Close Assault - Company level team vs. team game mode for 32 players.

[The_Captain]

I'm getting ready to release the force on force multiplayer mode for Arma that I've been working on for a while. It's been a long road, but I think I've definitely got something here that a lot of you will enjoy. My main focus was to create a combat environment in which players spend most of their time engaged in combat and making combat related decisions, at a scale where battles are more exciting than short lived firefights between individuals.

Close Assault is a company level, team vs. team Armed Assault game mode for up to 32 players. Close Assault aims to combine the realistic combat density and engagements of a solid tactical wargame (such as Close Combat) with the immersion and first person interaction of a war simulator (Armed Assault).

• Squad Command: Players each command a squad or vehicle crew of AI teammates as they try to capture all of the sectors in a map from the enemy or eliminate them entirely. With each player controlling a squad, a 4v4 game is roughly a platoon level engagement, while a 16v16 game is company level.
  
• Sector Control: Sectors may only be captured after controlling a neighboring sector, concentrating battles along a front line. Most battles take place in mission areas of about 2-4 square kilometers.
  
• Combined Arms Combat: With the increased lifespan and greater firepower of a full squad or vehicle crew, players can more easily execute combined arms operations using Armor, Infantry, Recon, Special Forces, Air, and Support units. Units include: combat engineer squads which can deploy mines and fortifications, airborne infantry squads that let the player fly the helicopter into combat and then fight as the infantry, and self propelled mortars with manually controlled aiming.
  
• Realistic Force Pool: Players choose units from a limited pool of forces; when units are lost, they cannot be replaced. Platoons arrive at different times during the battle, granting players an increased variety of equipment as the game progresses.
  
• Teamswitch & Group Respawn: To improve squad combat while commanding AI, players may switch first person control between team members at will, and respawn into them when killed.
  
• Designed for Editing: Flexible Scenario and Unit data files allow easy creation of new scenarios without editing game code, as well as integration of popular Arma mods. However, no addons are required to play the basic game.

I have been working on Close Assault for about a year and a half, with various incarnations dating back to my early Operation Flashpoint missions. My dream since owning my original copy of Operation Flashpoint was to have a large scale multiplayer war, with combined arms forces locked in a vicious engagement. With the improvements in network speed, computing power, and game engine features (like Join in Progress) since 2001, my original dream has almost become reality.

The first public version of Close Assault will be version 0.4, which will incorporate all of the features displayed in the following preview, and not require any addons. There will be maps of three sizes released (4v4, 8v8, and 16v16) to help test the multiplayer stress load and overall balance. Future versions will support AI 'bots' controlling their own squads, a command system for players to control subordinate squads and platoons, a support system for calling in artillery, airstrikes, and reinforcements (limited to officers), and expanded unit options such as engineers, artillery batteries, self propelled artillery, and parachute-dropped special forces. Look for v0.4 to be released in May 2009. Development for Arma 2 will be pursued once a stable version has been released for Arma 1.

Right now I'm focusing on my exams, but I hope to complete more extensive multiplayer stress testing towards the end of the month. Any help in coordinating 6+ player tests would be greatly appreciated, as I do not have access to a dedicated server or regular gaming group. In particular, I need to test the code for throttling unit creation (to prevent lag spikes and desync) when players try to all deploy at once. In my own testing, even 1v1 and 2v2 games are a surprising amount of fun, so I look forward to the type of combat in even larger battles.

Close Assault Project Website: http://dev-heaven.net/projects/show/tcn-closeassault

Here is a 36 image preview of upcoming version 0.4 that I have posted to Flickr. I have narrated the action of a 30 minute engagement to demonstrate Close Assault's features and game flow in a small 4v4 map.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/captain...7617276668900/

[Binkowski]

Ok, now that is just cool. Can't wait!

[kju]

Excellent news MrCaptain. Extremely interested in your concepts and work!

[mr.g-c]

Yes this sounds indeed very awesome! Wow!

[kju]

Make sure to check the flicker gallery and read their description.
This gives you a true idea how much potential is in there!

[Binkowski]

@kju

I just checked that gallery. And you were right! So much potential!

[Sickboy]

Congrats m8

[Squelch]

This project looks fantastic. I can't wait to try it out. It sounds like a live strategy game. Chess, Risk?

[The_Captain]

Quick update:

The ArmA1 version has taken longer than expected, and I took a much needed break during the summer to focus on some university courses.

I have finished most of the major tasks for the v0.4 release, and only have a few smaller issues to clean up. After the initial scenarios are finished, and some private testing is done, I will release v0.4 as a public beta.

What will be in the release:
3 PvP maps, for 4v4, 8v8, and 12v12 player sizes.
At least one cooperative-style map for lower player counts
Limited combat support for formation commanders (artillery, airstrikes, reinforcements)
Fully operational briefing, deploy/spectating, and debriefing interfaces

What will not be in this release:
Chain of Command control of other player squads
Full combat support interface and options
AI-as-player support
Extra unit types (HALO Special Forces, Engineer Teams, Artillery batteries, etc)
MP Campaign play

I will try to release a video demonstrating a round of play prior to release.

After v0.4 is released and tested, I will work on porting this newer version to ArmA2. v0.39 was already ported to Arma2, but I will need some time to port over the latest batch of code and fix arma2 specific bugs. I will say that the new micro-AI in Arma2 vastly improves the experience of commanding a squad

I intend to complete the A1 version first so I can focus fully on the Arma2 version. I aim to have both versions released before OFP2 comes out!

[kju]

Good to hear The_Captain!

Very much looking forward to the video and the future a2 version.