I have been playing for about two and a half years, and have owned and run U13 for the past year and a half. Agree or not, I would just like to let you all have a little insight into my head, and understand what I have seen and believe:

Shortly after U13 had stats, just over a year ago, Xalion started SoldatHQ, a similar site that gained instant popularity because they also had stats and a community formed, much as U13 has now. 2 months later, Xalion closed down soldathq, citing the community's flaws. I agreed with him on why he shut down, and I helped justify to the community what happened.

I would love to find the original thread, called SoldatHQ Closed, by Aquarius. Xalion and I tried to point out that the soldat community begs for more, be it faster, better servers, free server hosting, or more custom maps in servers, but never try to do anything to help out. I noticed this too, but didn't complain because I'm not losing major money on this, and I enjoy working on my site.

Recently, I have come to form my own opinions on the community. Chakra puts it best:

(@Chakra`) anyhow...yeah, feel for you Bricky ...it ain't easy working with the soldat community, but just remember the majority will always be negative [IMAGE]s who get frustrated all too easily when they get owned by some underhand tactic or dominant weapon..

Now, everyone complains about newbs in servers, or statwhring in U13. Honestly, what do you expect me to do about it? I am not some Godly figure who can wiggle my finger and make all newbs get better or have their computers explode. U13 joined SuS, which makes things better and all, restricting the people who play on U13 and other great SuS servers, but then you complain that SuS servers are empty all the time, and that SuS needs more people.

There is no fix-all to these problems. Yes, passwording a server will make it have less people and fewer newbs. Yes, newbs still get in, No, complaining still does not help. It isn't even that people are newbs...

What do you all think makes someone a newb, other than what they say. We all know that people say all kinds of garbage just to act like a newb or make others feel as such, but what gameplay honestly makes someone be classified as a new player to soldat? Bare in mind that I am not talking about statwhring.

Even with statwhring, there is nothing I can do about that. Yes, U13 has stats. Yes, a lot of you like them, as well as the other information provided on the site. But you need to understand that with these things comes a downside, which happens to be people who play for stats.

So what do I do? I change the ranking system to de-emphasize the kill-to-death ratio. It then takes into larger account the number of points someone accumulates for each death, thereby placing a large value on flag captures.

But what now? Oh, "Soandso was in the game taking the underground route the whole time, capturing and scoring"

there was an actual quote of someone saying that ^ of poop, somewhere in my idiotbox, but I cannot for the life of me find it. Also said:

"I think P:D would increase flagwhoring (running like mad for the flag and back).... Poop.... remember 1 point = 25 kills... so, kills r not the most important part of rating..."



Of course he was, this is what is known as the object of the game. You sneak in, grab the flag, then run out screaming I HAVE THE GODDAMNED FLAG.

But huh? This seems to be a problem because people see him capping, see his ranking going up, but don't do a damned thing to stop him, they are too busy sitting there loving the chat button and complaining to people, instead of getting their gun, and going out and killing him.

I honestly think that the biggest problem with soldat now is that too many people sit in the game and chat, be it pointing out that people are actually new players, or whether they are declaring other people are newbs or hackers (people who clearly aren't).

If you want the gameplay to improve in any server, just talk less and play more. If U13 has too many newbs for you, then don't play there. If there is lag in a server, you dont need to keep saying 'omg lag' everytime a bullet doesn't kill someone. Yes, games lag, yes people dont die when you think they should. No this does not give a particular person an unfair advantage.

Don't bother complaining about every little thing in a game, because you then end up spending a large percent of your time in game telling people about how unfair the world is, rather than actually playing.

I'm not sure if you all understand what I'm getting at, or if you will actually try and do something to fix up the shape that soldat servers are currently in. Even if someone is a new player to soldat, we all were at some point, so maybe instead of just publicly declaring them a newb, give them some pointers, maybe then you'll realize how much time you've wasted in the past.

Lastly, if someone tries to Vote Kick you, dont cry about it unless you actually get kicked. ThaD said in the SuS thread that someone tried to vote kick him for using the minigun. So? Don't waste the effort complaining about it unless you have a reason... like actually getting kicked. Someone actually gets votekicked from U13 for stupid reason maybe once every 2 weeks, the other times are valid.

I could go on and on about how frustrating it is seeing everyone complain endlessly, but I'd rather hear what you guys have to say on the topic.

