Why should I purchase Flashpoint Elite?

[Teal]

Really. I want to hear it. In excrutiating detail. PK is all in my ear last night screaming something about how great this game is...so I wanna know some things, like:

-Does the game make you forget about the graphics, or are you constantly switching from immersion to 'good lord, that's horrible'?

-Does the thing have long legs?

-Is this going to get the GR2:SS treatment (ie, The DSP flash in the pan award)?

-How does it compare graphically to, say, GR:IT? I could deal with a close resemblance.

-Is it 'throw the controller' frustrating in it's realism? Fun is the name of the game for me, not at the expense of realism, but not the other way around, either.

-In a week or so, when the 360 arrives, will all of these questions be moot?

-Is this one a product of DSP Forum Effect?

I just don't know about this one. Most of the reviews have been glowing, with the exception of the graphical department in general, and IGN in particular, who doesn't know their ass from their elbow much of the time. I just don't want to plop 40 bucks down on something with little staying power.

I bought America's Army, and right now, I'd say it wasn't worth the wait. The AI seems to be butt stupid, and the objectives are often unclear. How about Flashpoint.


Don't be shy, guys...give me all you've got on this one. I'm interested-just not convinced yet...

[pk500]

I have a double ear infection yet played this game for five consecutive hours tonight. Can't tell you the last time I've done that with a game.

Too tired to give you more details. But Flashpoint is f*cking incredible. Makes Ghost Recon, which is a great game in its own right, feel like Counter-Strike or Wolfenstein.

More details in the morning.

P.S.: The AI is tough on the second of five skill levels; it's lethal on the third skill level.

Take care,
PK

[Gurantsu]

Once the shooting starts, you don't even notice the graphics. Unless it's a graphic of the big explosion that just wiped out half your team. Or the graphic of PK's lifeless body after he did a 50 foot swan dive out of our helo.

With the 2 campaigns, solo missions, and the best mission editor around, it has the longest legs of any Xbox game I've seen.

Can't say about wether it will be a flash in the pan, especially since the 360 is coming out. But considering I have 3 copies of this game on PC, and still play the heck out of the new version, I think it will last a while. Again, with all the options, not only in missions but in how you tackle a single mission, I think it will hold peoples interest for a while.

I'd say it in the same class graphically with Island Thunder, but the lighting effects are much better, as are the character models.

It's realism can be tough and frustratin, but not in a "the AI is cheating" kind of way; it's more of a "how could I be so stupid" kind of way.

I'd say if you can rent it do so, because the game isn't for everyone. But if last night was any indication, you'll probably have fun. Even with my bad connection last night we still managed to have a blast.

[pk500]

Teal:

I went to bed last night thinking of this game; I woke up this morning thinking of this game. Again, it's been a long time since that has happened with me and a videogame.

Now, itemized deductions about Teal's questions, with some editorial comments from me:

-Does the game make you forget about the graphics, or are you constantly switching from immersion to 'good lord, that's horrible'?

Claims about this game's horrible graphics are exaggerated, as I think people have spent too much time the last month looking at Xbox 360 kiosks.

Are the graphics in Flashpoint great? Not even close. Are they horrible? No. It's not like you're running around seeing slide-show speed animation and individual, jaggy pixels on screen. This isn't Pong with guns, which many would like you to believe.

I would put the graphics somewhere between the level of Ghost Recon and Ghost Recon: Island Thunder. The vehicle graphics are very good, and the buildings look fine. The landscape textures leave a lot to be desired in some cases, but these maps are HUGE. I mean MASSIVE, so I cut the Codies some slack.

To answer your question, as Gurantsu said, you don't even think about the graphics once you're in the game. The graphics never get in the way or hurt the gameplay. I think that answers the immersion question.

-Does the thing have long legs?

Considering I'm getting my ass shredded like Kraft mozzarella on only the second and third skill levels, I think this baby has a ton of offline legs. There also were plenty of randoms playing last night after our DSP game ended, and the vast majority of them were cool, adult military sim guys. The Counter-Strike and Halo crowd already is weeding itself out from this game, which is a good thing.

