With the upcoming release of Red orchestra : Heroes of Stalingrad, I was thinking about the time I first got to see the original mod, the high points, the low points and my thoughts on the future (for what they are worth). Please remember these are my thoughts and memories. Some of the facts may be wrong so I am all too happy to be corrected.
Roll back to 2000 and I am playing Jailbreak, a mod for the original Unreal Tournament, with friends. This is what started me interested in mods and I mention this as without knowing about modding in general, Red Orchestra could so easily have passed me by.
When Unreal Tournament 2003 was released, I found the gameplay to be laboured in comparison with the original Unreal Tournament. I start looking for mods straight away. That was my first introduction to Red Orchestra. The team had decided not to continue modding for a game called Soldier of Fortune and found UTK3 to be a better platform to mod on.
The first incarnation was basic with one rifle and a basic map, if I remember correctly. What I do remember quite vividly is calling my flatmate into my room and showing him the mod. "WOW look at that detail. That is amazing - look at that sling on the rifle and how they are swaying as you move", I exclaimed."Look at the reload sequence". Those straps or slings were never seen in any further versions but they sure impressed me.
The mod grew quickly. I really enjoyed the feel of the weapons - they felt heavy in my hands. I have used semi automatic weapons and was glad this feeling was being reproduced. Maps were made relatively quickly and the scene grew. I spent many hours playing the mod. I loved the rifle play at long distance and the variety of the maps that were being produced. Some of these maps would never be ported to Ostfront which was a shame; there were some seriously good map makers involved at the time.
Then Red Orchestra Combined Arms was released which introduced tanks. I was never good at angling my tank correctly so I always took an infantry role where possible but this added an extra diension to the mod. More play, more updates were released and Red Orchestra was gaining more popularity due to its entry into the Epic Make Something For Unreal Contest. There were some other great mods being made at that time, my other favourite being Air Buccaneers. Another thing I liked about the mod were the people playing; above the normal maturity level for multiplayer games.
I decided to change my nick to Duckspeak one day. The same day I was playing on a map called Tractor Factory. The server was not heavily populated and I managed to capture the last point three times in a row. It was pure luck but some chap called Wilsonam was playing and we started to chat. Never knew what happened to that guy!!
I cannot remember exactly when artillery was added but my first experience nearly took my ears off. I always play with headphones on high so I can get a better idea of where the noise is coming from. Cue the arty and me almost crapping in my pants. What a great addition.
So we all awaited Red Orchestra Ostfront with baited breath. The first day it was released was a real disappointment after such a big build up. The game ran too slowly on my rig and was stuttering but this soon got fixed. The weapons felt lighter and thinner and that was my only gripe at the time. Then came the big smoke debate. Smoke grenades would change strategy forever and was a contentious issue. No longer will rifle battles be the same and it was the only time I questioned a decision Tripwire made. When implemented, though, my fears abated. It worked.
Others were playing in clans but I have never wanted to commit to a clan so I joined Iron Crescendo. This was an attempt to create a campaign over a series of months with people signing up to join either side. I had a great time playing in this arena and some of my best moments were during this period. One time I was the last player on the team and I had to defend a house. I was literally sweating as I shot the last enemy as the clock was ticking down. Another time I was playing on the German side on a map called Barashka and picked up a PTRD off a dead Russian. I hid under the train on the Russian side of the bridge and each time a tank came past, I took it down. Only after I had run out of ammo was I discovered and killed.
I was offline for a couple of years after that but when I came back online, the only server I could get on was for Danzig 24/7 so until recently I had not been playing Ostfront. A few weeks ago I found a server with all the original maps and more. What a blast. Even on public servers, when you get a good group of players, it works a treat. I used to do ok but now I cannot hit a barn door.
So now the next chapter is nearly upon us with our hopes as to what we will see next. I trust Tripwire will do their best to give us a great game but I also trust the community will engage with them to give objective feedback.
I simply cannot wait !!
Roll back to 2000 and I am playing Jailbreak, a mod for the original Unreal Tournament, with friends. This is what started me interested in mods and I mention this as without knowing about modding in general, Red Orchestra could so easily have passed me by.
When Unreal Tournament 2003 was released, I found the gameplay to be laboured in comparison with the original Unreal Tournament. I start looking for mods straight away. That was my first introduction to Red Orchestra. The team had decided not to continue modding for a game called Soldier of Fortune and found UTK3 to be a better platform to mod on.
The first incarnation was basic with one rifle and a basic map, if I remember correctly. What I do remember quite vividly is calling my flatmate into my room and showing him the mod. "WOW look at that detail. That is amazing - look at that sling on the rifle and how they are swaying as you move", I exclaimed."Look at the reload sequence". Those straps or slings were never seen in any further versions but they sure impressed me.
The mod grew quickly. I really enjoyed the feel of the weapons - they felt heavy in my hands. I have used semi automatic weapons and was glad this feeling was being reproduced. Maps were made relatively quickly and the scene grew. I spent many hours playing the mod. I loved the rifle play at long distance and the variety of the maps that were being produced. Some of these maps would never be ported to Ostfront which was a shame; there were some seriously good map makers involved at the time.
Then Red Orchestra Combined Arms was released which introduced tanks. I was never good at angling my tank correctly so I always took an infantry role where possible but this added an extra diension to the mod. More play, more updates were released and Red Orchestra was gaining more popularity due to its entry into the Epic Make Something For Unreal Contest. There were some other great mods being made at that time, my other favourite being Air Buccaneers. Another thing I liked about the mod were the people playing; above the normal maturity level for multiplayer games.
I decided to change my nick to Duckspeak one day. The same day I was playing on a map called Tractor Factory. The server was not heavily populated and I managed to capture the last point three times in a row. It was pure luck but some chap called Wilsonam was playing and we started to chat. Never knew what happened to that guy!!
I cannot remember exactly when artillery was added but my first experience nearly took my ears off. I always play with headphones on high so I can get a better idea of where the noise is coming from. Cue the arty and me almost crapping in my pants. What a great addition.
So we all awaited Red Orchestra Ostfront with baited breath. The first day it was released was a real disappointment after such a big build up. The game ran too slowly on my rig and was stuttering but this soon got fixed. The weapons felt lighter and thinner and that was my only gripe at the time. Then came the big smoke debate. Smoke grenades would change strategy forever and was a contentious issue. No longer will rifle battles be the same and it was the only time I questioned a decision Tripwire made. When implemented, though, my fears abated. It worked.
Others were playing in clans but I have never wanted to commit to a clan so I joined Iron Crescendo. This was an attempt to create a campaign over a series of months with people signing up to join either side. I had a great time playing in this arena and some of my best moments were during this period. One time I was the last player on the team and I had to defend a house. I was literally sweating as I shot the last enemy as the clock was ticking down. Another time I was playing on the German side on a map called Barashka and picked up a PTRD off a dead Russian. I hid under the train on the Russian side of the bridge and each time a tank came past, I took it down. Only after I had run out of ammo was I discovered and killed.
I was offline for a couple of years after that but when I came back online, the only server I could get on was for Danzig 24/7 so until recently I had not been playing Ostfront. A few weeks ago I found a server with all the original maps and more. What a blast. Even on public servers, when you get a good group of players, it works a treat. I used to do ok but now I cannot hit a barn door.
So now the next chapter is nearly upon us with our hopes as to what we will see next. I trust Tripwire will do their best to give us a great game but I also trust the community will engage with them to give objective feedback.
I simply cannot wait !!
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