Game Flight Mode

After chatting with a couple of friends who recently tried DCS World I found the "Game Flight Mode" and "Game Avionics Mode" to be useless and actually counter productive. Here is why.

These two options are designed to help beginners but because they are off by default and beginners don't even know they exist and what they are for, they end up never being used.

All they end up doing is just clutter the already complex options menu and most notably the controls menu by having two entries for each aircraft (ex: Ka-50 easy and Ka-50 real). All these duplicates make the controls menu somewhat daunting for someone who is new to the sim.

My feeling is that "Game Flight Mode" and "Game Avionics Mode" should be removed as they just discourage beginners more than anything, clutter the menu and aren't used anyway.

I never used the game modes, I went straight for the "real" ones because I didn't think the middle step was necessary for the learning, and would most likely introduce some bad habits, which I would have to get rid of once I would be ready for the real thing. Basically I'd have to learn the same thing twice, in different ways.

When setting or re-setting the game, they're on by default until one presses the "simulation" button in "gameplay options", so I guess new people know they exist, at least those people who bother to click through options once.

It's more problematic that they've been always treated as unwanted child by the developers and from my very limited experience with them (troubleshooting other's problems, while not using these options myself), I can see they are even more glitchy than the simulation side of the DCS.

I guess one could indeed ask a question then - why did the programmers bother with including them in the first place, if the support of this functionality is lacking?

I never used the game modes, I went straight for the "real" ones because I didn't think the middle step was necessary for the learning, and would most likely introduce some bad habits, which I would have to get rid of once I would be ready for the real thing. Basically I'd have to learn the same thing twice, in different ways.

Very true.

Only used them at the very start when I bought Black Shark part 1

They might be handy for new people to get to grips with things

I see no value in removing them.

Forums aren't a representative sample of customers so polling here is kind of meaningless.

Forums aren't a representative sample of customers so polling here is kind of meaningless.

You could say that of all the polls ever created on this forum... And it's not because it doesn't represent the whole world perfectly that it has no value. A poll is better than no poll.

I'd be in favour of removing all the game-mode code completely, but I'm not working at ED so I don't have all the usage statistics to show it's worth/lack of worth to maintain it.

After chatting with a couple of friends who recently tried DCS World I found the "Game Flight Mode" and "Game Avionics Mode" to be useless and actually counter productive. Here is why.

 

These two options are designed to help beginners but because they are off by default and beginners don't even know they exist and what they are for, they end up never being used.

All they end up doing is just clutter the already complex options menu and most notably the controls menu by having two entries for each aircraft (ex: Ka-50 easy and Ka-50 real). All these duplicates make the controls menu somewhat daunting for someone who is new to the sim.

 

My feeling is that "Game Flight Mode" and "Game Avionics Mode" should be removed as they just discourage beginners more than anything, clutter the menu and aren't used anyway.

I never use it, but my son use it since he was 4 or 5 and help him get the initial idea. So it has some uses.

Having the option is never a bad thing, you generally don't want to remove options. I have never used it but that doesn't mean it doesn't help some people.

Having options is definitely a good thing, don't get me wrong. The problem is that they seem to clog up menus more than anything else and make things appear more complicated for beginners. I'm aware that I can't speak for everyone though so if more than a few people have found them useful at some point then please by all means keep them.

Having options is definitely a good thing, don't get me wrong. The problem is that they seem to clog up menus more than anything else and make things appear more complicated for beginners. I'm aware that I can't speak for everyone though so if more than a few people have found them useful at some point then please by all means keep them.

Another aspect is, that all those simplifications have to be implemented by the devs. It is not just about leaving out some functionality, but instead they have to program new functions that combine existing functions in a meaningful way.

So, besides the SFM for the AI, the A/P/EFM for the player they have to implement something between the two just for the Game Flight Mode. The same applies to avionics - the Game Mode has to operate the systems in a way that the aircraft operates roughly as if the player would use the ASM avionics, but with completely different and reduced controls.

So, to free developer ressources, I would not object if those Game Simplifications would not necessarily have to be implemented.

Having the option is never a bad thing, you generally don't want to remove options.

From a software dev standpoint, if a feature isn't used you should cut it out.

