Are you an online or offline user?

[leitmotiv]

Explain

[Feuerfalke]

Explain

The question is aimed to get information wether people fly offline or online. But why do you want me to explain your own question? :cool:


Okay, okay.

Onliner - as probably most of us, I started offline, but then quickly hit the limit and was tempted by flying against human players. I did with the original IL2 after only a few days and since then flew only a few missions offline. The AI is just too dump IMHO or it's defying the laws of physics if you set it to hard, which makes it more dangerous, but not more intelligent.

[mmitch10]

100% Offline

[FlatSpinMan]

100% offline. I want a sense of purpose, historical plane sets, and a sense of immersion. I haven't tried many co-ops but certainly the dogfight servers don't offer that enough for my liking. What's more, offline you can really make full use of the FMB to create a 'world' whereas this is restricted online due to connection issues and soon.
I freely admit that the AI can be irritating sometimes but usually less so than human players, if the chat bar is anything to go by.

Please make a fully featured, replayable,immersive offline experience. I want to feel like I'm THERE!

[Inadaze]

99.9% offline here.

[bolox]

100% offline for last 3 yrs

reasons:-

whatever you say about ai's behaviour at least you don't have to put up with abuse.

i love offline user made campaigns

devicelink pits work offline- i'm somewhat of a fan of these
http://www.acompletewasteofspace.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=14809&start=30

[Feathered_IV]

100% offline :-P

[jasonbirder]

100% Offline here :)

[msalama]

100% noline at the moment. Might get back to IL-2 at some point, though, in which case it's designing coops 99% of the time and making a drunken arse of myself online every Friday night.

[jarkko]

100% offline

[DKoor]

2% offline , 7.5% online.
90.5% on forum.

[Feathered_IV]

Dkoor, thats enough about Feuerfalke, how much time do you spend online? :-P

[Erkki]

100% online - offline time includes only mission builder and gunnery practice in QMB.

Those who say they dont play online because of the lack of historical (and realistic) servers... Bad excuse! I know, wait, 2, 4, 5.. 8 of them! (historical missions, no external views)(there might be more but at least 8 with more than 10 guys at the same time every day)

[leitmotiv]

2% offline , 7.5% online.
90.5% on forum.

Now this is exactly what I wanted---truth! Lately I have been 90% forum and 10% offline. When in form---100% offline.

[leitmotiv]

100% offline. I want a sense of purpose, historical plane sets, and a sense of immersion. I haven't tried many co-ops but certainly the dogfight servers don't offer that enough for my liking. What's more, offline you can really make full use of the FMB to create a 'world' whereas this is restricted online due to connection issues and soon.
I freely admit that the AI can be irritating sometimes but usually less so than human players, if the chat bar is anything to go by.

Please make a fully featured, replayable,immersive offline experience. I want to feel like I'm THERE!

Agree 1000% I like to leave having to deal with edgy personalities out of my leisure activity (I get enough competition in the real world), I like to design my own scenarios, experiment, learn tactics, and get blown out of the sky without silly guff.

[HFC_Dolphin]

Offline is the most boring thing in IL-2 world.
On the other hand, online can become extremely annoying, since the whole experience depends highly on the people you're flying with.

All in all, what we need from SoW:BoB above EVERYTHING, is a good offline experience.
And this can happen mostly if the offline experience becomes difficult and comparable, so people can compete against each other.
Furthermore, we definitely need some new campaign system. Something to make you want to continue the campaign after the first couple of missions.

[Thunderbolt56]

Online only.

Offline is only spent testing when there's a new flyable or if I want to make a tutorial track, neither of which I've done in the last 2 years.

[jasonbirder]

Those who say they dont play online because of the lack of historical (and realistic) servers... Bad excuse! I know, wait, 2, 4, 5.. 8 of them! (historical missions, no external views)

Bear in mind that there is more to realism than merely flying Full Switch...its about a populated map, an active ground envionment, realistic weather, realistic flight times, sizeable homogonous formations and consistent formation flying, realistic plane sets (Not Mustangs and Spit IX's against 190D's) proper mission objectives...
I am sure that these crop up occasionally online...but I KNOW for a fact if i pick my Offline experience I can get it 100% of the time Offline...Whereas my experince of online (even in so called fumm switch environments) is late 44 & 45 planes flying ad hoc sweep missions against each other on bare maps...i can think of nothing more boring!

