LandsElite PC Gaming Community » Scum

Warfare BE – 2.052

Scum — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 00:13:03 +0000

ICBMs… that’s right, Inter continental ballistic missiles are on our ARMA2 server. The new 2.052 warfare BE release is installed, the server is updated with the latest ARMA 2 patch. Enjoy and let me know if you experience any problems!

Server Updated WBE v2.046

Scum — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:39:43 +0000

Benny has been hard at work (again) and we have updated our server with his latest version of Warfare BE, there’s some interesting feature requests and fixes. I look forward to having some spare time to jump on the server and test these out.

Fixed: Attaching a static defense would freeze it in the air.
Respawn Menu: Respawn hint was not showing up like it should have.
Loadout: M16A4 wasn’t shown properly in the gear menu.
Construction Interface: Russian String table hotfix.
Multiple Lock/Unlock
BETA: Localization problem on Metis and Podnos for russian version
Parameter: Volumetric Clouds
Parameter: Income System
Support Menu: Heal
Team Menu Interface: Added an overlay combo box.
Gameplay: Class Actions
Prices: Balance
Ingame Actions are now simplified.
Town balancing: Polana
Optimization: Most of the Server/Client Loops are now converted to FSM.

For more information on each of these bugs and feature requests check out this page!

ARMA II Server

Scum — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:10:14 +0000

The clan are diving head first into ARMA 2, we’ve purchased a server and will be running the WARFARE BE mod 24/7 (although with the current dedicated server executables it will need a reboot pretty much every day to keep it ticking over). If like me you purchased ARMA 2, tried it and then stuck it on the shelf, or downloaded the demo and deleted it in a fit of confusion and disgust… look again. ARMA 2 is turning out to be quite a gem. The poor demo put many people off it, hardcore servers filled with people who won’t help and are committed to using the most difficult settings scared many of the rest off. Well it’s lucky that Benny from clan Hot Shots has been putting in a lot of hardwork into an extremely accessible gamemode entitled Warfare BE (after himself).

You can read more on Warfare BE from our information page and try it with us by joining our ARMA 2 server! We’re working hard to get it configured properly but we are running it in cadet mode to keep it easy for all those folk that like us, are not hardcore ARMA 1 players and milsim fanatics.

With every patch that BI releases the game has become better and better. We hope you’ll test the water by joining us on vent and giving it a blast! Happy days =)

InfinityWard’s Response

Scum — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 08:37:29 +0000

So what’s the latest on the IW situation? Well first off I should say that IW have confirmed that they will not be adding dedicated support despite the petition and threads. IW removed the main thread discussing the issues, they claim this was due to pc/console flame wars erupting and some dubious 4chan pictures entering the fray. At least the moderator(s) could control a single thread, now any thread on the subject seems to get deleted after a small while. Lazy and frankly a little insulting to the PC community.

In an interview with Infinity Ward leads Jason West and Vince Zampella, the issue was laughed at and West stated categorically that “We’re just prioritizing the player experience above the modders and the tuners”. You can read the full summary of the interview here.

So does anyone have any figures on the PC / Console split? It would be interesting to see what sort of loss they are making with this decision but I am of no doubt whatsoever that it will be at least in the region of £1 million+. There have now been 117309 signatures on the dedicated server petition and at £30 a copy you only need 33333 people to cancel their pre-orders to lose a million.

Now look at the effort to code a dedicated server, you need a team to create the server side code, to create client searching code, you need to re-evaluate and possibly re-implement VAC, you need to consider the future costs of supporting this platform at a loss, that generally means releasing patches. So how far down the road have they gone with IWNET? Do the losses justify the means to go back and assist the PC community to regain their sales? I would say yes. A million pounds is not nearly enough to create a triple A PC game but it should be enough to modify your code and create a bit of dedicated server support as well as support it for a short period of time.

So then it comes down to policy, do they intend to look after their PC community, do they see the PC being part of their future? We don’t know the answer to these questions but we all suspect the worst, because to remove dedicated server support has blatantly obvious consequences, you would need a brain the size of a walnut and the foresight of a lemming not to realise the backlash from the PC community.

Still, we can live in hope that continuing the campaign might just change their minds…

1) Cancel your pre-order, not later but now. The sooner they see the dropping projection figures the better.

2) Make your voice heard in this live up and coming interview with West and Bowling.

3) Clan representatives should speak up on this IW thread. Do not use inflammatory language. Keep it simple, state what community you represent and if you cancelled your pre-order(s).

4) Spread the signatures, wear one of these. One, Two, Three, Four.

5) Sign the petition.

