Thanks for the feedback on the scout buggy, folks. The next craft design I'd like to introduce is the light jet. The game I'd like to put together will "encourage" low altitude flight. This will force the players to contend with the terrain, and give them more opportunities to take advantage of it. The light jet will have these capabilities: * Hover capability for strategic placement, and very low speed flight for possible ground escorts * Two flight models - a banking horizontal flight model for easy slow flight, and a high speed flight model that requires pulling hard on the vertical axis of the jet for turns * Light gun hardpoint - I'm considering a lead shot reticle for this weapon, would make it much easier in dogfights instead of that funnel indicator from the Falcon games * 2 aerial missiles against aerial targets * 2 heavy ground attack missiles * Missile reticles will require some time lined up on their targets to get a lock. A secondary reticle will always attempt to line up with the target to acquire a lock. This should make dogfights interesting. * The HUD will help the player evade missiles by providing an arc that the player should follow to evade them (the reason I include this is because the Falcon games were made too difficult by all the missiles flying). All the player has to do is get the jet flying in a direction with the arc intersecting the center flight reticle, and they will be flying on an optimal path to evade the missile (with enough speed, of course). Multiple missiles will cause multiple arcs to appear, to help the player plan for evading them all. * For now, I've decided against countermeasures (flares and chaff). Any time I've played a game with them, I've found their necessity more annoying than gamable. I greatly appreciate any time spent reading this and giving me feedback. I got some good insight for the scout buggy, and I hope to get more here! Thanks again! - WaveRider [edited by - Waverider on May 23, 2002 10:07:02 AM] [edited by - Waverider on May 23, 2002 10:10:51 AM] [edited by - Waverider on May 23, 2002 10:20:11 AM]

Quite nice. I like the idea for the lock on.

I like the idea of concentrating on ground hugging, almost helichopper like but with that nice speed boost of a jet

I personally would like to be able to customize the number and type of missiles on board, but then if this is an RTS with fixed unit types this might not work.

Like the auto-targetting feature of the light gun, that would be a real boon.

The only potential problem I can see is this HUD getting really confusing and over crowded, but maybe that''s because I don''t visualize what you mean.

I like countermeasures on drawn out flight sims but you''re right they might get in the way.

Can''t wait to see a demo of this lot

Or maybe you could include a limited amout of chaff and flares, like say 2 of each. Then when the player is flying the evasion arc, but his onboard computer detects that he will not evade the missile, it will automatically deploy the appropriate countermeasure. This way the player will work hard on running the evasion arc so his countermeasures don''t get wasted too early.

---
Make it work.
Make it fast.

"Commmmpuuuuterrrr.." --Scotty Star Trek IV:The Voyage Home

Maybe I missed this in the previous section on your scout buggy, but What sort of game is this??
You refer to it as RTS, you have lots of vehicle types, but you keep talking about user controls for each vehicle?

Maybe I missed this in the previous section on your scout buggy, but What sort of game is this??
You refer to it as RTS, you have lots of vehicle types, but you keep talking about user controls for each vehicle?

Yes it will be a military RTS. With multiplayer capability, eventually. The commander would be in a command center of some sort while the other players pliot craft. The commander would control everything from a radar screen and a squad list.

It will be some time before it really comes together, but I'll post betas to try out HUDs and maneuvering and what not as time and ambition permit.

I appreciate the interest!

Hmm... a limited amount of emergency countermeasure, to give the player a little bit of lee-way should they fail to properly follow the arc.. I'll think about that one.

I know the HUD might get a little crowded, but that's what the betas will be about, too.


[edited by - Waverider on May 23, 2002 11:11:54 PM]

Tribes 2 has flares that are countermeasures against the heat-seaking missles - they work really well, gameplay-wise.

On the note about customizing the loadout, I can look into doing that. Heck, why not. While the buildings are manufacturing units, you can give them orders before they even emerge, why not establish the default weapon loadout?

If you''re going to send jets on a ground attack run it would make more sense to load them up with all ground attack missiles. And air superiority would demand a full sidewinder loadout.

Hmm... the gears are ticking. AND, things are getting more complicated NOW I have to think about designing a screen that allows configuration of weapons! Maybe just a simple drop down list with descriptions for now...

I know custom weapon loadouts could be tricky, but they would introduce some nice gameplay dynamics - more diversity/variety with less units. Also lowers predictability, especially for multiplayer - if a tank commander sees a jet heading his way, he''s going to wonder whether it''s packing Sidewinders or something a little more troubling - like a handful of Mavericks As I mentioned in the buggy thread, this also maintains the lifespan/importance of lighter vehicles once the player gets access to better gear.

As regards coutnermeasures, it might be worth having some kind of generic IR flares/chaff/ECM that can simply be triggered by hitting the one key - no need for the player to worry about the details. Just let them smack the countermeasures key once someone gets a lock. Also introduces more suspense - player will cringe as he waits to see if the incoming ordnance "takes the bait". Just have it reduce the percentage chance that they get hit or something - depends on the sophistication of your missiles'' target acquisiton modelling.