[JG52Uther]

99.9% online.

[virre89]

Online only.
Offline simply used for testing out aircrafts and gun practice.
I think a more immersible campaign for SoW would be really neat.

[T}{OR]

Exclusively online, for the last three years. I gave up on IL2 back then when I was flying offline only. AI is just too boring.

Once you try online and full switch there is no going back. No AI can substitute that.

[Thunderbolt56]

Bear in mind that there is more to realism than merely flying Full Switch...its about a populated map, an active ground envionment, realistic weather, realistic flight times, sizeable homogonous formations and consistent formation flying, realistic plane sets (Not Mustangs and Spit IX's against 190D's) proper mission objectives...
I am sure that these crop up occasionally online...but I KNOW for a fact if i pick my Offline experience I can get it 100% of the time Offline...Whereas my experince of online (even in so called fumm switch environments) is late 44 & 45 planes flying ad hoc sweep missions against each other on bare maps...i can think of nothing more boring!


True some of the time. But the few times there really is a definitive, diverse mission (a large, spread out ground target that requires multiple sorties to neutralize) and both sides actually fly towards the objectives, it's not even comparable to flying against the predictable AI Haxxorz. And there really is enough of it to measure.

It's just my opinion, but I can fly those "realistic" offline missions 20 times and rack up ridiculous aerial and ground kills and feel absolutely no satisfaction or sense of accomplishment. On the other hand, if I fly one ground attack mission online and make it home to land (sometimes regardless of my mudmoving success), I feel like I've beaten the odds and look forward to doing it again.

[Rama]

Online only until I stopped flying virtually begining of this year.

I need teamwork and flying with mates on TS (possibly on coop or online campaigns). Offline is a boring experience compared to online.... even on "great immersive mission and background", which are only decorum to the virtual flying... like drinking bad wine in a palace, when you could have the best champagne with your friends in any place...

[Ian_Guerrero]

65% Online

35% Offline

Ian Guerrero
http://pilotodecombate.blogspot.com/

[T}{OR]

...Whereas my experince of online (even in so called fumm switch environments) is late 44 & 45 planes flying ad hoc sweep missions against each other on bare maps...i can think of nothing more boring!

That just means you have visited wrong servers. ;)

[Antoninus]

90 % Offline, 10% online, I still prefer flying well made, immersive historic campaigns, despite the very predictable AI opponents. However nowadays I use Il-2 less than half as much than a few years ago.

[Jaws2002]

100% online.

Only brief testing offline.

Can't beat botching a perfect landing and have ten people laugh at you.:mrgreen:

[ElAurens]

99.9% online.

Only offline for testing, mission building, and reviewing tracks for screenshots.

Every once in a while I go to the QMB when I forget that the AI will just spiral climb away from you no matter what matchup I choose. What nonsense.

I have tried to get into offline campaigns, but it's so hopeless. And just how immersive is watching your whole flight fly blindly into a hill side while ignoring your calls for help?

:rolleyes:

[SlipBall]

95% off-line...give me full start up feature...or else! :grin:

[brando]

I spend four hours a night on-line and a few day-hours at the weekends, chatting to my mates and flying only co-op missions. We range from pseudo WW1 biplane scenarios to what-if jet extravaganzas. We fly whatever we make missions about, and three of us are keen mission builders.

I think I'm the only one who has never flown a plane in real life.

If we had a squad motto it would be "go anywhere, fly anything" :)

B

[WTE_Galway]

Once you try online and full switch there is no going back. No AI can substitute that.


oh ... I would not say that.

I played online in dogfights, co-ops and VOW from 2001 to 2003/2004. Have not back been even once since and do not really miss it. SOW will not change that either. It will be the same sill people in a new sim. Then again I do not play offline that much either spend most of my time these days on skins, missions and campaigns :)

The one GOOD thing that I did like about online was flying in a squad.

