Issue 5 - "All in Arma" Update / Call for vote

Hey Armaheads,
lately i have been a bit lazy with new posts but i dont want this month to be passed without an interview release for you folks.

When i started this blog it was mainly because of "All in Arma" and my curiousness about whats happening behind scenes. 
.kju, the head behind the mod, had some great answers to my questions and really made me looking forward to ask more modders, scripters and mission-makers about thier work.

Arma 3 is here now and it would have been great to have a fully working AllinArma to use our favorite toys from Arma 2 in Arma 3. Unfortunatly it didnt happen because of various reasons that will be explained in the following interview...

Are you happy with the Arma 3 release and its current state?

I am to answer from different perspectives: As I had quite an insight to the development of Arma 3 and what happened in the background, the release state is pretty good aside from some issues here and there. 

As a player I am quite disappointed by the lack of MP focus, no dedicated PvP game mode nor PR campaign to draw in players from Project Reality, Red Orchestra or Battlefield - hence the situation looks pretty grim there. I am doubtful any post release work can change anything significantly there any more unfortunately. 

As modder it is also a huge missed opportunity and big damage to have no backwards compatibility and A3 Rearmed ready for the Arma 3 release - it could have been easily possible, if it would have been part of the Arma 3 design and decision making process from the start. With the problems during the Arma 3 development it seems reasonable to me that they decided to focus on the core game itself and postponed that topic for later.

All in Arma is working better and better but there are still some major issues going on. Could you please explain some of them for the readers?

Essentially there are four major limitations for the development of AiA: 

 1) BI does not allow re-distribution of A2/OA files. In other words it is not possible to edit/modify the official files - I am limited to modifications by additional addons and some complicated workarounds with dummy addons and ensuring a specific modfolder loading order. 

 2) Lack of documentation. While BI did provide some decent docu this time already during the alpha phase, they are still missing out on various other topics that make it hard to configure units to make use of new Arma 3 features - like reflectors for vehicles. 

3) Engine issues. Using the A2/OA content within the Arma 3 engine obviously may not work always fully or not at all. For various issues I found workarounds, yet some only BI programmers can sort out - like the missing engine sounds of cars and tanks, or the broken simulation for non PhysX tanks (almost weightless). Here we can only express towards BI that the community sees these issues as important to be fixed as soon as feasible. 

4) Some things require models to be changed. So far this has not been possible. However recently Marek, CEO of BI, has announced that they plan to release all the source models for A2/OA - this is great news! I hope they do release also the OA DLC and TKOH and its DLC's source models, as well as to see this happen as soon as possible. Even with those available some new Arma 3 feature will get supported quickly and some issues sorted, overall it is a massive task that has to rely on as many community members to join the effort and will take a lot of effort. 

You can read more about these topics here: 

Arma 3 News - Marek Spanel (CEO)

BI Forums - A solution to the A2 BI content in A3 and your thoughts

Do you feel like BI has another policy about the backward-compatibility with Arma3 than they had before?

Apparently they do and they had a change of plans according to Marek's words in the recent blog post. Still it is to be seen if and how much focus they put on resolving the engine issues at hand.

Whats going on in the lab? Can we have some intel about the upcoming AiA versions?

I am having talks with BI to determine their stance and plans to sort out the engine issues. This and the wait on the source model release are the main deciding factors if and how much I can progress with AiA.

Thxx again .kju for your oustanding work and keeping us informed by answering my questions.




So my dear reader, now its up to us to let the Bohemia-devs know that we want AiA/Arma3 Rearmed to be here as soon as possible. Its not a big effort to sign in at the Arma 3 Feedbacktracker (you need to be logged in to vote!) and push a button.

Your voice can help a lot!

I made a heroic downtempo track (yes, i like to make music too) and added some nice AllinArma-Screenshots in a utube vid for you guys to share, so you can spread the word and tell your friends to vote.

Support your Community!

