Have we ever talked about a co-op campaign mode?

[ShamrockOneFive]

I really can't remember if this has come up or not. I've been spending quite a bit of time in the campaign mode recently and I'm growing to like many parts of it. Other parts not as much but that's not what this is about. I feel like this mode could benefit from a dedicated coop version where you could invite someone into your campaign to fly missions with you.

 

In terms of game design I'm not 100% sure how far this should go. Limited only to the plane type you selected or if you pick something like escort or attack then could your fellow pilots join you as the bomber/attacker or escorting fighters. I'm kind of thinking of a party leader type thing where a small number of pilots join together to fly the mission.

 

Thoughts?

[AndyHill]

This is absolutely necessary, at least in my group coop campaigns have been by far the most popular mode to play. Same with RoF, flying the career with and against friends would be a major boost. The game design part itself shouldn't be that hard to do, it can be pretty much exactly the same as the single player version - or much more involved, depending on how much resources you can spend on the work. 

 

It breaks my heart every time I see a fun gaming mode (DCS, RoF and I'm afraid now BoS) that can't be enjoyed with friends for some unknown reason.

[Livai]

Reading the russian forums =FB=Loft said that if the sales were successful? He would like to make a campaign-based Coop campaign co-op where players fly off or against the AI or against a mixed team or against other players but this is still fantasy. That idea sounds great for me a huge map of war.

 

=FB=Loft did talked about a co-op campaign mode

 

[Bearcat]

That would be nice..

[-NW-ChiefRedCloud]

That would be nice..

 

Agreed ...... I know my old squad would love this ..... more flyers equals more support for BoS ....

 

Chief

[Jirokoh]

Yeah that would be great !

[DrDag]

Definitely needed. In il2 1946 this was the major thing for me. A few friends, 1 beer (ok, i admit sometimes 2) and a small coop session with a lowengrin campaign hosted privatly, That was more than enough to keep us entertained. Moving front lines, campaign medals and so on. 

 

Cheers,

Dag

Edited November 19, 2014 by DrDag

[39bn_pavig]

Co-op campaign has been hinted at by Loft multiple times. The generic modular nature of the much maligned campaign system has a hidden benefit in that it is easily adaptable to create a co-op campaign system. I have my suspicions that this is exactly what the developers hope to see down the track. The reason I think that they would not announce it is because such a system would require multiplayer code to be stable, dserver finalized, and client side hosting to be well on the way to release. I don't think we will see movement in this area until dserver is out, but would not be surprised to see MP campaigns not long after that. The most difficult aspect would be matchmaking UI and backend.

[Jason_Williams]

Co-op campaign has been hinted at by Loft multiple times. The generic modular nature of the much maligned campaign system has a hidden benefit in that it is easily adaptable to create a co-op campaign system. I have my suspicions that this is exactly what the developers hope to see down the track. The reason I think that they would not announce it is because such a system would require multiplayer code to be stable, dserver finalized, and client side hosting to be well on the way to release. I don't think we will see movement in this area until dserver is out, but would not be surprised to see MP campaigns not long after that. The most difficult aspect would be matchmaking UI and backend.

 

The big question is how do you create an environment to host such missions simply and easily. Who would be the host etc.. That's a bit tricky. It is doable and we will look at this idea closer after other issues are sorted.

 

Jason

[WindyCityZeke]

This would be a major + for this game.  Co-op is a blast.  Would make this campaign mode much more enjoyable.

[ShamrockOneFive]

The big question is how do you create an environment to host such missions simply and easily. Who would be the host etc.. That's a bit tricky. It is doable and we will look at this idea closer after other issues are sorted.

 

Jason

Definitely something I was thinking about. I'm not sure about the programming back end but there would have to be some sort of way for one player to be a "party leader" I suppose and that person would pick the menu - aircraft, airbase, mission. The others would see the selection and fly as his wingmen. Everyone would gain points as if they were flying the campaign normally but it'd all be done in a co-op scenario. Taking it a step further you might see the leader pick a ground attack mission but some in the party might choose to fly fighters as escort.