But as Gurantsu said, I think the Mission Editor gives this game more legs than any first-person military shooter created in this console generation. No, I'm not exaggerating. You can create any kind of mission you want, with any number of various insertion points, enemy troops, vehicles, locations, etc., and play them online or offline.

I would say Flashpoint will have Yao Ming legs for me, at least.

-Is this going to get the GR2:SS treatment (ie, The DSP flash in the pan award)?

It's possible, but I don't think it's because of this game. There's no question that the 360 launch next week will siphon some people from this game. But of our DSP group last night, I know Piggy, Provo and I aren't getting 360's any time soon, so I'm pretty certain we'll be playing this baby for a while. Zep is keeping his Xbox, and I know he's pretty hip on this game, too. So I think you can at least bank on a steady, weekly Poker Night for a while.

What separates this game from GR2:SS in my mind is that there's simply nothing like it on the Xbox. GR2:SS was the fourth Clancy game for the Xbox. There clearly was a "been there, done that" feel with GR2:SS for me, as good as some of the scenarios, maps and XBL play with DSP cats were.

I haven't played Battlefield 2 on the Xbox, but this game is so much different than it from what I've read and heard because of its realism and sheer size, scope and flexibility. I've never played a game like Flashpoint, so the "You had me at hello" sensation is still very, very strong.

-How does it compare graphically to, say, GR:IT? I could deal with a close resemblance.

See first response with my comments on graphics.

-Is it 'throw the controller' frustrating in it's realism? Fun is the name of the game for me, not at the expense of realism, but not the other way around, either.

Gurantsu nailed this description in his reply in this thread. This game is hard, no question. It's much more challenging than any of the Ghost Recon games. In fact, it's the tougher military FPS I've played on the Xbox.

But it's challenging in a very fair way. You never feel cheated by the AI. You never say, "Hey, I put 15 bullets in that bastard, and he didn't go down."

It's more of a case of, "How could I be so stupid?" or "What can I do next time to counter that problem?"

I feared that the control scheme would be very complex, as I know some of the PC vets of Flashpoint expressed concern that the controls couldn't port well from a keyboard and mouse to the controller. I never played the PC version, but I found the controls for the Xbox version to be intuitive after about an hour of play. I'm still not the most skilled chopper pilot in the world, as I flew a Chinook right into the side of a mountain in pea-soup fog last night after the DSP game, but I'm getting better.

-In a week or so, when the 360 arrives, will all of these questions be moot?

See above response for my comment.

-Is this one a product of DSP Forum Effect?

Not sure what you mean by this. Do you mean "Is this a game that any DSPer who loves realistic military FPS games should be playing?" By all means. Is this a game that you should be playing? Absolutely. Teal, this game was made for you. You'll cream your shorts.

Plus last night was the first time I gamed with Provo, Piggy and Zeppo in one room in a long time. Add Gurantsu, RogueWar and isles16 from DSP, and it was a damn fun night.

I bought America's Army, and right now, I'd say it wasn't worth the wait. The AI seems to be butt stupid, and the objectives are often unclear. How about Flashpoint.

The AI is smart, especially on the upper levels. It comes at you from all directions, flanks, surprises, shoots from upper and lower levels.

Last night, six of us split between two jeeps in a mission where we had to enter a town in a valley and clear it. One of us manned the .50-cals in the back of each jeep, one drove, and one rode shotgun in each jeep.

We followed the road, rounded a bend and were ambushed immediately by a small squad. I mean shredded. Scenario over, right away.

We restarted and avoided the road, taking the jeep over the hills leading into the valley. We were able to take down the squad at the junction that ambushed us but were cut down by heavy fire from inside the town, including a tank, I believe. That was awesome.

