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Written by Joey
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Wednesday, 18 November 2009 15:49 |
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Arma2 vs Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising Okay, not really versus, more like a comparison. I'm a few months behind on getting both of these games. I bought OFDR a week or two before I got Arma2. I had read quite a few bad reviews on OFDR, but it looked fun to me so I thought I would try it anyway. I saw a few videos or Arma2 and the reviews were raving that it was the best tactical shooter out there. So for the sake of this article I will break the games down into sections and give my opinion/rating (1-5) for each. VIDEO
OFDR: 4
Arma2: 2
The graphics for OFDR are pretty realistic compared to the graphics in Arma2 which look cartoonish and low-res. Arma2 has several video options to tweak and even after setting them to low (on an i7, 8gig, 9800gt box) the game is still sluggish in spots. Arma2 adds detail to textures and models as you get closer to them. The developers need a few more LOD stages because there is an obvious change from low-res model to high-res model as they "pop" into view as you move.The foliage in Arma2 can look nice if you push the graphics way up, but it takes a monster machine to run the game at high settings. The overall visual representation in OFDR is quite effective...nice colors, great lighting system and the fog/weather/time of day visuals are convincing. The evening/early morning missions are on both games offer real time sun rise/sun set that really adds to the immersion.
One of the biggest factors in rating the video is the fact that in Arma2 if the enemies are far enough away, there will be no foliage displayed around them. This means if I am shooting at you from farther out than you have your display settings set to, then you will see me in the open and not concealed behind the brush that I think I am using to my advantage. OFDR is not like that. Audio
OFDR: 5
Arma2: 2 The sound in Arma2 just sucks. Some of the ambient sounds in the trees and farms are nice, but the voice and radio stuff is laughable. Add that to the unrealistic sound effect of bullets hitting near you (it sounds like dropping marbles onto a hard surface) and there is no comparison here to OFDR. Sound in OFDR is really good. I've been hiding in the brush when a team mate fires his rifle behind me and it literally made me jump. All of the weapon sounds are realistic. The vehicle sound are OK along with the ambient sounds. The radio chatter/orders are lightyears ahead of Arma2. Interface:
OFDR: 3
Arma2: 1 Neither of these games offer a clean and simple way to give orders to your squad. OFDR has a circular menu that uses the WASD keys to navigate through. You have to use it twice to get all of the orders you need sometimes, but it works. It took a little while to learn and serves its purpose, but its not the most intuative system in the world.
The interface/commands menus with Arma2 really make the fun/jump in and play aspect drop significantly. You will literally have to study the manual and training missions to understand how to do some of the most basic tasks. Controlling AI squadmates is like trying to solve a Rubicks Cube while being shot at. This is probably the worst command implementation on any game I have ever played.
The menu system is to complex in Arma2, but the only instance it is useful is with the vehicles. On the planes you have to raise/lower the landing gear and flaps. It's a lot closer to a flight sim than a game, which I like because of the challenge of flying in a combat situation. OFDR has the normal vehicle controls and they behave more like a game than a sim. The helo controls feel a little sloppy compared to Arma2.
The weapons in both games calculate drift and gravity while firing which adds to the realism. For me the weapons on Arma2 feel a little spongy compared to the weapons in OFDR.
Single Player:
OFDR: 4
Arma2: 2
I'm judging this section based on completing half of the SP missions for each game. OFDR cuts to action pretty quickly and the combat gets more difficult and happens more often as you progress. I really enjoy the single player missions on OFDR. Arma2 is slow to build in comparison, and there is much more time spent moving from one place to another versus shooting.
OFDR offers mission save points on the map. If you travel to that spot on the map, the game is saved and you can start from the spot in the mission when you are killed. Arma2 makes you start the missions over from the beginning from what I have played so far.
Multiplayer:
OFDR: 3
Arma2: 3 OFDR doesnt have as many people playing MP as Arma2. This is the only reason I didnt score it higher than Arma2. So far my 20+ hours of multiplayer have been to waste 10 minutes trying to get to the combat location to be sniped by someone from 700m away, wait 120seconds to respawn, repeat. Some people swear that Arma2 is the best MP combat game ever made.....I'm not there yet.
