Steel Battalion: LOC -- Eighteen months later

[bargora]

Hey all. I'm still playing Steel Battalion: Line of Contact, just not quite as much as I used to. People still play, though, especially a loose group of regulars that gets together on Wednesday nights and Sunday afternoons to play "for fun" (i.e., less cut-throat) matches. There's even a trickle of new players coming into the game as the SB sets drop lower and lower in price; so not everybody playing is an uber-vet looking to pwn some n00bs.

I have yet to run into any DP members playing the game, so I'm just poking around to ask: do any of you still have controller, game and XBL account to play LOC? If so and you'd like to maybe get into the game again (or for the first time), then post here or drop me a PM. Ditto if you have any questions.

I'm happy to help people learn or adjust to the online game, as are most of the regular guys I play with. And having an experienced player available to show you the ropes seems to make a huge difference in how much new players end up enjoying the experience.

[Gemini-Phoenix]

I am yet to unseal my copy of LOC. I do not have Xbox Live, hence the reason.

Saying that, I haven't really played Steel Battalion all that much. If I were to play LOC, i'd just be dead within seconds anyway against all those hardcore online veterans.

I only play the game for a bit of fun anyway. That, and to see the amazing Steel Bat graphics. I like to just go through the firing up motions at the beginning ~ To me, that is well worth the £500 I paid for my two copies! (Call me fickle, but simple things please simple people!)

[shvnsth]

To me, that is well worth the £500 I paid for my two copies! (Call me fickle, but simple things please simple people!)

thats almost $1000 us. holy shit.

[Slimedog]

I've got the hardware, game and XBox live. I've honestly been meaning to try this thing out online, but the problem is that I haven't played it in about 2 years and even when I did, I just plain sucked at the single player. I guess the biggest limitation is that reassembling the controller, reaclimating myself to the game, going online and spending weeks reaking of n00b seems like a lot of commitment before I start really getting into it.

That being said, you have inspired me to get off my ass and hook it up again. Well, you and my Jaralaccs C figurine that has been staring at me for months with its accusing, unblinking red eye. Can you choose from any mech online or do they have to be earned? Also, is there any other advice you can offer an online n00b? My gamertag is Slimedog. What times do you usually play?

[sisko]

LOC is now only $10 new at EB

I picked mine up...I just need to decided if I should shell out $70 to play it online....

[googlefest1]

i have the hardware - for over a year and never tried it - am looking to get another one and still probably wont try it untill next year - id like to try it but i can't - not right now - hopefully people will still be playing it next year

[EndlessChris]

Yeah, I have Steel Batallion and Line of Contact but no Xbox Live.

Actually no Xbox either now that I think of it. Sold it for $100 since I figured the price would plummet a few months after the 360 came out.

[Trebuken]

I bought this awhile ago myself (the box is a nice addition to any game room), and have not played it. I really have no idea where to put the thing (my Xbox is in my living room). I'd have to find a convenient way to set it up, it's not quite as easy to work with as a wireless controller.


Trebuken

[Kaebora]

Honestly, WHY do you guys buy $150-$200 in gaming equipment and not even USE it?! X_x

My own SB:LoC rig has been played so much, that I can round down the playing time to mere pennies a minute (and dropping). The graphics are amazing. Its one of the few games on XBox that can run at 720p. Talk about high def! Every button on the 40 button controller has a useful purpose. Veterens like myself and Bargora can think of at least 2-3 uses for each one. The community may seem small at first, but once you obtain a friends list of SB players, you'll find games a lot quicker. Being active at www.steelbattalion.org/forum helps too.

Steel Battalion often turns people away with its deep gameplay. Why? Because it's not a game. It's a simulator. Any sim game players know that it takes practice to get good at what they play. This is not a game you can master in mere hours. It can take weeks to get the feel of the single player game, and months to tone the skillz for the online arena. I enjoyed every minute of learning the details of the game, and I'm still learning new techneques after playing consistantly for over a year.

If anyone is still ify about the online game, checkout my buddy King Leer's site at www.lineofcontact.net. It's got more info on LoC than anywhere else. See for yourselves just what you're missing.

Steel Battalion ROCKS! Woo!! :D (It simply must be awesome if I signed up for this forum just to post this. @_@ )

[ubersaurus]

I'd probably hop on were it not for the following:

1: Most of my friends play Halo 2, Splinter Cell, and Street Fighter. Since I always seem to have friends on at least one game, I'm usually already involved in a game.

2: I hate assembling that damn controller. I keep the main part together, but unburying the foot pedals is a pain.

3: I suck at steel battalion. Coupled with the fact that everyone else on there probably has about a year's worth more experience on me, the prospect of getting my ass beat consistently isn't appealing.

and finally, 4: I'd have to devote quite some time into it, which I have been spending going through about 4 other games, and watching Farscape.

That said I'd probably play it if I actually had something to set the controller on. My bed it too high up for me to reach the pedals, and I don't like setting the controller on my lap.

[Kaebora]

I'd probably hop on were it not for the following:

1: Most of my friends play Halo 2, Splinter Cell, and Street Fighter. Since I always seem to have friends on at least one game, I'm usually already involved in a game.
Most of those games aren't nearly as fun in my opinion. Still, like I said, if you have lots of LoC players in your list, you'll find more reasons to play.


2: I hate assembling that damn controller. I keep the main part together, but unburying the foot pedals is a pain.
From what I've seen, most SB:LoC players keep it out at all times. Mine still rests on my desk even now while I'm not playing it. I really wouldn't consider this a big deal, even if I did have to take it out of a closet every time.

