Back in 2003 when piracy was still barely prohibited, I used to go to a local CD club to "rent" new releases. The club had a shelf full of boxed legal copies, however, behind the desk were boxes full of new titles on CD-R's. As I was a student back then I had a lot of time for gaming, so I was coming there frequently to get my dosage of new titles. Every time I would come there I would notice a box on the shelf of OFP GOTY edition and the guy on the cover starring at me. The name Operation Flashpoint didn't appeal to me, so initially I wasn't interested. However, newer titles were too much for my old PC and so I started to explore alternatives. I examined the box and I saw that it is sort of a military game where you can do a lot of stuff. Fly chopper or a plane, drive a tank or just be foot soldier. But I haven't yet realized that it is simulation game and not just another shooter.
And so I got it, went home, installed it, and naturally went straight into campaign. I didn't know in what order I should play so I went straight to Resistance campaign. I think the waiting for the bus moment in the first mission bought me, but I remember giving up on this game because it was too hard when I was at the mission where you had to ambush the convoy and friendly AI was rather useless. Also, graphics were already dated, human faces looked like they are in vacuumed plastic bag, everything was too unpredictable, buggy, or just strange, which led to having multiple paranoias whilst playing the game. So quickly I went back to flying my Il-2 and I have forgotten OFP.
Here comes summer of 2004, I just finished my studies and had few free months till my civil service (alternative to conscription for conscience objectors). I decided to dedicate that summer to gaming, music making and partying hard, which I did. But my computer was also one year older and could barely run any new titles. Lacking ideas what to play I decided to have another go at OFP, after all I avoided military service, so maybe I can do my virtual service. I went back to Resistance campaign, with a promise to beat that convoy with or without AI's help. I don't remember how I finally managed it but I this great feeling of accomplishment that I felt kept me going to the end. I finished the Resistance campaign and learned that it was hardest of all and that I made a mistake not starting with much more easy CWC campaign, which (wink, wink) started with a tutorial! I was hooked, I played game for months every day, in SP only because I only had expensive dial-up, so MP was out of the question. After beating all official missions and campaigns and fooling around, I again returned to Il-2 which just had Pacific Fighters update.
But, 4-5 months after, I was transfered to do civil service in University library, in it's internet center. I had no idea how active is the community and how much user content this game had till then. Actually, user made content was new concept for me so I was little reserved. But I took advantage of fast internet in the library to download bunch of user made missions and campaigns. Yet again I played everything I could get. Civil service ended and so the source of new content, and when I was done beating all missions and campaigns, guess what, I returned to Il-2.
It's 2007, broadband internet has even begun to reach suburbs of my city. Nothing changed my life so much as broadband internet. It's was like my spiritual horizon has suddenly shifted to infinity. Quickly I was overflowed with content that for years I wanted to grab off the internet but my dial-up would not allow it. I went to OFP info for the first time and saw that OFP now has a tons of addons and mods that made game look even better than in vanilla version. Frantically I downloaded and played in one long stretch CSLA, FDF, Tonal island campaigns and missions, Vietnam mods, even Japanese army mod, and more content that I could remember. By then I was still using my old PC which I bought back in 2001 so it was becoming more and more useless. Finally I bough new PC and had to make up for the missed games over the years so once again OFP was forgotten.
Now it's spring of 2009, me and my girlfriend (now wife) are in the bookstore which also sells computer games. She wants to buy me something for our anniversary. I saw OFP goty edition for could be 8 eur standing on the shelf. I asked "can I chose a game?", knowing that she thinks that I spend too much time playing games. She hesitated but ultimately bought me the game which was one huge mistake for her.
I installed the game which finally ran super smooth on my PC, installed my favorite mods and addons, played a bit, feeling that the game will stay on my hard drive purely for nostalgia. After all I played everything beside MP. MP? Well, I was always a bit shy and I was still traumatized with my Il-2 online experience. After years of playing SP only I was not a match for guys who played online for years and I was afraid that OFP would be the same case. Besides, who are that people playing on the other side, kids? Military fanatics with whom I had nothing in common? What kind of personalities?
I don't know how but I decided to take a risk and join online game. There were only about 20-30 servers up still. Obviously this game was dying. I went to public servers only and had very mixed experience. Most of the games were PvP where I was easy pray for anyone. There was one server with some sort of zombie mod and larger group of players which was ok, but it didn't provde experience I was looking for. Finally there was a public server which had some real organized coop game. I remember it was defend mission, we had to stop convoy of many, many tanks and some infantry. We played it for 5-6 times unsuccessfully, even with organization the mission was too hard. But it was the thing I was looking for! I felt that this could grow into addiction very quickly. Â
Tomorrow I went back looking for that server but either it was locked or it was missing from the server list. I didn't want to go back to PvP and zombies so I tried server after server randomly looking for the coop. I don't know exactly when but this is how I discovered CiA after which I looked further no more.
