Regarding earlier postings of a plane's mechanical damage in play.
The idea of mechanical deficiencies, while a very worthwhile idea, largely depends up on what style of game play is available to the players.
If good AI is available in online play (and I really hope this is the case) then I can see how it would benefit a playable scenario.
Gliding to your frontlines while hoping the arty won't blow you away or the machine gunnners don't catch you in a spray is an adventure as worthy as any combat encounter.
However, if online play consists of hosted games for online players only then there will always be limits to how many planes can be in the sky at any given point, making this cool idea less satisfying.
I guess what I am hoping is that an online game that is played by two friends can be as exciting and diversive as an online game played by 20 players. If the computer rather than the bandwith takes the brunt of the planes and other things produced, it allows for even the 56k'ers to enjoy a good game.
As far as gun jams, changing drums and similar things, I hope developers realise that basing it on hitting a key numerous times (ala RB) to unjam guns is a very bad idea for promoting a fair balance of gameplay versus a player's physical joystick. Otherwise, you'll get players programming a "15 hit key" Macro into their sticks giving them an advantage over others with less stellar sticks. Make everything based on a set of time or a game engine's randomizer so the outcome is not always known. This would also mean that one could very well end up with jams that DO NOT unjam at all or perhaps even dropping a drum of ammo which was certainly not uncommon at times.
It also might be interesting regarding things like engine fires and the like to be more interactive depending upon the player's reactions. So, if one does not switch off an engine hit by bullets, the chances of a spark and a fire become more possible every second. Anything where the player's correct reaction to a problem rewards them with more time aloft or even alive is nice. Again, avoiding the on/off damage mentality that has been used in previous sims.
As far as immersion, I like the idea of a good Dynamic Generation system available for quick, yet interesting scenarios. Or the possability for any of the missions available offline to be easily played online by just allowing players to take the place of AI.
And make it feasable to have dedicated Linux servers please? They seem to be the most stable and efficient for hosting games if there is not a company provided server available.
S!
