goodies.....skins and the like

Yeah it sounds like that's the reason for the "rules".

I think a system of unlocks or points is really important in a flight sim. The player needs a reason to play the game at higher difficulty. Otherwise why bother? Just turn on all the game aids and blast away. If you think of a sim as just a very difficult video game, ask why should the player go through such difficulty? They should get rewarded.

Edited September 24, 2014 by Sharpe

[S10JlAbraxis]

Rules? With all due respect are we all still in elementary school here? I get it that MP requires rules to establish a level playing field but for SP why should anyone care if I want the equivalent of expert mode with air and ground target markers enabled? Or for that matter if I want to reduce all difficulty to minimum to get unlocks - so what? How does this in any way effect anyone else? I care about the quality of the entertainment experience not silly stuff to "unlock". For those who play to unlock that is fine but don't ruin my enjoyment with pointless SP rules.

[Comes]

There is no way to fly with full Cem in normal mode afaik.

1c and 777, Plesse do not ruin the campaign mode of this awesome sim for so many people and add a custom Realism setting to the campaign. It really should not be hard to calculate the XP based on the settings. or what about just locking the options that are too arcadish. Or let me fly in normal mode and turn off all the help functions that i do not want.

[SharpeXB]

It's a good idea that they have a "short" and "long" mission option. Most realistic WWII missions would be too long for easy gameplay. Also that you get more points for the long mission is great. See there have to be "points" otherwise why fly a longer mission compared to a short one?

[SharpeXB]

Players need some encouragement to fly Expert anyways. If that starts with the campaign then MP benefits from that. In RoF for whatever reason, Expert multiplayer has vanished. If there was a middle or custom level of difficulty, players would gravitate towards that and all the servers get divided up by options. Two levels of difficulty gives and incentive to move up and not stay stuck in Normal.

[S10JlAbraxis]

I could not disagree with the previous post more. I do not play MP and I spent $100 on this game largely for the SP campaign. For me quick mission and MP = boreing. I do enjoy expert settings but can not live without some form of target indicator. As mentioned in a previous post the lack on this is actually less realistic since visibility (target ID) is actually much worse then in real life.

 

For me this is simple: no custom options in campaign no game, it comes off my HD and I purchase no future products from the developers. I an sure I am not the only one. So if the developers think they can be successful going forward without some of their current customer base good luck to them.

[dburne]

I could not disagree with the previous post more. I do not play MP and I spent $100 on this game largely for the SP campaign. For me quick mission and MP = boreing. I do enjoy expert settings but can not live without some form of target indicator. As mentioned in a previous post the lack on this is actually less realistic since visibility (target ID) is actually much worse then in real life.

 

 

 

Same here, I am not happy about this at all. I want to play the campaign under my custom settings that I prefer, not what has already been pre-determined for me. Just like those graphics presets we have to choose from now, these are really turning me off. 

 

The SP campaign is what I have been hanging my hat on, don't care for MP, don't care for the QMB.

Now it is starting to sound like I may not care much for the campaign/career as well. And that would leave me little else...

[ParaB]

Yeah, I know a lot of people who have basically zero interest in BoS multiplayer. They want to enjoy the offline experience in BoS the way they want.

 

I personally like "full real" settings with outside views simply to admire the grafics while enroute to battle or while taxiing.

 

It just doesn't make sense to me to restrict player preferences that way.

[Dakpilot]

Allow custom difficulty in Campaign, but restrict vulnerability and unlimited ammo  etc. Give same rewards as Normal but allow those who want, to be able to play through the campaign at harder levels than Normal but with icons and external views.

 

Maybe just call it Advanced, no complicated re-write of exp. points or anything

 

Cheers Dakpilot

[S10JlAbraxis]

I agree with the concept of considering normal as baseline and then make it possible to select higher levels of difficulty individually for the SP campaign. This would be "normal plus" where players can select greater difficulty but still less then expert. Either add additional EP for individual selections or keep it at normal EP (either way I don't care). This may actually encourage people to move towards expert since they can learn and take it a piece at a time as opposed to all or nothing. Why force them to play boring quick missions to learn this way?