Boycott COD:MW2

Scum — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 02:19:06 +0000

I don’t speak for everyone in LandsElite when I write this but I for one have cancelled my pre-order based on the news that dedicated server support for the PC has been chucked. I know a lot of you guys will still buy and play but this shits all over forming any sort of community around a server, setting it the way we like it, modding, new maps etc etc. So maybe I’ll pick up a second hand copy off ebay later on, especially if they decide to release a dedicated server later. However for now, cancelling the pre-order is the only real pro-active way we can disagree with IW’s decision to shit on the PC community and herd us into the console arena. Losing money will make them notice, whining and signing petitions will generally not, just look at op flash 2.

On another note, think how this affects GSPs (game server providers), who have invested money into buying hardware to host MW2 servers from MW2 server pre-orders. We paid £80+ for our pre-ordered server and I have now had to ask for a refund. Nice of IW to let them know early on isn’t it, such a considerate company.

Shock Horror

The lack of understanding shown by IW and especially Robert Bowling (aka FourZeroTwo) is amazing, what are they paying this guy to do? Creative Strategist at IW? Vocal puppet more like. This guy is a typical XBOX player with no experience of PC gaming, you could literally feel the restrained wrath in the discussion between BASH123 guests and Rob Bowling as certain members struggled with their anger and confusion at the announcement.

Thanks to Rob, PST*Joker from mycallofduty.com, Rudedog from fpsadmin.com, Garetjax from codtv.tv, Josh from Planetmedalofhonor.com, MatTks from @weplaycod (Twitter) and weplaycod.com, iBleedv20 at omnilinkit.com and the hordes in our chatroom and ventrilo.

Expensive mistake Rob, wonder if he’ll keep his job after this.

OFP2 Clan Startup

Scum — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 19:39:39 +0000

For those that will be participating in OFP2 clan games please click the image in this post to show other clans we’re ready for business. Here’s hoping it’s as good as we hope it will be, might make a good respite from ARMA 2 bugs!

Click This Image To Vote, Once a Day if possible

Also, if you haven’t seen this already then please check it out

If you are looking to join LandsElite to play OFP2 with us then please sign up on the forums and make your application.

Should we use Mumble?

Scum — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 20:52:38 +0000

We’ve been hearing lots of good things about a voice comms package (open source) called Mumble. We know a few communities that use it already. With our Ventrilo server expiring shortly I thought it worth looking at this, pro clans are moving to it due to it’s extremely low latency and high quality audio. I found a couple of videos on the subject, take a look below. We’ll run a little trial withit a month before expiry and take a vote.

“Mumble is a voice chat application for groups. It has low latency and superb voice quality. While it can be used for any kind of activity, it is primarily intended for gaming. It features an ingame overlay for DX9 and OpenGL based games, showing clearly who is talking even for fullscreen applications.”

UKGame are offering an excellent three month free trial of it and remarkable pricing (since it’s open source). Check it out -> Mumble Hosting UK (Hmph, we should get a free server just for the endorsement I reckon .

Latency Comparison

Open for comment

Scum — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:43:51 +0000

We’ve put in some super anti spam filters and opened up our posts for anonymous comment, we’ve even added Do FOLLOW which means search engines will follow links pasted in comments, hopefully this won’t attract to many of the wrong crowd! So, feel free to comment on our posts! We’ll automatically close them after a short period of time.

Out of interest, our wordpress frontend and forums are very popular and we get a lot (for a small pc gaming community) of unique guest visitors checking out articles and forum posts. The top most popular blogs are…

#1 – Sounds’ rant on Battlefield Heroes
#2 – Codemasters to ruin OFP:DR?
#3 – Operation Flashpoint 2 Video

If you want to write for our community, either as a new joining member or an existing one then get in touch via the forums!

Game Of The Month: ARMA II

Scum — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 23:43:12 +0000

Initially viewed with mild enthusiasm followed by contempt for the shear multitude of bugs and issues plaguing the demo, some of us bought it anyway. By chance I tried the 1.03 patch and wow, it has really tidied up a lot of the major issues surrounding the initial release and with a little effort and a helping hand the game will ‘blow your little fps mind’. A sandbox for war, the BE warfare mod is probably one of the best things currently going for it. Considering the short period it’s been on general release, there has been remarkable progress which just goes to show how versatile the engine and tools are, I cannot wait to see what comes in the future. Only five of us currently have it but we hope more will follow!

We Love Tanks

and teammates

Also this month in gaming has included…

Streetfighter IV
Blood Bowl and more blood bowl
Battlefield 2 + the new 1.5 patch
Anno 1404
Evil Genius
Call Of Duty 4

BF2 1.5 at last

Scum — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 13:31:34 +0000

The final BF2 1.5 patch is out, finally! With 2 expansions bundled for free it looks seriously fun! Let’s get stuck in! Release notes follow…

Download BF2 1.5 Patch Mirrors

Features:

Gameplay Tweaks:

Bug Fixes: