Air gameplay is totally broken

I love this game but it's only getting worse: I am a pilot and since the server merge and the resource patch every single noob can spawn an esf after another. there are only air zerg versus air zerg dogfights so you need no skill anymore to win a dogfight - only luck... Some pilots (me too) have more than 100 h in an esf and we have skill but now this seems unnecessary and useless in a dogfight: air gameplay is totally broken. It makes no fun playing an esf anymore! I think I am not the only one which thinks like this. if the air gameplay won't become better and fairer( like an area where you can fight 1 vs 1 without OP AA , coyotes or lock ons) many pilots will stop playing the game! DON'T FORGET some players play this game because of its versatility NOT because of the big fights!!!
especially in dogfights big fights are counterproductive...

If pilots leave the game, that is good. No more WG camping gank squqds that send me hate when I coyote them to death.

I have to agree, not to mention there is little breathing space for new pilots to engage in dogfights. You have a garuntee by time you get into territory to fight there will be a large number of AA MAX units and turrets mowing you down, and even if you get away from that you will probabaly just get ganged up by a small army of enemy aircrafts.

Heaven forbid the sky knights have to watch their backs now if they intend to still do the solo thing, ever wary of the roving gangs that won't hesitate to pounce if they give them the chance. I am so very upset by the fact that they can no longer sweep the skies, singly destroying any sub-par pilots in their path while they seek each other out for their honorable sky duels, completely removed from the problems of the peasants below.

Yeah I'm not sorry at all. Adapt or perish.

QQ

Wait !!!
What !!!

I thought pilots have always said they wanted more people in the air then they wouldn't have to focus on lolpodding infantry so much ..

But Now there is more air to dogfight it's bad



Guess you can't please everyone ..

Its great having more people in the air, i can actually learn to properly fly myself xD

In my opinion it would be the best if the A2G weapons (mustang AH, banshee and light ppa) would be deleted out of the game and the G2A (lock on launcher)as well. than the esf couldn't farm infantry and the groundforces wouldn't be as dangerous.Than the game would be a little bit better!!! but this whole thing sounds a little bit utopian

Go forth, you that yearned to spread your wings and soar the forbidden skies. The sky knights can no longer hold closed the pearly gates that kept out your masses. The world above is yours for the taking, to frolic and cavort and murder each other with wild and carefree abandon. The throne of the aristocracy crumbles, and you are unshackled.

Go forth. AND BE FREE.

whoah whoah whoah whoah wait a minute! Are you saying pilots just figured out they could cover the entire front, fly from one side of the map to the next, in 90 seconds?

http://2.bp.************/_M-BJnnt9gAA/SSWv7ewhdOI/AAAAAAAAA74/0-UMcAJ1kZ8/s400/Fly_my_Pretties_Oz_Medium.jpg

Cry me a Beamer.

Air game play has been broken for a very long time IMO. The problem is that before it was broken it was seriously OP. Without a ESF redesign there will never be a happy balance. Personally I believe the easiest fix would be a top speed increase and a deceleration decrease. These two changes would turn ESFs into jet type vehicles that would be much more balanced.

If ESFs were faster then we would see strafing run type attacks on ground units which would make them viable in big fights and with limited hover (due to the deceleration decrease) they would not so easily dominate smaller fights since picking off one or two infantry would be difficult at 300+ km/h. The two problems that plague ESFs solved with a speed buff and deceleration nerf.

I know a lot of people who believe the air game to be "unique" will hate this idea but in regards to the game as a whole I believe it would be beneficial. Also dog fighting would be really fun going at high speeds weaving through canyons and forests.

i think the problems could be solved if an esf could only be used vs ememy air and not verses ground units. so an esf could kll enemy libs which should be the primary A2G vehicle...

Increase the speed of air units and remove hover at any sort of altitude. Make fast AA fighters, make bombers, make the Gal a dropship. Stop making everything a farming helicopter. Problem solved! Too easy though, lets keep making people upset in an endless attempt at balance.

Well there is that option too. SOE themselves say that ESFs are for air domination but they will probably never remove all the weapons that are used in A2G because it would cause an uproar.

Yeah. The WW2 flight models are far more interesting.

that's right but if they won't change sth there will be an uproar as well. they have to change sth and this seems beeing the solution with the best ending... a2g weapons are only make fore the reason of farming... and it wouldnt be so bad if this wouldnt be in the game. if you wanna farm you doeant need skill but if the whole maneuverability will be changed (like in the idea form nexus545)
all the skilled pilots will be angry.... me too

OP... Don't be silly. Didn't you watch the video by Matti? I thought that was what "dog fighting" was about. Surely. if you are so skilled, you'll be farming all those ESF noobs?

Air game is better than ever, it's now actually a continuous game of it's own.