A Path Beyond Introducing the Yakovlev Yak-9P

[FRAYDO]

[blurb]Coming soon to a RA:APB near you! Introducing the Yakovlev Yak-9P![/blurb]
[thumb]thumb_apb.7.png[/thumb]

Red Alert: A Path Beyond Dev. Blog

Yakovlev Yak-9P

Set to debut on Guard Duty, the Yak will afford the Soviets an incredible alpha-strike in their arty-hunting efforts. The Yak can reach speeds of up to 45m/s (the next fastest unit being the Longbow at a mere 24m/s) and expend its magazine in a minimum of 1.33 seconds. The Yak boasts infinite ammo but with a long reload time, although that shouldn't matter much as once you've expended your magazine you're turning around for your next attack. It's splash damage ignites infantry, better allowing your comrades to finish the task should your target remain alive. While mostly effective against infantry and light vehicles, the Yak can still find opportunities in armour-broken heavy vehicles that are on the retreat.

As in Red Alert, the Yak will cost 800. With a health of 350 and lack of armour, be advised that your attack runs will leave you vulnerable to return fire. Choose your battles wisely and you can stay airborne for long periods and dish out more punishment than a Hind can. Unlike the Hind however, in the event you are shot down your infantry will also die in the crash.

Airfield

It goes without saying that the Airfield will also be included as a new structure. Purchased Yaks will fly onto the strip waiting for takeoff, and here you repair and can sell your Yak. It should be noted that the Airfield is technically a "Helipad" in the code, making it unlikely to see both buildings on the same map. Nonetheless, we can discuss how to fit the Airfield and Yak into high-tech maps and implementing them in the future.[thumb]thumb_apb.7.png[/thumb]

[OrangeP47]

I really appreciate the allied targets being set up 'realistically'.  I also very appreciate KY's style

[NoSpoons]

Those new flying Rangers yaks are going to be awesome

[Raap]

Should have known there was a reason for delaying the patch. 

Excellent choice trying this on Guard Duty, the map really needed something to make it more exciting than, well, guard duty.

Take that 2007! Ten years later, W3D finally offers airplanes! 

Looking forward to the solution to enable them on high-tech maps (Siege was created for airplanes). Also the MiG. Also the to-be-created Allied equivalents. Also me getting triggered by that helipad airfield texture resolution...

Edited May 20, 2017 by Raap

[OrangeP47]

8 minutes ago, Raap said:

Should have known there was a reason for delaying the patch. 

Excellent choice trying this on Guard Duty, the map really needed something to make it more exciting than, well, guard duty.

Take that 2007! Ten years later, W3D finally offers airplanes! 

Looking forward to the solution to enable them on high-tech maps (Siege was created for airplanes). Also the MiG. Also the to-be-created Allied equivalents. Also me getting triggered by that helipad airfield texture resolution...

I remember back in the Beta days all the calls of 'it'll never happen'.  Honestly, it's kind of surreal being here.

I also remember people telling me in the 9935 days that the mod was dead too, so maybe predictions are just tricky things.

[Pushwall]

40 minutes ago, OrangeP47 said:

I remember back in the Beta days all the calls of 'it'll never happen'.  Honestly, it's kind of surreal being here.

And I've been upholding those same messages until just 2 months ago as well. It can take a long time for a solution for something like this to pop up, but oh boy, when it does...

The solution unfortunately came too late for me to implement it into the "testing grounds" of Lunar Paradox but I think the VTOL Yak was enough of a teaser

[Pushwall]

1 hour ago, Raap said:

Looking forward to the solution to enable them on high-tech maps (Siege was created for airplanes). Also the MiG. Also the to-be-created Allied equivalents. Also me getting triggered by that helipad airfield texture resolution...

Thing is, we already had a Yak model and texture on hand, so that was easy to put in as all it needed was the landing gear animation. Not so much with the MiG - we have no assets for that at all. If you're extremely attentive you may have seen a teaser somewhere on this forum that accidentally showed a MiG, but it's a placeholder model that's just being used to prototype the unit's stats just in case we ever end up with all the means to implement it in future.

And I'm not too comfortable with the idea of Allied planes. From what I remember that was just a Chronojam fever dream. We can probably work around the "imbalance" in other ways, like having MiGs on certain naval maps if Cruisers become a reality, as they seem like they'd be a natural counter (CI would need a terrain overhaul to make room for an airfield and for planes to not be able to peer into blue hell, but Hostile Waters could probably have an airfield added with ease), or sticking them on Seamist where the teams' base balance is already intentionally out of whack anyway. On Guard Duty, the Allied Radar Dome you see in the video is the balancing factor against the existence of an Airfield, and anyone who's been paying attention to feedback threads may have some idea as to why a team having a dome could possibly be a good thing and not a hindrance.  