[Bearcat]

I fly both... ohnline I prefer coops.. offline I will do singles, quicks, MMs, or campaigns.. or even a few coops as single missions..

[redbear]

I have long time that i do not fly but most of the time 95% is online the other is offline in QMB do some gunnery practices.

[Nitro]

Online-Offline 4/2..

I finished only one campaign offline and it's used mostly for practising gunnery or making movies etc.

I understand need for historical accuracy, but AI is not good enough to train dogfighting skills. At my squadron server, there is a plenty of historical missions and SEOW war campaigns with full realistic settings and it can not be replaced with offline campaign with AIs.

[csThor]

Gave up online long ago (although I'm always keeping an eye on the developements there) because online has degenerated into a steady ego-driven gangbang between various fighter types - essentially not much more than a "Shoot-em-up" in the air. A serious simulation of aerial warfare as it happened in WW2 is only possible offline as the AI doesn't have an ego that needs to be stroked. It won't b*tch and moan when it doesn't get the latest and best aircraft of the period (because it wasn't present in the operation I want to simulate), it will fly Il-2s, bombers, Stukas and the likes without yammering about being the poor target drone and it won't run to the nearest message board to whine and cry about just how biased I am ... :mrgreen:

No, online is in my opinion completely overrated unless dogfighting is all you're interested in. You can't do a serious simulation of aerial warfare with living people flying for their enjoyment, 'cause war isn't about having fun.

[HFC_Dolphin]

Gave up online long ago (although I'm always keeping an eye on the developements there) because online has degenerated into a steady ego-driven gangbang between various fighter types - essentially not much more than a "Shoot-em-up" in the air. A serious simulation of aerial warfare as it happened in WW2 is only possible offline as the AI doesn't have an ego that needs to be stroked. It won't b*tch and moan when it doesn't get the latest and best aircraft of the period (because it wasn't present in the operation I want to simulate), it will fly Il-2s, bombers, Stukas and the likes without yammering about being the poor target drone and it won't run to the nearest message board to whine and cry about just how biased I am ... :mrgreen:

No, online is in my opinion completely overrated unless dogfighting is all you're interested in. You can't do a serious simulation of aerial warfare with living people flying for their enjoyment, 'cause war isn't about having fun.

Hi csThor!

I do agree in almost all of your points, but the problem with IL-2 is that offline mode is extremely boring. AI is not good enough and the worse part is that...you feel alone.
You know well that combat flying experience has a lot to do with flying in formation, covering each other and taking tactical and strategic decisions. IL-2 just does not offer these options and the communication interface with AI is poor and non-effective. Not to mention the lack of a worthy campaign system.

And that's where online covers these holes. If you get some good company to fly with (which is difficult, I agree), you can fly and speak(!!!) to your wingman. You can ask him for help or save his ass when there is a bogie on his 6. Is there anything better than the feeling of guiding your wingman, who has a bogie on his 6, to the place where you can save him?
Is there any offline mode that can offer you this intense feeling?
Or the campaign system...All these online wars have offered maps and moving frontline and made us feel like we're actually doing something more than just flying. You can't underestimate the value of strategic options that good online campaigns offer.

And there's more, but you get the meaning.

Anyway, if your message referred more to the online dogfight servers, I couldn't agree more. Just another Quake arena, nothing more...

[csThor]

As I said - I think this "cooperative element" is overrated as it only applies to "the dogfight". There is no relation to the historical operations because noone will fly a single-seat Il-2, much less a whole gaggle of them, but will clamor for the latest fighters and fighter-bombers. People don't read the briefing, they don't care about historical backgrounds, either. I don't need to deal with this when creating offline stuff.

I did fly online for years, but I've grown out of it. My interest is military history and "reenactment" of individual operations, not just a sportive contest between several humans. However this "sportive element" is all online is about currently. Maybe SoW will allow for a drastic change by allowing AI units on dogfight servers (Coops are too time-intensive and too "canned" for me).

[Igo kyu]

Offline only. I am addicted to slowed time. I'm old and getting older, and my reaction times are slow. It would be nice to play with people, but I just don't have the reaction time to make that plausible.

