Mythixdino

Extended review of the AeoniumGaming server (PvP). Overall score: 9/10 If you don't want to read it all TDLR is at the bottom. Gameplay & Progression You start with a pistol but not with the default orange exile suit. I don't really get why you would get a pistol already from the start - usually you get them when you have more respect. The spawn locations are default ones, however it would be nice to have one or two located in the middle of the map. Getting from the spawnpoints to the top left when you died is kind of annoying (yes, love the quad bikes). The loot at the spawn locations is usually well balanced, you'll be able to find shotguns and the basic assault rifles. And they won't spawn in mass like usual, you might have to search a while. You can also spawn a bike or a quad bike from your XM8 when you spawn (Though quad bikes are awesome, like nothing can beat their awesomeness). For better loot you have to decide where to go. You can go to an airfield, they have higher tier equipment & weapons. However this comes at a price (I won't spoil anything here) Or you can go to a crash-site, which usually have AI guarding them. But those reward well, usually providing you with rare loot. At last there are missions you can do aswell. These give as expected the best rewards (higher difficulty = more & better rewards). Yes, before someone says I forgot some, there are more ways to progress further. But these are the basics. I recommend if you don't like campers to join when there are < 20 people online (which is reasonable of course). Additionally try to avoid missions because they are the most wanted. Zombies are actually something you can be afraid of now - unlike many other servers. The zombies will not like it when you try to get good loot. I had my own experience with them, and I didn't like it. You have been warned. While I'm playing on my own, there are many others who play in group and of course it will speed up progression by a lot. But it's possible to play alone as I'm doing it If you're playing alone try always to have suppressor(s) with you as they will help you a lot. Not only against AI, but also against other players. I'm not a PvP player so I try to avoid it at all costs. Note though, if you're looking for real militarized content - like tanks, you won't find that here (yet?). I've already tried to suggest this but they don't really like it. Maybe later. Content I'm amazed by how many different vehicles there are. Really nice, you can choose so many vehicles - though you need more respect to buy better ones of course. But there are still some things to address here. There are so many vehicles that it might get a bit confusing which one to buy - also the stats on some of them are weird. How can a small car carry more stuff than a truck? This is just one example - some vehicles have identical stats but are visually different. Yes, I know the admins are a bit hesitant about this, but please add some tanks You're allowing already this much, so why not add tanks aswell? Just choose some which aren't too powerful (like thermals - don't want tanks to have this). I just like when there's much content and also diversity among it. About equipment & weapons, there's also a lot to choose from. However some consider big MGs as the best thing, which might be true - there are some which can fire at ridiculous distances, can have silencers and have about 150 bullets per magazine. Kind of insane. Maybe make these more rare. But looking at the other content each weapon has its own uses, and rarity which I explained above. NiArms (mod) extends this even more. (Specific) Equipment is well balanced, the same as weapons are - higher tiers have a higher rarity. But even with the best equipment available you aren't invulnerable, which is of course intended. I'm not sure how much it decreases the damage but it does help. Most of this can be bought at the trader(s), but I don't really recommend it as it's expensive to buy certain high-tier weapons. Oh and of course you need respect for them aswell. Some of the content can't be bought there, so you still have a reason to search for the best loot (for example ghillie suits). Performance This covers my experience of the server and that of some others. I usually play when there are not that many players online. I never experience lag during these times. Can't complain about performance, and while there were issues in the past the (awesome) admin team will resolve these fast. Though when the player count rises at peak hours you might start to notice the lag - but the admins are already trying to reduce the fps drops - which is working. However it's still arma and that's something you can't solve The server recently peaked at 60 players - that was a bit much, and indeed the server did feel this. The Headquarters is a bit laggy though - but since you have to use it sometimes you have to deal with lower fps there. The staff already tried to reduce the fps drop as much as they could - but the building itself can't be fixed by them. It just has too many objects. The server has almost never crashed as far as I'm aware. It seems really stable, and this is a requirement for any arma server. You don't want the server to shut down randomly when you're flying in the air. I also don't see many bugs (other than arma itself), if there are any the admin team will usually solve them as fast as they can. Cosmetics The server has a nice feature which lets you paint your vehicles and base parts. Customization is always good, and now you can really see the creativity of the players using the paint feature. Of course it's just visual so it won't give you an advantage over other players - that's why it also recently got restricted because of various reasons. Though one thing I'd mention about this - some paints should have a higher resolution because they look blurry. Staff & Support The server currently has a small staff team. It's growing slowly, it seems like the admins care a lot who they hire - which is good of course. You don't want some random person who will abuse or mess things up. But this staff team is amazing. They will help you as soon as they can and are very actively available. They are usually working on the server or solving bugs. They also will take suggestions seriously and give their view on them. Staff teams like this are rare, but I'm relieved they are still present. Thanks for all the effort & support admins! Some things to add: Issues usually require proof, and players tend to forget this. Well I'm telling you now so better have something ready! If the staff is playing, then they play fair and don't use any cheats. I've noticed this multiple times and they indeed die sometimes, and they also get the lovely arma physics You're still here? Thanks! Well now that you've read it all you probably have an idea of the server TDLR A lot to obtain & achieve through balanced means, not everything will go as you think it will. You might be surprised by some things. I would say there's always something you could do and might not have done yet. There's many content to discover. However the server is balanced around PvP - players can also choose to play for fun and less care about the PvP. Like me. Vehicles & base can be painted. The only thing that you won't find (yet?) is some militarized content like tanks. The server runs well, usually there's no lag. There are bugs (would like to see a bug-free server ) but they are addressed by the staff team - and solved if they can. Can't say how amazing the staff team is. They will help you out fast, will resolve bugs and take suggestions seriously. This is why this server gets a score of 9/10. It's an unique experience and I'll not easily forget this server. If you have any more questions you can always send me a PM here.