The communication needed to win in this game is essential. You simply can't go "Rambo" in this game and live. It won't work. Plus, there's good opportunity for "hang-out BS" chat sessions for two or three minutes while flying together in choppers or driving in vehicles from insertion points to hot spots. You can talk strategy; you can talk about how you'd like to put it up Jessica Simpson's dirt chute. Doesn't matter.

Another cool mission last night with the DSP cats. We played a two-on-two mission with Isles16 and I against Provo and Zep in which an American Chinook chopper went down. We started equal distances away from them, with Provo-Zeppo as the U.S. and Isles and I as the Commies. Provo-Zep had to try and rescue the pilots; Isles and I had to try to capture them.

Isles and I jumped into a Bradley and headed toward the zone where the chopper went down. The map doesn't tell you where the chopper went down; it just gives you a broad area. So both teams had to scurry like hell to try and find the thing. Isles and I found it and decided to take cover in the Bradley instead of heading right to the wreckage, as I saw an Apache chopper approaching at fairly low altitude that probably contained Provo and Zeppo in the distance and didn't want to be a sitting duck.

We got impatient and started to move from the rock. As we approached the downed U.S. chopper, it exploded. We kept moving when I realized, "Oh, f*ck, Provo and Zeppo probably blew up that chopper on purpose to draw us into the open, knowing the pilots already had escaped the wreckage and were wandering around the area, where they could scoop them up."

Sure enough, Isles and I were trapped. Provo and Zep landed their Apache and perforated Isles. I ran like hell and took cover behind the smoldering ruins of the chopper Zep and Provo torched, but Zep found me and nailed me. Mission over. Great fun.

That's the kind of fun you can expect with this game. It's all that, and a bag of f*cking chips and a beer.

Last night was the most fun I've had on XBL in quite a while. Can't wait to do it again.

Hope this answers your questions, Teal. Fire back with any follow-up questions.

This game is definitely the Grand Theft Auto of military shooters because you can go anywhere, drive or fly almost anything and do about damn near anything you want, with ultimate realism both fighting and defending over a HUGE area. The last time I was awed this much by the sheer size and scope of a game was when I rented Morrowind for the Xbox about two years ago.

Get. This. Game. It's most definitely not for everyone. Not even close. But it's made so much for you that your name should be on the package.

Take care,
PK

[Teal]

I went to bed last night thinking of this game; I woke up this morning thinking of this game. Again, it's been a long time since that has happened with me and a videogame.



Last night was the most fun I've had on XBL in quite a while. Can't wait to do it again.

Hope this answers your questions, Teal. Fire back with any follow-up questions.

Get. This. Game. It's most definitely not for everyone. Not even close. But it's made so much for you that your name should be on the package.

Take care,
PK

Damn...I think you covered it, PK! America's Army isn't doing it for me right now, but I don't think it's the AI any longer. From what I've seen and heard from soldiers, it's the nature of these terrorists and insurgents to fight the way they do. I've noticed that they seek cover more than I thought, but if there's no cover, they shout whatever they shout in Arabic and come running, no doubt with 72 virgins dancing in their heads.

But something just doesn't feel right. And the online stuff was pretty clunky, even with someone with a great connection.

Ok, here's one: How believable is the AI? Do they seek cover realistically? I know they're tough, I've heard that enough to believe it, but is it tough in a psychic sort of way, where they seem to know what you are going to do before you do it? Or can you legitimately catch them off guard?

Here's another one: I've read from more than one source that the vehicles are clunky, some are hard to drive, and that the airborne ones in particular mess with the framerate. For that matter, how IS the framerate? Does it chop up? I personally can deal with subpar graphics if the framerate's good, but I can't take the best looking game on the planet with a stuttering framerate!

Is this going to be a weekly staple? The thing I miss is the Ghost Recon Poker Night on schedule. I've bought too many games that wound up floundering (cough, Battlefront 2, cough, GR:SS) and are sitting collecting dust or in the used section of the local Gamestop.