[JG52Uther]

SoW would do well to have an option to get rid of individual points completely,and just award team points online.

[SlipBall]

SoW would do well to have an option to get rid of individual points completely,and just award team points online.



+1

[jasonbirder]

I understand need for historical accuracy, but AI is not good enough...dogfighting skills

I tend to think its onliners that are hung up on the importance of dogfighting...if we're thinking of IL2 as a simulation...it simply didn't happen very often...
I'm sure Human opponents are cleverer and more unpredictable opponenets in a maneuver situation...but hey in real life...human opponents were usually stupider and more predictable opponents than we find here vs both AI and online...
Onliners enjoy the challange of a dogfight...because essentially online is a person vs person skill and agility test with little relation to a historic World War 2 aerial simulation (you could substitute WW1 Aerial Combat, FPS's etc etc for WW2 Aerial Combat with little distinction)...it is difficult to make IL2 a realistic World War 2 aerial simulation because the environment we fly in is so sanitised and Oleg has given us a simplified flying experience and an extremely forgiving FM, but merely making your opponents less predictable (where in real life they would have been far more predictable...and far less likely to maneuver at anything like the limits of their planes abilities) doesn't improve it...

And most importantly...and its a big wake up call to the Onliners, but by the time Hurricanes, Wildcats, P40's, I16's and Lagg3's had been replaced by Spitfires, Mustangs, Lightnings, Thunderbolts, Corsairs and La7's...the war had already been won...

[Zoom2136]

Looks like we have a WW2 veteran here LMAO

100% Spits vs 109s... need I say more

[Rama]

but hey in real life...human opponents were usually stupider and more predictable opponents than we find here vs both AI .
They were trained for teamwork and usually tried to work as a team... so I disagree with this statement.
Most of the offliners and a good part of the onliners fly and fight solo... which has absolutly no relation with an historic WWII aerial simulation.

Onliners enjoy the challange of a dogfight...because essentially online is a person vs person skill and agility test with little relation to a historic World War 2 aerial simulation
Some do like you say.... but some onliners (not everybody, but more than a minority) enjoy teamwork and try to apply team tactics that you can relate to WWI fighting tactics.
That something you can't do offline in IL2. The colaboration with the AI wingmans is too basic.

[TheFamilyMan]

It's pretty much 50-50 for me. Most of my online time is on a private server with friends. We do mostly coops and occasionally DF mainly for training purposes. I dabble in HL DF servers but in the most part they irritate me due to the gross lack of discipline of most of the participants. As for which, a rant follows.

<soap_box>
I enjoy the simulated WWII aerial combat experience IL-2 can provide, and DF servers IMO have next to nothing to do with actual WWII aerial combat. No WWII pilot took off thinking "Where's that fur-ball...I'll show everyone who's best". For WWII pilots, it was about mission success and returning to base to do it again. And that is the kind of flying I do with my m8s; we're even toying with the idea "you get shot down, your evening is over" to up the ante. I jump onto the HL DF servers here and there and I find that the mindset is really not that much different than in the Unreal Tournament servers I've played. I totally agree it's fun, but it sure ain't much more than that: WWII combat immersion? forget it!

I'd even go so far as to say it possibly dishonors WWII vets to make something into an amusing past-time (especially those shooter games: CoD et. al.) for which they risked and lost their lives in service to their country. I honestly feel a bit guilty about this.
</soap_box>

[Foo'bar]

100% Online. I hate getting shot by bots... ;)

[dflion]

100% offline. I want a sense of purpose, historical plane sets, and a sense of immersion. I haven't tried many co-ops but certainly the dogfight servers don't offer that enough for my liking. What's more, offline you can really make full use of the FMB to create a 'world' whereas this is restricted online due to connection issues and soon.
I freely admit that the AI can be irritating sometimes but usually less so than human players, if the chat bar is anything to go by.

Please make a fully featured, replayable,immersive offline experience. I want to feel like I'm THERE!

