Hard Light Productions Forums
General FreeSpace => FreeSpace Discussion => Topic started by: Kiloku on August 02, 2009, 08:07:47 am
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...With my noobness.
So that's how it goes: I played the original and the BP campaigns in normal difficulty, as I usually do with most games, and was happy when both were finished, but then I saw many people here who usually play on Insane, and apparently find that not very hard at all. Then I thought: Why not try at least Hard difficulty?
I was in for a killing. In BP I can't get past the 2nd mission (where you find a single Manticore in the asteroid belt and shoot it down, causing a lot of Shivans to appear), and most missions in the Retail campaign take me at least 4 tries, usually more...
Someone help! :P
[/whine]
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Don't worry about it. FreeSpace is a pretty hard game with tricky AI. I'd been playing the game for about eight years before I made my first real attempt at playing the main campaign on Insane.
Blue Planet on Insane would just be :shaking:
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Hard difficulty isn't something to be taken lightly, you need to manage your wingman, handle the fighter without bonuses (on hard they're not gone completely, but really shrunk) and deal with better AI.
BP is generally not balanced for Hard nor Insane, so I suggest that you play it on medium, it wasn't designed with higher difficulties in mind.
Insane is in fact most realistic mode in FS, as you don't get any bonuses and AI is brought near to human level, though many campaigns may get completely unbalanced because of it.
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I wouldn't worry about it, I usually play on easy, dropping down to very easy for harder missions and I've been playing it for years now. I daren't play any multiplayer games as I'd get completely pwned. :shaking:
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Seems like I'll have to keep trying :P I really want to get better, so I want to face the Hard AI. I managed to outmaneuver some enemies (barely) but I always end up dying
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Be cowardly. Tell your wingmen to C-3-1 one target at a time.
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Practice evading missiles without countermeasures, so that you can save them for when you're overwhelmed with missiles in close quarters. It's easy with a single missile - position your ship so that the yellow triangle is at the 3- o'clock position, and when it gets close, hit afterburners, yaw left, and pitch down or up at the same time until you see the yellow triangle spin around your HUD. The same thing works with the 9- o'clock position and yawing right. Either way, you'll spin towards the missile but not actually hit it because you're pitching at the same time, and the missile won't be able to turn sharply enough after you've passed it.
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BP is generally not balanced for Hard nor Insane, so I suggest that you play it on medium, it wasn't designed with higher difficulties in mind.
I've found this to be true for a lot of custom campaigns... some of them are literally impossible above Medium (the first mission of Raider Wars, for example: above Med you can't save the transport!).
I've taken to playing all custom campaigns on medium, just because it's what they're most likely to be balanced for. They don't all get tested for Ace and Insane. :(
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Probably because just creating a campaign can be horribly time expensive. Balancing it out for all difficulty settings is going to be a nightmare...
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It really is. The fact that beam fire rates are different on different difficulties is enough to break a lot of missions on its own.
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And since the game defaults to Easy difficulty, and a lot of poor schmucks like me never bother to move up from there, it's likely to be a lot of re-balancing for a very limited audience.
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It really is. The fact that beam fire rates are different on different difficulties is enough to break a lot of missions on its own.
That's why I'm using "Same Turret Cooldown" with all of my ship to ship weapons, I can then make a result of capship battle to be similar regardless of skill level, also, AI profile that I use with my personal mod has $Max Turret Target Ownage: set to 99 on all levels (Retail profile really caused problems with capship battles, even in main campaign).
Cap battles made using this setup are simply epic, even if it's a simple test mission.
The same setup on AA cannons also makes capships a real threat to strikecraft (and allows flaks to kill bombs even on very easy).
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Just a comment:
Do you use the numpad or some sort of analog device to fly? (mouse or joystick). It actually makes a difference. I used to be numpad exclusive and was always overwhelmed even on missions like Lion at the Door on medium. Then, I tried a mouse/numpad combination, and I was suddenly able to beat the whole campaign on hard.
Yes. Being able to actually aim makes a big difference.
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I use a Joystick. A good one, IMO. Saitek Cyborg Evo, with X,Y,Z and Rx Axises, a very responsive trigger, 5 buttons, plus 6 function buttons, but they're pretty much only reachable using 2 hands on the joystick. I also use Game Commander 2 for Voice Control, and the usual keyboard controls.
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Be cowardly. Tell your wingmen to C-3-1 one target at a time.
Thats how i beat Blue Planet! HAH!
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I think a quality joystick explains most of the maniacs who beat Procyon Insurgency on insane and get all the medals.
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Eh, it's possible to beat every mission in PI on Insane with a basic mouse and keyboard (without cheats) except for the dreaded Crossing the Minefield III. Maneuvering plays such a key part in the mission that only a joystick can handle it.
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I beg to differ!
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A good joystick does not instantly equal better flying skills.
I tried, couldn't get used to it.
for me, the keypad or mouse will always be a better option.