I guess that's it for now. I'm going to try and slog through another mission or two in AA before I decide to return it, so I'll be around...

Keep the impressions coming...I'm intrigued, and leaning...

[pk500]

Ok, here's one: How believable is the AI? Do they seek cover realistically? I know they're tough, I've heard that enough to believe it, but is it tough in a psychic sort of way, where they seem to know what you are going to do before you do it? Or can you legitimately catch them off guard?

There are a few instances offline, at least on the second skill level, where the AI ran about a little too much. I hope that's rectified on the upper skill levels.

But in nearly all cases online and offline, the AI is smart. If you start firing at it, it will drop prone or take cover.

I don't think the AI is physic. I have snuck up behind AI soldiers online and offline and capped them in the back. Cowardly, but effective.

Here's another one: I've read from more than one source that the vehicles are clunky, some are hard to drive, and that the airborne ones in particular mess with the framerate. For that matter, how IS the framerate? Does it chop up? I personally can deal with subpar graphics if the framerate's good, but I can't take the best looking game on the planet with a stuttering framerate!

I don't think the vehicles are clunky to drive. The Jeeps and Bradleys are a snap. The tanks and aircraft can be a bit disconcerting, but that's probably due more to my ineptitude than poor design.

I found the framerate to be fine. There were a couple of hiccups when Gurantsu hosted, but he admitted that his connection was a bit troublesome last night. The framerate isn't a Burnout-like 60 fps, but it's done nothing to interfere with gameplay for me. This game doesn't have big-time stutters -- at least I haven't seen any. Other Flashpoint players, please chime in here.

Is this going to be a weekly staple? The thing I miss is the Ghost Recon Poker Night on schedule. I've bought too many games that wound up floundering (cough, Battlefront 2, cough, GR:SS) and are sitting collecting dust or in the used section of the local Gamestop.

It will be for me and Provo, I can almost assure you. So you're probably guaranteed of at least three-player co-op for the rest of 2005, if not longer. I bet we can get two or three more guys in on a regular basis, as I know Piggy loves this game, too.

Keep the impressions coming...I'm intrigued, and leaning...

Other Flashpoint players, please chime in. The more honest impressions Teal gets from various sources, the better. I don't blame you for being gunshy -- no pun intended -- as the DSP track record for consistent Poker Nights has been a bit mediocre lately compared to the glory days of steady, weekly nights with 10-plus guys in racing games and shooters. But I think Flashpoint will have $40 worth of legs, online and offline. Can't stress enough how much longevity the Mission Editor provides.

Take care,
PK

[nyisles16]

i tell you, i have never seen an AI opponent do things like they do in this game.. at some points you think they may leave you alone, but they actually pull a flanking manuever on you & it's "oops"..but nothing beats watching your opponent go 125 miles ah hour into a rock trying to land a chopper (hehe)..

[mixdj1]

Is this going to be a weekly staple? The thing I miss is the Ghost Recon Poker Night on schedule. I've bought too many games that wound up floundering (cough, Battlefront 2, cough, GR:SS) and are sitting collecting dust or in the used section of the local Gamestop.

Same here. I really miss the large groups for Tuesday Ghost Recon Poker Night. Every supposed replacement for poker night that I've picked up lasted a week or so and then we were lucky to get four people together. That's why I've resorted to Battlefield 2 on public servers. Although I have to deal with the occasional loud mouthed teen I can at least get into servers that have a large number of players. If Flashpoint will have a following and a regular poker night I'll pick it up.

[Teal]

Is this going to be a weekly staple? The thing I miss is the Ghost Recon Poker Night on schedule. I've bought too many games that wound up floundering (cough, Battlefront 2, cough, GR:SS) and are sitting collecting dust or in the used section of the local Gamestop.

Same here. I really miss the large groups for Tuesday Ghost Recon Poker Night. Every supposed replacement for poker night that I've picked up lasted a week or so and then we were lucky to get four people together. That's why I've resorted to Battlefield 2 on public servers. Although I have to deal with the occasional loud mouthed teen I can at least get into servers that have a large number of players. If Flashpoint will have a following and a regular poker night I'll pick it up.