[edit:] I do this all for fun, I don't care whether the community supports me or not, but the reason this is a problem is that the constant complaints to me about newbs and all the other nonsense actually ruins the fun that I get out of maintaining U13. If all this thread gets is flaming and a good laugh, then I'm sorry but U13 will be left to die out

...Perfectly said.

i know how things must be on your end, and you might wanna give up sometime, but you really are one of the main contibutors to the community, and it'd suck ball to have you go.
so people, please dont complain to prick (sorry, that your name from me, nothing personal :P) about all this petty stuff you got goin on and just play the game. if all you are doing is whining, what are you doing for the community? driving the good people away.

To fix anything related to stats. Remove the death factor in the stats. Make it be a kill score chart. Those who play more, participate more (and camp less) will get more kills (with irrelevance to how many deaths they have) and get motivated to play in a way that, at least, most people would approve. I think most of the so-called "cheapasses"/"noobs"/"statwhoers"/"[weapon]tards"/"campers" do what they do for 3 things. Mostly its for stats and attention, the least predominant reason is that they actually have fun doing it. Legitimate fun, that is, not the joy of annoying everyone else. Most people who do the complaining are also doing it for a strong reason, present in U13 more than any other SuS or usual server, at that. I believe that reason would be the thought of having "cheap people" be on the top of the chart for little effort. I once went into U13 with my barret, and got called a barretard by 3 different people right before seeing the same 3 people and more of their team use the barret as a direct reaction to my usage of it. I'm not even skilled with it, to par with the dominant players present in U13. I'm aware that getting killed by 1 shot might be irritating, but I've never seen such [IMAGE]ing before in a single round, let alone the hypocracy. I think you should try having a kill chart instead of a K:D ranking system.

TFS, the whole point of the ranking system is to show skill. Anything like you suggested just shows how much people play. This thread is not intended to be about what to do with the U13 ranks, but know that the ranks are supposed to show skill, and the page like the top 10s and weapon stats are intened to who who plays most and with what weapons.

Really? People are actually complaining that other players are capping the flag? That is so messed up...I feel for you, brick.

quote:Originally posted by FliesLikeABrickTFS, the whole point of the ranking system is to show skill.


Exactly. People are annoyed to find that others are high on a *skill* rating chart for playing in an unnerving, illegitimate, or "cheapish" way. A kill chart would just signify how much the players participate in the server, the pains of thinking that someone would be misunderstood to be skilled for "cheap" gameplay would end. Instead, you'd have a joy of getting your name on the top of the charts, which adds to the communal acknowlegement of your presence in the server, and the fame of being near or at the no.1 score. Even though it doesn't signify skill, it will remove the bad effects of a K:D chart while still preserving a motivation for aggressive gameplay. (note, not attitude, just gameplay).

Again, I'd like to point out that the point of this thread is not to discuss the U13 ranks. If someone can sit there and kill people, aka statwhring, then you should go up and kill them. I do believe that is what the game is for: killing people while trying not to be killed. Yes, CTF has other goals as well, but that isn't the issue we are addressing. So people statwhr... You are just further supporting what I originally was saying tfs

Another point I forgot to mention in the original thread:
When U13 first got passworded with SuS to increase the gameplay quality, people started complaining that their rank and Kill to death ratio would go down. They said "wahh.... now that there are less newbs in the server our stats are getting worse overall"

of course. Less newbs means that you have fewer people underneath you and more people above you.

I've been playing very little since the release of 1.2.1, but I can see what you mean. It's the same with pretty much everything.
People complain about Soldat itself (more weapons, more modes, yet nobody actually plays them etc.)
You just have to find your own thing that entertains you and keep people from ruining it or simply stop caring.

quote:Originally posted by b00stA
You just have to find your own thing that entertains you and keep people from ruining it or simply stop caring.


That is how it has been since I started with U13, but the number of people complaining all the time is starting to ruin it for me. It never used to be this bad, and it seems that everyone now is complaining, be it on AIM/MSN/Teamspeak/Forums/Idiotbox

Ignore them, then, now that you've told us what inceassant ranting does.

I know how you feel..Nerf this,nerf that,change the gun power,bla bla CAMPER barret newb..oh wait now your an auto whre..omg deagle whre!!!
Just nerf soldat until the dumb idiots play another game and learn that everything is unfair in some way..
U13 is flawless in my opinion.

stat whoring? So...people are playing the game to improve their rank, capping, killing, etc... Whats the problem there?

The very question seems to be the answer. Although the real answer is: Stop being so bloody petty over your rank. It's just a bit of fun.



But yes, that isn't what this topic is about. It's about the people of soldat.

In they're majority they seem incredibly, unquestionably dumb. They complain, moan, and criticise for the seeming reason of being unable to enjoy some form of competivity, whether an aug repeatly drills him into the ground, or an m79 catches him several times in a row.


