Sirocco

I agree the UI could be more streamlined, and more intuitive. We have all learned certain actions have certain results, and good UI's take advantage of that pre-built learning. CMSF has thrown a lot of that learning out of the window.

If you're talking about the right click menu, I'd have to disagree. It's awkward having to drop down to the right of the screen, click the right commands button, click the desired command, then move back up into the main screen. Unless dropping the right click menu is part of some grand plan we're unaware of it's about as good an idea as not including the adjustable waypoints.

Having the option to start with infantry loaded into vehicles in QB's. Text on buttons - for example deploy to "pack up" - changing to recognise the toggled state. And, as suggested many times before, a right click shortcut menu for the main commands.

One thing that was missing from CMx1, and I can understand why, was loading infantry onto vehicles automatically. Now with the standard force structure there should at least be the option to start loaded. It's plain tedious to have to load them up by hand.

I tried changing the refresh rate and that fixed it.

It seems this isn't a game related problem. When I run the NVIDIA display optimisation wizard it does the same thing. The screen goes black until I CTRL-ALT-DEL, then it appears, then disappears again as soon as I resume the application.

I think the issue with that is that with modern weapons the old CM penetration data is largely irrelevant.

Yes. You can either have the squad "Acquire" the launcher and missiles before they leave the vehicle, or you can have them return to it to pick them up as the need arises. You can even send the AT component of a split squad back to pick them up. But however you do it Javelin's are fired dismounted.

I played the Al Amarah battle. When assaulting into the town from the east I found the squads often failed to find a path from house to house. It would think for a while, then abandon the search for a path.

The 40mm's seem a little erratic on when they will and won't fire. The indication is there's a good shot, but sometimes it's a no go.

I tried the tutorial again. The three squads have two AT4's remaining, and one Javelin. I have one squad split into two, both manually targetting one of the bunkers, and both use only small arms.

I had the same thing happen. The ATGM teams quickly engaged the T54s without orders. The I manually targeted both bunkers. One bunker was fired at, the other wasn't. I couldn't compel my ATGM teams to fire on the second bunker. The M249 had no problems targeting the same bunker and there was a red icon above the bunker (unlike the dead first bunker and dead T54s). </font>

It said something like "Javelin 1" under ammo. I'll have another look at that tutorial to confirm, but 3 tanks, 9 Javelin's in total. All three teams seemed to hit the first tank, but I heard the second and third go up quite quickly together, so I had the distinct impression more were left.

I turned them both off, but still black screen. I encountered the same problem when I finished the last of the tutorial scenarios, and it also happens as soon as I click the QB button on the main menu.

I'm using XP, SP2, and the BFC download, 1.1. I tried 1024x768 and 1152x864. It's the same with both. The game runs fine, as long as I can find the OK button to click through to the briefing.

Immediate impressions; map edges. ToW seemed to handle them much better. Two issues, one more important than the other. I couldn't get the AT teams to use their last Javelin's against the bunkers in the training campaign. I split them from the squads and gave them target orders, but nothing from any of them, apart from small arms. All had one Javelin remaining. The second, and minor issue; when selecting a bunker as point target it was flagged as "vehicle", not "bunker".

I went to www.nvidia.com and downloaded the driver from there. Click "Download drivers", then in the first list select "Graphics driver", in the second "Geforce 7 series" and in the third whatever OS you're using.

When I start a scenario, whether it's in a campaign or battle, the screen goes blank. I CTRL-ALT-DEL and resume the application, and then I can briefly see the pre-scenario options before it goes blank again. If I position the pointer around where I think the OK button will be I can fumble around and eventually I'll hit it and the game proceeds fine. The video card is a GeForce 7900 GS. I've updated the drivers but that hasn't fixed it.

I believe the keys are customisable through a text file. It should be possible to do that from the options screen, but perhaps that's for v1.2, along with tooltips.

This refresh monkey means business.

The two things I'd take from that if I were the developer would be tooltips and the tutorial. I think the former is worth adding, and as for the latter, we'll all find out on Friday how the game stands with that.

The new QB setup concerns me, too, but we'll see how that works out. The campaign should make up for it. With regard to the AI, I can't imagine BTS developing an AI that was less than CMx1. And the new StratAI should mean no more mortar crews in the vanguard of infantry assaults.

I personally hated scenarios in CMx1. Being "hand made" can also be a drawback.

PBEM, etc., are obviously the greater challenge, even with a mediocre opponent - such as myself - but solo play is the most convenient if nothing else. And the computer won't bail early, either, when the chips are down.

Whose grass mod is that?