Issue 4 - Esbekistan

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Island/Map: Esbekistan
Game: Arma2 + Arma3
Maker: GreenBeret40
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The first 20 minutes of exploring the super-sized terrain of esbekistan (20x20km) with a humvee really made my eyes open wide and my heart sing. Some deeper kind of beauty and realness instantly caught my full attention. Its not like esbekistan is packed with exciting objects or colossal buildings, its a terrain that seamlessly flows together and suprises within believable little details and credible realworld structures. For example, i saw a little housing area on the map i had to clear (insurgency) and took the main road leading to the village, just to see when getting nearer that the buildings were hidden up between the rocky cliffs above me. To reach them you have to climb the hills and enter them through narrow paths from the top. A perfect spot for a hideout, good to defend and hard to reach, something a real afghan tribe would have build.

 

 A fully equipped combat training area including armored dummys and a shooting range is completing the whole package. For me, the incredible amount of detail i could see and feel on esbekistan is barely found on any other map.

If i compare the infantry combat on this island with takistan, i really feel a big difference. Where on takistan the most towns are surrounded by either flat land or high hills, the esbekistan landscape offers various graded plateaud areas, all kinds of larger and smaller hollows and tableland kind of compositions that never seem to stop between the "main areas". An undetected entering here is often possible in many ways and you dont need to play the old routine of spotting on the hill for the CAS, watching the action from far away. On some maps, you really can feel that youre walking through some space that has been filled with nothing but boring flatness and some trees. In esbekistan this is never the case. every openspace area really makes sense in the context of the environment. Still its mostly a feeling i try to describe, so you really have to see this island by yourself.

Interview:

GreenBeret40

1. Im really fascinated about your map and how well and beautifully everything on it is arranged and composed. Where did you get your inspiration from to make your map "Esbekistan?


Well, Esbekistan its a real place near the border of Paquistan and Agfhanistan. I try to collect all the information that for these place (fotos, videos,testimonials).



2. After looking at some of the screenshots one would predict something like "another afghan/taki-looking map" but there is a lot of custom stuff added and hidden in the details.
Please tell us about the creation process and the 3rd party stuff you added to your island!

The process its very simple once you start working the map focus on specific areas and no move to the next area until completely finish try to work in details from this specific zone. I like to work on hidden details that the only way to find them is when a player goes on a simple patrol with your platoon or when you fly in a helicopter.


3. Which map of all the other arma custom made maps do you like the most and why?

Aliabad region and Kazar-Kot Valley i like it because this maps has the things that I described above.


4. The map runs pretty smooth for such an huge environment. Do you have any tips and tricks in terms of performance for the rookie map-makers?

My recomendation from big maps its try not load with a lot of objects the map and working from the sat map file to have similar view on the ground that when you fly the efect its very realistic.


5. Arma3 is comming and the community is producing a lot of content. I havent seen any real islands yet, is it already possible to make Arma3 Islands? Will they be done the same way Arma2 did it? 

Well for me the real problem has two ways:

a) We need the new tools from Bohemia, they are not released yet. Its posible to make a new map from arma3 with the actual tools but its very very complicated. All mapmakers (and me of course) are waiting for the release of the new tools.

b) Now actually the new maps of Arma3 (Stratis ,Altis) have mediterranean style (the buildings ,enviorement ..). We need from the comunity new buildings of Afghan style or european style. I hope for the future to make addons for this type of terrains.


6.So once again: Esbekistan for me is a real masterpiece and i cant wait to see new maps! Are you currently working or planning to work on a new island for Arma3?

Now im working on three terrains ( Greenberet are you crazy ? jajajja ;) Naryn,Lythium and Fortisventu. Mainly the principal project its Lythium and Fortisventu. Lythium its based again Afghan style (waiting for new buliding obejcts ....) and Fortisventu, its a place where i live. These terrains are from the spanish mod of the spanish army for Arma3.


7. A question i like to ask randomly: Did you learn scripting/coding with arma, do you need it at all for map-making?

Well in the process of creating a map instead [of scripting/coding] its required to have a little knowledge for the config of the map.

     

Ingame map of Esbekistan and Esbekistan ShowcaseVideo

Links:
Clan: Unidad de Simulación Táctica 101 (España)
GreenBeret40 @ YouTube