 

The good thing about computers is the ability to allow some reasonable level of choice and customization as opposed to one size fits all. To a degree more options means more customers. Why the developers are insisting on such extream levels limitation in SP is a complete mystery to me. I feel like I have bought a new custom car and it is almost done and looking perfect then they tell me it is going to have patio furniture for front seats. I ask them why and they say just because and by the way you can't have your money back.

[malcheus]

Just the ability to uncheck difficulty options would be fine (so dissalowing adding any); so in normal mode the green boxes are allowed to be checked, but they are not mandatory; that's all it takes. 

 

Perhaps add a bit of XP per unchecked box to motivate players using the sim to its full potential, but that would be just a bonus. 

[SharpeXB]

Rise of Flight used to be exactly as people above are asking but changed to how BoS is currently. Why? I do not know.

[S10JlAbraxis]

ROF still has selectable difficulty levels for the campaign. I just went in to check.  In fact there are no presets, rather you pick difficulty options from a complete list as each pilot is created (as should be the case for BOS)... 

[Snoop_Hogg]

From the similar thread in the "developer assistance" section:

 

 

 

Why not using a percentage XP on each setting.

Each marked setting substracts like e.g. 5XP or said in opposite

each non marked setting adds 5XP.

 

This is the best idea I've seen. They have this system in Forza Motorsport, you customise the settings you want, and you get XP scaled accordingly.

 

Seems very old-fashioned to be so prescriptive in this regard. 

[kendo]

This one has hit me like a freight train. After I've done all the unlocks and I'm sitting down to play missions in the SP Campaign for the rest of my life I can NEVER use Custom Realism settings? Through the grind process I could live with having Custom Realism settings taken away, but to take them away forever has ruined the one aspect of the game I've been looking forward to...the SP Campaign. I have no interest in the "quickie" missions generated by the QMB so please don't tell me "Don't worry, you'll have Custom Realism in QMB.". I enjoy full long realistic missions and the only place they can be found for single play is the SP Campaign.

 

I may be wrong on this - no access to the game at this time - but is it maybe the case that you can set Custom settings but that they accumulate zero experience points?

 

Recall that this is what is listed in the Settings section "Experience Points x 0"

 

So will be able to fly with custom settings. And once unlocks achieved and no more xp worries then will be able to play how we choose. 

 

But to accumulate points and get unlocks still means having to use either Normal or Expert.  

 

My preference still would be for custom settings to accumulate xp at normal rates. 

 

Maybe one of the devs can clarify this...?

Edited September 24, 2014 by kendo

[Leaf]

One thing we're forgetting is how long it took RoF to get it's campaign mode. As the devs stated in the stream (about 23:15), they could have made a more "RoF-ey" campaign more, but it would have added 6 months to development time. So it's a toss up between waiting another six months or putting up with this format of campaign. I haven't played it yet, so I won't judge.

[SharpeXB]

ROF still has selectable difficulty levels for the campaign. I just went in to check. In fact there are no presets, rather you pick difficulty options from a complete list as each pilot is created (as should be the case for BOS)...

For the Campaigns, yes. But the Career is like BoS with the same difficulty settings. I don't know how "custom" affects your score in RoF anymore. There are awards in the single player campaigns that get unlocked.

[falstaff]

This whole thing reminds me of finding a rubbish soft-rock U2 album on my iPhone that I didn't ask for....

 

Having just dipped my head back in....thinking that the SP side of things would have advanced a bit (obviously allowing for other priorities and limited resources and impending schedules) I'm surprised...and disappointed.

 

ParaB has summed it up accurately for me (I also have little interest in multiplayer).

 

Also, coding a front end for custom settings is not a huge under-taking. The principle behind it is rather baffling (who does it help?)

[SharpeXB]

If you want to be happy with flight sims in the long term, just switch all the aids off. That way you won't have a preference one way or the other. Problem solved.

There's so many preferences like the HUD has to look a certain way or the icons a certain way or people want this on and that off. The Devs can't accommodate everything. You're doing yourself a favor by going "full real"

[ParaB]

If you want to be happy with flight sims in the long term, just switch all the aids off. That way you won't have a preference one way or the other. Problem solved.

There's so many preferences like the HUD has to look a certain way or the icons a certain way or people want this on and that off. The Devs can't accommodate everything. You're doing yourself a favor by going "full real"

 

How about letting us decide ourselves what we enjoy?