OK, answer that last one correctly, and I'll pick it up! If Mix can lean towards it, I can buy it...

[Zeppo]

Teal:

Like PK said, it just seems like this game was made for you personally.

I wouldn't go too far with the GTA analogy, but there are some similairites in the sandbox thing. The maps, or islands, are freaking HUGE. I think each island is about the size of the entire map in Mercenaries. You and I could be on opposite sides of this island, several kilometers away, at the same time. The big limitation is that the Xbox can only populate the island with so much. There is a nice 'creation points' system that limits how many units you can put on a map for a mission, and it's not that huge a number. But in the single player game, you'd never notice that. There is for me a very big sense of exploration; these maps are so big and there are tons of little unique features, like lighthouses, or whatever, that are kind of fun to find and discover. Maybe a small touch of the MMORPG kind of exploration thing going on.

For multiplayer, the missions are almost more like templates. You can edit the missions, moving any and everything, adjusting the behabior of the AI soldiers, either friendly or enemy, adjusting their fire commands, etc. In PKs room we did a couple of the default missions and they were great. In my room, we did the one mission I had built in a couple hours (just to check out the whole chopper ride thing, really), and it was pretty cool. I think once we get the hang of it, we could throw a pretty nice mission together in not too much time, and the possibilities for variety are simply incomprehensible. I can't wait to try out Gurantsu's more well tweaked missions!

So many vehicles in the game, and all of them drievable. I haven't even flown the A10 yet, which I think is the only plane in the game. But there are tons of different helicopters, tanks, hummers, jeeps, cars, etc., a motorcycle, even a bicycle!

As to graphics, I think the whole 'ugly' thing is a little overblown. The game does not take good still screenshots, that's a fact, but I feel like it looks crappy for good reasons. I would say the game is actually between GR:IT and GR2. It's not as crisp or anywhere near as densely packed as in GR2, and at first blush really does resemble GR:IT. But unlike GR:IT, it has foliage blowing in the wind, some degree of 3D grass that reacts to wind, etc., and much better elevation changes. Yeah, the textrures aren't so good, and the detail isn't there. But the scale of the game is the reason for it, and for my money it's well worth the trade off. Every dead body or dead vehicle is persistent. Unlike every single other shooter ever on the Xbox, these things will stay there, dead, for you to look at. For me, that little kind of detail is worth losing a little in the texture area, or whatever. Plus the maps are so freaking HUGE. . . .

But I've found the smoothness of animation when in a firefight to be very satisfying. The enemies don't snap and pop around as you try to take them down. If there are framerate issues, I haven't noticed them in any firefights.

The controls are a little clunky. There's a bit of shake and shimmy in the first person player movement. But it's so nice to be able to toggle with one button from 1st person to 3rd person.

I haven't found it to be frustratingly hard or too realistic. Yes, it's probably the most realistic shooter I've played, where one shot really can take you down, and if you get hit you may only be able to crawl. But by the same token you can heal at a medic or a medical tent. The vehicles are a little tough to get used to, this isn't a racing game after all. But the helicopters feel to me very forgiving. So I feel it's a nice balance between realism and 'game fun.'

One thing I think is really cool is that you need a crew for a vehicle. If you have a tank, you simply must have a gunner, a driver, and a tank commander to tell the driver where to go and the gunner where to fire. Of course, any or all of those could be AI, or they could all be human, whatever. But you have to work together and perform your role in this game to really have fun and get stuff done. If you don't like sitting in the gunner seat of an Apache, with nothing to do but select which weapon and fire that weapon at an enemy designated by your pilot once every who-knows-how-long, than maybe the game isn't for you. I can see the hard-core Halo set being bored out of their MINDS. For me, there's something kind of cool in being the gunner, just the gunner.

