kmead

So go and buy a fast G4 before the first of the year and you will have plenty of machine to run CMBB and still be able to use it to run CMII when it comes out OS10.99 native in two years. You will have a machine that is completely capable of playing CMBB with all the toys on and ultra res mods. Especially with the 9700 video card. Don't be sad, just buy the hottie now.

Rune: I think that it can only use the units in the released demo, so that beyond changing out the scenarios there will be little to do besides make Matt's life a living hell for another 48 hours when its released I think that if BFC will be the final arbiter of choosing, they could make the rules just as they did with the modelling contest. This time it will just draw on other abilities from some of our more learned friends. Clearly this would need to be fully fleshed out, I am trying to get a sense of interest for doing such a thing. Lets see if some of the all knowing will put their hat into the ring publicly. I think I might like to try myself if for no other reason than to learn more about the game and enjoy the public humiliation of my sad attempt Especially compared to some of your creations.

Sorry, I must have missed your suggestion, you are welcome to all the credit you deserve

So, many of you may be aware of the ongoing debate (whine) about whether or not the demo scenarios are good enough to highlight the qualities of CMBB and grab the unwashed masses interest and attention. In the course of the debate esteemed forum member Chad Harrison, offered up an excellent solution. With the cooperation of BFC this would give you the opportunity to show what a master you and or a team of your closest friends can do. To wit: I honestly think this is the best suggestion I have heard(seen) here. I vote that we have a competition for creating the best demo scenarios using the shipping version of CMBB. You will recieve one week to create it and send it to a review committee that will then forward a list of finalists to BFC for final judging. BFC will then choose whether our efforts are any better than their own and can include them if they see fit in a revised Demo of CMBB. I think this falls in the category of my favorite Bill Mauldin Willy and Joe cartoon: "If you knows of a better hole then go git it..." or something to that effect . Now clearly this will require the cooperation of our esteemed hosts and some effort on our part. If anyone else likes this idea (in particular Steve) kindly chime in. I for one am sick of the incessant complaints on this subject and this seems to be a sensible way to resolve this by allowing all you hotshots to demonstrate your fine abilities. Any takers? edited due to my inability to write even though English is my only language... [ September 09, 2002, 05:17 PM: Message edited by: kmead ]

I honestly think this is the best suggestion I have heard(seen) here. I vote that we have a competition for creating the best demo scenarios using the shipping version of CMBB. You will recieve one week to create it and send it to a review committee that will then forward a list of finalists to BFC for final judging. BFC will then choose whether our efforts are any better than their own and can include them if they see fit in a revised Demo of CMBB. I think this falls in the category of my favorite Bill Mauldin Willy and Joe cartoon: If you knows of a better hole then go git it... or something to that effect

I think more suckage needs to be applied, it clearly doesn't suck enough. I think if we tried we could add several more rounds to sending PBEMs and increase the file sent size to 10Mb or so (and grow by 1mb per turn as the game progresses). That would provide the appropriate level of suckage in that no one has an email mailbox large enough to accept or send PBEM files. This would promote the complete sessation of all CMing to ensure maximum suckage. This has all the makings of a fine alternative to the Peng stagnation cesspool. One that other mere mortals could even understand and relate to .... Nah, Mom won't let it go on.

Cool! And let me tell you, it was hard to do too. One year ago we thought we were done with development, but we said "crap, it is still really fun and playable. Let's spend another year making sure it sucks". Looks like we succeeded, so I hope you preorder and make it worth our while Steve </font>

Barrett's Privateer: Fine, but I am lacking an understanding of what would make you want to buy the final game. Do you know and just can't communicate it? The current demo does actually show many of the new features that differentiate it from CMBO and its competition so from that standpoint it has been effective. There is the possibility that you really don't care for the genre (turn based wargames) and that the game really isn't for you. Which is an OK thing, I doubt that the demo would have helped you either way. I don't know what you mean by this, the demo is done and released, where's the hard line? I don't think I have ever seen a second demo from any company nor a revision of an existing demo. I am not much of a demo chaser so feel free to point out where I am wrong. I am niether a hard core military buff nor someone who likes the games that appeal to the general gaming public. For me BFC has managed to create a game series that appeals to me and apparently the grogs of the world. I look at this game in much the same way I enjoyed the Sim City series before it became completely bogged in minutae to the point of unplayability (and expansion packs out the wazoo). It along with other games from that company were Mac originally and maybe therein lies the tie for me. I find many Mac people (we of the old line ) tend not to go for rts or many of the other mainstream games (I bought my PS2 to play GT3 as my other love in life is driving cars, I have no other games for it) but instead for some decidedly odd games. I am sorry to hear you may choose to not buy CMBB, anyone who doesn't is indeed a loss to this community (and of course a loss of revenue for BFC). I am not clear on what you expected the demo to demonstrate to you (I have not seen your posts in other threads), but apparently it has not met your needs nor pulled your purse strings enough to pay the tithe. Please continue to state what you are after or need so that in the future your needs and the needs of other users like you can be better met. [ September 08, 2002, 03:11 PM: Message edited by: kmead ]