I did have some friends over to play OFDR one weekend. We played the co-op missions until 4:00am. It was one of the best gaming experiences I have ever had. So obviously I enjoy OFDR more than Arma2. Its much more of an immersive experience for me than Arma2. With that being said, I have been playing Arma2 more than OFDR lately. Mainly to learn the impossibly complex menu system and to try to see what the big deal over the multiplayer is. I wanted Arma2 to be the new game of choice that I compete in, but right now its not. |
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Last Updated on Monday, 23 November 2009 04:25 |
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Written by Joey
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Thursday, 29 January 2009 21:47 |
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I have never been a social networking person....or even social in general...... but I setup a Facebook account for me and Gee. It's pretty hip so far, about like I expected, but the real suprise is how Gee used it. She moved here from Louisiana when she was a teenager. She ran a search for some of her highschool friends and found a few. Within a few minutes she was IMing with one of them. Gee doesnt get too excited about technology (unless its the DVR, which she has mastered). I can come in raving about some new hardware or feat of technological brilliance I have just discovered and she looks at me with "the look" and gives me the "thats great sweety...." She seemed to have alot of fun with this so I was kind of suprised. So now I'm trying to get my business involved with all the people that Facebook has access to. RSS onto the wall would be great... But no such luck unless I do it one article at a time. I have figured out how to get the RSS into the notes section (I think). So congradulations, you have just served as my gunniea pig for testing it. |
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Written by Joey
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Friday, 30 January 2009 20:50 |
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I was just talking to a friend of mine on the phone. He is self employed as well and we were trading stories about clients, the economy, outsourcing, etc. He said I should share this story on my blog, so here goes... A few years ago when I first started my business, I had one client that was the majority of my work. The client sent me jobs every week. Not big jobs, but it was steady work. This went on for over a year. Then over the course of a couple of months the work from this client slowed to almost nothing. I got a call from a guy that worked for my client that I had worked with prior at another job. He tells me that my client had been getting his graphics work done in China. I had guessed that was happening earlier but I didn't want to admit it. The next week my client calls me and asks me to adjust the view on a 3D model. I normally built the 3D models and generated the views for him. I said I would adjust the view but that I was charging him for a complete job. He accepted but was not happy about it. I received the file via email and opened it up. All of the entity names were in garbled text and ascii characters...the model was from a chinese version of the software for sure. I adjusted the view and sent the image to him. He called to discuss it and I questioned him about outsourcing his work to China. He said it was just an experiment and told me, "you are still our guy". A couple of weeks go by with no jobs and I get a call from my friend again. He tells me they are still using the source in China for their 3D work. I'm not surprised by this, they had mislead me on a few occasions before. I'm freaked out by the sudden loss of income so I start concentrating on getting more/better clients. Another week or so goes by and I'm still freaking out. My wife brings a stack of paperwork out there to me and shows me that my income has remained the same even after I stopped doing work for this guy. Gee has a very......stern.... attitude towards things like this. She backs me up on these things, thats one of the reasons I'm so crazy about this chic. We were about to move into a bigger house so I was worried about the money. I do good work so I knew that wasn't the issue. Gee told me I wasn't listening because the universe was telling me I needed to change things..........looking back now, she was right. Another couple of weeks go by and out of the blue I get a call from my (ex)client. He was on his cell phone on the way back from a meeting with his biggest and most long term client (decades). His client, an architectural firm, had just shown him this new program called SketchUp. He told my client that he didnt need his services anymore and that my client should learn the program (no chance in hell of that happening). My client asks me if I knew Sketchup.....I told him yes, and that I use it evey day. This is the rest of the conversation: Client- "Do you really think that will take the place of what I do?" Me- "Eventually yes. Why would he want one view when he can generate as many as he wants for a fraction of the cost?" Client- "Can we work out some kind of deal where I get the job and you do the 3D work? My whole family works for me, what do you think will happen?" Me- "I'll tell you exactly what will happen...... He will get someone in China to do the work for nothing and not call you anymore." There was a uncomfortable long pause that seemed to last minutes. I could still hear the sound of traffic on the phone. I didnt speak either, I was to busy realizing what a bitch karma is. Moral of the story? Don't outsource. |
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Written by Joey
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Wednesday, 26 November 2008 21:44 |
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I get calls from people every week that ask if I buy old PC's. I dont, but these PC's still have a lot of value to someone with no computer, kids, etc. I take old (free) PC's to refurbish and pass on. Here is a list of things that I pull from when recycling computers. Install Ubuntu or some version of it (depending on the hardware).People with no knowledge of computers haven't been spoiled by Micro$oft yet. Ubuntu operates like XP in most ways, and the cool thing about it is the availability of free applications right from the desktop. There are productivity apps, games, graphic tools, etc. Most of these are equivalent to their M$ counterparts, but free.
Your grandmother doesn't care if the rest of the world uses Outlook. They just want to get an email from their grandson. A free yahoo email address and Thunderbird is all they will need for quite some time. Everyone should be using Thunderbird anyway. :)
Open OfficeYep. It comes with Ubuntu, but if you keep Windows as the OS installing Open Office is a good idea. I use OO exclusivley in my studio, I wont install M$ Office on any of my boxes again. The latest release keeps everything compatible with M$ Office. It has a smaller footprint than Office and you guessed it.....it's free. CRT Monitors You can get a 19" CRT for nothing now. Businesses are giving these away when they upgrade. For some reason if you give a kid a used computer with a giant monitor, they think it's a super computer. A lot of these monitors have a few years left in them, and it's good for the planet.Older peoplereally like big monitors and low resolution desktop settings!! :) Antivirus AVGfree. For a free Windows AV app you cant beat it. I've tried them all and AVG is the best of the bunch. If you use Ubuntu, you may not even need an AV app. Install it and set the updates to daily. Explain to the person getting the PC what it is and what it will do. Remote DesktopI usually install some sort of remote desktop app. If I know the person, I can answer questions, give tutorials, etc. If you use Ubuntu, you can connect to it using UltraVNC in Windows. If youhave windows on the recycled box, you can use Teamviewer. Teamviewer is a no install remote desktop app that runs over a secure password protected connection. Media Player Everyone wants to listen to music or some type of audio file. In Ubuntu I use VLC, in Windows I like Winamp. CD BurnerMost of the PCs I've refurbished have had CD Burners. Theres a few options for software here, Ubuntu works out of the box. XP also has a built in burning app, but it's.....lacking. I use CDBurnerXP instead. General info
Once you get this stuff installed, test it! Try to set things up so it will be easy for the user to operate. A new user will be afraid to touch anything. Iin Windows use the Quick Launch area in the task bar for icons. In Ubuntu add every program they will use often to the task bar.
Set Google as their homepage and install an instant messenger app complete with account. I made a document that they can open in Open Office. This has instructions that walks them through simple things like changing wallpaper, copy & paste, etc.I'll also include their email, IM names, passwords, etc. Normally I can set up Ubuntu and all the stuff listed above in a little over an hour. Total cost of the rebuild using the apps above = $0.00
If 5 or 6 of us nerd types pulled together and built a couple of these freebie boxes each, we could supply a school with a computer lab.
Something to think about.
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