[Raap]

4 minutes ago, Pushwall said:

Thing is, we already had a Yak model and texture on hand, so that was easy to put in as all it needed was the landing gear animation. Not so much with the MiG - we have no assets for that at all. If you're extremely attentive you may have seen a teaser somewhere on this forum that accidentally showed a MiG, but it's a placeholder model that's just being used to prototype the unit's stats just in case we ever end up with all the means to implement it in future.

And I'm not too comfortable with the idea of Allied planes. From what I remember that was just a Chronojam fever dream. We can probably work around the "imbalance" in other ways, like having MiGs on certain naval maps if Cruisers become a reality, as they seem like they'd be a natural counter (CI would need a terrain overhaul to make room for an airfield and for planes to not be able to peer into blue hell, but Hostile Waters could probably have an airfield added with ease), or sticking them on Seamist where the teams' base balance is already intentionally out of whack anyway.

Airplanes are one of those "Big Deal Additions" that would improve gameplay a lot if both teams had access to them. If Red Alert never featured Hinds but only Longbows, I can easily imagine a counter having been created a decade ago because helicopters are not an insignificant segment of gameplay diversity.

As for asset creation, well I've never in my life created an airplane before so I cannot comment on the complexity.

Edited May 20, 2017 by Raap

[Chaos_Knight]

Looks neat so far. Not sure if outright killing the pilot would be a good idea tbh considering that it's much easier to crash and outright die. But I guess we shall wait and see.

Also I see that my "crash" mechanics idea is in as well

[des1206]

3 hours ago, Raap said:

Airplanes are one of those "Big Deal Additions" that would improve gameplay a lot if both teams had access to them. If Red Alert never featured Hinds but only Longbows, I can easily imagine a counter having been created a decade ago because helicopters are not an insignificant segment of gameplay diversity.

As for asset creation, well I've never in my life created an airplane before so I cannot comment on the complexity.

Not every unit needs to have a counterpart for things to be balanced! For every Yak/Mig in action there is one less Soviet infantry+vehicle on the field! Let's be as Ralistic as possible. 

[Killing_You]

Balance wise, they kind of fill that "fast attack vehicle" niche that the Soviets often lack, at the cost of being made of paper and being forced to aim their shots on the fly (no pun intended). Balance doesn't always have to be 1:1 symmetrical.

[thedisclaimitory]

FINALLY THE YAK SOMETHING WE HAVE ALL BEEN WATING FOR FOR YEARS AND HAS BEEN IN RENALERT IN THE ALPHA OF IT NOW THE AIR FEILD LOOKS SOO MUCH BETTER sorry caps because m just  so EXCITED  now all wee need is cruisers but will they add it the world may never know

[thedisclaimitory]

and  MAKE THE BUILD LIMIT MORE LIKE 20 OR ABYE 15 PLS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[KevinLancaster]

Will it have a horn? 

[Einstein]

@thedisclaimitory Please check your PMs.

[Mojoman]

That tricky Pushwall. Saying there are no plans for further development and then developing plans right beneath our noses!

[Raap]

2 hours ago, des1206 said:

Not every unit needs to have a counterpart for things to be balanced! For every Yak/Mig in action there is one less Soviet infantry+vehicle on the field! Let's be as Ralistic as possible. 

I'm not talking about balance, not at all.

Let me give an example.

Two kids go to a candy shop, the owner hands one of the two kids a bucket of candy, and the other kid gets nothing.

Or in more game-native terms, a designer creates unique content for one team while giving nothing to the other team.

This is of similar magnitude as when you'd only give naval power to one team, or only helicopters to one team, or only a missile silo to one team. Airplanes aren't just another vehicle, they are a new and unique category of content. If you added a Soviet Super Awesome Mammoth Tank Supreme, the Allied team wouldn't really lose much by not gaining an equivalent since the Soviet Super Awesome Mammoth Tank Supreme doesn't add anything new to the table.

Content diversity helps to keep players interested in the game, which means greater player retention. Not utilizing something like this to the full potential is wasting a big opportunity.

Ye followin'?

 

Edit: From my point of view, adding an Allied equivalent is similar to adding Snipers. They make sense for gameplay appeal purposes.

Edited May 21, 2017 by Raap

[Pushwall]

You'll get your Allied candy. I guess you haven't been in enough games with ChopBam to realise this  

[des1206]

24 minutes ago, Raap said:

I'm not talking about balance, not at all.

Let me give an example.

Two kids go to a candy shop, the owner hands one of the two kids a bucket of candy, and the other kid gets nothing.

Or in more game-native terms, a designer creates unique content for one team while giving nothing to the other team.

This is of similar magnitude as when you'd only give naval power to one team, or only helicopters to one team, or only a missile silo to one team. Airplanes aren't just another vehicle, they are a new and unique category of content. If you added a Soviet Super Awesome Mammoth Tank Supreme, the Allied team wouldn't really lose much by not gaining an equivalent since the Soviet Super Awesome Mammoth Tank Supreme doesn't add anything new to the table.