I could not have said this any better, though I occasionally do play 'online' with my son over our LAN.
Quote from Pierre Clostermann's 'The Big Show' - pilot with the Alsace Squadron - "In the middle of the Channel I sensed things were going badly - we accelerated, 2,600 revs. and plus 6 boost, and climbed. (He was flying his Spitfire Mk.IXc NL-B during this mission)
The controller was getting on our nerves:
'Twenty-five Huns, over Abbeville, 15,000 feet, climbing.'
'Thirty plus over Saint-Omer, 20,000 feet, going west.'
'Fifteen plus 10 miles south of Hardelot, no height yet.'
'Forty plus 5 miles from the Big Boys, 25,000 feet, about to engage'.
The whole Luftwaffe was in the air today! things were going to get warm."

The above quote is what 'offline' campaigns are all about - trying to accurately recreate real historical events and then flying them in IL2 - even flying against AI aircraft, things can suddenly get very tough?

I am looking forward to the release of the 'Cross Channel Map Mod' for IL2 from the 352ndVFG, Clockwatcher and Ramjagger and of course BOB SOW to continue making 'offline' historical campaigns.

DFLion

[ElAurens]

Anyone who thinks they can recreate the WW2 air combat experience in any way, online or off, is out of their mind.

Really guys, it a freaking video game.

A very good one and one that I dearly love, but it's just a video game and none of you are in any danger of death or injury playing it.

Ergo, it can never approach the kind of realism you keep yapping about, as you fly from the comfort of your den, in your nice comfortable chair, with the volume of your speakers or headsets adjusted so as not to cause you to go deaf after 20 missions.

:rolleyes:

[dflion]

Anyone who thinks they can recreate the WW2 air combat experience in any way, online or off, is out of their mind.

Really guys, it a freaking video game.

A very good one and one that I dearly love, but it's just a video game and none of you are in any danger of death or injury playing it.

Ergo, it can never approach the kind of realism you keep yapping about, as you fly from the comfort of your den, in your nice comfortable chair, with the volume of your speakers or headsets adjusted so as not to cause you to go deaf after 20 missions.

:rolleyes:

I would like to disagree with you ElAurens - with IL2, Oleg has given us the tools to fairly closely recreate actual WWII combat missions - of course we are all sitting in our comfortable chairs and the thought of danger, death or injury is not really with us - what is with us are suberbly modelled WWII aircraft that sometimes do give you the feeling of flying the real thing (I fly 'real aircraft' privately from time to time and can compare).
The other big feature in IL2 is the FMB where you can recreate a WWII scenario, flak, airfield scenarios, light conditions and weather effects.

Two years ago we had Captain Eric 'Winkle' Brown come onto the forum, highly praising Oleg's WWII aircraft flight dynamics, his only real criticism was about the stick forces.

I have just finished reading Captain Brown's memoirs in his wonderful book 'Wings on my Sleeve'. He is the only man, who thankfully is still with us, that has flown every major and minor combat aircraft of WWII. The flight experiences described in his book with some of these WWII aircraft can very closely be matched in IL2 with Oleg's aircraft.

When Oleg releases BOB SOW and reading what he is saying from the latest posts, we will get a flight sim that will even more closely be able to simulate actual WWII combat experiences.

DFLion

[RCAF_FB_Orville]

Anyone who thinks they can recreate the WW2 air combat experience in any way, online or off, is out of their mind.

Really guys, it a freaking video game.

A very good one and one that I dearly love, but it's just a video game and none of you are in any danger of death or injury playing it.

Ergo, it can never approach the kind of realism you keep yapping about, as you fly from the comfort of your den, in your nice comfortable chair, with the volume of your speakers or headsets adjusted so as not to cause you to go deaf after 20 missions.

:rolleyes:

Hi ElAurens and ~S~ to all :-). I concur absolutely Sir. I am very new to posting on forums (though i have been reading them for years ) and my aversion to them in the past has been admittedly because some folk (bless em lol) seem to take IL2 as some kind of LIFE OR DEATH matter which amuses me no end :lol: Yeah, its as real as at present it is going to get.....but C'mon, end of the day its just a game.

