Intel Depot

It seems like you've been around forever - when did you join OFPEC? What were your initial impressions?

I first joined OFPEC way back in the concept 5 days, under Tigershark. Back then I was just a forum lurker, looking to find the answers to my editing questions. Even in its early stages, it was obvious OFPEC was the place for editors to gather and talk about the mission editor.

What are the most significant differences between then and now?

At that early stage, BIS hadn't supplied documentation on how things worked in OFP. There was no command reference, no tools, no tutorials, so most knowledge had been found through experimentation. It was kind of an 'age of discovery'.
Once knowledge had been 'discovered', it inevitably found its way onto the OFPEC boards. There was a large proportion of newbies, asking fairly similar questions. One thing that made OFPEC stand out was that no matter how often the same question got asked, the answer was always delivered in a friendly and welcoming way. That's one of the factors that has kept people coming back all these years.

Everyone joins OFPEC for a reason, and I'm guessing yours was the editing side, because you quickly gained a reputation as an accomplished and innovative mission-maker. What was your first mission called, and what was it like?

My first 'released' mission was called 'Wrestling with the Bear', and can still be found on Avon Lady's OFP FAQ.
My first EVER mission was pretty simple and mundane... it involved pretty much every bad editing practice you can bring to mind ;)
The reason OFP captured my imagination is the fact that missions can be made to create the atmosphere of the player being part of a large operation. Most simulations have the player interacting with one or two other units at most. OFP has missions that could be created to immerse the player as one small cog in a very big machine. It was this effect that I was aiming for with Wrestling with the Bear.

"The Black Gap" was a great success, making superb use of pretty much everything Flashpoint has to offer, including a complicated company control/formation script. How long did that project take? Which part are you most proud of?

That project took about a year all up... lots of stops and starts as I tried new things, couldn't get them working, so had to change or remove them. I'm probably proudest of the scripted commands from the AI platoon leader. I was shooting for replayability, so had a lot of different events based on random things. The idea was that the mission would play differently each time you ran through it.
I was also quite proud of the platoon interface, though unfortunately it didn't get as much of a show in as I had hoped (I was planning to get a couple of sequels released, but real life chewed up too much of my spare time).

Any tips for aspiring mission-makers?

Plenty of worn out clichés... Think outside the square... Simple is often best... Less is sometimes more :)
Mainly just: Push the limits. OFP (and what I've seen of ArmA) is very powerful in regards to what's possible.
More than likely, the mission you're making has already got someone working on it. Get out into the community and look around, talk to people, float some ideas on the forums. The nature of the community is such that you'll most likely have discussion, if not a group of willing hands to make your ideas come to life.

You were soon promoted to moderator, then Global moderator. Was the job more difficult back then?

There were many more taking part in the community back then. OFP is getting geriatric in computer terms, so the job was slightly more involved (This will no doubt reverse upon the release of ArmA). The community has always been very friendly and accepting, so wielding the moderator stick wasn't something I had to do all that often.

You then took up the role of Site Admin in May 2005, taking over from Sefe and Noon. Was it daunting? What were the major hurdles you had to overcome?

OFPEC was overall running very smoothly under Noon and Sefe. It was built to cater to OFP, and the big challenge was to move the site towards OFP:Elite, ArmA and supporting BIS in other ways (like the Wiki).
However, all that soon paled in comparison after we lost the server (and the entire site). From then on it became a fight for survival.

Overall, what would you say the best bits of your time at OFPEC were?

Definitely working with the wide variety of staff over the years, from all walks and ways of life. The outstanding part of the whole OFPEC experience is interacting on the staff boards. It kept everything entertaining, even as you move on to become a 'fixture' of the place ;)

Any tips for a new Site Admin?

Mind your head amongst all that construction! ;D
You've certainly got your work cut out for you mate, but from what I've seen things are well in hand.

What does life hold in store for you now?

Well... through what must have been some administrative blunder I'm sure, I've been given more responsibility in my chosen career. So at the moment it's work and study until I learn to better fill the shoes I've been handed.
I'm sure once I've settled in I'll have time for the odd bit of gaming... no doubt poking my head in around some servers to see how ArmA is MP ;)

Any final words?

I wonder what this lever does?
*boom*

The legacy that Sui has helped maintain should not be underestimated. OFPEC is the premier editing resource site for the Operation Flashpoint community, and has come a long way since its humble beginnings only through the dedicated work of its staff. It is with firm respect and admiration for all the efforts that Sui has made to develop the character of OFPEC and keep the site going that we bid him a very fond farewell.