North, South, East, & West...

[GrimReality]

I know it has been suggested before, but I'm bringing it back up myself because frankly it needs to be done. Honestly I'm surprised that given the way this community is with realism and team tactics that this hasn't been harped on even more. How can we have a "compass" on our HUD and not have N/S/E/W on it?

So many times I'd like to communicate to my teammates, "Enemy coming in on uh... the left side..." and of course left is relative to what way you're facing, and if you're playing FF or referring to a location within the same building that you're inside regardless of the game mode then that kind of directionality is completely useless. And taking the time to refer to the map grid... please... this is a first person shooter game not turn-based strategy, by the time you check the map, relay the coordinates, and your ally refers to his map to see what you're talking about, it's already too late. That only works in the rare cases a tank has parked itself in a spot and a good TL asks the team where to drop the arty.

 

[NikolaiLev]

I think generally left and right is relative to the direction you face if you spawn and look towards the objective. It can also be assumed north is upwards on the map. But this doesn't seem to work for most folks.

I think a compass on the Tactical Info hud would be just great. While yes, grunts didn't have compasses, there's generally a lot more situational awareness that becomes lost in translation in a video game. I would think a squad leader would let his men know which direction is which. "The objective is to the west" or so would be heard during briefing, and just generally remembering where you've been marching.

It's kind of like zoom. While it doesn't seem realistic, it is realistic because it's compensating for something you'd have in the real situation, or something like that.

 

[GrimReality]

Of course, if anybody were to argue "grunts didn't have compasses" then we could just retort with "well they didn't have mini-maps or other HUD elements either"

 

[GRIZZLY]

ro1 did it better

 

[Kleist]

I don

 

[MarioBava]

A compass might be nice (if only for tactical view...unrealistic to have it always out), but is absolutely not necessary.

You can easily orient yourself by glancing for a second at the overhead map (hint: up is North, per convention). Voila, you are oriented and can now correctly call out cardinal directions or understand them when they are called out.

 

[RJ_MacReady]

Compass would be great, I agree.
What I do now to report enemy activity, is use map coordinates and/or relative position of the enemy from a certain landmark - viewed from our initial spawn point (the very first spawn at the beginning of a map).

 

[Rabid Penguin]

Why can't we just all take for granted that top of the map = north?

 

[FBOTheLiuetenant]

Because then everyone would need to open their map, obscure their view of the battlefield, and then go back to fighting. To simply put a darn compass around the minimap (or elsewhere) is hardly too much to ask, especially since it would only make teamwork a hair easier.

 

[luciferintears]

ro1 did it better

Halo did it better

 

[Cyper]

It's kinda weird to have a compass without N/S/E/W.

Still, I believe that coordinates works good. It's just one click and 1-2 starring at the screen and you're done. I just think that It's the overcrowded maps and the fast pace that makes them useless. Everyone is moving all the time. Everyone is running in diffrent directions. The action is always near you and standing still a second looking at the map often means that you die. Because I have used the coordinates a lot in RO ost to spot tanks, various vehicles, and even snipers, MG's and such, and I've never had a problem with it. Then, it's as I said before weird that the compass doesnt show the direction properly.

 

[MarioBava]

Because then everyone would need to open their map, obscure their view of the battlefield, and then go back to fighting. To simply put a darn compass around the minimap (or elsewhere) is hardly too much to ask, especially since it would only make teamwork a hair easier.

All it really takes to orient yourself on a map is a 1-time glance at the overhead map at the start of a round or the first time you need it; then you're oriented. It's not difficult, doesn't take long, and is really only needed one time per match at most, so it can be done right away when you spawn. After a few matches of doing this on the same map, you'll probably have north memorized, too. The maps aren't so complex or maze-like that it's easy to lose your bearings once you know where North is relative to the objectives. If you're liable to lose where north is during the round, you'll probably need to be checking the map to find objectives anyways because you'll be losing track of those too.

Besides, realistically, on a battlefield in life if you didn't orient yourself, you would have to pause in your fighting to use a compass and find the direction. So, while a compass would be fine, it'd be kind of unrealistic unless it was modeled as in the game Metro 2033 where you had to put away your gun and pull out the notepad thingy to see the compass. And if they modeled it realistically like that, it would be no different than having to use the overhead map. It would be nice if they put overhead maps for the loadscreen so you could orient yourself before the round starts.

 

[FBOTheLiuetenant]

Sure, it isn't that hard, but since adding an actual compass would be so easy there is no real excuse why not to have one.

 

[Cyper]

Besides, realistically, on a battlefield in life if you didn't orient yourself, you would have to pause in your fighting to use a compass and find the direction. So, while a compass would be fine, it'd be kind of unrealistic unless it was modeled as in the game Metro 2033 where you had to put away your gun and pull out the notepad thingy to see the compass. And if they modeled it realistically like that, it would be no different than having to use the overhead map. It would be nice if they put overhead maps for the loadscreen so you could orient yourself before the round starts.

I think it would be a nice touch if the compass wasn't on the screen. It would make players a lot more disorianted and it would keep the screen more clean. At least in hardcore mode. Instead, you could open up the map by an animation and the compass is right beside the map. Or am I thinking to complex with to much arma in mind and to little ro? I dont know.

 

[FBOTheLiuetenant]

The compass could appear around the minimap, or in place of the minimap on Realism servers, when the user presses the Tactical Info button.

 

[Golf33]

Why can't we just all take for granted that top of the map = north?

Are the objective names on all maps consistent with this? I'm thinking particularly FF and CH?

 

[Cwivey]

On Commisars house, yes the objectives do follow the alignment of the map. On Forgoten Fighters, things are tilted 90 degrees relative to the map with East at the bottom and West at the top.

 

[GrimReality]

Obviously in hardcore mode where HUD elements are already turned off, this isn't something that I'm suggesting should be added (perhaps just in tactical view but not a persistent HUD element), but for those players who don't play in hardcore mode, there is a mini map on the HUD but it lacks any cardinal directions. All I want is N/S/E/W added to that already existing HUD element.