Like fighter games, almost everyone there swears with an arcade stick. I really really tried to play street fighter 4 on it. Couldn't get a super/ultra out with it. Then I tried the pc version and I suddenly felt like a effin' pro because I could perform a lot of basic stuff flawlessly on the keyboard.
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I used the mouse and keyboard for the longest time. Then, I got a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro. The stick is good for general maneuvers, but for precision shooting the mouse is required. Also, despite the joystick's software that lets it interface with a said game (such as FreeSpace), I was never able to tone down the responsiveness appropriately enough so that "no deadzone" could be set in the main game. This means that I can often get off a shot or two, but sustained, accurate fire is rather difficult (the stick just isn't responsive enough). This is especially true for fighters with offset weapons banks such as the Myrmidon.
I'm not sure this is the best setup (might be better to have the mouse on the other side and fly two-handed!), but I keep the mouse just behind the stick (closest to me). The sensitivity is at max, meaning a sustained pull will give the fighter a good jerk. An accurate barrage is thus possible. The only problem is that as there's not much room for the mouse a sustained turn with that device alone is impossible.
-Thaeris
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My precision aiming with my Cyborg Evo admittedly isn't all that great, but I've learned to compensate at least somewhat, and I think the overall feel that a stick lends to playing the game more than makes up for any detriments. What I should really try doing is giving the Sidewinder 3D Pro a shot in FS, since it tends to be better with finer motions.
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I use a keyboard only. You can become good at FS2 with any control setup once you get used to it.
Eh, it's possible to beat every mission in PI on Insane with a basic mouse and keyboard (without cheats) except for the dreaded Crossing the Minefield III. Maneuvering plays such a key part in the mission that only a joystick can handle it.
If you're referring to the last part (the very short one), a keyboard is certainly good enough. Banking is something that is often overlooked, but it allows you to easily fly in corkscrew patterns that are hard to perform otherwise, at least on a keyboard.
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Agreed; I'm a keyboard-only player as well.
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:eek2: You managed to survive Crossing the Minefield III with only a keyboard and mouse?
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No mouse, just keyboard.
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:eek2: You managed to survive Crossing the Minefield III with only a keyboard and mouse?
That's the one where you come out of the nebula/knossos and have to immediately jump out again, right?
I used KB + mouse, and beat it first try. :) Although, to be fair, my mouse is wired up as a virtual joystick. I just corkscrew-flew away while dumping CM until I was far enough away to jump out unhindered...
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I've been having a nice progress for now. Until I got to the mission where I have to destroy the Ravana.. :mad:
If the Ravana doesn't kill me with it's turrets, the greatly outnumbering shivan wings will go after me. And my wingmates always fire as soon as they lock in to the Ravana, which means their bombs are destroyed before they reach the target.
BRB, gonna hang myself with my joystick's cord.
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Slaying Ravana sucks. Recommend hiding by the Sobek, it'll kill the Ravana eventually, I think.
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Slaying Ravana sucks. Recommend hiding by the Sobek, it'll kill the Ravana eventually, I think.
Yeah, that's the lame (but reliable) way to beat the mission. I hate that one too.
The other main option is to try to snuggle up to the Ravana's hull where it's hard for fighters to get you, then just keep calling for rearm while pounding the thing with bombs. You may have to clear out some AAA and Flak turrets first though. :)
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Yeah, I've managed that one. Try taking out the flak turrets above the engines and hiding there.
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Slaying Ravana sucks. Recommend hiding by the Sobek, it'll kill the Ravana eventually, I think.
Yeah, that's the lame (but reliable) way to beat the mission. I hate that one too.
The other main option is to try to snuggle up to the Ravana's hull where it's hard for fighters to get you, then just keep calling for rearm while pounding the thing with bombs. You may have to clear out some AAA and Flak turrets first though. :)
getting up close, clearing some nearby turrets and bombing the daylights out of the capship is my fave tactic
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Taht mission is easy. I take the Ursa, kill off 2 Basilisks and race towards the ravana, blow up it's weapons subsystem. After that it's easy pickings.
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Taht mission is easy. I take the Ursa, kill off 2 Basilisks and race towards the ravana, blow up it's weapons subsystem. After that it's easy pickings.
In what difficulty level do you do that?
EDIT: BTW, what's the use of destroying the weapons subsystem? The Ravana keeps shooting me even after I do it...
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Taht mission is easy. I take the Ursa, kill off 2 Basilisks and race towards the ravana, blow up it's weapons subsystem. After that it's easy pickings.
In what difficulty level do you do that?
EDIT: BTW, what's the use of destroying the weapons subsystem? The Ravana keeps shooting me even after I do it...
A ship with a destroyed weapon systems theoretically has decreased accuracy.
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Theoreticaly? I thought it was based on difficulty level as well? In teh wiki...
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Weapons destruction definitely reduces weapon accuracy.
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And prevents turrets from targetting bombs.
If you've fried target's weapon subsystem you can even launch your bombs at it's turrets and expect them to reach the target (at least on medium).