Some of you yourself may agree. Some of you however, are the types who unknowingly mingle with this crowd, though maybe not acting like them. You want better servers, no noobs, no crap maps, no idiots, and here they are. U13 booms with passworded popularity and is unquestionably better than the average public, while all of the euro-range (including a dedicated custom-mapped inf) remain unused in favour of filled public servers with the type of players you hate.

Moral of the story? Don't complain about the idiots, do something about it. I spawned the idea of the SUS a month ago and it's met some great support in hope to change things. So if I can get a bunch of guys who've never talked to each other to share the same name in their server, you eejits can do something to. Leave the attitudes, invite friends you like to play with, welcome any difficulty, but most of all just enjoy, not struggle to.

Yeah..games are supposed to be fun,and competitive,without having a flamefest.
People should make friends and enjoy playing instead of screaming 'you motherf*cking barrettard to eat your mom'.
that ruins the game for everyone whos trying to relax and play a game..
Not struggle and fight verbally with others in a graphical game that is meant to be fun and play,not talk.

Slightly off topic, but I would like to thank the soldat community as a whole for introducing me to the words Kurwa and Vittu.

Lmao.Offtopic also,but
WHAT THE HELL do those words mean Chaka?
;)
You confused me.Lol..and whered that come from anywho?

It's a polish and finnish insult. Exact meaning lost in translation and would no doubt get blanked out on this forum anyhow.


Anyway, nevermind this. Lets keep on topic. Community complains more than plays - just try to enjoy the challenge/difficulty - lose the attitudes guys - for the love of god cut out the crap before we lose another great server, etc etc..

http://archive.forums.soldat.pl/topic.php?topic_id=13804
^^ that is the thread i was referring to. My main post is on the second page

Yeah..suck it up and play.
Is real war fair?Hell no.
And about losing another server,what about losing another great game creator.

quote:Originally posted by Gen0cideYeah..games are supposed to be fun,and competitive,without having a flamefest.
People should make friends and enjoy playing instead of screaming 'you motherf*cking barrettard to eat your mom'.
that ruins the game for everyone whos trying to relax and play a game..
Not struggle and fight verbally with others in a graphical game that is meant to be fun and play,not talk.



i totaly agree.
but everyone will NEVER get satisfied, so the struggle for Eternal happiness goes on..

quote:Originally posted by Mysterio
but everyone will NEVER get satisfied, so the struggle for Eternal happiness goes on..


the only reason it cant be solved is because people dont think it can be, justified exactly by what you said :x

i couldnt say it better FLAB, i mean ever since a friend of mine i guess told FLAB i wasnt a n00b nor hacker and that he knew me and i joined the u13 servers, it couldnt be any better than what i saw/played. The server was lagg-free, no n00bs or whiny little [IMAGE]talkers. Ofcourse it was a little hard but extremely fun. Everybody either had the same skill-level as me or better. Which is great cause then i dont have the advantage ofkilling n00bs all the time. I think this is great what FLAB has done. He and SuS has made a seperate community for only upperclass gamers so everybody has a good time and fun. I mean HT dedicated is good, they get some n00bs sometimes, but they usually kick them out.

All i can say is great job FLAB.

I agree with everything you've said so far, Brick. You're a very intelligent person and unlike many of the people here, your thoughts and ideas are conceivable and understandable. But enough of the flattery, lets get to the facts:

People want more for less, and even fewer are willing to work for it. You've done a great deal of things for the community, Brick, and I am impressed by all the things that the SKForce has produced. All I can say to you is that you keep up your hard work. You can't let people as a whole get to you or drag you down because of their wants and pleas.

If people as a whole would work for want they want, then it wouldn't be so bad. But I can't sit down and enjoy a game of Soldat without having someone complain, attempt to vote-kick, or make the game unfair for everyone. Its not your fault, Brick.

That's just the way people are. Just as you can't have two clocks running at the exact same time, you can't have two people fully satisfied by the same thing.

Flies..as Lord of the Box, I will do my best to squash this uprising of complaints. Your server and site are in my opinion, the greatest that this community has to offer, and for that I thank you.

urg i know it all to well brick... ever since my first game...it was a deathmatch to.. with one person

DT: so this is online
*DT is killed by a barret*
DT: ....
*DT Respawns*
*DT goes after the barreturd and kills him*
*DT kills him about 3 more times*
Mr.Barret: [IMAGE]ING SHOT YOU IN THE HEAD 5 TIMES
DT: no you didn't you freaking missed you stupid invis noob
*DT has been vote kicked*

after a while i went back and he was still thier... and i vote kicked him... heh

but yes this kinda stuf still happends... all the time... 2/3 games i go to have hackers 7/8 have complainers

