Article Type: Trade Show
Article Date: May 17, 2001
Lock On: Modern Air Combat (LOMAC)
 |
| LOMAC: Splash Screen |
LOMAC is SSI's follow-up to Flanker 2.x. What you always wished Flanker 2.x had, you'll see in LOMAC. Flyable US planes such as the F-15C and the A-10 come immediately to mind both of which I got a chance to fly around in. The A-10 was simply a joy to fly and opening up on a column of vehicles with that Vulcan cannon was too much fun.
 |
| LOMAC: Carl Norman takes A-10 for a spin |
First impressions: colors and lighting are far better. Gone are the pastel blues of the Flanker cockpits and the washed-out looking terrains and in their place are darker, more oppressive colors (but in a good way) that give everything from the cockpits to the terrain a heavier, more solid, more real look about them. Terrains are completely new and are far more varied in elevation and there are now trees too. Not just randomly placed trees either; I flew over one road that had trees on either side and looked very pastoral indeed . . . after spending a few moments waxing romantic about the trees, I got down to business and wiped out a column of vehicles (ain't I a stinker).
 |
LOMAC: F-16  |
From speaking with Producer, Matt Wagner, I learned that LOMAC will neither be a survey sim (many planes but with same basic systems and interfaces) nor a study sim (one or two aircraft with very authentically detailed systems). It'll be the best of both, many planes with each plane's individual systems authentically modeled. Not that you'll be able to fly all the planes, but you will be able to fly those that count.
 |
| LOMAC: Doors slide open. You taxi out. |
In the audio department, sound effects are completely new and will be more robust and "visceral" as Matt put it. Speech will also be completely new and each side's wingmen and controllers will have the appropriate accents. Speaking of comms, Matt tells us that they are planning (and he stressed the word "planning") on a multi-radio frequency environment where you will be able to issue commands and / or requests to wingmen on one channel, your element on another, your flight on yet another channel, and AWACS, GCI, Tower, and Approach Control all on their own channels. Now that's immersion.
 |
| LOMAC: Heavies (sitting ducks?) |
Also in the planning / development stage for LOMAC is what Matt calls the Dynamic Battle Generator (DBG). The DBG is, for all intents and purposes, a dynamic campaign engine but they want to get away from that term because to date many sims with so-called dynamic campaigns either weren't or were buggy. Can't say I blame him. And, to be fair, the DBG is what its name implies: it's a battle generator (which just happens to also be dynamic in that damage inflicted and resources used are kept track of from one battle to the next). With the DBG, you start off by selecting a small, medium, or large target. The DBG then returns a list of possible missions from which you may choose. You then select a mission and the DBG builds it. You can also refine your battle by choosing the type of mission you want such as a CAP or SEAD for example. As for the dynamic portion of the DBG, like I said above, it will keep track of the damage you inflict and the resources you use, but what's also nice is that any and all targets of opportunity you destroy will also be kept track of in addition to your assigned primary and secondary targets.
 |
| LOMAC: Tornado |
Now, as many of you who currently fly or have tried Flanker know, that game is a bit, well, dry. Authentic simulation, yes, but gameplay wise, well, there wasn't really much. Now, in LOMAC, there will be a storyline, victory / failure conditions, and pilot logs for those of you who want to be able to put your stats where your mouth is. The background story, premise if you will, is that Russia and Ukraine have decided to blockade all shipments of oil from the Caspian Sea bound to Turkey. Seems that Russia and Ukraine want a cut of the profits or something. Your job, as a NATO pilot, is to open up that blockade and destroy the blockading force's ability to maintain their stand against Western interests. Hmmm? Sounds kinda familiar, eh?
Matt also told me that LOMAC is primarily a land-based aircraft sim. Taking off from aircraft carriers will only be done by secondary aircraft and that the whole naval warfare angle will be played down.
Sub Command
I spent a good deal of time talking about Sub Command with Sonalyst's Game Developer, Jamie Carlson and Vice President, Kim Castro. Again, we just did a series of preview pieces on this title so there isn't a whole lot new to report. Toward the end of our discussion, however, Jamie happened to mention (in a rather "oh, yeah, did I mention that . . .?" sort of way) the fact that they have embedded a voice command utility into Sub Command. Um, yeah, that would be something we didn't know until now. From what I understand, the voice commands will be for the basic navigational orders such as "Come Left," "Come Right," "Full Ahead," "Dive," etc.
