CMSF Marines review up at IGN

[Guest Guest]

deleted per user request

[Battlefront.com]

Adam,

Well, I'll clear that right up for you: I think CMSF needs a lot of improvement but I also see the promise of something good there, if level heads eventually prevail.

Part of the problem is, and has always been, to define "level heads". Are "level heads" the guys who insist that we disable RealTime and make the game only WeGo? Are they the guys that want us to return to highly abstract sub systems? To me those are regressive thinkers whose ideas are simply not compatible with our vision for the game. Likewise, people who have taken one issue and blown it out of proportion to its relative importance are also not "level heads" in our opinion. Especially when it's explained to them technical hurdles that are beyond our capability (or beyond any developer's capability, in some cases).

However, there are "level headed" people making tons of suggestions here. Dozens of them have been incorporated into the game already. Others are slated for future releases. The big one being a completely overhauled QB system.

The comment that graphics aren't the enemy, "goofy game systems are" was not meant as a slight, but a defense against your charge that wargamers view graphics as the enemy. No, in fact I like good graphics and sound, and most wargamers do as well. I'm sorry it came off as a slight, I wasn't taking care with my wording. Honestly, sorry about that.

I'm sorry that I jumped to the wrong conclusion. Your comments come on the heals of the FoW trench/foxhole thread where you seemed to be advancing the idea that the graphics were indeed the problem.

Is there a chance that critical feedback will help? I don't know anymore.

It all depends on your expectations. Critical feedback which isn't well grounded isn't very useful to us and must be ignored. Critical feedback which is insightful and not unbalanced is extremely useful. Check out the fix lists since we released the game and tell me how many of the changes on there were not discussed on this Forum at least a little bit. As I've said to my critics over the past 10 years, if I wasn't interested in what you guys had to say I wouldn't bother wasting my time reading what you write.

Do I play CMSF? No, I test things with it. I don't think it's playable as is for my tastes.

Then I suggest that you want a different game than we have to offer. Either that, and based on the way you argue I think entirely possible, that you view rather marginal features as being far more important than they are to us. Again, this indicates that you are not likely to ever find the game "playable".

It's not a love-hate back and forth. It's called "A balanced perspective", something you constantly clamour about wishing wargamers had more of, but it's funny how someone that can see the good in the game gets this emotional response from you every time they bring up a critical point.

Emotional? Every time? And yet you say you have "a balanced perspective".

Really, I wonder if you want it at all. You really come across as only happy with people who have nothing bad to say about CMSF, whether that is rational or not. Good luck with that.

Frankly, that's a load of crap. I'm happy to talk about the deficiencies in any product I've made, going way back to CMBO before there even was a Beta Demo. It's how the games we make get better.

Again, I challenge you Adam... look through the fix list and tell me that we don't listen to customer complaints and suggestions. Or do you think that everything on this list came out of my own head without any help from the customers? See next post...

Steve

[Battlefront.com]

CMSF Marines v1.10 FEATURES

INTERFACE

* Movement Destination Highlights: When placing a waypoint over ground terrain, the destination "action spot" is highlighted in yellow. Teams B and C (if any) also have their adjacent destinations highlighted when plotting moves and when giving facing orders attached to a final waypoint. Note that final facing is important for positioning "wing man" teams, so you should attach facing orders to final waypoints as needed.

* New Color for KIA: The colored "highlight disc" for dead soldiers is brown, to distinguish them from seriously wounded soldiers whose disc remains red. "Buddy aid" can still be given to dead soldiers, but all it does is reclaim their ammo and weapons if possible. "Aid" to dead soldiers is pretty quick.

* Target Arc and Facing orders may be given with mouse clicks that go "off map".

* When placing a target arc, the distance in meters is displayed.

* Disembarking troops may attach Face, Deploy, and Pop Smoke orders to waypoints.

* "Target" command is available in the editor to check LOS (no targeting orders are saved).

ARTILLERY AND AIR SUPPORT

* New sound effects for incoming rounds, jets, helicopters, cannon fire, bombs, spotters, controllers.

* Computer player uses artillery and air support dynamically throughout the game, not just pre-planned strikes.

* Smoke artillery missions (and computer-player AI Support Plans may use it)

* Aircraft no longer drop unguided ("dumb") bombs to reflect recent/current loadout standards for tactical combat air support. All bombs are laser- or GPS-guided.

* F-15, F-16, and FA-18 no longer expend cannon rounds on ground targets. Pilots have informed us that in a high-threat environment it would be rare for cannon to be used against ground targets.

* Respond faster to "cease fire" orders.

* Missions cannot be "adjusted" while they are still being "received".

* "Emergency" missions are not available for pre-planned artillery strikes because they are not necessary.

* Hydra-70 rockets are slightly more accurate.

INFANTRY MOVEMENT

* Fire on the Move: Moving soldiers will sometimes stop and take a quick shot at nearby/exposed enemy troops, then resume moving.

- Soldiers are more likely to stop and shoot at enemies in front of them, less to the sides and rear.

- Accuracy is modestly reduced.

- Pause to fire most often: SLOW and MOVE (and HUNT stops the whole unit to engage).

- Pause to fire least often: FAST, and the moving soldiers in ASSAULT.

- If moving FAST or ASSAULT the soldier will not stop to reload. He will keep on moving.

* Moving Under Fire: Moving troops that come under heavy fire will only switch to Slow (i.e. crawling) if they are so tired that they could otherwise only use walking speed (i.e. not even Quick). Otherwise they try to move faster. And sometimes they cancel their move altogether and seek nearby cover.

* Moving infantry does a better job of spotting enemies.

* Soldiers do a better job finding ridgeline positions even when "heavy" cover like trees is also present.

* Soldiers position themselves better at corners of buildings and walls.

* Soldiers move faster with Fast move, even when carrying heavy loads.

* When soldiers using HUNT get too tired, they stop and pause for 90 seconds instead of changing to MOVE.

* Soldiers move along trench lines better.

* Sound effects for footsteps.

* Squads and teams are a little less likely to "stay pinned" if they have a very short move ordered to better cover than they are in.