For me, it was Reisberg, Chance Encounter and the original Beta Demo that caught me. To be honest, the Beta captivated me from the first 2 minutes VOT has never been one I have enjoyed very much, I have only staggered through it once and didn't really enjoy the experience. Regarding the CMBB demo, I do enjoy the ones there, but I suspect I will only want to play them a few more times and I will have had my fill. They do show how much the game has changed. I had my butt handed to me on the first run through the Kursk scenario and then soundly whooped the AI the second time with the loss of only 2 PzIIIs. Both times I have played Yelnia I have enjoyed minor victories even though both times it went 5 turns longer. The tutorial was fun if a bit easy from the Soviet side, especially as I failed to follow orders and didn't use the human wave approach. I have yet to play the Soviet side on any but the tutorial. So, no I don't think that the demo has the replay value, but it does an excellent job of demonstrating what the new game engine can do. Facing the steppe is a daunting prospect. The demo doesn't have to keep me interested for 6-9 mos like the demos for CMBO did (though I preordered CMBO 3 mos before the Beta Demo ).

gunnergoz: Nice job of thinking before you write . I wouldn't want the Harvard Debating Society either, having served on a similar team in the past. I appreciate the signal to noise ratio in general, I suppose that seeing a post about my pet peeve of the internet trivialized and immediately derailed was less than satisfying. Nearly every post beyond the initial dirisive followups were not even on subject. In any case this is off topic and deserves to move to the general discussion forum. In any case, thanks for your considered response.

Rather than bash, please apply a great review that positively rebuts the issues raised by others. Just a thought. As an FYI, not all mac users are OSX.x users, so there is a large group of slow adopters and will continue to be until all the old macs are "used up" (replaced).

I strongly agree with the initial post. His beefs are legitimate, most of your responses are a perfect example. Had his post been about some arcane bit of groginess or something you valued, I am certain that you would have found a way to read it in its entirety. I see this phenomena all over the net, people lacking simple social graces to continue a conversation started. For example, if you were in the room with this individual you would have either entered into the conversation or avoided him like the plague. So many people hide behind some name reference and feel it gives them carte blanche to behave poorly. If you don't wish to enter the conversation, then don't. Just because you can come by afterwords and spew belittling commentary doesn't mean you should. This forum is not just the domain of the core cadre who have little else to do, but for the whole community to participate in with the hope that their contribution will be valued. I think the points in the initial post are valid and sadly proven by the subsequent posts offered up as replies. Having enjoyed posts by most of you in threads in the past, I find myself disappointed and dissatisfied with your replies.

Done, happy birthday to me! (OK its two days late but I'll live). Thanks for the thread, I so rarely check the main page I would have missed it for days. I too survived another round of layoffs, they released 5 out of 9 people in my department, I have no idea what kept me from from the brink. In many ways I wish I had been, I could use 6 mos of severance pay plus unemployment. [ September 07, 2002, 07:42 AM: Message edited by: kmead ]

Thank you, the chiseltip mirror works great. Less than 11 minutes. However, I have already downloaded the demo using a fine bit of software not from Macrosloth. I guess my point in this thread was to try to find a way to get IE to behave with the BFC FTP server. If anyone has any ideas on how to do so that would be great. I was also fishing to see how many others were unable to access the download. Again, thanks for your link, or your hosting which was a genuine act of kindness.

Mac IE still unable to dnld from BFC FTPs I still am unable to access the BFC ftp server for the demo. Nor am I able to download anything else from your servers (in the recent past I have downloaded the CMBO patch and demo), I was able to download the MSW CMBB Demo (just to try getting a download) from one of the mirrors (a windows gaming magazine). I am running IE 5.1.4, on OS9.2.2, using a cable modem through a Linksys router, the provider is ATTBI. I have no trouble downloading from other places and other servers so I have no clue what the issue is. I don't know how prevalent my problem is relative to the rest of mac users. Thanks;

Given that this is a open ended game that is not intended to depict only a few limited engagements the answer is no. So far no scripted elements have been included in BFC products and I doubt we will see any. Kindly download the demo and exhaust yourself to sleep. Come back another time with some questions that pertain to this game. Good luck learning the demo.