Content diversity helps to keep players interested in the game, which means greater player retention. Not utilizing something like this to the full potential is wasting a big opportunity.

Ye followin'?

I guess it comes down to personal preference. Mine ranks Ralism above content diversity. I always loved the C&C games where one side got more air units to play with while the other side got more naval or infantry. Personally, I really don't mind the Soviets being more air dominant while Allies need to rely on creative infantry and ground vehicles use. If we give Allies fighter planes, it will leave a bad taste in my mouth. Is this still Red Alert? Where do we draw the line in terms of creating new units for the sake of fun?

 

Edited May 21, 2017 by des1206

[Pushwall]

4 hours ago, Chaos_Knight said:

Also I see that my "crash" mechanics idea is in as well

It was already in for the Yak in the first place because it had it when it was on Lunar Paradox. It's not in on helicopters yet.

[Venom]

Amazing to see this finally showing up in the game! Very good work you guys!

[ChopBam]

3 hours ago, Pushwall said:

You'll get your Allied candy. I guess you haven't been in enough games with ChopBam to realise this  

The alternative explanation here is that I really just don't do it that much, which Voe refuses to believe. But it's legit.

[Testament]

16 hours ago, FRAYDO said:

It should be noted that the Airfield is technically a "Helipad" in the code, making it unlikely to see both buildings on the same map. Nonetheless, we can discuss how to fit the Airfield and Yak into high-tech maps and implementing them in the future.

All the soviet helicopters have wheels, if anyone feels the desire to animate it the helos can land on the runway and taxi off of it like Jerad's large aircraft do. 

Love the model of the Yak though, I plan on being the resident APB ace. 

[Einstein]

7 hours ago, Raap said:

Soviet Super Awesome Mammoth Tank Supreme

 

7 hours ago, Pushwall said:

Allied candy

These are my demands

[TeamWolf]

The Yak is amazing to fly, Pushwall has done an amazing job on it!

Allies have more units in other areas, would be a bit silly to give them planes "because". 

[SirJustin90]

This is great!

I also agree that both sides don't need equivalents. If you want that argument than soviets should have some sort of stealth ground unit. As that is huge.

However, the soviets have their sheer power and might to help balance against that with tesla units coming to mind immediately as a counter.

[NodFan]

On 5/21/2017 at 10:47 AM, TeamWolf said:

The Yak is amazing to fly, Pushwall has done an amazing job on it!

Allies have more units in other areas, would be a bit silly to give them planes "because". 

Agreed, finally we get a decent non-vtol physics in the W3D engine.

And I have one question.

"WHERE ARE THE MIGS?"

 

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Its a quote from the last Chinese mission in C&C Generals.

[Ice]

On 5/21/2017 at 4:58 PM, SirJustin90 said:

I also agree that both sides don't need equivalents. If you want that argument than soviets should have some sort of stealth ground unit. As that is huge.

To be fair, those two things aren't really comparable. Aircraft have been a ubiquitous asset in all modern armies for almost a century now, while Phase technology is a radically advanced top-secret technology developed by one side and which is not necessarily replicable by the other side, similar to Allied Chronosphere technology (which the Soviets were never able to replicate despite extensive espionage) and Soviet Iron Curtain technology (which the Allies, in turn, couldn't replicate). Plus, realistically there would have been a plethora of various European aircraft available to the Allies during the war, ranging from 1940's-era prop planes and bombers up to some of the very the first jets.

That all being said, however, introducing an Allied fixed-wing aircraft, while cool in theory, could prove difficult to balance well and could just end up messing up the gameplay. The only likely exception to this would be in mission-specific scenarios, and even then it could be kinda iffy.

[SirJustin90]

On 5/29/2017 at 8:09 PM, Ice said:

To be fair, those two things aren't really comparable. Aircraft have been a ubiquitous asset in all modern armies for almost a century now, while Phase technology is a radically advanced top-secret technology developed by one side and which is not necessarily replicable by the other side, similar to Allied Chronosphere technology (which the Soviets were never able to replicate despite extensive espionage) and Soviet Iron Curtain technology (which the Allies, in turn, couldn't replicate). Plus, realistically there would have been a plethora of various European aircraft available to the Allies during the war, ranging from 1940's-era prop planes and bombers up to some of the very the first jets.

That all being said, however, introducing an Allied fixed-wing aircraft, while cool in theory, could prove difficult to balance well and could just end up messing up the gameplay. The only likely exception to this would be in mission-specific scenarios, and even then it could be kinda iffy.

The only problem is again, removing all soviet advantages just to give the allies the same thing over and over.

Both sides would reasonably have jeep like vehicles, but didn't in RA, and would kill balance. Both likely had multiple light and heavy tanks, but they again don't in RA and also not for balance.

As well, both surely had flamethrowers, grenades, medical troops, spies.... you see where this would end up?