Is CMA fit with me?

[Simicro]

Hello,

I am terrible: I got CMBN recently on Steam and I am still in the learning process but I am alrady leaning towards CMA for the following reasons:

1) "Only" $25.

2) I like the theme (Soviet-Afghan War) and theater (mountains).

3) There are not too many modern/high tech weapons and systems to learn.

4) I like small battles on small/medium maps with a limited number of units: a few squads, a couple of AFV but no more. So I'm definitely not at the battalion level.

Am I correct / do you think that CMA is suitable for me?

As I understand, the pricing is due to the fact that the game is no longer in active development and uses an old engine (Game Engine 0). 

So I wonder if the display is fluid compared to other CM games? 2K resolution supported?

Also, are there any well known glitchs or flaws that I should be aware of, since there will be no more development?

PS: Yes I am aware of the demo and I will donwload it, but still I would appreciate your feedback.

Thanks.

[Ivan Zaitzev]

Hello Simicro!
CM:A is one of my favourite games, and is the one I'm mostly playing these days. 

The game is definitely an oldie, and it comes with it's problems I will detail now, but first let me tell you it runs just fine in modern systems with high resolution. 

The stock campaigns are somewhat broken in my opinion. Refit is a bit random and you can find your troops out of ammo starting a mission, even if the last one was one or two months ago. The 40th army had its supply issues but not that bad!

Soviet squads tend to be quite small, specially later in the war, sometimes 5 men strong, so they are quite brittle.

Models and textures are quite low resolution, there are mods that improve textures but the game is not as easy to mod as later ones, so mods are limited. I'm doing some mods myself that will post in the future.

The community is quite small compared to newer games so there is not much new content.

If you are a content creator, be aware that the map editor is not as robust as in newer games, lacking some features, most notably there are no overlay feature.

As for bugs and glitches, nothing game braking for sure. The only glitch that comes to mind is the late war para models have a graphics glitch on the shoulder that messes up the model and the textures. 

But if you are interested in the Soviet Afghan war, the flaws are easily overlooked.  Gameplay is fun and you have to take care of your troops like in all modern games. And you can't beat that price tag!

[37mm]

10 hours ago, Simicro said:

So I wonder if the display is fluid compared to other CM games? 2K resolution supported?

Also, are there any well known glitchs or flaws that I should be aware of, since there will be no more development?

PS: Yes I am aware of the demo and I will donwload it, but still I would appreciate your feedback.

Thanks.

As well as the CMA demo there's the old CMSF 1.30 demo which is also engine 0... if you're okay with the old engine then you'll be fine with CMA.

You can play any CM game in any resolution you want (there's a text file you can edit in addition to the game settings) however there's no UI scaling so you'll have to put up with tiny icons & text if you play at 4k.

From what I can tell, most people play CM at 2k & do so with little difficulty.

[Simicro]

Hello both,

Many thanks for your time and explanations.

Much appreciated. You did answer to my questions.

Thanks.

[BFCElvis]

On 4/18/2023 at 7:38 AM, Simicro said:

Hello,

I am terrible: I got CMBN recently on Steam and I am still in the learning process but I am alrady leaning towards CMA for the following reasons:

1) "Only" $25.

2) I like the theme (Soviet-Afghan War) and theater (mountains).

3) There are not too many modern/high tech weapons and systems to learn.

4) I like small battles on small/medium maps with a limited number of units: a few squads, a couple of AFV but no more. So I'm definitely not at the battalion level.

Am I correct / do you think that CMA is suitable for me?

As I understand, the pricing is due to the fact that the game is no longer in active development and uses an old engine (Game Engine 0). 

So I wonder if the display is fluid compared to other CM games? 2K resolution supported?

Also, are there any well known glitchs or flaws that I should be aware of, since there will be no more development?

PS: Yes I am aware of the demo and I will donwload it, but still I would appreciate your feedback.

Thanks.

I remember, back when beta testing it, that I enjoyed it MUCH more than Shock Force. 

[Sunbather]

On 7/12/2023 at 11:50 PM, BFCElvis said:

I remember, back when beta testing it, that I enjoyed it MUCH more than Shock Force. 

A while ago I was on the brink of buying it but luckily tried the demo first. In the demo, my camera was rotating automatically and there was no way to make it stop. Is this a known error and only happens in the demo?

[BFCElvis]

1 hour ago, Sunbather said:

A while ago I was on the brink of buying it but luckily tried the demo first. In the demo, my camera was rotating automatically and there was no way to make it stop. Is this a known error and only happens in the demo?