BFC (Charles, Steve, Martin, Matt, Dan): So, what about sending out press releases? I checked the few surviving Mac game sites as well as most of the other Mac sites and sadly none of them had any info regarding the release of the demo. I don't know what the coverage has been from the PC side but so far its been abysmal from the Mac side. So was there a strategic decision to not release info knowing that you would be inundated by the resident population for the initial downloads? I know this is your business and all, but I really want the Mac side to prosper (if not grow, what with it not being all 10.2 sexy and all ) . In any case, I would be happy to email the various magazines with the URL of the demo announcement/download pages if that will help. Martin (and everyone else) I know you have been as busy as a one legged man in a ass kicking contest coming to the wire, so this post is not meant to critical. If I can be of assistance just drop me a email, or you can give me the brushoff here . As a FYI, I still am unable to access the BFC ftp server for the demo. Nor am I able to download anything else from your servers (in the recent past I have downloaded the CMBO patch and demo), I was able to download the MSW CMBB Demo (just to try getting a download) from one of the mirrors (a windows gaming magazine). I am running IE 5.1.4, on OS9.2.2, using a cable modem through a Linksys router, the provider is ATTBI. I have no trouble downloading from other places and other servers so I have no clue what the issue is. I don't know how prevalent my problem is relative to the rest of mac users. In any case, the demo is great, my wife is buying the full version for me for my birthday (nice huh?). Thanks for your time; [ September 03, 2002, 08:44 PM: Message edited by: kmead ]

I like the new system, I never liked the key modifier and enjoy moving around the battlefield keyless. It takes a bit more finesse but its fine. My only interface quibble is that I don't need the buttons for ceasefire and surrender as they are a very rarely used. I would have loved the space given over to a miniature map top view with units picked out as red and blue dots for each side.

Russians or Soviets is the issue. This has always bothered me, in WWII the USSR was the government and the people were many races (thus the united part). The Russians were just one of many peoples that populated the Red Army. I know in the US that the Soviets were refered to as the Russkies but it really isn't representative. With the start of this forum this has really come to the fore, with so many posts descibing the "new" primary combatant as Russkies, Russians and so on. Maybe I am being pedantic, but it really should be Soviet infantry or Red Army. I don't see many using Krauts, Nazi's (yes I know all Germans weren't Nazi's), Hun etc. for the Germans. I know the USSR exists no more, but at the time they were Soviets and the soldiers were from all the republics. Referring to them as Russians, to me belittles the sacrifices made by all of the other peoples. Kindly post away with your own opinions (its a shame so few of you have any) on the subject.

Mild Spoiler * * * * * * * I was very pleasantly surprised at how well the Soviet infantry performed. Maybe my pace has always been a bit slow In the tutorial I neglected to follow orders and moved up through the trees along the flank of the Germans. The T34s kept suppressing anyone who popped up and the Maxims and the mortar joined in at will. I lost very few men and didn't lose a tank to the 37 even though it hit many times.

Matt (or whomever is tending the farm tonight): I just checked the new mirrors and the new BFC FTP2. Using IE 5.1.4 on both BFC FTP sites I immediately get a "the specified server cannot be found" error message. On the other servers (mirrors) and got immediate downloads of @117kbs from both. I haven't made any changes to my setup and previously have never had trouble downloading from your servers. I was able to download other software last night so I know my copy of IE is still capable. Is there any odd setting that may have been made at your end? Thank you for your time. Thanks for making available alternative mirrors that Mac users could utilize. Have a great evening.

I know this is a minor whine about a stated unsupported system, but it would be nice if we could have slightly better behavior when things are not quite right. My iMac 400DV stops loading the 3D graphics when in 1024 x 768 mode. Runs fine in 800 x 600 so this is clearly a vram issue (as in lack thereof). It would be nice if the program could either be massaged to say due to inadequate VRam you must reset your screen size to 800 x 600, or automatically reset it, or at least allow you to kill the program. As it is now you get a crash where you can hear the sounds, get the black loading 3D graphics and cannot kill the program (using cmd, ctrl, and esc keys to quit to desktop) without resetting the computer with a hard restart. Many thanks. I don't know if there is any way to resolve this, especially once it has proceeded to the loading of 3D graphics. It would just be nice if the failure mode was a little more user friendly (meaing, its OK if it fails, it would just be nice to have a graceful way of allowing the user to recover from the error). Thanks. Great game by the way. There are so many excellent things about the game that I feel bad about carping about something so minor. Among the many things I really like is the new method of moving around the battlefield. The ability to slide sideways with the mouse is great, a nice subtlety that massively improves getting around.

To the top. Great job Matt chasing the issues surrounding the downloads. Sorry for your short sleep. I was up til 130 trying to dnld and finally got it this morning. Wonderful game by the way.

My iMac 400DV stops loading the 3D graphics when in 1024 x 768 mode. Runs fine in 800 x 600. It would be nice if the program could either be massaged to say due to inadequate VRam you must reset your screen size to 800 x 600, or automatically reset it or at least allow you to kill the program. As it is now you get a crash where you can hear the sounds, get the black loading 3D graphics and cannot kill the program (using cmd, ctrl, and esc keys to quit to desktop) without resetting the computer with a hard restart. All in all, for running on a slow, outmoded, Luddite machine , this program is excellent. What a great job, kudos and thanks to all involved!

Try downloading this product. I did and the demo is now on my machine 20 minutes later. IE just won't grab to begin the download. http://versiontracker.com/moreinfo.fcgi?id=1298&db=mac Good luck and happy playing.