RE: Online/off, at present 90% On 10% off; both have their pros and cons, which others have described very well. My main gripe with online is immature idiots/ego-maniacs who ruin the fun for everyone, but just as in LIFE, there are good and bad everywhere.....Call me an optimist but in my experience most folk in this community are decent, friendly and honourable people. When i am shot down by the better pilot (which happens frequently, believe me lol) I will always take the time to congratulate them, and i enjoy the contest no matter the outcome. Unfortunately, not everyone has this outlook, i think you know what I'm talking about hehe :???:

That said, nothing better than flying with people you know don't take themselves or a GAME too seriously, don't get me wrong.....In a co-op you have to too a certain extent, but NOT TOO MUCH! What is the point if not to have fun? :)

My Ha'Penny,

Best regards F/L Orville RCAF_FB

[RCAF_FB_Orville]

Addendum....I meant 90% OFF 10% on....Do'h! I have a terrible headache :grin:

[C6_Krasno]

80 % Online, 20 % Offline

What lacks in the offline mode, like Rama said, is a credible cooperation with wingmen ; this cooperation can be increadibly increased by the use of Teamspeak, online. But I like hand-made offline campaigns, too.

[DKoor]

I fly both... ohnline I prefer coops.. offline I will do singles, quicks, MMs, or campaigns.. or even a few coops as single missions..
Would be actually great if coop system gets upgraded somehow...
So we don't have to wait for a long time before enough people saddles up for start.
How to achieve that I don't know... but I do know that is one single thing that kills coops, which are, from my perspective best aspect of IL2.:cool:

[DKoor]

A serious simulation of aerial warfare as it happened in WW2 is only possible offline as the AI doesn't have an ego that needs to be stroked. It won't b*tch and moan when it doesn't get the latest and best aircraft of the period (because it wasn't present in the operation I want to simulate), it will fly Il-2s, bombers, Stukas and the likes without yammering about being the poor target drone and it won't run to the nearest message board to whine and cry about just how biased I am ... :mrgreen:
Well gotta say you have a point there... in a very comical way you've expressed some very valid points.:cool:

[Spinnetti]

100% offline..

tried hyperlobby years ago, but couldn't hang with the folks that flew online, it was just furballs.

[Lodestone]

90% online, 10% offline.

I hear what some of you are saying about immersion being better offline. That is true in most ways. And I agree that even though AI pilots can be a bit dim sometimes, at least they will not be abusive. But the place I fly online does not tolerate abuse, and the planesets are as historically based as one can hope for from a dogfight server. Teams are axis vs. allied, and as long as you don't dally down low in the flak over the bases, the flying is knuckle-whitening and the skill of the pilots you fly against is immeasurably higher that the AI. Throw in objective-based maps with ground targets and lots of variety, and I think that spells fun. I am talking about Skies~Of~Valor, which I help run. So if historical plane matchups are your thing, but you hate the abuse that can happen in many dogfight servers, stop in and say hi sometime.

I recently discovered Paul Lowengrin's DCG, however. That brilliant little piece of software has been keeping me up nights flying really cool dynamic campaigns in co-op, and even in single-player. If you haven't tried it, take the time to do so - it is truly fantastic.

See you up there!

[JoeA]

Well 80% offline and 20% online, though a lot less online now that most servers have jumped to the other side. I think coops are the best online experience, and there are some very well run dogfight servers but I never could handle the fact when you go bombing in one of them you're on your own usually. Otherwise nothing to add that hasn't been said already really.

[Kaptein_Damli]

20% online (mostly dogfightsservers with almost full switch like Warclouds, playing with two or three mates).
Rest is offline. I have begun one campaing and I see there is A LOT of more campaings to finish..Homever I am a moviemaker too, so most of the time goes in FMB to make mission for videos etc. It´s a long time I did a IL-2 movie, have been doing Lock On movies lately. I have a mission/idea for my next movie though, but it takes time!

