** F-14 Development Update: December 2018 **

The buttons look like squares when not pressed and when pressed in and selected they rotate as you push them in, becoming diamonds.

 

They are also mutally exclusive so pushing one in forces the previous one out.

Thanks a lot for the info :thumbup:

They told you what you were getting. If you feel otherwise, you deceived yourself. I'm sorry if this seems a bit harsh, but I remember post after post after post dictating exactly what you were getting and what was to be expected from Eagle Dynamics.

 

I do not understand these comments, when you were explicitly told what you were receiving. Nobody forced you to buy it. I'm glad they made it early access personally. I don't think waiting an additional year or two for me to be able to purchase and enjoy the F/A-18C would have been worth the wait.

 

As the former owner and executive officer of a software company, the same rationale of wanting to have as bug free and feature complete release as possible can be a slippery slope. That mindset actually bankrupted my business. If I had released what I had in development at the time and my team fixed bugs and issues as they came up instead, I would probably still be in business. That is why I don't mind early access for DCS. If anything, it helps us get a better product.

 

For example, if Razbam had waited to release the Mirage 2000 until last year, it honestly might not have been as good as it is now or will be next year. Since it was released, a lot of feedback was provided to the devs and fixes rolled out. The AdA took an interest and is helping them better the module. If they hadn't released in early access a few years ago, it might not have even been in the same shape right now and the AdA either might not have taken an interest or not decided to help until a few years from now.

 

As far as the F-14, it's obvious the RIO pit isn't complete from the lack of screenshots and I'd wager that's the major hold up.

You completely missed the point of the post entirely. At no time did I say I was not aware of what I was getting. At no time did I say I was unhappy about being a part of EA. The entirety of the post was a hope to see a change in the trend of what ED and other developers have allowed to become a norm.

When the Hornet was released, it was practically a bare-bones plane with minimal features. Yes, I knew that was going to be the case when I bought it. But, it shouldn't be the norm when it comes to combat sims, that we as EA participants have to test if the plane even flies correctly. That stage of development should be done in-house.

I may not love the fact that it's not going to make 2018, but I give loads of respect to the HB team for sticking to their quality guns even knowing the pressures of releasing.

Some in the community want it as perfect as possible before release, and is sick of F-18 style EA. Some like to play it as long as it's not breaking the game no matter what state it's in, ala the F-18's first release. I fall into the latter camp, but I can't help but respect HB's decision here.

I also think communication like this is exceptional. Laying out the reasons there isn't a release, reasons why they won't give a hard date, and sticking to the core ideals of what they believe in as a developer that is different from other developers across the gaming industry.

I may be getting really tired of waiting for this aircraft, but I know it will be worth the wait in the end, and I know they want this out in our hands as much as we do. So thank you for the clear, reasonable communication and (even though I hate the wait) thank you for sticking to who you are. I love flying the F-18 even in it's current state and very glad to have it, but I also know when the F-14 comes out, it'll be much further along.

You honestly believe Eagle Dynamics had actual F/A-18 pilots in house to help them get the flight model as close to the real thing as possible before early access release?

 

I don't.

 

This is a business and they may be passionate about aircraft at Eagle Dynamics, but they don't do this for free. Telling them that they and their families need to survive on instant noodles because you didn't receive the full combat capabilities of the most detailed virtual recreation of a combat aircraft on day 1 of its early access release, is insane.

 

No software company can sustain releasing one highly polished and meticulously detailed product every 5 years to a small audience, while having to pay employees every day of those 5 years. It just doesn't work and I would rather they spam out modules into early access and take years to complete them, than see my favorite developer go out of business.

ED has stated in simple terms that they have SME's available for consult. Those SME's can be held to an NDA and given a copy of the module(s) in question to test if even basic functions perform correctly.

EVERY manufacturing/development company assumes some risk when developing a new product; whether it's developing a house, car, boat, train, or a module for our favorite sims. It should not become a norm where a product is released at a stage where basic functions don't work. We don't buy a house to see if the roof can repel rain, a car to see if that when we turn the steering wheel, the wheels actually turn, or a boat, to see if it actually floats. All of that is tested in house.

I'm not asking, nor have I ever said, that I expect a module to be feature complete. In that regards, get off your high horse, and stop putting words in my mouth. Sorry if I'm being condescending, but you kind of tweaked a nerve.

All I am asking for, and hope Heatblur is going to live up to, is their promise that they are going to give us early access to a product that is more in a beta stage, than one that is/was in pre-alpha.

If you say so.

Exactly, thank you for proving my point. At no point does it say ANYWHERE in ANY of those quotes that I expect a feature complete module.

MERRY CHRISTMAS BABY!!!!

Love The Great Work Ethic of this Company!!!:santa:

Love The Great Work Ethic of this Company!!!:santa:

They do nice work but we still don't have a complete Viggen manual after two years and it is still in early access.

HEAT BLUR you had me at Dear all:

//rant on

I'll just wait to buy it when it's done. I have been down this road before with other products..

If there's was a publisher, this would have been released by now or cancelled. Perfectionism which isn't a bad trait but this isn't a full fledged training simulation.

No product is ever perfect.. what exactly is the showstopper (s)?

Not arguing.... but this is a pattern with a pause and then an update. It seems you guys are setting expectation high and higher and product isn't released. Trying to create a new level .. great! But you can always upgrade it later to another level afterwards.

I'll follow the updates but you're killing the enthusiasm for me... Another setback because we aren't happy.. again.. how long have we been waiting?

Regardless how you look at it, ED is the only game in town and they will always upgrade the base...

I know some are going to take this personal - it's the internet - get over it.