* Soldiers who move Slow (i.e. crawl) will tend to keep their heads down for a little while after reaching the destination even if there is no incoming fire and no enemies are spotted.

* Soldiers won't move out of good protection into poor protection just to gain a line of fire.

* Faster dismount movement.

* Individuals soldiers will act upon facing orders at the new waypoint without waiting for their teammates to arrive first.

* Waypoints to vehicles are drawn with a slight elevation to make it clear that it's an "embark".

VEHICLES

* New vehicles:

- M1A1SA TUSK Abrams tank

- M1A2 SEP TUSK Abrams tank

- M2A3 IFV Bradley with explosive reactive armor (ERA)

- M3A3 CFV Bradley with explosive reactive armor (ERA)

- M7A3 BFIST Bradley with explosive reactive armor (ERA)

- M1114 HMMV armed with Mk.19 grenade launcher

* Improved damage algorithms for external systems on armored vehicles (e.g. optics, smoke generators, lasers, missile launchers).

* Secondary explosions for burning vehicles as ammunition "cooks off".

* Dust and smoke from heavy rounds impacting on a vehicle will not hide that vehicle from its attackers.

* Improved vehicle navigation in narrow urban spaces.

* Hiding vehicles that are struck by a projectile, or that spot an enemy vehicle targeting them will automatically un-hide.

* Humvees upgraded with "Frag-5" armor, carry more ammo, and all have radios.

* Vehicle-mounted automatic weapons tend to fire slightly longer bursts, especially at other vehicles. Exception: the BMP-2 cannon can't fire long bursts without needing aim adjustments.

* Tank gunners are quicker at adjusting turret rotation to counterbalance if the hull starts rotating.

* ATGM-armed vehicles will fire missiles at ground area targets if ordered to do so.

* Light vehicles (like Humvees) start the game "opened up" by default.

* VIED detonation AI improved so it does a better job destroying enemy AFVs.

* Big knock-out hits are more likely to cause vehicles to burn and sometimes blast out a crater beneath the vehicle.

GRAPHICS

* Big explosions near the camera "flash" the viewscreen briefly.

* Improved airburst graphics.

* Improved highway graphics.

* Collapsed buildings kick up more dust.

* Frame rate improvement for maps with large numbers of roads, highways, grass, brush, or small rocks.

MISCELLANEOUS

* Internet Play: improved speed and reliability.

* "Elite" mode changed so that friendly troops are always displayed, even when not spotted by the current unit. A new mode called "Iron" behaves like the old Elite mode.

* Explosions: the simulation of blast and shrapnel effects has been improved. The main thing you'll likely notice is that huge weapons like airplane bombs are a bit less able to cause casualties at long range.

* Bunkers

- Handled better by computer player

- Protect correctly versus artillery fire

- Correctly simulate top hits from Javelins

* Soldiers' carrying capacity reduced to a more realistic weight limit.

* Spotting info is "passed along" to friendly units that are immediately adjacent (roughly within 25m or so) much like it already works with passing it along the chain of command.

* Soldiers in sniper and javelin and forward observer teams (and similar) are less likely to use their weapons aggressively except in self-defense (not including the "main weapon" soldier, e.g. the sniper or javelin gunner).

* Improved selection and organization of soldiers when splitting into teams, and also when later rejoining.

* Improved damage model for trees.

* Machineguns may "deploy" inside buildings, though assembly time is 2+ minutes.

* Seriously-wounded (red disc) soldiers who have not received "buddy aid" (i.e. disappeared) by the end of the game have a 25% chance of becoming KIA in the final tally.

* M4 rifles observe the built-in burst limit of 3 rounds.

* Smarter AI for switching weapons (if a soldier has two) for area fire.

* If a soldier becomes a casualty while in the act of throwing a grenade, the grenade will fall to the side (not too far away) and explode, generally with bad consequences for friendly troops.

* Syrian 30mm ammo used by BMP series vehicles is HE-incendiary.

* Aim time for Javelin is longer (roughly 20 seconds depending on the soldier).

* Guided missiles use flatter flight paths.

* On Veteran and Elite levels, you will not hear voices of unspotted enemies.

* Sound effects for weapon reloading.

* New background sounds for day and night.

* RPG-29 rate of fire reduced.

* Added a "special equipment icon" for night vision gear.

* Display is slightly brighter during overcast night conditions (no change to simulation).

BUG FIXES

* Splitting squads into teams works properly in PBEM.

* Blast moves won't blast an already-destroyed wall, and Blast moves through walls that are "fused" to buildings work properly.

* Spies and other "stealthy" enemies (who are not yet discovered) never appear as generic "?" spot contacts.

* Grenades will never explode by hitting the building from which they were thrown.

* Corrected a problem that sometimes caused Teams to ignore waypoints and move back to an old location to which they had previously Assault-moved.

* Fixed a bug that caused skirt and slat armor to be too powerful against HEAT rounds.

* Trenches don't give so much cover to high-angle incoming shots.

* ATGMs whose gunners are unable to guide the missile (e.g. because they were killed) lose guidance.

* Casualty icons do not appear for unspotted enemies in turn-based games.

* Fixed a "floating ceiling" graphical bug in buildings with their top floors destroyed.

* Fixed a "nuclear explosion" bug.

* Corrected a problem that showed mission briefing text improperly inside the editor.

* Formations with very long names fit better into the game interface.

* Corrected a pathfinding bug with waypoints placed too close to marshes.

* Fixed some issues with fire-support vehicles not reducing artillery delay times.

CMSF v1.08 PATCH FEATURES

COMBAT

* Improved calculations for small-arms penetration of buildings,including "shatter gap" for high-speed bullets.

* Stryker MGS is more willing to fire main gun (even though it doesn't carry a lot of ammo).

* Area fire at buildings has fewer "stray" shots.

* Troops will automatically cancel area target after they blow a sizeable hole in a wall.

* Small tweaks to bomb crater size (slightly decreased) and effects vs. buildings (slightly increased).

* Area fire at a wall area targets the wall itself more than the surroundings.