 

Part multiplayer, part campaign... it could be quite a bit of fun.

[=VARP=Cygann]

The big question is how do you create an environment to host such missions simply and easily. Who would be the host etc.. That's a bit tricky. It is doable and we will look at this idea closer after other issues are sorted.

 

Jason

 

Well it is what I have been enjoying in ROF with some friends. PWCG used to generate missions and then any of us just host them as one would host any other co-op (private server with password or not, that allow players to join until mission starts and not after).

 

If your own 5 year old game can pull it off, I can't get it why it would be so complicated to provide the same in new one that probably even share some base engine coding.

 

Oh, and while you guys are looking at it, please consider some in-game hyper lobby alike interface. That concept with players, mission slots and out of game chat is such a nice feature. So old and simple, but not surpassed in functionality by anything nowadays sims use in their menu UI.

[39bn_pavig]

The big question is how do you create an environment to host such missions simply and easily. Who would be the host etc.. That's a bit tricky. It is doable and we will look at this idea closer after other issues are sorted.

 

Jason

 

This is why I said matchmaking is the most difficult issue, as it is the feature which would require new services to be developed. The rest is generally fairly easy once dserver is out and if the server was rolled into the client to enable a single player to both host and play. It is fairly standard for MP Co-op games to allow a player to spawn a local server and allow other players to join on it via their uuid/login. I think rof lets you do this.

 

A lobby system could allow the host and players to manage the type of mission and units which will be flying. The master server could then generate a mission for the type, number of slots, and loadouts selected.It is then just a matter of either the host distributing the mission file to the players (after getting it from the master server) or each player getting the mission from the master server based on a uuid or template+seed. Once distributed the host players server could kick in and the mission begin. 

 

There are quite a lot of problems to solve, but none seem insurmountable. This assumes a traditional self-hosting system for the game though. If a more dserver mediated experience with less host curation was desired it would be potentially more complex to implement.

[Anw.StG2_Tyke]

The big question is how do you create an environment to host such missions simply and easily. Who would be the host etc.. That's a bit tricky. It is doable and we will look at this idea closer after other issues are sorted.

 

Jason

Pretty simple, by one of the two players creating a game room. He hosts the Game while the other player can connect to it. It has been in Gaming for like 20 years now...

[150GCT_Veltro]

The big question is how do you create an environment to host such missions simply and easily. Who would be the host etc.. That's a bit tricky. It is doable and we will look at this idea closer after other issues are sorted.

 

Jason

 

Alleluja!

Finally, this is an answer.

 

Thank for this Jason.

[AndyHill]

As Auva said, it should be possible to just use the same approach as the original Il-2. I'm a bit on a stretch here, but since that's kind of an obvious answer I'm assuming that the problematic thing is campaign progress with unlocks and phases and such. I don't see why you wouldn't get XP as in a regular campaign, it's just a number that can be added to your account. The other thing is campaign progress and the answer has traditionally been that when you participate in a campaign that campaign runs from beginning to the end without affecting any other campaigns, so for example any single player campaign you are running wouldn't be affected. Of course it could be possible for you to get campaign progress XP for the relevant phases to unlock the subsequent ones if that's considered desirable.

 

Or are we talking about some kind of technical limitations? I'm guessing BoS is capable of running normal coop missions like RoF (when the rest of multiplayer is implemented)?

[Yakdriver]

But the fact that the community points this out, does that not mean that exactly this has been thought of, and dismissed as a possibility.

one guy hosting a session on his own machine, i mean.

[Yakdriver]

But the fact that the community points this out, does that not mean that exactly this has been thought of, and dismissed as a possibility.

one guy hosting a session on his own machine, i mean.

 

edit

A Squadron sets up a campaign as it wants with frontline, units, paths, triggers, scenery, squadron rooster... using the full mission builder.

sends this mission to the master server via a web interface that handles a login procedure, has a Campaign settings page (how many players, how many IA flights, what targets do we want)

 

In the end it is the host who is sending the results to the master server to request a new mission based on the outcome of the last, getting the new mission and distributing it to the clients.

