Air Balance? Are you Happier?

[Older-OMO]

My question is, what are your opinions on this area of balance, and what (if anything) is going to be done to improve air defence?

Armando: It was one of the more major concerns we had because it downgrades the experience for everyone. It was not the intention that the air vehicles be as powerful or as dominant as they currently are. We identified a few issues with the aircraft and the AA so those will be addressed in the patch. So far, the testing has shown a drastic improvement in the effectiveness of AA.

You got the answer you wanted to hear. They have acknowledged and agreed with you. I hope they have made progress in addressing your issues with the game. Then again, you already know what they have planned in the patch with the plane, attack chopper and the Blackhawk.

I think the patch has the chance to address some issues, but it might also have some unintended consequences. With less armor, reduced weapons (attack choppers and Blackhawk), and a more effective AA, I think it is going to make the game more difficult for the less skilled players. Anyone other than the better pilots can expect to get shot down faster and more often. It will probably ground a few pilots, but I still think that the griefer pilots that exist today will have no problems adapting and will continue their killing ways.

Bottom line, until the patch comes out, we won't know if they improved it or actually made it a little worse (this goes for all of the issues.) However, I will be optimistic and hope for the best. At least Dice is listening and trying to fix stuff.

[3Libras]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

I see your point here in saying that the pilots we currently hate will only get more air time now that the noobs don't get a chance, but..

I still think it's better to have the whole pilot class a minority. I hate to link realism to BF2, the community evidently hates that, but it is like that in real life- I think of a pilot as a.. Well, respectable person! Realism aside I still think it's better that only the best of the best get their hands on the joystick. I'm really sorry to say but if you're really that set on flying, you should probably move on to a flight sim and off of BF2.

[imported_The_Revrend]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

Personally, i can't freaking wait. I'm hoping for a SA-7/Stinger Armed Anti-Armor Varient with a basic assualt rifle. :)

Rev

[FlyingEgg]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

Unfortunately the result of making aircraft less powerful is that it's that way for everyone, and there's really no way around it. That said, I don't think aircraft is all that overpowered. All that needs/needed to be done is to have some absurdities removed, such as AA being completely unable to hit planes and helicopters being able to withstand being blasted by a tank.

[raceacontari]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

Unfortunately the result of making aircraft less powerful is that it's that way for everyone, and there's really no way around it. That said, I don't think aircraft is all that overpowered. All that needs/needed to be done is to have some absurdities removed, such as AA being completely unable to hit planes and helicopters being able to withstand being blasted by a tank.

exactly...if the AA would work and not just blow up friendly aircraft, and if it would lock on to jets faster (usually when they are dive bombing you with the cannon) there wouldn't even be the issue of "over powered" blah blah.

[[1RGR]LD|Pvt.Amerikai]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

We wont see an AA class, I'm 100% sure of it, why? becuase if people suck already with AA, we'll just have lots of people running around sucking at AA.

[imported_Spuddy]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

Could be quite interesting this. If you already know the tricks to get AA to work right, you're going to be lethal when they improve it further.

[Boojie]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

My question is, what are your opinions on this area of balance, and what (if anything) is going to be done to improve air defence?

Armando: It was one of the more major concerns we had because it downgrades the experience for everyone. It was not the intention that the air vehicles be as powerful or as dominant as they currently are. We identified a few issues with the aircraft and the AA so those will be addressed in the patch. So far, the testing has shown a drastic improvement in the effectiveness of AA.

You got the answer you wanted to hear. They have acknowledged and agreed with you.

I'll toast to that. I can't imagine the current situation is by design.

Rock-paper-scissors, baby!

If you blitz, I'll throw long. If you cover the pass, I'll run the ball. If you play nickel defense, I'll run a play action pass. Cover my receivers and I'll pass to the tight end or a tailback. Stuff the middle and I'll run to the outside.

Rock-paper-scissors.


What we had before was 11 men on offense and 18 on defense.

[Farks]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

So it's all about the unskilled? They have to practice - just like everyone else. DICE can't hold back the effectiveness of the AA just to give the pilots a chance. What about the guys in the AA- guns?