Playing offline is fun, but the AI is stupid...or sometimes über..
What I like offline is the freedom to make own missions, fly whatever I want etc. Online is also a lot of fun, more fun if you have some mates on teamspeak covering your ass! If I play alone, I always end up in a furball being shot to pieces by hardcore player. Feel it´s more fun offline as I can choose the skill of the AI. I am not that bad, it´s just that when online, it´s the same persons shooting you down...and they maybe play just online to be good. Sometime I make my own server with only myself and some mates and we often have 2 on 2 battles. That´s a lot more fun than a big server because who know who you shot down! :-P Nothing can beat sneaking up on your friend, shooting off his wing and see him barely bail out and then make a perfect landing collecting 200 points! :cool:

[Thunderbolt56]

...Sometime I make my own server with only myself and some mates and we often have 2 on 2 battles. That´s a lot more fun than a big server because who know who you shot down! :-P Nothing can beat sneaking up on your friend, shooting off his wing and see him barely bail out and then make a perfect landing collecting 200 points! :cool:


The good thing about this sim is it CAN cater to whatever flavor ice cream you like to eat. Personally, the description you provide of shooting down friends, is exactly why i don't fly just COOPs or closed servers. I get little enjoyment from flying around for a couple hours shooting squaddies. The only time it was fun was when we were having a training session on a closed server and before everyone showed up a couple of us started brawling...I bailed and a squaddie popped me in my chute. We all had a good laugh and even after the rest of the squad showed up we were all so intent on chute-killing each other (and laughing our respective arses off to boot!) that the training never took place. But if all I could do was fly about shooting down my squadmates online I'd quit.

my .02c

[yarbles]

95% offline, 5% online

no online experience can replicate the anxiety or stress I get when flying a 100+ 'dead-is-dead' missions offline. flying online and furballin' quake style, you expect to die, respawn, die, repeat.. no real feeling of anxiety because there is no consquence to dying like having all of your online stats wiped or having you dofight score reset to zero. don't get me wrong - online is fun and i've flown some wonderful coops but most folks put zero emphasis on staying alive and RTB'ing.

[Zoom2136]

95% offline, 5% online

no online experience can replicate the anxiety or stress I get when flying a 100+ 'dead-is-dead' missions offline. flying online and furballin' quake style, you expect to die, respawn, die, repeat.. no real feeling of anxiety because there is no consquence to dying like having all of your online stats wiped or having you dofight score reset to zero. don't get me wrong - online is fun and i've flown some wonderful coops but most folks put zero emphasis on staying alive and RTB'ing.

Well I came up with an idea that could of made that possible (stress & anxiety) but the guys I pitched it to were not willing to try it... wonder why...

Its actually quite simple have everybodies nuts on the server hooked up to a 12V card batteries... when you get killed online your PC sends a little input via a USB link to a "relay" that closes the circuit and zap the nuts of the guy that got killed... I think that it would make for mor cautious flying LMAO...

[brando]

LOL Zoom - but are you gonna wear one yourself (and where do you fly)? :)

As Thunderbolt said, the game really does cater to any flavour - and as far as flying with like-minded folk is concerned, well it just needs you to find them. I've been flying with a core group of pals for many years - and keeping up a 'feud' with a rival group too - and we've all had a lot of fun over the years. No doubt we've all got well-fried testicles by now ;)

It doesn't have to all be 'fun' though. We fly fairly full-switch some of the time - although one of our members is in his seventies and we usually use short icons when he's on, to allow for his eyesight. But none of it seems to have lost its appeal over time. It's one of the best games I know of.

B

[Dark_P]

50/50 for me

But i need to fly offline to boost my ego sometimes, offline i can be the new Hartmann or Bud Anderson xD , witch dont work that good online lol

[Tata]

90% online

[FAE_Cazador]

Mostly Onliner

Offline for bombing & gunnery training, and to retake situational awareness when grounded for too many days, because working abroad.

[robtek]

98% online,

everything else is.....just a game :-)

btw, mostly i fly as groundpounder, 110, 87, 88, 109, 190, Hurri, p40, a20, beaufighter... always with dropable ordonance

[Golf Pro]

100% Offline, because I hugely prefer ground-pounding to dog-fighting.

A good offline Sturmo or P-47 etc. campaign where the mission builder has really set up a convincing battlefield is THE most immersive experience in IL-2.