Less complex code paths make for easier development, maintainence and an easier time creating a much better test suite for the remaining code. Added bonus of less code = faster build times too.

KISS principle applied really.

From a software dev standpoint, if a feature isn't used you should cut it out.

 

Less complex code paths make for easier development, maintainence and an easier time creating a much better test suite for the remaining code. Added bonus of less code = faster build times too.

 

KISS principle applied really.

While I agree, in principle, I also suspect that most that use Game Mode don't post here.

From a software dev standpoint, if a feature isn't used you should cut it out.

 

Less complex code paths make for easier development, maintainence and an easier time creating a much better test suite for the remaining code. Added bonus of less code = faster build times too.

 

KISS principle applied really.

Thing is... it IS used, a few people have said they use it.

I only really find the game flight option useful with the Ka-50. I probably wouldn't even use if for that if I had rudder pedals, though.

extra options arent so hot for the dev when they cost time to update and maintain.

im sure the new usage reporting function will help ed decide how worthwhile it is.

Thing is... it IS used, a few people have said they use it.

i personally think it's dangerous to run after non-core audiences. if game avionic usage is given too much attention, it will turns into a self reinforcing phenomenon where the bigger the game avionic audience becomes, the more reliant they are on the feature -- then the majority audience for the game changes completely. game avionics has a particular propensity for it since it's a lower entry barrier than dcs proper, and as we all know, shit has a tendency to flow downhill.

From time to time I let play my little (6 years old) nephew with DCS, of course in game mode. He's having fun, and I have not to install warthunder or other games.

So I say let's keep it, simple very simple but keep it.

+1 for initial poster.

At least it should be refurbished. Controls should simply have a button or so to command hiding of complex items for game mode not 15 separate complicated lists of controls (sorry to say... something more modern like Warthunder has).

Also... for WW2 modules the separation in aids by form and mesure... just makes the whole thing daunting for a beginner (without help from a "veteran") as the OP said.

I suppose you could remove it.

But I know of no faster way for me to uninstall it and resolve never to spend another dime on a DCS module.

I have a wife, 2 children, a full-time job, and graduate school. I do not have tremendous amounts of time to dedicate to learning what amounts to a systems simulator when what I want to do is fire up a jet and make something go kaboom. I'm perfectly aware I'm firmly in the minority.

It is entirely possible that DCS could remove this feature, I would uninstall the product, never purchase another DCS product, and DCS would never even notice it happened. I'm okay with that. I've stopped using other products when something about it changed and it no longer suited my purposes and I'm pretty sure that news of my decision would've come as a complete surprise to the manufacturer. My Motorola MotoX phone comes to mind.

So, remove it, don't remove it, it makes no difference to me; it's just a game. For those concerned that it is taking up valuable development resources, you needn't worry; very few of the aircraft in DCS can even use it properly. The A-10C and the Russian aircraft in FC3 have functional game avionics and flight models, the rest of them haven't been able to use it for more than two years and the myriad of patches in that time have not addressed their shortcomings, so I think y'all are safe from people like me. It doesn't look like it's on ED's list of priorities.

Just one more thing to consider before I go: Ace Combat 7 is going to outsell DCS. By a large margin. Not that I prefer Ace Combat games (I don't), but that's just the reality.

Why limit the game?

I have serious doubts that it takes that many resources away from anything else, and if it provides a way for new people to access the game that don't have the time to spend learning what every single button does...

At the end of the day, the more people playing means that more people are buying modules and the more likely that ED and their partners will continue to churn out planes I want to fly in terrain I want to see...

I'm more interested in that then I am in "purifying" the DCS experience and limiting it to only hardcore types.

If maintaining "game mode" costs X and provides X+10 in revenue than it's worth doing. End of story.

I've never used the game modes. I don't even know what they're like.

What s it like in multiplayer mode. Doesn t the one who uses game mode have an advantage?!

My young son started DCS (Or FC it was a while back?) in game mode when he was about 8 or 9, it made him excited to get into flight sims...now he's an actual pilot.

Also the notion that its confusing to have these options or it clogs of menus. If you are not bright enough to figure out the option system in DCS its possible you wouldn't be bright enough to fly any of the planes in DCS anyway, so its a bogus argument. Options are always good.