The command/order system is confusing at first, but I think it works really, really well now that I've played with it a bit. A couple things frustrate me, but I think there is more nuance for me to discover. But online, the host is the commander and can give everyone orders (Provo always comes back with 'negative;' I thin his D-Pad is stuck or something! ), and set targets or way-points: 'head to that tree at 3 o'clock,' and a little way point target shows up on everyone elses screen (I think so, anyway).

It's a slow-paced game, no doubt. If you want to jump in and start firing right away, run and gun, be a Rambo, then you will be frustrated. There is a lot of space and traveling going on. But of course, you could create a mission where all the action is right in one place, too, fill it up with enemies.

The game is almost too broad and wide open. First time I got online I ended up in a random room where the guy just dropped a bunch of different choppers, some A10s, some tanks, jeeps, just so folks could run around and have fun. He put some enemy tanks a klick or two away to give the Apaches targets (I was his gunner, which was cool, since he know how to select targets for me etc.), and it was just like practice time, 'hey have fun and if you crash the helo, come back for another one' kind of thing. But the little I have messed with the mission editor, I can see that it's not all that tough to throw together a decent little mission to mess around with. Over time, things like AI behavior and the landscapes and features of the different islands will become more intuitive, and it should be pretty easy to come up with some neat little missions.

In a perfect world, I could see a regular DSP night where whoever is hosting has thrown together a couple two-three missions for us for that night. They could be so very different, too, one maybe where we're all in tanks, another maybe where we're in jeeps supporting an AI tank squadron; one where it's us against only the Russians; another where it's us as the Russians against a mix of US and rebel forces. It goes on.

What can I say Teal. It really is like this game was designed for you. I am sure you will just eat it up! Take a chance!

[Teal]

OK, I may bite. Possibly by next Wednesday, but not before. Then I've GOT to stop buying games for me, and start buying Christmas presents!! I'll let you know when and if I do...

That being said, I've played some more AA, have figured out some things, and am ready to start whistling a different tune, so I'm off to start an AA impressions thread...

[Wrekcut1]

I know I don't post too much around here, but I have the game also and wouldn't mind getting in some games. I'm on most nights. I used to have a few of you on my FL, but will probably have to add you guys again if I can get in the games with you.

[Teal]

I know I don't post too much around here, but I have the game also and wouldn't mind getting in some games. I'm on most nights. I used to have a few of you on my FL, but will probably have to add you guys again if I can get in the games with you.

So, how are you feeling it now that you've had it awhile, Wrek? I'd be interested in your take since it's been back and forth over at 0C...

[Wrekcut1]

I have had fun with it, but mainly that was in SP. Most of the games I played online were with random people, and they have a tendency to do there own thing with not very much teamwork. I am still up in the air with it, but it is one of those games that the more you play it, the more you like it. I will leave it at that for now, until I get more time in online.

Oh and don't go in expecting to fly the helicopter or drive some of the vehicles...they have a learning curve attached to them.

Okay I will add a couple more things that I just thought of. This is one of the few games where I get nervous as hell when I hear a tank or even an enemy jeep approaching. I know this usually means death for me. I like that alot. In Ghost Recon(which I love) these things never mattered much, because I knew I could easily take them out. Not so in this game.

If your in the air on it, I would say rent it first. If you are getting a 360, I would say don't get it as I don't think you would get enough time out of it.

I usually trade in games pretty frequently, but I plan on keeping this one, as I have had fun with it and there a ton of missions online and off. Also, I think new games for the Xbox will start to dwindle soon.

[Teal]

I have had fun with it, but mainly that was in SP. Most of the games I played online were with random people, and they have a tendency to do there own thing with not very much teamwork. I am still up in the air with it, but it is one of those games that the more you play it, the more you like it. I will leave it at that for now, until I get more time in online.

Oh and don't go in expecting to fly the helicopter or drive some of the vehicles...they have a learning curve attached to them.

