Report 012 Extra: Battle Scenario news

This time it is not an actual new report, but instead a continuation of the last one.
In the previous report there were significant additions in the mechanics that weren’t talked about in detail.

This extra also takes the opportunity to explain better some of the features already implemented in the game.

To start off with the meta data:

META DATA
The meta data is a small amount of information that helps organizing every unit in the game:

-Role
(Fighter, bomber, awacs, recon, etc)
-Production Type
(Mass Production like the F-22, Prototype like Mirage 4000, Concept like F-16 FSW and Fictional like Mig-37)
-Active Year
(the year that first flight or entered service)
-Deactive Year
(the year that was removed from service)
-NoCombatant
(If the unit is not armed)

Note 1: About the concepts in the production type, some of them have very little information available and will be very difficult do replicate the original design.

So it is possible some concept types may not be 100% accurate)

Note 2: Aside from the Mass Produced, the active and deactive years of the other types may be imagined.

The usefulness of this data is to allow sorting the playable units, especial when the playable list becomes really big.

Also, it automatically allows newly added units to be available in a battle scenario that request units from a specific time window or other conditions.
And other use is to easily create an aircraft list for the AI to use in the Skirmish mode. (For example: Allowing only Mass Production types active in 1992)

GAME MODES
More modes will be added later, but this is the modes that will be available in the first release:

-Campaign Mode

The standard mode, it is a string of missions connected together that may or may not have story or background information (it is up to the choice of the creator/Modder).

A thing to note, it is already possible to have a nonlinear mission progression; this free flow of the missions can be either strait and linear or very complex. (Again, is up to the creator/Modder to choose)

Some examples of possible mission flows:

However, at it is now, the branching is resulted only by in game actions (for example letting a specific target escape, or clearing the mission using certain amount of time), but in the near future it will be possible to the branching results from decisions made in mission time and outside of it.

Another feature of the campaign mode, already implemented, is the aircraft/weapons unloackable system. It can be by simple mission progression, or by experience accumulated by the player, from a specific aircraft, or purchasing the aircrafts using money earned from the missions. Every campaign can be configured (by the creator) differently, and can use only one or all of the methods simultaneously.

Note: campaign mode also includes the free mission mode, allowing the user to play
any previous cleared mission.

-Skirmish (not implemented yet)

This mode will be more like a Quick Battle, where the player setup the rules, enemies, etc and play. More info will be available when the actual mode is added. But the meta data will be useful to exclude non Combatant units from the death matches and other modes.

-Battle Scenario.

This mode is the single mission mode. It is like a trimmed down campaign mode with only one mission, but it can also be integrated with story or background information.

The battle scenario also has the advantage of automatically add to the selection every available plane (if it is in the mission requirements). In other hand, the campaign mode must use a static list, unchanged even if the user adds more planes to the game.

The battle scenario is as well a good place to add more exotic missions and not
directly related to combat (like recon or others).

To test that as an example, it was added a mission to figure it out what was the fastest climber in the current aircraft list.

This missions it isn’t a true representation to the actual test because the takeoff/landing feature it is not been added yet, so the mission starts at near sea level in almost stall speed.

It was a quick and very fun mission to do and will be useful to test the performance of newer aircrafts.

Of course the competition was shattered when it was added these two planes:

In game shot of the F-15 Streak Eagle:

In game shot of the P-42 (Su-27):

These two are the most recent record breakers in speed climbing, so any other aircraft will have a thought time in beating them.

By the way, a sneak peak of the next report:

• Added F-15 Streak Eagle Aircraft
• Added P-42 Aircraft

Stay tuned, more reports will follow.