 

I've been playing flightsims for more than 25 years, I'm pretty sure by now I know what makes me happy.

[dburne]

How about letting us decide ourselves what we enjoy?

 

I've been playing flightsims for more than 25 years, I'm pretty sure by now I know what makes me happy.

 

+100

[SYN_Mike77]

I may be misremembering but I though normal and expert had more to do with take off and landings vs spawn in air and leave in air. 

[dburne]

I may be misremembering but I though normal and expert had more to do with take off and landings vs spawn in air and leave in air. 

 

I believe you are misremembering.

Normal and Expert refer to realism settings, ie Normal being most aides on, while Expert all aides off. When one goes in and selects individually what aides/info they want , then it becomes Custom Setting, which apparently is not going to be allowed in SP Campaign.

[SYN_Mike77]

Then what are the settings for the different start/end points called?  I remember them making a comment about this difference.

[dburne]

Then what are the settings for the different start/end points called?  I remember them making a comment about this difference.

 

Maybe short mission and long mission?

[SYN_Mike77]

I haven't seen any mission length settings.

[dburne]

I haven't seen any mission length settings.

 

I think it was talked about in the Live Stream recorded video in latest DD.

[3instein]

I also noted that near the end of the stream it was said that even in expert setting on SP there will still be some "helpers", I wonder what these helpers will be,because as you can't change the setting you will have to just lump it.

I just hope it is not always on map icons or god forbid Technochat.

I would have thought that expert meant just that=no helpers.

 

Mick.

[SharpeXB]

I haven't seen any mission length settings.

They said we will be able to select long or short missions separately from the difficulty level. So you can have a short Expert mission or long Standard mission for example. There are air start waypoints along the mission route. In the long mission you fly to these and back. In the short version you start there and to be successful have to fly to the "end" waypoint. You get extra points for the long mission. You can also "air end" the long mission if you choose.

[SYN_Mike77]

well darn, though for me, the worst part of the video was the need to play career to unlock mods for mp. 

[SharpeXB]

well darn, though for me, the worst part of the video was the need to play career to unlock mods for mp.

It would be great if there are unlocks for MP too. RoF has or maybe had? A separate set of those that were really great

 

 

The levels of difficulty for SP and MP need to match each other.

And MP is only viable with limited difficulty levels. Even 3 would be too many. When the SP Campaign gets launched probably 90% of the online players will be gone, I hope not but that's how RoF went.

With "custom" difficulty there would be 37 servers with 2 people on each one...

Edited September 24, 2014 by Sharpe

[Kleinburger]

For all those people saying add this or add that its not that hard to add this setting, heres what they will have to do they would have to add a new button to the UI, write some kind of function to handle what clicking it does such as bring up the custom settings window, then write a second function that calculates XP(possible scaling amounts depending on what option does simple addition variable comparing) per unchecked box and also doesn't allow unlimited ammo or invulnerability to be checked off, test this to make sure it works and doesn't cause any unexpected bugs or crashes. 

 

Oh wait it really is that simple most of the work is just reusing existing stuff. For an experienced programmer writing this should take about 2 hours, maybe no more than 4 depending on how well they know the coding of the program and the speed they can type. If they are extremely busy with coding other things into the game before launch it could be done with 2 people about 20 - 30 min a day each(and together on one computer, one types the other checks for errors then switch), using paired programming technique for a week. I do not claim to know what kind of development cycle they are using for this sim but I have experience in programming and this should not be hard at all to implement by release.

 

This may not be a planned feature but all this is part of development, we are your customer "testers" and we are providing feedback saying this feature is necessary and can be implemented in a fair to all way. When it comes to the video presets I cringed a little but I am ok with that being simplified, but not the lack of custom settings for the sp campaign which may just be a glorified QMB with clear objectives and other added goodies. But by not including custom settings or a way to implement the custom settings into the campaign they are actually alienating a small portion of potential customers which might as well be lost income and that is the one thing I do not want to see happen to this sim. As a fan I want to see additional content created for this series and that will only happen if this game is a financial success and I do see this non custom setting sp campaign spreading like wild fire to "on the fence" buyers and will discourage them from purchasing what has proven to be an amazing combat sim of the BoS.