And so I got it, went home, installed it, and naturally went straight into campaign. I didn't know in what order I should play so I went straight to Resistance campaign. I think the waiting for the bus moment in the first mission bought me, but I remember giving up on this game because it was too hard when I was at the mission where you had to ambush the convoy and friendly AI was rather useless. Also, graphics were already dated, human faces looked like they are in vacuumed plastic bag, everything was too unpredictable, buggy, or just strange, which led to having multiple paranoias whilst playing the game. So quickly I went back to flying my Il-2 and I have forgotten OFP.
Here comes summer of 2004, I just finished my studies and had few free months till my civil service (alternative to conscription for conscience objectors). I decided to dedicate that summer to gaming, music making and partying hard, which I did. But my computer was also one year older and could barely run any new titles. Lacking ideas what to play I decided to have another go at OFP, after all I avoided military service, so maybe I can do my virtual service. I went back to Resistance campaign, with a promise to beat that convoy with or without AI's help. I don't remember how I finally managed it but I this great feeling of accomplishment that I felt kept me going to the end. I finished the Resistance campaign and learned that it was hardest of all and that I made a mistake not starting with much more easy CWC campaign, which (wink, wink) started with a tutorial! I was hooked, I played game for months every day, in SP only because I only had expensive dial-up, so MP was out of the question. After beating all official missions and campaigns and fooling around, I again returned to Il-2 which just had Pacific Fighters update.
But, 4-5 months after, I was transfered to do civil service in University library, in it's internet center. I had no idea how active is the community and how much user content this game had till then. Actually, user made content was new concept for me so I was little reserved. But I took advantage of fast internet in the library to download bunch of user made missions and campaigns. Yet again I played everything I could get. Civil service ended and so the source of new content, and when I was done beating all missions and campaigns, guess what, I returned to Il-2.
It's 2007, broadband internet has even begun to reach suburbs of my city. Nothing changed my life so much as broadband internet. It's was like my spiritual horizon has suddenly shifted to infinity. Quickly I was overflowed with content that for years I wanted to grab off the internet but my dial-up would not allow it. I went to OFP info for the first time and saw that OFP now has a tons of addons and mods that made game look even better than in vanilla version. Frantically I downloaded and played in one long stretch CSLA, FDF, Tonal island campaigns and missions, Vietnam mods, even Japanese army mod, and more content that I could remember. By then I was still using my old PC which I bought back in 2001 so it was becoming more and more useless. Finally I bough new PC and had to make up for the missed games over the years so once again OFP was forgotten.
Now it's spring of 2009, me and my girlfriend (now wife) are in the bookstore which also sells computer games. She wants to buy me something for our anniversary. I saw OFP goty edition for could be 8 eur standing on the shelf. I asked "can I chose a game?", knowing that she thinks that I spend too much time playing games. She hesitated but ultimately bought me the game which was one huge mistake for her.
I installed the game which finally ran super smooth on my PC, installed my favorite mods and addons, played a bit, feeling that the game will stay on my hard drive purely for nostalgia. After all I played everything beside MP. MP? Well, I was always a bit shy and I was still traumatized with my Il-2 online experience. After years of playing SP only I was not a match for guys who played online for years and I was afraid that OFP would be the same case. Besides, who are that people playing on the other side, kids? Military fanatics with whom I had nothing in common? What kind of personalities?
I don't know how but I decided to take a risk and join online game. There were only about 20-30 servers up still. Obviously this game was dying. I went to public servers only and had very mixed experience. Most of the games were PvP where I was easy pray for anyone. There was one server with some sort of zombie mod and larger group of players which was ok, but it didn't provde experience I was looking for. Finally there was a public server which had some real organized coop game. I remember it was defend mission, we had to stop convoy of many, many tanks and some infantry. We played it for 5-6 times unsuccessfully, even with organization the mission was too hard. But it was the thing I was looking for! I felt that this could grow into addiction very quickly. Â
Tomorrow I went back looking for that server but either it was locked or it was missing from the server list. I didn't want to go back to PvP and zombies so I tried server after server randomly looking for the coop. I don't know exactly when but this is how I discovered CiA after which I looked further no more.
I never gave a damn 'bout the meter man, 'til I was the man who had to read the meters, man
http://www.ex-misha.org
nonliteral.org
http://www.ex-misha.org
nonliteral.org