* Balconies and roofs offer slightly increased protection.

* Suppressed troops show more self-preservation behavior, especially in buildings.

* Troops react faster to the cancellation of area fire targets.

* Flavor objects disappear if a very large explosion occurs nearby.

* Soldiers with low experience and/or low motivation are more likely to rout away. Rout symbols (the ! mark) also last longer.

* Corrected a rare problem that allowed projectiles to hit a vehicle and explode, but continue traveling forward.

* VIEDs cannot explode a second time if hit by additional fire.

* The explosive power used by a Blast Move is increased (so enemies are more likely to take hits).

* Corrected a problem where aiming a weapon at a vehicle at very short range could cause the shooter's weapon to "wave around" for a few moments before firing.

* Soft-skinned vehicles are a little sturdier versus small-arms fire.

MOVEMENT

* When reaching a final waypoint, Team B of a squad will usually position itself to the side or rear of Team A.

* In internet play, the client player can mount troops during the setup phase and it works properly.

* Fixed a T-72 "stuck in wall" bug.

* A Hide command attached to a Hunt move works properly.

* Corrected some issues with troops inside buildings moving around too much.

* Fixed a problem where infantry sometimes wouldn't go into a building through a breached wall.

* If you give a team/squad embark orders toward a vehicle in a different setup zone, it will work correctly.

* Fixed an embarking problem where some soldiers in the team wouldn't get on board the vehicle.

* Corrected a pathing problem around high walls with a 45-degree bend.

GRAPHICS

* Compatible with Matrox TripleHead2Go, enabling the simultaneous use of three monitors providing wide-screen 3840 x 1024 resolution even if the computer only supports a single display output.

* Battle maps with many walls have increased frame rate.

* Alt-K hotkey to show/hide smoke graphics.

* Walls are visually destroyed correctly in playback.

* Tab-locking the camera to a unit does a better job angling the camera to make sure the unit begins in view.

* Enemy casualties will not cause the building they are in to become translucent.

* Terrain objective labels don't dim when "?" icons are on the screen.

* Stryker driver hatch model does not open too far.

* T-72 main gun model does not skew horizontally.

* Casualties on board a vehicle are not displayed poking through the vehicle's sides.

* Flames are correctly placed on post-explosion vehicle IEDs.

* Raised the minimum animation threshold for soldiers so there are no more "scarecrows" even if if the scenario is very large.

* Corrected a bug where a missile icon would appear in a vehicle's special equipment list for a moment before being fired.

ARTILLERY AND AIR SUPPORT

* Aerial rockets are used less frequently versus building targets.

* Artillery and air strikes targeting a building that collapses will cancel automatically.

* The small red/yellow/green icon shown on each unit in the Support Roster window that shows the quality of the connection to the spotting unit, displays properly.

* The provisional delivery time initially displayed for an artillery mission while you are in the process of creating it, is now based on a standard mission, not an emergency one.

TERRAIN OBJECTIVES

* On the end-game screen, the status of a terrain objective worth zero points is displayed (previously it was skipped).

* The presence of "stealthy" troops does not block the enemy from receiving points for terrain objectives.

SPOTTING & LINE OF SIGHT (LOS)

* LOS through two or more floors within the same building is blocked.

* It is slightly easier to see over low walls from a kneeling position.

* Trees block LOS more, especially tree types A and E.

* Corrected a problem where some evening overcast situations would be treated as "too dark" for spotting.

* More dust is kicked up when a wall is breached.

TAC AI

* TacAI regards .50cal MG as a greater threat to light armor like the BMP than previously.

* TacAI slightly increases affinity for using HEAT and thermobaric rounds versus infantry in buildings, and slightly decreases affinity for using HEAT versus infantry not in buildings.

VEHICLE DEFENSIVE AI

* Vehicles will not retreat in response to threats they have been ordered to fire upon, or whom they are spotting for artillery or air strikes.

* Reacts to grenade attacks.

* Less likely to pop additional smoke if there is already smoke in the direction the vehicle wants.

* Will not engage when the vehicle is embarking/disembarking passengers, nor will it be triggered by nonpenetrating hits received when the vehicle is moving.

* Retreat distances are slightly shorter.

DATA

* BTR-60 has improved turn radius.

* BMP-2 30mm cannon holds 500 rounds.

* M1127 RV Stryker, M1131 FSV Stryker, M7A3 BFIST Bradley, and M707 Humvee have a laser designator that improves efficiency for on-board artillery/air-strike spotting teams.

* PG-7V rocket diameter is corrected to 85mm.

* PG-7VR explosive content is reduced.

ATI COMPATIBILITY MODE

* Fixed a problem where you could "find" hidden enemies by pointing the mouse at them.

* Improved mouse-cursor precision near vehicles.

* Clicks on waypoints inside buildings register better.

MISC

* Internet games require less data transfer which should correct various problems with large scenarios (this also shrinks PBEM files).

* PBEM files are checked in advance for data integrity and the user is warned if the file appears damaged (this only works with PBEM files created with v1.08 or later).

* Quick Battle computer-player does a better job setting up its units, especially putting them into buildings.

* Fixed a few crash bugs.

* "Adequate" supply level is sufficient to give a vehicle a full ammo load for its own weapons.

* Fixed a "falling off the roof/balcony" bug.

* A saved quick-battle shows correct information on the load-game screen.

* Adjusted dawn and dusk start times for quick battles.

* Corrected a bug where a soldier might start playback holding the wrong weapon if he switched weapons during the action.

* Scream sounds from casualties are quieter at a distance.

* Fixed some pathfinding problems that resulted from scenarios with walls "covering" building doors.

* When a crew re-mounts a vehicle, their target orders are cleared, including orders to pop smoke.

* Fixed the unlimited vehicle smoke bug in turn-based games.

* Troops don't say "enemy spotted" when spotting destroyed enemies.

* Camera tab-lock (padlock) on an enemy unit is now lost when the unit is no longer spotted.

PREVIOUS PATCH NOTES

CMSF v1.07 PATCH FEATURES

PATHFINDING / NAVIGATION

* Corrected some pathfinding problems that caused units to "go the long way around", especially in areas with tall walls.