When that happens to me, as it does.....not just with Comat Mission......it is usually a key that is stuck or somefink stuck to the bottom of my mouse.

There are no reports of the game doing that on it's own (to answer your question directly ) 

[Sunbather]

On 7/14/2023 at 8:35 PM, BFCElvis said:

When that happens to me, as it does.....not just with Comat Mission......it is usually a key that is stuck or somefink stuck to the bottom of my mouse.

There are no reports of the game doing that on it's own (to answer your question directly ) 

Alright, thanks for the direct answer!

[Sunbather]

On 7/14/2023 at 8:35 PM, BFCElvis said:

When that happens to me, as it does.....not just with Comat Mission......it is usually a key that is stuck or somefink stuck to the bottom of my mouse.

There are no reports of the game doing that on it's own (to answer your question directly ) 

Sorry, Elvis. I have to broach the subject again. I've played the demo one more time and the actual problem wasn't a spinning camera but that the camera movement with WASD is very, very laggy and sometimes stops completely. You then have to press the button again. But since it can happen 3 times in 2 seconds, it is very aggravating. Especially since I am moving around the camera constantly in the CM games. Move the camera with the mouse isn't an option for me either.

So to make a long story short: is Engine 0 or CM:A known to have problems with WASD camera movement?

[BFCElvis]

On 8/26/2023 at 11:58 AM, Sunbather said:

Sorry, Elvis. I have to broach the subject again. I've played the demo one more time and the actual problem wasn't a spinning camera but that the camera movement with WASD is very, very laggy and sometimes stops completely. You then have to press the button again. But since it can happen 3 times in 2 seconds, it is very aggravating. Especially since I am moving around the camera constantly in the CM games. Move the camera with the mouse isn't an option for me either.

So to make a long story short: is Engine 0 or CM:A known to have problems with WASD camera movement?

No. There are no known issues with WASD camera movement. I just opened up mine before replying to this and it was fast and smooth. It may be an issue with your video card. Try making sure the drivers are up to date?

What kind of video card do you have? Is your computer a desktop or laptop? 

[Brille]

@BFCElvis

Well I've been thinking some time now of getting CMA myself to complete my collection. 

I've loaded the demo and it seems that I have somewhat of a similar problem with WASD. 

If I keep pressing one of these keys it moves me one bit in this direction, stops for a brief second and then moves again but most of the time at a normal/faster pace. 

Mostly this happens if I press another key or rotate the camera at the same time. 

I don't have this kind of problem in any of the other Combat Mission games. 

I also tried to switch fast processing off in the options for better mouse/keyboard input (I believe it was stated in the options) but the results stayed the same. 

I have a desktop pc with a Geforce 3070ti,drivers are up to date. 

Could it be that the demo itself has this problem? I see that it is at version 1.01 while the main game can be upgraded to 1.03.

I cannot see into the changelog right now but maybe it was addressed in the patch? 

 

[BFCElvis]

4 hours ago, Brille said:

@BFCElvis

Well I've been thinking some time now of getting CMA myself to complete my collection. 

I've loaded the demo and it seems that I have somewhat of a similar problem with WASD. 

If I keep pressing one of these keys it moves me one bit in this direction, stops for a brief second and then moves again but most of the time at a normal/faster pace. 

Mostly this happens if I press another key or rotate the camera at the same time. 

I don't have this kind of problem in any of the other Combat Mission games. 

I also tried to switch fast processing off in the options for better mouse/keyboard input (I believe it was stated in the options) but the results stayed the same. 

I have a desktop pc with a Geforce 3070ti,drivers are up to date. 

Could it be that the demo itself has this problem? I see that it is at version 1.01 while the main game can be upgraded to 1.03.

I cannot see into the changelog right now but maybe it was addressed in the patch? 

 

It looks like it was. This is from the readme file:

 

Quote

NEW v1.03 GAME FEATURES

o Flashes of light, at night, look better.
o Camera movement and zooming keys are smoother.
o Numerous small fixes and stability improvements.

 

[Sunbather]

@Brille Thanks for describing the problem much better and much more succinct than I did!

@BFCElvis Thanks Elvis for clearing this up!

Edited August 30, 2023 by Sunbather

[BFCElvis]

2 hours ago, Sunbather said:

@Brille Thanks for describing the problem much better and much more succinct than I did!

@BFCElvis Thanks Elvis for clearing this up!

I can't swear that the full version will be better because I don't have the issue with either my full version or the demo. But it sure looks like it was an issue at one time that was addressed in a patch.