\\ rant off

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"Unfortunately development pressures make it more difficult than ever to produce our desired level of promotional content, but do expect an uptick on this ASAP"

Let's be honest here..this big old beautiful bird does a pretty good job of selling herself! :thumbup:

VF-74...

They do nice work but we still don't have a complete Viggen manual after two years and it is still in early access.

I'd say the most obvious thing is that you still can't set a radio freqency in the Viggen (stuck to 123.45 MHz, comms work against any station regardless), but at the same time this never was a real problem for me at least

If there's was a publisher, this would have been released by now or cancelled.

Well that's why 99% of the products that have a separate publisher are [insert bad word of your liking here] nowadays when they come out

what exactly is the showstopper (s)?

Most probably it's the artwork of the RIO's 'pit, Cobra said it's still running the "chromecat" one which means it's lacking textures at least to some extent.

I did see some textures for the RIO cockpit in glimpses/half-scenes from the pre-order trailer, but just going off of that. Could be lacking more than we may be able to imagine.

Cobra, thanks for the update. Thanks for working so hard to be able to meet all expectations for such a complex module.

It will be ready when it's ready so I'll seat back practice on other modules...

Once again, thanks and Merry Christmas... :)

Reading some of the threads on Heatblur's section regarding the release dates, I see that Heatblur's marketing team seem to retain that elusive, pain in the back* quality that seems to drive some of their customers nuts right from the MiG-21 days.

I feel that pain, I was once on this road with the MiG and I told myself never again. Glad I didn't get tempted by the promises.

*Edited

//rant on

Decision to wait to purchase until release is a good one for you and Kunz, based on your perspectives. So, with that decision made, all I have to say to you guys is:

:)

Thank you for the comprehensive briefing. I for one am very patient and will be very happy with what I get first day....no I won’t read the manual but take for a spin

, find a a carrier and hopefully trap first time...then go read the manual ????

Hats off to the team, I have limited software skills. So mega impressed

Looking forward to it.

You honestly believe Eagle Dynamics had actual F/A-18 pilots in house to help them get the flight model as close to the real thing as possible before early access release?

 

I don't.

 

I do. In fact, by watching and reading this forum, and the comments to YouTube videos carefully, one may even get an idea about who...

I also do not really share the sentiment about the "state the Hornet was in when going early access". On the contrary. We got a jet with the exact amount of features announced for early access and all worked. As stated the flight model was and still is tweaked, but you could start, fly the plane, do carrier landings and drop dumb bombs on day one. Navigation, AAR, and even rudimentary BVR with AIM-7 was possible, let alone ACM.

I too like early access, as long as the limited functionality at the start, does not block the overall functionality. An example is the AV-8B Harrier from Razbam, where the CCIP and AUTO modes and symbology where wrong from day one and still prevent proper use of bombs. Not that I don't like the plane or there are not enough other options to train, but I would have preferred a correct working HUD symbology for dumb bomb delivery, over AIM-9 and FLIR etc.

From my point of view it is crucial that early access at least provides a clearly defined and working feature set. A basic placeholder or "to be refined later" is not good enough. Limited features are absolutely ok, but they need to be finished and working correctly, before an early access. At least I would expect, if bugs are coming up in these systems, that these get priority and are fixed ASAP, like we have seen with the Hornet.

Just my two cents.

I'd say the most obvious thing is that you still can't set a radio freqency in the Viggen (stuck to 123.45 MHz, comms work against any station regardless), but at the same time this never was a real problem for me at least

I don't have any problems changing frequency. Just turn the knobs and press the "-" button

One request. Please give us month by month support on the F-14 even if you start developing another plane. The six months of minor support on the Viggen during your 6 month grind on developing the F-14 was painful. I know I shouldn't have bought the Viggen at that time but didn't know it had become broken and wasn't going to get support until the F-14 was near completion.

 

On the good side though I am super excited for the F-14 and no matter what I will support almost all developers of DCS so long as they support us back :). Thanks for doing a wonderful job on my favorite simulator.

When did you last fly the Viggen?

The Viggen has consistently received updates every week, Last week the new radar went live. I don't think I've seen a single beta patch go past, without there being a slew of Viggen updates.

Well Kazius does have a point on this one about the Viggen thats for sure

When did you last fly the Viggen?

 

The Viggen has consistently received updates every week, Last week the new radar went live. I don't think I've seen a single beta patch go past, without there being a slew of Viggen updates.

Yeah, but some of those updates repeat consistently for a couple weeks at a time

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I swear nobody ever actually reads or comprehends my comments. I used the past tense HAD. As in before release.

 

It's pretty obvious real Hornet pilots came in and helped with the flight model after release. I've seen and posted in those threads before.

Funny thing is, you explicitly asked "Do you believe...". My answer was "I do".

As I said, I personally do believe they HAD actual SMEs before they even started modeling the FM. I can't tell exactly how often they have reviewed the FM, but Wags seems to have pretty interesting connections in that regard.

Very comprehensive update, HB!!!

You guys seem to be quite aware of all the frustration people have been expressing about previous module's early access periods being rather lack-luster...Quite honestly that never bothered me, but still, glad to see how you guys are listening to the community!

Standing by!

From all the footage I've seen of other, luckier people flying this DCS: F-14 I've already seen many dozens of hours worth of stuff to learn and practice, most of it appearing totally bug-free. She's ready for early access guys.. Please don't get too caught up making a statement against run-of-the-mill early access practices, the base game your module fits in to is itself going to hamstring it one way or another I'm sure.

There's more value in getting the F-14 out for the holidays than waiting another month or 3 to put in the last few layers of polish.