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Author Topic: Addons & Missions: Why not?  (Read 4118 times)

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Offline macguba

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Re:Addons & Missions: Why not?
« Reply #15 on: 26 Apr 2005, 11:18:37 »
I have to say I have always suspected that the folk who religiously download every addon to play with it rarely download missions.     Many people do it occasionally of course, but my feeling is that there are different consitutencies in the community:  some go for addons, some missions.   Consequently it is NOT the case that people will download an addon for toying but not for a mission:   they are different groups of people.    That's my theory anyway.

I agree that missions and scripts don't get a fair crack of the whip on Flashnews and I have posted to that effect on the thread at the official forums.


*Puts on Intel Depot Admin hat*

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Currently OFPEC only makes posts announcing the names of the latest missions reviewed (once every couple weeks or so), and perhaps a special post for a high-scoring mission. I would suggest that they make an individual news post for every new mission reviewed, the day it is reviewed, instead of batching them all into one post every so often.
It is unlikely that we will have an individual news post for every single mission because, lets face it, a few of them are crap.    However I agree with your general point and we will endeavor to improve.


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They also could make posts about interesting projects that people have started, or interesting missions that are up for beta.
Ahead of you there pal - we are already thinking of the best way to do this.    It's not quite as straightforward as it sounds and we haven't come to any conclusions yet.

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They do that for addons, but not for missions, for some reason. Addons really only need to be posted in the 'news' section when they are RELEASED, not when only a screenshot is published.
It is a general principle of news at OFPEC that there should be something to download, even if its only a beta.   However, it is true (sadly) that we do post screenies of unreleased addons.   :-[   We do it in three circumstances.  

Firstly, when people submit them to us - we like to encourage people who have taken the trouble to submit news.   It's a bit deflating if you go to all the trouble of sending something in and then we say no sorry, not important enough.     Secondly, when the news is quiet, there isn't much going on, and the top item of news on the homepage is beginning to get stale.     And thirdly, when the pics are of something that hasn't really been seen before.

There is a fundamental difference between posting pics of unreleased addons and posting pics of unreleased missions.   An addon unit is something you have never seen before.   An addon is a thing that can be photographed.   Consequently such photographs make for an interesting and entertaining OFPEC homepage.      Missions are not "things":  they are dynamic experiences and consequently virtually impossible to photograph.   A screenie from a mission doesn't show you anything you haven't seen before and, more importantly, rarely conveys the experience of playing the mission.

We're not going to start publishing screenies of forthcoming missions, not least because we're trying to stop that particular rot, not spread it.  
Plenty of reviewed ArmA missions for you to play

Offline The-Architect

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Re:Addons & Missions: Why not?
« Reply #16 on: 26 Apr 2005, 22:34:40 »
As a mission reviewer, here and at other sites, I'm getting used to downloading a wide spectrum of addons which are needed for missions. I don't really mind it because,

1. I have an Ok connection.

2. Its my job as a reviewer.

When it comes to making missions that use addons, I couldn't care less what people think. If someone wants to skip past my mission on the list because there are one too  many addons, then fine. Its their loss and I can understand why they did it. I think that I could count on one hand the number of really good missions that are out there. Seriously.
This is because, in my opinion, mission makers don't help eachother. Whereas addon makers can come together on various aspects of making an addon, mission makers tend to do things on their own. I gues that's just the way it is. All we can really do is keep using gimmiks to promote making more missions. That and striving to release better and better missions that will make people want to follow in our footsteps.
I don't really know the answer. I'm just plodding along oblivious.
James Andrew Wilkinson 1977 - 2005 R.I.P.
"If it ain't the friggin' incoming it's the friggin' outgoing. Only difference is who gets the friggin' grease, and that ain't no friggin' difference at all."

Offline Wolfsbane

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Re:Addons & Missions: Why not?
« Reply #17 on: 07 May 2005, 15:27:57 »
Alot of people never put addons in Missions, because they don't like cluttering them up with files they know people aren't going to download. They also don't like to have to put in lots of different files, due to the lack of proper compendiums of addons.

Some people just don't like having addons in at all, prefering the purity of the     .

The last time I checked, addons outranked Missions by five to one, for some strange reason. I think it's sheer laziness. People are happy to design things, but not so happy to find ways to include them in their mission. It's a shame.

The thing that stopped me when I designed missions, from using addons, was that I'd want to use about ten addons, it then became a huge mission file, and it just became a nuisance to download, and to test.

I think there are too many asthetic addons as well, addons which are not different from their      original, except for a coat of paint. Those annoy me, and strangely, those are the ones we see the most.

*Shrugs*

It's been a problem from the start, and it'll continue to be a problem until the day OFP ends.
The greatest days, with the greatest people.. OFPEC.. The friends are never forgot.

Acecombat

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Re:Addons & Missions: Why not?
« Reply #18 on: 07 May 2005, 15:42:09 »
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The thing that stopped me when I designed missions, from using addons, was that I'd want to use about ten addons, it then became a huge mission file, and it just became a nuisance to download, and to test.

Sorry but i disagree , 10 addons arent too much of a hassle , if you had no problem getting them then whats the trouble with putting them in a mission as well?

Why is also the missions file size increasing with addons ?  ???

Offline Wolfsbane

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Re:Addons & Missions: Why not?
« Reply #19 on: 08 May 2005, 18:35:06 »
You know what I mean by Mission file, I mean the overall size of the file that you theoretically have to download in order to play the Mission, that includes the Addons. My wording wasn't the best for it, I admit.

People are just lazy, that's all it is. Some people don't like cluttering their addons folder with lots of files too. I admit that after testing missions, my addons folder was a joke, and it was causing me problems with OFP when things got updated.

Also need to remember that addons need to be compatible with any updates, which can make a whole swathe of files obsolete.

*Shrugs*

People just can't be bothered I guess.

:)
The greatest days, with the greatest people.. OFPEC.. The friends are never forgot.

Acecombat

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Re:Addons & Missions: Why not?
« Reply #20 on: 08 May 2005, 21:17:56 »
Ok i understand that , but sometimes in order to make a mission as realistic as possible you have to use addons to depict certain things/scenarios in their authentic envoirnment/atmosphere , theres just no second way out for that.

And addons cluttering up thing , you can always manage your addons carefully , organization is the KEY with them. I keep my addons in specific mod folders for everything and have special folder allocated for mission reviews labelled as 'TEMP' here i dump addons required by the mission to work and play with them and when i'm done throw them back in their respective mod folders or delete them if it was some useless/crappy addon.

Addons usually are compatible in their config so if an update is done it doesnt effect the missions , most good addonmakers realize this and follow up on it.

 :)