* Corrected some "stuck soldier" issues.

* Corrected some issues related to Assault moves, both during and afterward.

* Improved vehicle navigation in dense urban areas (note that vehicles may not enter extremely narrow alleyways between buildings).

* Blown-out ground-floor walls set in the scenario editor are correctly navigable in game.

TURN-BASED REPLAY

* Fixed a crash bug.

* Soldiers and vehicles move/animate more smoothly.

* Soldiers are shown carrying the correct weapon after switching weapons.

* Team ammo displays correctly.

* Smoke columns/clouds are shown immediately upon loading a saved game, and correctly retain their shapes from one turn to the next.

COMBAT

* Fixed a bug where it was more accurate to area-fire in front of a building than to shoot directly at its occupants.

* Squads/Teams are additionally suppressed when suffering casualties (on top of the morale hit).

* ATGMs are more likely to fire on tanks even when they are unlikely to cause damage.

* Troops are more likely to fire on targets inside a Target Arc even when unlikely to cause damage.

* RPG-29 is more willing to do "area fire".

* TOW missile failure rate is reduced.

* Tanks hit by depleted-uranium APFSDS (such as from Abrams tanks) explode slightly less often.

* Trees receive more damage from direct-hit explosions.

QUICK BATTLES

* 32 new Quick Battle maps added for a greater variety of combat settings.

* In Quick Battles played by email, units are initially placed in setup zones correctly.

COMPUTER PLAYER

* Corrected a problem in the campaign game where computer units were not placed in ideal positions in the setup phase.

* After computer-player units move, they are smarter about choosing the direction they face.

* Computer-player vehicle crews whose vehicles have been knocked out are less aggressive in moving on the attack.

FIRE SUPPORT

* Shortened delivery times for Syrian rocket artillery.

* The estimated delivery time in the Fire Support Mission Request display initially shows the best possible time (usually what you'd get with an "emergency" mission). If a mission type other than "emergency" is selected, the estimated delivery usually increases to reflect the time needed to fire and adjust spotting rounds.

* Corrected a case where fire support targeted directly at an enemy unit would not initially show a colored targeting line.

MISCELLANEOUS

* Dynamically changing light conditions at dawn and sunset are displayed correctly in all weather types.

* The floating icon for friendly Humvees and UAZ-469s shows the silhouette of the infantry team driving them rather than a vehicle silhouette (so you don't lose track of, say, a Forward Observer team).

* Corrected a problem where an HQ unit would sometimes not be in voice or visual command of its nearby superior HQ.

* Corrected a problem where occasionally one could spot men in/on a vehicle but not the vehicle itself.

* Objective labels are moved higher up when around a cluster of buildings so they're easier to see.

* Vehicle-borne IEDs do not use AI self-protective behavior.

* In setup phase, you cannot embark a unit from one setup zone onto a vehicle in a different setup zone.

* In the editor, the AI Group number displayed in 3D mode shows the correct value.

* Corrected various issues related to squad behavior when one or more of its component teams was wiped out.

CMSF v1.06 FEATURES

LINE OF SIGHT (LOS) & SPOTTING

ï Enhanced LOS system takes into account the dynamically changing

heights of soldiers in different stances, and vehicles of varying

heights and the height of their crew positions and attached weapons.

ï When a squad/team of soldiers is placing a target command, the line

to the target is light blue if the LOS is clear, part dark blue and

part magenta if it's blocked, and gray if it's mostly clear but not

for every soldier in the squad/team.

ï Trees block LOS more strongly.

ï Moving vehicles are easier to spot than previously, especially when

kicking up large dust clouds.

ï Moving units are less likely to move quickly past an enemy and not

notice him.

ï It's no longer as easy to spot enemy soldiers just because they are

standing up (all else being equal).

ï Not all the soldiers in an enemy squad/team will necessarily be

spotted when some are spotted, even when there is a clear LOS.

ï Spotting in extreme-dark moonless night conditions is handled

correctly.

INTERFACE

ï Command Menu: select a unit and press the SPACE BAR and a popup

menu of available commands appears. It's similar to the old CM1

command interface. The menu can be dismissed with another press of

the space bar or a mouse click anywhere outside the menu.

ï Artillery and air support missions may be targeted without LOS in

the setup phase.

ï Heavy team weapons display their minimum and maximum ranges in the

panel with the name, caliber, etc.

ï When an enemy unit is selected, the icons of friendly units that do

not currently spot that enemy are darkened. This way it's easy to tell

which of your units spots a given enemy.

ï Autocannon on the Bradley and BMP-2 are used in "Target Light"

commands. This is useful if you want to be certain the vehicle will

not use missiles.

ï You can give a Hide command to a moving unit without first having

to click its final waypoint (the hiding begins when the unit reaches

the final waypoint).

ï RPG rockets with high-explosive warheads have a new "equipment

icon" to differentiate them from the anti-tank types.

ï "?" Spot Contact Markers are shown above buildings, not inside them.

ï Control-click to "jump" the camera also works in Air/Artillery

Support mode.

ï Vehicle ammo counts update properly in turn-based playback.

ï When placing waypoints for a vehicle and you point the mouse too

close to another vehicle, the correct "prohibited" cursor is displayed.

ï Artillery/air spotters do not show target lines for completed

missions.

ï Group select works correctly when floating icons are switched off.

GRAPHICS

ï Roofs and upper floors of occupied buildings are transparent.

ï Buildings become transparent when occupied by spotted enemy

soldiers too.

ï Soldier and vehicle movement animation in turn-based playback is

smoother.

ï Moon and stars are hidden on nights with thick haze.

ï Stryker IR-blocking smoke is colored brown (it was this way in the

game originally).

ï The 40mm grenade launcher shows a tiny puff of smoke when firing.

ï RPG rocket fins don't visually protrude through the launch tube.

ï Dead soldiers don't float above craters blown out below them.

VEHICLE BEHAVIOR

ï Vehicles have new defensive AI that automatically pops smoke,

rotates to face threats, and retreats away from threats.