[Sp0r3]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

i think AA served its purpose already... there are maps that AA basically grounds all air units to the ground. If you increase the damage of aa or decrese the armor or health of air units, what is the point of using choppers or jets?

i would agree on increasing the effectiveness of aa but not decreasing the effectiveness of the aircrafts. For example, make stinger missiles able to tail locked on targets (increase the angle of bank so jets cant out bank missiles). What will be the point of jets and choppers if everyone uses stinger sites and whatever flies will be blown within seconds? There will never be a balance. cuz when one side has the advantage, everyone will take advantage of it and cause it to be unbalance again.

[DrJambo]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

I can't wait. The question should never be about the noobs. NOobs will learn and if they don't then they'll cease to try being a helo or jet pilot if they have any sense. Seems logical to me. If you want to practise then you're better off practising in single player.

The question is really one about the pro pilots. What I've noticed is that one pro pliot in a server really makes ALL the difference between the teams. Particularly in maps which have the J10 or one or more of the 5 bomb bombers, a pro pilot will simply dominate all, always finish top of the scoreboard, and effectively ruin it for everybody on the other team. They bomb any vehicle, they bomb infantry at spawn points, there's simply no way to avoid them nor take them them down. A good pilot is usually one that loads into the map first (reason why they always get the jet) and can bomb the opposing team's jet(s) before they're even able to take off. Gulf of Oman is really bad for this.

This is no criticism of the pilot per se, but rather of the current way the game works. I can fly a plane pretty competently with just keyboard and mouse; one can only imagine how easy it would be with a suitable joystick!

Regards

[Reider]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

I fly alot in the attack helo's ... and do think its overpowered... most of the times aa can hit me, but not destroy me before i/we destroy them. tanks can hit me but also dont destroy me... thats just insane. The fact is, it takes 2/3 soldiers in different vehicles and/or emplacements to take a helo out.

Against planes its practically no use... or maybe thats because i'm an aa noob :P

[imported_bingobones]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

i agree with reider 100%

[Jesse]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

It will probably ground a few pilots, but I still think that the griefer pilots that exist today will have no problems adapting and will continue their killing ways.

Griefer pilots? I hardly think good pilots should be labeled as griefers. Not everyone plays like you, but that doesn't mean they're trying to grief you. A griefer pilot would be a teammate constantly ramming into your teammates and such, not pounding the other team however they can.

I doubt anything will fix the tracking code other than an overhaul. Those who know how to use the AA to it's fullest may gain a slight edge, but those who know how to escape it probably shouldn't expect any real threats to themselves after the patch. Pilots with common sense are still going to kill people, and people on the ground are still going to whine.

Either they need to make dumbfire AA or overhaul the hardcoded section of the tracking systems. Until that happens, people are going to complain the AA is broken when they don't hit something, no matter how stupid of a shot it was.

[AlphaNut]

Re: Air Balance? Are you Happier?

Isn't a jet supposed to be shot down by another jet? And don't both sides have the same amount of air assets? Do you think that real AA has a chance against a modern fighter jet? Do you believe that it is the ground forces responsibility to fight against airplanes?
I usually don't even use my bombs when sitting in a J10, F35 etc. All I do is chase the other bird around, and make sure that he leaves my grunts alone.
Never ever have I or the other pilot been on top of the scoreboard when we were both giving each other a very tough time.

The problem with those Über-Pilots is that no one on the opponents side cares or isn't able to fly a jet. Sometimes I also see pilots not even trying to dogfight, they just leave each other in peace. And this is where the problem's root is. Pilots are simply not fighting other pilots. Why, you ask? Because it is much more easy to hit ground targets which you can see from miles away.
A jet pilot should not even have the time to line up with ground targets because right when he tries to do this there should be the enemy pilot who gets on his ass, and eventually shoots him down.

When I see our team gets owned by a jet I will try to grab one of ours, and just keep the sucker busy for the rest of the round. I'll make him break his joystick Even If I'm out of ammo I'll stay behind him in a good distance, and just have my missiles locked on. Don't even have to shoot because the guy will start looping, and drooping all over the place.
I've done this to pilots with 20:1 kd ratios, and it worked very well.

I think that the problem is not the planes being overpowered... Some people just don't like to use their brains when playing BF2...