[Brille]

@BFCElvis @Sunbather

So I bought the game and hoped for the best:

I installed the main game (v.1.01) and it says during the install that 2 files are corrupted:

"Ambush in the gully.btt" and "Desperate crossing.btt" are those files/scenarios. But there seem to be missing some more scenarios because in the overview it says

"15 standalone battles" but I only count 11. Guess I can get to the files via another player, no problem, but is there something you as Battlefront can do about it in the near future ?

Never the less my previously mentioned problem still persisted (Ver 1.01). So I installed Ver 1.02 and then 1.03 (don´t know if just the 1.03 would do).

And what can I say ? It runs now as fluid as any other CMx2 game, so thank you very much @BFCElvis.

 

Edited August 30, 2023 by Brille

[BFCElvis]

1 hour ago, Brille said:

@BFCElvis @Sunbather

So I bought the game and hoped for the best:

I installed the main game (v.1.01) and it says during the install that 2 files are corrupted:

"Ambush in the gully.btt" and "Desperate crossing.btt" are those files/scenarios. But there seem to be missing some more scenarios because in the overview it says

"15 standalone battles" but I only count 11. Guess I can get to the files via another player, no problem, but is there something you as Battlefront can do about it in the near future ?

Never the less my previously mentioned problem still persisted (Ver 1.01). So I installed Ver 1.02 and then 1.03 (don´t know if just the 1.03 would do).

And what can I say ? It runs now as fluid as any other CMx2 game, so thank you very much @BFCElvis.

 

Great news that things are running smoothly.

 

Yes, those are scenario files. I don't know how many scenarios, and which ones, should be with the game. Here is a screenshot of what is in my scenario folder. Check it against yours and, if you'd like, let me know which you don't have and I'll get them to you. 

 

 

[Brille]

On 8/31/2023 at 12:15 AM, BFCElvis said:

Great news that things are running smoothly.

 

Yes, those are scenario files. I don't know how many scenarios, and which ones, should be with the game. Here is a screenshot of what is in my scenario folder. Check it against yours and, if you'd like, let me know which you don't have and I'll get them to you. 

 

 

Thank you for the offer, I would gladly take it.

This would be the ones that are missing:

[BFCElvis]

1 hour ago, Brille said:

Thank you for the offer, I would gladly take it.

This would be the ones that are missing:

Here ya go: https://battlefront.sharefile.com/d-s5b8104afa2054d8abf5eb6b07ad0e63f

[Brille]

12 hours ago, BFCElvis said:

Here ya go: https://battlefront.sharefile.com/d-s5b8104afa2054d8abf5eb6b07ad0e63f

 

Thank you very much again ! 

[NamEndedAllen]

On 9/1/2023 at 2:45 PM, BFCElvis said:

Here ya go: https://battlefront.sharefile.com/d-s5b8104afa2054d8abf5eb6b07ad0e63f

 

On 9/2/2023 at 2:46 AM, Brille said:

 

Thank you very much again ! 

Thanks, Elvis. I had the identical “corrupted scenario files” message when installing newly purchased and downloaded BFA last month. And importantly, GO EAGLES!
As a proud Oregonian, I had hopes for a Marcus Mariota revival, but that looks doubtful. However, Justin Herbert sure turned out well…and now we have Bo Nix. Most of all, I look forward to the Jalon Hurts Revenge Tour this season.

[BFCElvis]

2 hours ago, NamEndedAllen said:

 

Thanks, Elvis. I had the identical “corrupted scenario files” message when installing newly purchased and downloaded BFA last month. And importantly, GO EAGLES!
As a proud Oregonian, I had hopes for a Marcus Mariota revival, but that looks doubtful. However, Justin Herbert sure turned out well…and now we have Bo Nix. Most of all, I look forward to the Jalon Hurts Revenge Tour this season.

Go Birds!!!

[David Jaros]

 @BFCElvis I bought the game  today game is really good  but missing few scenarios because few of them  are corrupted . Can i get those three missing scenarios pls 

[BFCElvis]

Open up a Help Desk ticket and I'll get you the scenarios.

[Sunbather]

3 hours ago, BFCElvis said:

Open up a Help Desk ticket and I'll get you the scenarios.

Since I will eventually buy the game as well (as soon as I have an interest in the Russo-Afghanistan War again), wouldn't it be easier to just upload the affected scenarios in the download section?

[BFCElvis]

12 minutes ago, Sunbather said:

Since I will eventually buy the game as well (as soon as I have an interest in the Russo-Afghanistan War again), wouldn't it be easier to just upload the affected scenarios in the download section?

That would be an idea. But the better idea is to find out why they are showing as corrupted files, fix it and but the fixed version link in. Which is what has been done.