ï "Direct & Exact" vehicle pathfinding when no obstacles are nearby.

ï Vehicle movement paths that involve switching to or from reverse

movement are smoother .

ï TacAI estimates armor penetration probabilities better, improving

its selection of ammunition type.

ï Vehicle gunners who are also the loaders, are smarter about when to

break off a long reloading action (e.g. reloading a missile tube) to

take a shot at an enemy unit if another loaded weapon is available

(like on the BRDM-2 ATGM vehicle).

ï Tanks are more willing to use main guns versus infantry, especially

when given target orders by the player, and also at walls (not just

use their MGs).

ï The "crew" of vehicles that do not have dedicated crews can acquire

any onboard ammunition intended for passengers.

ï Vehicles are more likely to fire on the move.

SOLDIER BEHAVIOR

ï Marksmen/snipers have significantly improved accuracy but much

lower ROF (except at very close range where they behave more like

standard riflemen). They also engage at longer ranges.

ï Hiding soldiers are more likely to open fire at appropriately

serious targets on their own.

ï Soldiers are quicker to follow facing orders, if any, at their

final waypoint.

ï Soldiers are better at shifting positions (very short distances

only) to get a clear LOF to a target, or to make better use of cover

after a Facing command.

ï Soldiers attempt to hug ridgelines for cover.

ï Soldiers do a better job positioning themselves behind trees for

cover.

ï Squad/Team members are less likely to become or remain separated

after movement.

ï A unit that is moving, and has no explicit combat orders, and has a

"hide" order at its destination, is less likely to open fire at

intermediate waypoints.

ï When splitting off an antitank team from a squad, the antitank

specialist is more likely to join it, even if he's not currently armed

with an antitank weapon.

ï Marksman specialists are less likely to join assault or antitank

teams.

ï In a squad, teams B and C will not "spread out" into buildings.

ï Soldiers are not reluctant to fire into trenches at short range.

ï Once a soldier goes prone for any reason, he's more likely to stay

prone for at least a little while even if no one is shooting at him.

ï Infantry "evade" does not attempt to move to locations that are

nearby but blocked by obstacles like high walls.

ï Soldiers acting as "medics" will stop and take cover if there is

significant incoming fire.

ï Soldiers won't exit vehicles onto unsuitable terrain.

SIMULATION

ï Small arms accuracy and volume of fire are slightly reduced at

medium and long ranges.

ï Slightly increased concealment for foxholes, craters, ditches,

trenches, trees.

ï Slightly increased cover/protection provided by buildings.

ï Effect radius of shrapnel from explosions is increased - you'll

notice this especially with grenades. Exception: shaped-charge

weapons (e.g. RPGs) have a reduced shrapnel effect radius.

ï IEDs time their explosions better so the target is closer and more

likely to be damaged.

ï Smoke deployed by Abrams tanks and Bradley IFVs deploys

"instantly" (like the Stryker smoke already does).

ï Explosions near, but not touching, buildings do slightly less

damage to the buildings.

ï Airburst artillery explodes correctly above buildings.

ï Improved calculations for the impact location and direction of

projectile ricochets off buildings.

DATA

ï Bradley, Abrams, and Stryker are less likely to explode when hit

internally.

ï T-72 TURMS has upgraded commander's optical/night-vision equipment.

ï BMP-1 and BMP-2 are better able to spot enemies.

ï AT-3 missile minimum range is 500m.

ï Syrian armored personnel carriers carry extra small arms ammunition

for their infantry squads.

ï Stryker armor reduced - the main difference you'll notice is that

30mm rounds from the BMP-2 will usually penetrate.

MISC FEATURES

ï Hold down the 'V' key at game startup and the intro video will no longer

play when the game loads. This setting will be saved in the preferences

file. On subsequent startups you can press 'V' again to bring the video back.

ï The "display size.txt" file in the CMSF directory now uses a third

number to state the desired monitor refresh rate. Optionally use this

file if you wish to manually select a resolution and refresh rate for

CMSF. Exercise caution and only use a resolution and refresh rate

supported by your monitor as damage to your monitor or display

adapater could occur, especially if you use too high a

setting. The format for this file is Horizontal Resolution (in

pixels), Vertical Resolution (in pixels) and Refresh Rate (in Hertz).

(For example, if you wanted to run the game in 1440x900 @ 75Hz, your

"display size.txt" file would look like this: 1440 900 75)

Use all 0's to allow the game to use the current desktop resolution and

refresh rate. (example: 0 0 0)

MISC BUG FIXES

ï Fixed several "stuck" squad and soldier issues.

ï Fixed the "heavy weapon left behind" bug.

ï Corrected a camera TAB-lock directional problem in playback mode.

ï Corrected a problem that caused some flavor objects to disappear in

saved games.

ï Quick Battle troops are correctly placed in their setup zones.

ï Computer player does a better job setting up vehicles so they're

not in unsuitable terrain.

ï Fixed a bug that allowed shots to be fired at targets that had

disappeared from view a moment earlier.

ï Corrected some problems caused by balconies being placed directly

over separate buildings.

ï Corrected some pathfinding and LOS problems related to "internal"

doors and "open" walls between connected buildings.

ï No message is displayed when an objective is "touched" by enemy

forces.

ï IEDs may not use the target command if all friendly soldiers are

casualties.

ï Corrected a bug where an MG crewman could "fall off the roof" when

the MG changes position or facing.

ï Fixed a bug that allowed two vehicles to have the same movement

destination and "merge together" upon arrival.

v1.05 EXTRAS

* Two new Mod Tools (RezExplode and RezPack) along with a 'how-to' doc file included in the Mod Tools directory. These files allow modification to various game sound and graphics files located in the data .brz files.

* Two new Scenarios (Following the Euphrates and Guarding the Far Flank). Note: Scenario text has been localized for German and English languages. All other language versions of the game will display these scenarios in English.

* Eight all new Quick Battle Maps plus Seven updated and improved original Quick Battle Maps.