Noobs these days cannot tell the difference between skill and cheats. It happens to me alot too. I really don't get why people blame everything on hacks and ban innocent people.

you just answered your own question

quote:Originally posted by FliesLikeABrickyou just answered your own question


...lol. You should just ignore those lame people, because its just a game and you shouldnt let them get to you... only n00bs call people n00bs

I think the real solution for this problem is for Soldat players to get lives. Then maybe they wouldn't be so goddamned serious about everything. And I'm not talking about you here, Flies Like A Brick, you put so much work into things that its understandable for you to be serious about your server. I'm talking about the people who think "OMG my stats are falling! What will people think of me!" Honestly, who cares? Go outside, get some fresh air, come back in an hour. Stat whoring, auto whoring, FLAG WHORING?! IN CTF?! F'chrissakes, don't you have anything better to do than make up derogitory terms for behavior noone else cares about?

Anyone seen a guy called Snipe? funny guy. Keeps leaving servers when competition is stiff so not to ruin his stats. Seriously, you'll shoot him once before he's got a kill and he'll leave, but he'll hang around when it's easy pickings. Hence he's 12th on U13's stats.

Odd thing is he does it on other SUS servers... can't explain that one.


And then I see this in u13's chat thingy on his website..

Judge Man: Well, when your waiting alone you have 2 choice: 1) do nothing until someone comes. 2) Suicide untile you get #1 at top10 for suicide.
SnIpE: sorry just waiting for someone to come
Judge Man: Snipe, this is the dont-do-this-or-it-may-result-in-banning . SO stop it.
Judge Man: SNIPE IS CAPPING ALONE IN THE SERVER!!!! WARNING BAN BAN BAN

To be honest I can't tell if Snipe's a rediculously dumb [IMAGE]tard and serious about capping, or if Judge is the one being too serious in stopping the stat-whoring, or if they're just as bad as each other. Instinct's telling me the first option however.

Well, to take this conversation on a different route, I'd like to ask; Brick, what are your expectations of how people should ... be?

There isn't any mood in that question. It isn't against you or for you. I guess it's just an honest question, because I know that at times, I am unhappy with how people respond/are, but when I ask myself how I would have liked them to act, I can't answer myself. If this is the case, then nothing can really help you. Not that much can be done about it, but you know what I mean.

Confession time. I myself have whined and ranted a lot, and with no doubt to you as well. I have mentioned Poop's gameplay style and made a point against it. I have cried like a wee-girl in your server many times. I can't seem to help myself sometimes. The game goes from "Ooh, this is fun!" to "GAH! WHAT! THE! HELL!" and the anger just seems to take over. I'm truly sorry for contributing to that which you despise so much, and I'll try to contain myself.

Kaz, you aren't the only one. I whine about people who are camping too much, or when I die because of lag, or if the teams are uneven...it just happens. I've been trying (unsuccessfully) to cut back, but at least I know that I'm not half as bad as a lot of those people hiding behind the mask of anonymity who classify anyone doing better than them a hacker.

Brick, we all really appreciate what you've done for the community. It would be a shame for you to have to lay that down simply because a few prepubescent twats decided to stand around and whine. It's a negative effect of the type of community that plays this game, but it definitely doesn't outweigh the fun times I've had on your server.

quote:Originally posted by KazukiI have mentioned Poop's gameplay style and made a point against it.

Air-camping, flying around using minigun to surf (as opposed to using it properly to kill), or something else?

I would think it's the way poop (sometimes)likes to call people names and act like a jerk. Speaking of which, it's stuff like this that really brings down even the best of servers. I [IMAGE] at people sometimes, but name calling and racial comments really dumb down the atmosphere. It's too bad you can't make an idiot filter.

Your efforts are not in vain Flab.

ive seen people cap alone in u13 serv.. it gets annoying.. ive also seen this snipe guy a few times...

Wow I thought u13 was dead @_@

Now to harass someone that knows the password~!

how is u13 dead..... err... right.. www.u13.net <-- not dead.

my friend... that belongs in the bible.

quote:Originally posted by MOFO NOFOhow is u13 dead..... err... right.. www.u13.net <-- not dead.


Well it was public and open last time I checked, so when that stopped, I assumed that it died. O.o

quote:Originally posted by ChakraSlightly off topic, but I would like to thank the soldat community as a whole for introducing me to the words Kurwa and Vittu.


rofl that's so true.

People play Soldat and you can't change people. My suggestion would be to take a Barret and kill those suckers that you don't like. But seriously if you're doing this for fun why do you care so much?
Probably because you want the game to be perfect just like me :), but that's impossible so just do your job as best as you can and observe the benefits.

^ that is soooo correct... just get a barret and blow em up :p