Okay I will add a couple more things that I just thought of. This is one of the few games where I get nervous as hell when I hear a tank or even an enemy jeep approaching. I know this usually means death for me. I like that alot. In Ghost Recon(which I love) these things never mattered much, because I knew I could easily take them out. Not so in this game.

If your in the air on it, I would say rent it first. If you are getting a 360, I would say don't get it as I don't think you would get enough time out of it.

I usually trade in games pretty frequently, but I plan on keeping this one, as I have had fun with it and there a ton of missions online and off. Also, I think new games for the Xbox will start to dwindle soon.

No need to rent it. I've known Zepp and PK for a long time now, and they know me, so if they say it's tailor made for me, then it most likely is. I'm not getting a 360 anytime soon, probably at least a year, so I'm not worried about game purchases this close to launch. The way I see it, I'll have several hundred titles to choose from at the 360 launch...they'll have a dozen or so. I win...

[pk500]

Wrek:

Play online with us DSP f*ckers, and you'll dig Flashpoint even more. Total teamwork, total fun.

Take care,
PK

[Wrekcut1]

No need to rent it. I've known Zepp and PK for a long time now, and they know me, so if they say it's tailor made for me, then it most likely is. I'm not getting a 360 anytime soon, probably at least a year, so I'm not worried about game purchases this close to launch. The way I see it, I'll have several hundred titles to choose from at the 360 launch...they'll have a dozen or so. I win...

I guess that answers your question right there. See you online.

On a side note. Let me know when you get on AA next time. I'll get on also, if I'm not already there.

[Teal]

No need to rent it. I've known Zepp and PK for a long time now, and they know me, so if they say it's tailor made for me, then it most likely is. I'm not getting a 360 anytime soon, probably at least a year, so I'm not worried about game purchases this close to launch. The way I see it, I'll have several hundred titles to choose from at the 360 launch...they'll have a dozen or so. I win...

I guess that answers your question right there. See you online.

On a side note. Let me know when you get on AA next time. I'll get on also, if I'm not already there.

Saw you playing it last night, but I think you were in SP, so I just fired it up and played SP myself. The randoms weren't too exciting, so maybe some will pick it up from here and from 0c so that we can play it the way Ubi intended...

[ProvoAnC]

Dude you gotta get this game. +1 to what everyone else said.

Last night was the first time I played online and we barely even scratched the surface. When we did Zeppo's mission, I thought it was a huge f***. WE finished it, but it really emphasized teammwork. I know I said it last night before the next mission, but you can't have a bunch of swinging dicks shouting out the color of each leaf they're hiding behind because it clogs up the radio...which is a pain in the ass if you're wounded and trying to vector in a jeep to come pick your ass up. You almost have to have a TL and he tells you what to do and if its somethng important you call it out. Otherwise you have a bunch of ramrods running around and at 150 yrds with iron sights you can't tell if they're enemy or friend.

This is one experience I had on single player. It was the bomberman mission. I set the charges and took out the convoy. I was sniping the town from a well concealed position. Well the AI in the town must've been getting pissed and started looking for me. I'm still dealing some AI death and scanning for more targets. I focus on one guy who I see just putting his binos away (looking for me). I then see him shoulder his LAW and proceed to send a rocket up my ass. I was so surpirsed that I didn't have time to try and shoot him first. The AI WILL look for you and WILL kill you if they find you. They won't just run around the place getting blown away. In that mission I also found out if you wound someone you can draw out the medic and shoot him.

I barely touched on the mission editor until I was like "holy s***, this pretty detailed, I gotta think about this more." I mean there's flipping gas stations on the map! You can't find half of the s*** in OF in any other game.

As far as poker nights...starting next tuesday I'm off until the first week in Jan-gotta love FMLA!

[mixdj1]

I would love more than anything to be part of a regular weekly DSP shooter poker night but I don't think this one is going to do it for me. I rented the game last night and I've got it for five days so I'm not giving up yet but after a couple hours in the single player campaign I'm just not feeling it.