 

But this means that the master server must know "this is the campaign run by usernameX".
which means from the entire squad, the only guy to run that specific campaign is squad member X. if he is sick on squad monday, no campaign.

 

so that leaves the possibility to launch a campaign via the master server, and the people able to run the campaign "campaignname" are "usernameX" and "usernameY" and "usernameZ".  They have to decide who hosts the mission locally, and have to send the results back to the master server at the end of the evening.

 

If the usernameX drops out because his computer blows up in the middle of the mission, he can not send the results to the master server.
The next time the squad gets together, the usennameY will request a campaign mission , which will be assembled from the least available results.

.

.

.

 

 

===============================


since the entire point of the game is to generate statistics, the entire coop campaign system must be handled on  the master server.

Basically an online Version of Lowengrin's DCG
and i am sorry, but if a username change is a tough thing to tackle, i do NOT see this happen, at least not this way.

Anyone have better ideas?

[Sparrer]

S!

This is a well known feature by the community.....the famous virtual wars, which is in essense an online campaign

The difference is that isn't the current in-game campaign you will play and who provides it is the community, not dev's.... Actually the devs must provide other important features which we don't have by now

You can also have just a way of someone join you in the main game campaign, like falcon 4 did, but you lost a lot of interesting content

Just some online wars features:

► The own player can host the server, and wait for players to join in. Could be 4 humans+AIs up to 32 humans + AI (this 32 is just an example...is up to user connection and game limits). Wait 32 players to join in could be boring, but 4...not at all. No Dserver is needed
In BoS we can't host our own mission

►The missions are automatic generated and just some key elements must be setted: Amount os players, which sector to attack, kind of mission: Air superiority, ground attack, air supply, ground supply, CAS, Recon, escort...etc. The mission is automatic generated.
Quick as QMB

►The missions are coop based. It means all players take of together, easily. So you dont have a buch os vulchers messing up. You take off and easily find your mates and go ahead together. Generally, friends and enemy find out together too....instead of single aircraft encounters which is not that realistic in air combat behavior history. In a Dog based server this is very frequent. But i'm not totally disagree of DOG based design, i could discuss this more
In BoS we don't have coop design

►The map frontline is dynamically updated. If you and your mates make a good mission you CAN change the whole war. Your not just a puppet playing a mission that means nothing. For this...use QMB like actual bos campaign looks like.
 The ground targets are automatic generated in each mission, and they move along the mission. They fight each other and their result change the mission. As a pilot, you throw them bombs...or just watch them. The player is just the part of the war, not the hollywood star of the war.
It means that the missions weren't linear and depends on players actions. It means even germany can win the war and take out stalingrad. So the missions aren't historical but the map, ground units, and planesets.
But in BoS you BUY single planes, so war makers can't set the planesets since every player will have your own planes. It would be a mess in future.

Your dream already existed since 2003, but bos still not the proper plataform to keep it alive, sadly

 

But even if, somehow, in the actual campaing we can fligth online, would be great too
 

Edited November 20, 2014 by Sparrer

[=LD=Hethwill]

The big question is how do you create an environment to host such missions simply and easily. Who would be the host etc.. That's a bit tricky. It is doable and we will look at this idea closer after other issues are sorted.

 

Jason

 

Maybe have a specific CooP DServer version that must be run from a stand alone dedicated machine ? Pretty much how ArmA does it. Some specific mission types cannot be run on a client/server box.

[wtornado]

Something has to be done this games survival depends on it.

 

I am tired of seeing the US servers empty that i can join.

 

Or that they make a lot of single missions and campaigns and

that we play offline period.

[Bearcat]

The big question is how do you create an environment to host such missions simply and easily. Who would be the host etc.. That's a bit tricky. It is doable and we will look at this idea closer after other issues are sorted.

 

Jason

Pretty simple, by one of the two players creating a game room. He hosts the Game while the other player can connect to it. It has been in Gaming for like 20 years now...

 

That was my take as well ..

 

Something has to be done this games survival depends on it.