3: I suck at steel battalion. Coupled with the fact that everyone else on there probably has about a year's worth more experience on me, the prospect of getting my ass beat consistently isn't appealing.
Then why do the newbs I see online enjoy it so much? When I was starting out, I didn't get a single kill online for a month, but I had lots of fun anyways. The veterans are suprisingly helpful, and will often correct any mistakes you make. I encourage new players to ask for help, because they will get it, and get better at the game faster.

and finally, 4: I'd have to devote quite some time into it, which I have been spending going through about 4 other games, and watching Farscape.I only play maybe 2-3 times a week for about an average of 2-3 hours. Even with a limited play time, anyone can eventually get good at the game. Like I said, this is a simulator more than it is a game, and requires some patience to master.

That said I'd probably play it if I actually had something to set the controller on. My bed it too high up for me to reach the pedals, and I don't like setting the controller on my lap.
This is where the SB:LoC community gets interesting. There have been a number of players creating actual "cockpits" in their garages, and some simply adding extensions to their office chairs to hold the controller. Some professional setups can be found here (http://www.steelbattalion.org/consumer.php), and some amature ones here (http://www.steelbattalion.org/setups.php). I myself have divised my own setup...
http://www.croeder.net/shared/kaeborasetup1.jpg
(That image is nearly a year old, but you get the idea.) 8-)

[ubersaurus]

And if you saw my room you'd know that said setup is completely unfeasible :P Or anything. There's simply no space to put anything that I can set the controller on. Even a simple tray won't fit.

Having to get out the controller is the same reason I'm not on SF nearly as much as the other two. Sure, the arcade stick is just sitting there, right behind the door, but it's an extra minute out of my vaulable playing time.

[Kaebora]

Otherwords you're saying your just lazy? Common. It takes 60 seconds to brush your teeth, feed the dog, or go to the bathroom. You time is so valuble that you complain about wipping out the controller to the most badass game on the planet?! Common man you're bigger than that. :/
I know a few players that set it in their lap. They've somehow developed techneques to keep it from sliding around. (For me its just the gear shifter. I use the palm of my hand to push and pull it while still holding on to the left joystick.)

I'm really looking for better reasons not to play an exellent game you payed good money for.

[ubersaurus]

I'm afraid I lack the mass to keep it from going off to the floor when I move the levers. The buttons, as long as I don't hit too hard, aren't much of an issue.

But let's look at it this way-

I could play Halo, a game I enjoy the hell out of, and have for some 3 odd years now, with, at least, 5 or 6 people a night that I know. Or, I could go out of my way to hook up a controller to a game that I've barely played to get reamed for approximately a half hour before I get sick of losing and leave. I may be lazy, but my game time is precious, and I don't like to waste it looking for controller bits and moving furniture around to accomodate them. Nono, for this, I'd have to make a night of it, and a night of me forgetting what does what and not knowing what the fuck weapon I want to use is far less appealing then you seem to think it would be.

[Kejoriv]

I still havent played that game. Looks to complicated. Anything more than 10 buttons is to challenging for my feeble mind.

[Trebuken]

I loved a couple of those gaming rigs from the above links. Battalion takes some serious dedication. If Xbox 360 weren't coming I'd consider something similar, would be a cool project. The controller does consume alot of space and you need to be willing to dedicate that space for it. I think I'd have to buy a second Xbox just to dedicate it to Battalion. Might be worth it....anyone have designs for a cockpit?

Trebuken

[bargora]

Well, at least Slimedog's up for it! LOL

[Kaebora]

Why do people buy this game when they don't plan on playing it? What is this world coming to when perfectly good gaming rigs are bought and not used? This is why the online arena keeps having fewer and fewer players. People who expected something less of a simulator and more of a shoot-em-up get dissapointed and frustrated, and sell the game to someone who doesn't have room for it in the first place. As if the 40 button controller wouldn't have turned away the most soft-core gamers already. THis game is for ther SERIOUS gamers! If you can master this game, you can master ANY game! (I have yet to totally master it, but I enjoy the hell out of it!)

It just makes me even madder that people put this game down before they even play it. You wanna know what the online game is really about? You wanna see what the fast-paced action looks like?! Here's a video I put together about 2 hours ago for a Steel Battalion forum's members to see. It's the best one I've made so far... so enjoy. Warning: This might change some of your opinions for the better.

http://www.croeder.net/shared/behemoth_onslaught.wmv

[dj898]

mine's packed away at the moment after few months of heavy use...
I'm just waiting for the day when we get the new PDP so I can retire the old one and put it in the den decked out with the purpose built desk and controller on it plus one of my spare bucket seat I have lying around - basically purpose built SB room... he he

[Gemini-Phoenix]

My three-tone controller... Add's just that extra little ambiance to the game, instead of having all the buttons flashing in one colour in front of you...

http://img371.imageshack.us/img371/5574/twotonesteelbattalioncontrolle.th.jpg (http://img371.imageshack.us/my.php?image=twotonesteelbattalioncontrolle.jpg)

I'm lucky, because not many people can do this. It certainly is well worth buying two controllers to do!

It also works in the opposite configuration (Green~blue-green), but I prefer blue~green~blue


http://img382.imageshack.us/img382/9584/steelbattalionx23kt.th.jpg (http://img382.imageshack.us/my.php?image=steelbattalionx23kt.jpg)