I knew going in that the graphics were not great but they are really a hindrance in my opinion. It's hard to tell if I'm seeing a pixelly bush in the distance or a pixelly enemy. And the animations just seem awkward. Either in 3rd person or first person the movement doesn't look or feel right. And although there are some effects that are definitely better than the original Ghost Recon titles I really don't see the overall appearance being as good. In Ghost Recon I had the feeling of being in a forest but in Flashpoint I feel like I'm in a computer simulation with low res ground textures and pixelly trees.

The sound, specifically the in combat speech, also bugs me. The obviously (and badly) pasted together combat messages make me feel like I'm getting reports from the old Time & Temperature phone number I used to call before having weather.com. My wife even had to come in the room and ask "What the hell is that?!?" at one point when there was non-stop robotic combat speech.

And lastly I haven't really had an enjoyable mission yet. Everything up to this point has been hop in a jeep and ride for five minutes, hop out and walk for five minutes, shoot some enemies on the horizon, rinse, repeat. I did finally get to something different at the end of last night though. I'm stuck in a forest by myself and I have to get to an extraction point. The problem is there are enemies all around including choppers and armor. Maybe I'm supposed to go at this one Splinter Cell style and try not to get noticed but after 45 minutes and numerous attempts I decided I was not having any fun at all and went to bed.

Like I said, I'm not giving up on it yet. I plan to put several more hours into it tonight and tomorrow but right now I just don't see what everyone else sees in it.

[Gurantsu]

I hope to be online tonight, so add me to your friends list and jump in if you see me. Hopefully my connection will be better tonight...

[pk500]

No question Flashpoint doesn't have the "instant action" feel of Ghost Recon, especially GR missions like Bunkers where you see the enemy almost all of the time and are within a range of 100 yards constantly.

But Flashpoint has way more depth and strategic options, in my opinion. It is the definitive "big map" game, as the maps in Flashpoint make the big maps in GR feel like playing in a broom closet.

Give online play with us a try this weekend, Mix. If you still don't like Flashpoint after that, then you've given it a fair shot and the game just isn't for you.

Take care,
PK

[mixdj1]

Give online play with us a try this weekend, Mix. If you still don't like Flashpoint after that, then you've given it a fair shot and the game just isn't for you.

I definitely plan to do that. Zeppo invited me into a session with him last night but my six month old decided it was time to get fussy so I had to bail. Then I had a scheduled Battlefield match and by the time I was finished Zeppo had moved on to Battlefront. I would definitely like to get into a Live co-op or adversarial match this weekend and maybe get some pointers from you guys.

In reference to the mission I am stuck on, I found a faq online that said the proper way to finish the mission is to crawl on your belly for 45 minutes to the extraction point. He also said be prepared to be spotted a lot and restart many times. I'm all for realistic games but holy cow! The guy did have another suggestion to backtrack which will avoid the AI since the mission design expects you to head towards the objective initially. But what's the point in manipulating the system if you purchased a realistic simulator.

[ProvoAnC]

s*** dude...I think we're talking about the same mission. I just went to the woodline to see where I was at (right near the crashed blackhawk). Took out an enemy patrol and then a new extraction area appeared about 200yrds away. Then I was captured and freed by the resistance

[Gurantsu]

That mission can be a pain. What you need to do first is head north, deeper into the woods, which is away from the extraction point. Eventually it will get overrun and they will move it to a point east of the woods you start in. Start working your way to the east edge of the woods, keeping an eye out for the BMP and helo. You will have to crawl a bit, but it's really not too bad. You'll see a small group of houses with a tank parked nearby to the northeast, you want to be sort of between them and the extraction point, heading east to get into the other set of woods. Once in there, work your way south to the extraction point. Some infantry will patrol along your path, so you can either stay low in some bushes or try to take them out. Every time you make it from one piece of cover to another, save your game. That certainly helps the frustration factor.

That mission is sort of the turning point in the game. If you can make it through that, the action starts picking up.