* Added all of the Quick Battle Maps for Spanish language version.

v1.05 NEW FEATURES:

* Flashes of light appear on objects near gunfire, explosions, rocket/missile flame, and burning vehicles at night and in low-light conditions.

* When placing a Target order, the LOS line turns yellow if it's generally clear, but not perfectly so. This means either *some* soldiers in the spotting unit may not have a clear LOS or *some* of the target zone may not be visible.

* If you point the cursor at a weapon in the "soldier display" user interface panel, the name of the weapon is displayed and that soldier is subtly highlighted in the main 3D display.

* A radio "squawk" sound plays when reinforcements arrive, when a "Touch" objective is touched, and when internet/LAN chat messages arrive.

* Artillery and air support targeting lines "highlight" to match the currently selected support unit in the "roster" view, so you can see who is shooting where.

* Added a hotkey to toggle camera shake on/off.

v1.05 IMPROVEMENTS:

* Soldiers do a better job moving to the "near" side of an exterior building corner not "beyond" it.

* Soldiers do a better job recovering important weapons and equipment from fallen comrades.

* Soldiers do a better job regrouping when separated from team members.

* Soldiers will make minor position adjustments to gain clear line of fire when possible.

* Soldiers using Hunt movement react quicker to incoming fire.

* Improved ammo selection logic versus armored targets whose armor has a mix of strong and weak points.

* During the process of placing waypoints, if you choose the Face command the last waypoint will automatically be highlighted so the Face command will apply to that last waypoint, not the current position. You are still able to manually select a waypoint and issue a Face order from there.

* Heavy weapons may now Deploy their weapons on rooftops.

* Marksmen, SAW and MG gunners open fire at longer ranges.

* M4A1 and AK-74 series small arms have effective range increased to 500m (from 400m). M4A1 rifle with scope effective range increased to 750m (from 600m).

* Troops try not to fire more than one guided missile at a time against a single enemy vehicle.

* Crew and passenger survivability increased when vehicles are knocked out, especially for Strykers, Bradleys, and M1 Abrams.

* Effectiveness of slat armor versus RPGs is increased.

* When acquiring (passenger) antitank weapons from a vehicle, infantry units use better logic to give "important" antitank weapons (e.g. Javelin) to the antitank specialist, even if it means he must swap other antitank weapons that are less important (e.g. M136/AT4) with other soldiers.

* Conscript and green troops have less discipline to conserve ammunition.

* It's slightly easier to spot soldiers who are firing their weapons than before.

* Buildings are harder to demolish by explosions.

* Accuracy of M229 Hydra-70 air-to-ground rockets (carried by US helicopters) is improved.

* Squads and Teams with orders to embark-move to a vehicle that has movement orders normally move to the spot where the vehicle has also been ordered to move, in order to meet up at the destination. However, if the vehicle is currently under "pause" orders, the squad/team will move directly to the vehicle's current location.

* Gunners on vehicles with autoloaders (M1128 Stryker MGS and T-72 tank) are less likely to switch over to using the MG immediately after firing the main gun.

* "Unit Lock" camera angles are improved, and track a vehicle's turret more than its hull facing.

* When a targeted unit disappears from line of sight, the targeting order is canceled (there is no longer a target line to the vanished unit's actual location)

* For nearby trees, the Alt-T tree hiding option does not hide the tree entirely; it just hides the leaves.

* When plotting artillery and air strikes, an invalid map click (e.g. out of LOS) is simply ignored rather than bouncing you out of the input sequence.

* You can embark troops on a vehicle by clicking the vehicle's icon (as well as the vehicle itself).

* Control-clicks on buildings move the camera position just like control-clicks on terrain (this feature is switched off inside the editor).

v1.05 BUG FIXES:

* Line of sight to buildings and rooftops works correctly now.

* Corrected a bug that allowed LOS/LOF to pass through the tops of tall walls.

* Corrected a problem that sometimes allowed spotting of vehicles through buildings.

* Corrected a "stuck soldier" animation issue (e.g. a soldier who could not move out of a trench).

* Corrected issues where individual soldiers would incorrectly move away from their teams.

* Improved stability for Internet/LAN games.

* Corrected a problem where some members of a vehicle team would take an unrealistically long time to bail out.

* When firing antitank rockets and missiles, soldiers who are not antitank specialists receive an accuracy or guidance penalty (exception: "secondary" launchers like the M136/AT4 and the RPG-18 can be fired by anyone without penalty).

* Corrected a problem where certain external doors to buildings would never be used.

* Soldiers make proper use of "interior" doors and open spaces between building units instead of moving the long way around.

* "Group box selecting" works better in Elite mode.

* Grenades explode correctly on building roofs.

* Vehicles are not shielded by hiding behind knocked-out armored vehicles.

* Smoke from a burning vehicle does not block mouse clicks to place waypoints.

* Fixed a bug that caused battles in Elite mode, on maps with lots of trees, to run very slowly.

* Corrected a problem in Elite mode where one could spot friendly soldiers but not the vehicle they are riding in, causing the look of "levitating troops".

* Vehicles with badly shot-up engines and/or running gear (but not quite immobilized) can still move (at a very slow pace) up hill or in rough terrain.

* Corrected a slight aiming problem versus buildings as area fire targets.

* Victory points are awarded for an "Occupy" objective only if the objective is totally cleared of enemy troops and friendly troops remain inside the objective at the end of the game.

* Corrected some problems with awarding points for Destroy, Preserve, and Touch Terrain Objectives.

* Fixed a crash problem that affected artillery in internet/LAN games.

* In turn-based mode replay, the 3D icon for vehicles does not prematurely show an infantry symbol if the vehicle is destroyed in that turn.

* Fixed a bug where in turn-based playback, sometimes a vehicle passenger's position would "lag" slightly behind the moving vehicle.

* Fixed various problems with 3D objects not reverting to their original states when replaying a turn-based turn's resolution.

* Soldiers animate correctly when prone and turning to the left; when exiting down a vehicle ramp; and at the start of the play-by-email replay phase.

* Corrected a problem where some squads suddenly lost Command & Control for no good reason.

* Weapons acquired from a vehicle are correctly loaded (e.g. M136AT4 launcher stored on Bradley).