[zippyPerrserker]

How about letting us decide ourselves what we enjoy?

 

I've been playing flightsims for more than 25 years, I'm pretty sure by now I know what makes me happy.

 

Same here.

 

I really hope Jason or someone from the team speak to this soon, this issue of having to use two 'preset' difficulty ratings to fly the single player campaign is causing lots of unnecesary grief.

 

The single player campaign might not what be what everyone wanted out of the gate, but most people who have been following developement knew something like this was coming and are willing to give it a shot (I know I am). Also I think most people have faith that within a year something different will come along to satisfy them (a pat wilson type generator, single mission linked campaigns, etc).

 

The idea of only being able to play the campaign in one of two ways though has really thrown a lot of single-player people off, it just doesn't make any sense. Hopefully they'll address it soon.

[YoYo]

Rise of Flight used to be exactly as people above are asking but changed to how BoS is currently. Why? I do not know.

 

In RoF is ok in campaign - for dynamic or non dynamic campaign. Id like to see here something similar or better.

[zippyPerrserker]

Apologies for the bump, just was really hoping to get some info about being able to use more than one of two difficulty presets in the single player campaign.

[zippyPerrserker]

I asked about this at simhq, just wanted to post Jason's response to me over here for anyone who was interested in this topic.

 

 

Jason, since you're around - any chance you have some news about being able to play the single player campaign without being locked into one of two difficulty modes?

For me, and I think quite a few other people, this is more concerning than many of the other issues that have been brought up about single player.

Personally I'm looking forward to trying out what's on offer at release, and also believe that other single player options will show up within a year or so. Thanks-

Speck,

I'm not going to comment further on single player design until after release which should be next month. I will only comment to correct false statements about what is currently in or will be in the game. I'm not going to engage in these discussions about the design itself. I am just reading people's comments. I don't know what if anything will change over time. Our current goal is to make sure it works as designed. All I have said regarding this topic can be found in this thread. http://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/4012055/1/Dev_Update_79

Jason

 

 

Okay, well I'll hope then that maybe a dev or someone on the other forums will comment about that issue...there's plenty of posts regarding it on the il2sturmovik.com site so it's not like they're unaware of it.

If not, it sounds like I'll find out soon enough anyway! 

 

 

 

There are no current plans to change it before release. We are all aware of some complaints about the issue.

Jason

 

 

 

Well that's a shame, but I will hope that it'll be revisited in the near future.

Not letting single player flyers play campaign missions using the difficulty settings they want to use seems, well, not the best idea, frankly.

 Anyway, still looking forward to checking out the release, and am hopeful that the issue will be revisited. 

[Spacesheep]

HI all,

 

these answers from Jason may not let me be very optimistic to see that custom settings be implemented before release.

To me, that is really not a good feeling to see that.

 

Just to share my own experience about flight sims, I started just a few years ago (about 5) with the incredible IL2 1946.

At the beginning and as for most of the  amateur people getting into this kind of game (or sim) I found it pretty hard to handle and was so happy to be able to manage each difficulty settings seperatly.

I think I could have never continue to play if this was not possible. => and as a consequence I would have never invest in BOS.....

 

I don't want to detail wich of the difficulty settings were the most usefull as eachone has its own way to learn and enjoy the game.

 

Moreover, I felt much more happy and "rewarded" by being able to progressively increase the difficulty level and improve the immersion and flight experience (and fun by the way).

In comparaison, the unlockable system (even if I am totally not opposed to it) looks much more like a gadget to me, not really increasing real game pleasure. this is more like a pathway made to make the player be more interested and involved in all what the game has to propose... (like a catalog)

 

Finally I would say that I like the possibility to play sometimes more "Hard core style" and some time more "casual style". And I don't really mind about how much Exp I'll be rewarded for this or that...if I have to choose between both capabilities.

 

I do really hope to see this difficulty custom setting be implemented as a basic and initial content of the game if not (and this is not blackmail), I am worried about the the durability of my interest in BOS.

 

 

Nevertheless I am aware of the great amount of work done (and to be done for extra contents) and don't forget that this game is a gift for the player community (quite expensive gift though) and I still thank the development team for that. 

 

~S~ to all