 

I am tired of seeing the US servers empty that i can join.

 

Or that they make a lot of single missions and campaigns and

that we play offline period.

 

Hopefully this will change once the ME and DS are released. DD#27 Q & A #11 is interesting .., buit I do not read that as a never... just as a we will see.

[wtornado]

I bought every one of their games this is their last chance.

[6./ZG26_McKvack]

COOP would be awesome. Just being able to be gunner with a friend would be awesome

[Dakpilot]

COOP would be awesome. Just being able to be gunner with a friend would be awesome

 

Co-ops will be a great benefit when introduced, for example being able to fly the Chir Front missions with others would be great fun, also something like Syn_ Active front missions in RoF would be excellent for joining with a couple of friends, in meantime it is quite possible to fly with friend as gunner in MP

 

Cheers Dakilot

[senseispcc]

If I remember corectly there shall never be a coop mission with on one side the players and on the other Pc driven planes because the dev team said so?!

[Dakpilot]

No they simply said it will not be in the same manner of old IL-2 co-op style

 

In RoF you could make a private server in 'Active front' style and do exactly that or look at what Caratyd has got planned with 'Dynamic missions' in RoF, however he now seems to be working mainly with BoS so that is good news, I understand CO-OP is often flown in RoF so there will be no reason for it not to happen in BoS, 4 big updates  (including ME) and bug fixes have been confirmed by Dev's  for early next year.

 

They are a small Team so let them have their holidays and be re-juvinated in 2015

 

Cheers Dakpilot

[Godspeed]

I thought game has this already but i was wrong 

[voncrapenhauser]

CO OP Campaign???? where do I sign up? 

Didn't think anyone else would want it. 

No 1 on my wish list.

[SYN_Vander]

Yep, #1 on my list as well. It has been done in many other games, so describing the major use case shouldn't be that hard (primary player create/generate mission, select host as coop (LAN/private/public), other player joins, primary player starts mission.) 

[HR_Tumu]

There are 2 options.

 

A.- Old option ( bellum ) one dserver generate mision for download, players made host and report results when misions end.

 

B.- ADW option Have a dedicated server  running. 

 

I think ,  B option its better, on actually Mision generators ( DCS or BoS ) have enought options for made dinamics events and i think whit a little programation its possible do something runs alone...

 

I think its only a time question, maybe one or two years ( variable are number of players )

 

bye

[ST_ami7b5]

Yep, #1 on my list as well. It has been done in many other games, so describing the major use case shouldn't be that hard (primary player create/generate mission, select host as coop (LAN/private/public), other player joins, primary player starts mission.) 

Use Case you say?

Fellow UML.2 analyst?

[CIA_Yankee_]

Use Case you say?

Fellow UML.2 analyst?

 

Use Case is a pretty widely used term in software developement. Basically you develop features according to use cases (broadly defined, it translates to "ways the feature would be used").

[ST_ami7b5]

Use Case is a pretty widely used term in software developement. Basically you develop features according to use cases (broadly defined, it translates to "ways the feature would be used").

 

I know, made my living making them for 10+ years

[BladeMeister]

Well it is what I have been enjoying in ROF with some friends. PWCG used to generate missions and then any of us just host them as one would host any other co-op (private server with password or not, that allow players to join until mission starts and not after).

 

If your own 5 year old game can pull it off, I can't get it why it would be so complicated to provide the same in new one that probably even share some base engine coding.

 

Oh, and while you guys are looking at it, please consider some in-game hyper lobby alike interface. That concept with players, mission slots and out of game chat is such a nice feature. So old and simple, but not surpassed in functionality by anything nowadays sims use in their menu UI.

This X 1000. Why will no one make a modern hyperlobby like interface with all of the options of HL. Or, why not make BOS just work in HL. It is still there, I went in there the other night. For the life of me I cannot understand why this example or existing resource is not incorporated into all modern Sims. I have used HL to fly more missions in more flight Sims than just using the flight Sims stand alone. Is it that hard to do???

 

S!Blade<><

Edited December 30, 2014 by BladeMeister