On a side note, I asked Kim Castro how he felt about the current state of consumer military simulations and he was decidedly upbeat about things. In fact, he mentioned that they are still very interested in pursuing the idea of developing a sim along the lines of the oft spoken about, but heretofore unrealized, fully integrated electronic battlefield. Not just subs, but surface ships and aircraft and land-based vehicles and troops all of which would be in the same theatre at the same time and all playable.
Given the impressive size and scope of Sonalysts operations in Connecticut (they have over five hundred employees working on their 70 acre campus and they do everything from top secret defense contracts to Hollywood movies on their own sound stages) I think they could actually pull it off. As Jamie said to me, "We aren't some garage operation." No kidding!
Sub Command should be released this summer.
 |
| Sonalysts: 70 acres of diversification |
Operation Flashpoint
This innovative 1st / 3rd person tactical troop combat game looks to be coming along very nicely. I only had about five minutes with it and from what I saw of the gameplay, there wasn't anything we haven't already seen in the official and hacked demos that came out some weeks ago.
 |
| Operation Flashpoint: grenade throw |
About the only thing new I got a chance to see was the player selection interface. I'm not sure who was screaming for this feature, but it looks like they listened to whoever it was who wanted to be able to choose the type of glasses your player wears (sunglasses or spectacles). Apparently there are also plans to incorporate your own mug as the face on the player . . . should make for some interesting multiplayer sessions I bet. Release date is planned for late August - early September.
 |
| Operation Flashpoint: Man and tank |
Commandos II
Well, this looks very cool, I must say. If you liked Commandos you'll really enjoy part deux. Now everything is truly 3D. You can rotate everything in the environment from your external point of view to the actual buildings themselves. Your commandos can now climb up rope ladders and even brick walls! I thought that was pretty cool then they showed me how your commando can grab onto overhead powerlines and go hand-over-hand on the lines to move from one locale to another. Turns out it's a very stealthy mode of travel too (I forgot to ask about getting electrocuted, but who cares, it's a hoot!)
 |
| Commandos II: Colditz Castle |
What is also very cool is that if your commando is reconing a building he can look through a window and a popup window will show you what is inside the room you are looking into. In other words, you don't need to actually enter a building to see what's inside. This may seem like nothing special but you have to see it to appreciate how clever (and useful) a feature it really is.
You can also command allied troops in Commandos II but their movements are somewhat less diverse as you or your fellow commandos. You can give them basic commands such as "Defend" or "Attack". Overall the movement animations look much improved too. I played the original Commandos and I do recall driving the trucks but I'm not sure about planes; at any rate, you'll be able to fly planes too in Commandos II.
 |
| Commandos II |
If I'm reading my smudged notes correctly, there will be twelve levels, max resolution is 1024x768, and release date . . . er, let me get back to you.
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon
A follow-up to Rogue Spear? Not! Ghost Recon, according to Red Storm Vice President of Product Development, Steve Reid, is a whole new franchise. Says Reid, "We took a lot of the suggestions for features that we couldn't put into Rainbow Six or Rogue Spear and put them into Ghost Recon." From what I saw, I'd have to agree. Lots of open terrain (maps are 400 meters by 400 meters), lots of newer, bigger, badder weapons, and a lot less pre-planning of waypoints and kit selection. I asked if Ghost Recon was an attempt to compete for the hearts and minds of those players of the Counter-Strike mod for Half-Life and I got a non-commital "hrumpf" and what I thought was a smile (but I'm not sure). What follows is lifted from their press release on this latest addition to Red Storm's 1st person, squad-based tactical shooter line-up.
In Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon™ you are invited to lead this brand-new squad as they focus on covert military strikes and international peacekeeping missions that do not always go as planned. You and your team conduct extensive missions on foot, but you'll occasionally have assistance from troops in tanks, helicopters and close air support. In many cases, you'll be working with international military forces and NATO to fight against rising dictators and rebel groups. Be prepared to scope out the defenses of an enemy, blow up bridges to stop an advance, raid rebel bases, and rescue an American pilot who gets shot down deep in enemy territory.
The Ghosts are also the guinea pig squad for testing the Army's latest and greatest equipment and weaponry while under fire. You'll have access to the latest weapons such as an M-16 assault rifle with a grenade launcher mounted underneath. Or, you could be responsible for the M-136 Anti-Tank Rocket that you'll carry on your back.
Release is slated for Q4 2001.
