Hornet Leader PC v1.20 Public Beta Now Available!

[Erik Rutins]

Hi everyone,

The Hornet Leader PC v1.20 Public Beta is now available via our Members Club (the MEMBERS link in the top navigation bar) for all registered customers. Thanks to Derek for all his hard work on this, it adds some very nice improvements and fixes based on YOUR feedback. Download, install and enjoy!

Regards,

- Erik

[Veldor]

Woohoo! Downloading now...

[StormcloudCreations]

Final fix list:
 
Bugs fixed:
- Moving a pilot to the south approach area wouldn't always
revert back to movement phase properly
- Changing altitude to High would sometimes exit movement
phase if you were in movement phase already
- Sometimes combat would end if a pilot was shot down
even though there were still active pilots remaining; most
of these issues should be resolved
- A few stress related home-bound events would rarely cause the
game to freeze
- There were a few display bugs with target campaign track rewards
- Sometimes the "to hit" modifiers for certain sites/bandits
weren't being factored in properly
 
Features/Tweaks added:
- Added altitude arrows on the map for pilots, and now
a pilot's altitude may be changed using these arrows
during movement phase, rather than the side arrows
- Now damaged/shot down statuses for pilots are updated
immediately on the map, instead of at the end
of the attack phase
- Retooled the combat screen for increased smoothness
and eliminated most of the flickering and "flashing"
associated with various activities
- Implemented DirectX for playing music and sounds
for a 5-10% speed increase between planning screens
and overall app smoothness; DirectX 8 or higher now
required to play the game
- Added a "Random Pilot" selection feature for initial
pilot pool selection
- Added an Abort Mission button that is active
at the start of each phase on the combat screen
- Added a "View Current Campaign Stats" button on the
main target selection screen
- Bandits tend to move a little more often and their
AI has been sharpened slightly
- Switched to a more "realistic" looking explosion
graphic when you destroy a site or bandit

[CapnDarwin]

Derek,
 
Played 1.20 and fixes and performance tweaks are noticible. A few things I did see that could use a tweak is the ability to tell what altitude a bandit is at. Mainly for gun combat (or does that even matter? Can I engage with gun from hi or low?). Also, will there be a way down the road to tweak data of units and weapons to ones liking. I'd like to increase the Harms range, add radar to the ZSU-23/4 and take away the high altitude capability of the 37mm gun.
 
Thanks for all of the hard work!
 
Have a Safe and Happy New Year!

[StormcloudCreations]

Bandits don't have an "altitude" per se, which is why it doesn't matter. If a weapon can fire at high altitude, it can attack a bandit. Thanks for the nice words; I worked hard on the internals of the game to really make the game more zippy and smooth performance wise.

[NefariousKoel]

Any plans for making variable screen resolutions possible?

[StormcloudCreations]

With this one, more than likely not, at least an official release. There are lots of technical reasons why this was the case. I've learned though; with future releases, 1024x768 will be the starting point for res, so I can support both power desktop and laptop users easier.
 
So everyone that's tried the patch likes it so far?

[Hookton]

Overall yes. A few problems (bugs):

Invisible bandits: (i assume) eg today i flew a mission against an airfield, all SAMs & aircraft eliminated, an attack from i dont know where comes, i cant suppress it coz i cant see the bandit, result? Wraith shot down (and captured [:(])

Invisible Hornets:
a) Just flew a mission against a bridge, loaded up Thumper with Laser guided bombs (S.O. Points) when i go to set up my planes, thumper is invisible so i cant select him.

b) Occaisonally a hornet will go invisible mid mission so i cant select him.

What id like to see in future patches:

a) New Campaigns!
b) New Pilots & extended experience options!
c) New planes!

thansk!

[hmssirius]

what still no screen res fix????? I CANT BELEIVE THAT SUCH AN ADDRESSED ISSUE IS IGNORED SO MUCH. THERE ARE STILL MANY CUSTOMERS WHO CAN NOT PLAY A GAME THEY HAVE PURCHASED. SERIOUSLY WHY WOULD I PASS MY THANKS ON TO SOME ONE WHO HAS SOLD ME A GAME THAT IS NOT PLAYABLE AND THEN SPEND A FEW MONTHS LYING AND SAYING YEAH YEAH IT WILL BE FIXED AND IT IS STILL NOT.[:@]

[Erik Rutins]

Fishhead,

With all due respect:

1. The game's minimum specs include the minimum resolution. There's also a thread in the forum about this. We were up front about the resolution requirement.
2. We've said that resolution is on our list, but it's not an easy change with this design. We did not promise that it was going to be immediately forthcoming in first update or two.
3. If you don't have a system that can play the game at all, e-mail me at erikr@matrixgames.com and we'll discuss.

Regards,

- Erik

[MIGMaster]

Fishhead,

What screen resolution are you trying to play at ?

[hmssirius]

Hi MIGMaster,
I am using a 1440x900 laptop

[barcelonablom]

Ouch, I forgot my original login for the site and can't access that stuff. I made the mistake of creating a new one but I all ready registered my CD keys. Is there a support email I can get my original info from?

[StormcloudCreations]

barcelon: I'm sure someone will come along and help you (if they haven't already).

[hmssirius]

Hi Erik,
Thanks for the off line help [:)][:)]

[Erik Rutins]

ORIGINAL: barcelonablom
Ouch, I forgot my original login for the site and can't access that stuff. I made the mistake of creating a new one but I all ready registered my CD keys. Is there a support email I can get my original info from?

Please e-mail us at support@matrixgames.com and ask to have your members area login info sent to you.

[barcelonablom]

Thanks!

[Banquet]

ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins

Fishhead,

With all due respect:

1. The game's minimum specs include the minimum resolution. There's also a thread in the forum about this. We were up front about the resolution requirement.
2. We've said that resolution is on our list, but it's not an easy change with this design. We did not promise that it was going to be immediately forthcoming in first update or two.
3. If you don't have a system that can play the game at all, e-mail me at erikr@matrixgames.com and we'll discuss.

Regards,

- Erik

With all due respect;

ORIGINAL: StormcloudCreations

Not at all, Banquet! In fact, I think I have a plan for converting it without *too much* work, but it may not look perfect, mind you. 1st patch is a possibility.

ORIGINAL: StormcloudCreations

If a patch comes out to support other reses, it would come out fairly quickly. So i'd say for now, don't let that influence your decision to buy the game or not.

ORIGINAL: StormcloudCreations

AirCanuck: In the VERY near future, I will release a patch to support a few more resolutions, including 1280x800 and 1024x768 as well possibly.

If I'd bought this game I'd be demanding a refund right now. As it happens I decided to hold off and it looks like I made the right decision.

[StormcloudCreations]

Yes...I thought at the time it would be easy. Turned out it wasn't for various technical reasons. I did learn my lesson though.

[Banquet]

Fair enough Derek, I don't mean to have a go.. Erik's comments, however, weren't entirely accurate..