* Fire and smoke from a burning vehicle appear in the correct location.

* In two-player games, player #2's initial camera view is placed correctly according to the scenario design.

* Fixed a problem with the choice of "mixed branch" in Quick Battles.

* Javelin flight path improved for short-range shots.

* Corrected an issue with the muzzle flash on the M1114-M240 vehicle.

* T-72M1V tank commander buttons up to use the remote-controlled 14.5mm MG.

* Haze graphics smoothly fade as the camera view moves up to higher elevations, allowing for better player control at long distances. It also corrects an issue where high camera elevations could not see map terrain at all under haze conditions.

* Fixed an issue that was causing the in-game FSAA option not to activate FSAA if the video card's control panel was set to "application controlled".

* Intro video plays on certain video cards where it was previously not visible.

--v1.04 Patch Features--

* CM:SF is more multi-processor/multi-core friendly. Workarounds like "setting affinity" to single-processor should not be needed any longer, although your system may be different.

* Improved frame rate, especially on large maps.

* Improved vehicle pathfinding.

* Various "stuck units" problems fixed.

* Corrected a problem with shots coming through ridgelines.

* Soldiers are much quicker to take up fighting stances and/or open fire when reaching a movement destination.

* When ordered to stop moving, soldiers halt immediately rather than look for best positions. This helps them avoid unnecessary casualties.

* Vehicles correctly respond to non-Movement Commands assigned to Waypoints.

* Area fire versus buildings properly spreads fire versus all locations on the indicated level.

* Soldiers are more likely to move through breaches blasted in building walls rather than close by doorways.

* The TacAI is generally more likely to open fire, especially with heavy grenade launchers. Previously the TacAI tried too hard to conserve ammunition.

* Troops do a better job facing in the direction implied by the end of a movement path.

* Troops cannot disembark through walls.

* "Target Light" works properly for infantry.

* Corrected a problem where a vehicle would button up due to incoming small arms fire, but then become overly reluctant to fire its own weapons.

* Corrected a problem where troops would not exit a vehicle because some other troops onboard were considered blocking exits even though they were not.

* When units are pinned (i.e. they can shoot but will not respond to movement orders) it is shown in the suppression meter display.

* Corrected some problems where teams within a squad were not properly coordinated for movement.

* Smoke grenades don't damage vehicles.

* Grenades are used properly (fixed a bug that made the range used too short).

* Antitank weapons like Javelins are less likely to be used during area fire (except versus buildings).

* Improved ground textures.

* Distant terrain looks smoother and less "blocky".

* Trenches and roads show up better at longer distances.

* Map elevations are displayed more accurately when viewed from long distances.

* Brush terrain is drawn out to greater distance.

* Computer player won't hold armored vehicles back so far in the rear.

* Antitank specialist is more likely to be the man who picks up an antitank weapon (say, when unloading a Javelin from a Stryker).

* Moving vehicles have reduced spotting capability.

* Blown-out building walls don't cause lots of ricochets as if the wall was still there.

* Fixed a bug that caused problems with splitting squads multiple times in turn-based games.

* Fixed a bug that sometimes caused a crash during game-save.

* Corrected a problem where multi-unit selecting a shaken/panicked unit would cause the multi-unit select to be canceled.

* Stryker smoke is now the correct color (white).

* "Game Paused" message is smaller and less obtrusive.

-- v1.03 Patch Features --

* LOS/LOF issues improved around areas like walls, buildings, and earthen berms.

* Fixed a bug that caused orders given in the setup phase to be ignored in Play-By-Email games.

* Vehicle pathfinding improved. It is important to note, however, that the slower speed commands will yield better results in more restricted terrain.

* Infantry no longer tends to wander into buildings except when specifically ordered to.

* Improved terrain graphics (the degree of improvement depends on your Texture Quality option, but note that the higher quality options run more slowly).

* Better unit placement in Quick Battles.

* A new "Show All Move Paths" key added to the Hotkeys Menu.

* Fixes to the "stuck soldier" problem.

* Fixes to the "stuck unit" problem.

* By default, infantry moving "Slow" (i.e. crawling) do not stand up and run to their destinations after halting for any reason.

* "Adjust Artillery Mission" function is fixed, along with other minor artillery bugs.

* Gunners are less likely to use high-explosive rather than armor-piercing ammo against armored targets.

* Improved anti-tank missile accuracy, especially with the Javelin ATGM.

* Clicking on enemy soldiers that were not previous spotted are no longer shown.

* Very slight downward adjustment to M1 Abrams tank front armor strength.

* Javelin missile armor penetration increased modestly.

* Speed of the autoloaders on the T-72 and the Stryker MGS are reduced.

* Soldiers do a better job staying prone when under fire in the open.

* TacAI is more likely to fire on prone infantry.

* Computer player is less likely to use slow/crawling movement with its troops.

* Syrian troops (except forward observers) cannot call in artillery.

* Blast movement now works properly.

* Fixed a bug where a soldier sometimes uses a Blue Force specialty icon in the UI when it should be Red, or vice-versa.

* Improved seated poses for certain crewmen of M1 MBT, pickup trucks, taxis.

* MMGs rarely, if ever, fire single-round bursts.

* Clicking on an enemy's C2 display no longer switches to its HQ unit.

* Fixed "choppy" sound from vehicles when turning.

-- v1.02 Patch Features --

* For recent ATI video cards a new option for "ATI left-click compatibility" has been added in the game Options Panel. Setting this option to ON (default setting is OFF) solves a crash problem unrelated to Combat Mission. If you have an ATI video card, yet never experienced mouse click problems with earlier versions, it is recommended that you do not use this feature because clicks are not registered as precisely. We are in contact with ATI and hope they fix the problems with a new driver release sometime soon.

* New game "Priority Setting" option setting has been added in the game Option Panel. This option instructs Windows to assign "normal" application priority or "high" application priority to the game when it is run. The "normal" setting can fix lagging mouse and/or keyboard input issues for some systems. The "high" setting is recommended if you have not experienced any input lag problems. The "high" priority option allows Combat Mission to use more system resources and may result in better performance.

* Alt-Tab now resets the screen to the original desktop display resolution (and back again) if different than the screen resolution setting in Combat Mission's Options Panel.

* Better vehicle defensive TacAI.

* Corrected a longstanding problem with sporadic inaccuracy of ATGMs. It was the result of the dust kicked up from the missile's own launch backblast. Sometimes it obscured the gunner's vision and (unfairly) stopping him from guiding the missile properly.

* Corrected bugs in smoothness of ATGM flight path.

* Infantry ATGMs reload more slowly.

* Shaped-charge explosives (such as ATGMs) have a reduced radius of effect for shrapnel/fragments.

* Infantry will often seek better nearby cover on their own if they come under heavy fire.

* TacAI is more likely to open fire on enemy armored vehicles.

* Commands may be issued when paused in Elite mode.

* Fixed a bug that sometimes caused smoke to not block LOS when it should have.

* Fixed a bug that caused parts of weapons to be positioned in strange ways during the reload animation.

* Support units (e.g. artillery) in the process of receiving a cease fire command cannot be given further orders until the cease fire occurs (this also fixes a crash bug).

* F5-F8 keys are now Command Category Keys and will jump directly to the Command Panel.

- F5 Brings up the Movement Command Group

- F6 Brings up the Combat Command Group

- F7 Brings up the Special Command Group

- F8 Brings up the Admin Command Group

* New customizable hotkeys with more "direct keys" added. These keys issue a specific command no matter what command group is shown in the onscreen command panel. See further below for more information about editing hotkeys.

* Blank entries are now allowed in the hotkeys.txt file. In the past this would cause a crash when loading a battle.

* After using a "high level" menu button (e.g. Save) in the command panel, the display flips back to command buttons.

* Replaced English language Tutorial Campaign with a native French language one for the French version of the game.

[Battlefront.com]

Now, obviously some of these things are straight forward bug fixes. However, a developer that doesn't care about what users think aren't really all that motivated to fix bugs. They certainly aren't motivated to continue tweaking things which, for practical purposes, are technically functional.

So I'll say it again... if we don't listen, or don't care, about critical feedback... then where do you think our motivation comes from to continue making free improvements to a game that was released more than a year ago? How many other developers out there do that?

Adam, if this isn't good enough for you, it almost certainly never will be. For your sake I recommend moving onto some other product which offers you a greater potential to deliver something you will find playable and less disappointing. You are under no obligation to waste your life on a game which obviously gives you no pleasure, just as we are under no obligation to ensure that you are satisfied with what we do. No emotion, no hard feelings, just a sensible approach to what appears to be irreconcilable differences.

Steve

[Guest Guest]

deleted per user request

[Battlefront.com]

Thank you.

There will always be a gap between individual customer expectations and our ability, and sometimes willingness, to meet them. This should be rather obvious since it's not possible for us to give every single customer exactly what he wants for one or more reasons (lack of time, lack of hardware capabilities, customers not agreeing with each other, etc.). My job here is to build a consensus between what the customer base as a whole wants and what we as developers can deliver.

The more "fringe" a customer is, the less likely he is going to be happy with my handling of this consensus building and the product that comes from it. At some point we have to just agree to go our separate ways because our differences are irreconcilable. There are a number of people that can't accept this fact and instead of moving on spend more time dwelling on the fact that they're now on the outside looking in. I don't understand this at all since our time on this Earth is limited and bitching and complaining about a game that will obviously never meet expectations seems to be a terrible waste of time. Which is exactly why I suggested to you, Adam, that you figure out if you think CMx2 will every be something you will enjoy and move on if you conclude it don't think it will. That's good, sound advice that comes from good intentions, not malice.

Steve

[Guest Guest]

deleted per user request

[purpheart23]

Steve you could've slipped up and maybe dropped the 1.11 improvements in that post of yours "accidentally". *sigh* so close yet so far away.

[Guest Guest]

deleted per user request

[GSX]

Now, obviously some of these things are straight forward bug fixes. However, a developer that doesn't care about what users think aren't really all that motivated to fix bugs. They certainly aren't motivated to continue tweaking things which, for practical purposes, are technically functional.

So I'll say it again... if we don't listen, or don't care, about critical feedback... then where do you think our motivation comes from to continue making free improvements to a game that was released more than a year ago? How many other developers out there do that?

Steve

A lot of this is very true, but your company doesnt really have the option of producing crappy throw away games. The CM games are probably your livelihood and so youve more than likely staked your future worth on the CM-2 engine.

You say that youve invested more than a year on FREE fixes, but in reality its probably taken a year to get to a game state that should have been there on release.

So Kudos to you for not being like the huge companies that make a product then make one patch and move on. But then, you really cant afford to do that because unlike them you dont have another game coming out next week.

And thats why I like the way you listen and improve. Keep it up.

Cheers.

[Kellysheroes]

So I'll say it again... if we don't listen, or don't care, about critical feedback... then where do you think our motivation comes from to continue making free improvements to a game that was released more than a year ago? How many other developers out there do that?

Steve

Oh just about all of them at Matrixgames, HPS, Shrapnel, just about every mmorpg, hrmmm, and Paradox how many patches did EU II get YEARS after it was released..will your company do so much? Fact is you left the Combat Mission origional series unfinished and still with bugs and issues. So, I wouldn't go patting yourself on the back when others have done so much MORE.

[purpheart23]

Oh just about all of them at Matrixgames, HPS, Shrapnel, just about every mmorpg, hrmmm, and Paradox how many patches did EU II get YEARS after it was released..will your company do so much? Fact is you left the Combat Mission origional series unfinished and still with bugs and issues. So, I wouldn't go patting yourself on the back when others have done so much MORE.

Yeah but for those of us who aren't really into die cut counter games or the close combat series like the ones made by those companies, cmsf is our baby. No game is perfect. Your MMORPG's have a steady source of income i.e. subscription fees(never will pay to play). So with the lack of 3-d animation and a steady source of income I imagine it would be easier to support the games you just mentioned. Once again just my two cents.