Samoth

How would you guys react to that? I mean, obviously, I wont be able to tell you quickly that an enemy squad is approaching from the east, but I figure that a commander without a mike is better than no commander at all, and that a squad leader who leads, without a mike, is better than one who points guns at the enemy and shoots, without making any decisions. If necessary, I can simply type instead, right?

My lack of mike is the only thing holding me back from trying out sl and commander, ecspecially when we go for long stretches without a co, or when someone leaves the squad and command is dumped on me, and I quickly leave and re-join.

Tempus

Personally, I hate it. If there were no other commanders, then sure, but otherwise, a silent commander (or SL) cannot give all of the information needed from a person in charge.

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saik0

I've seen a (very) few COs without VOIP that do better than ones with VOIP. You said it, A Commader with no mic is far better than no commander at all. As for giving squads early warning theres always the "Right click -> Spotted" feature that many love/hate. Seriously though, if you can invest in a mic please do so. A few bucks can really change your gaming experince.

icky

I would rather a CO without a mic than an SL without a mic. The SL needs to be able to ask people to stick together and stay south and all kinds of little things which you just can't do effectively without voice.

The CO can just keep spamming enemy locations, giving squad orders, putting up UAV, and pounding down with artillery. They don't need to really give many details, though it is nice to be able to suggest that squads attack slowly or blitz.

MileHighAko

Just curious, why don't you get a mic? You sepnt $50 on a game, and you can get a headset/mic for another $12.

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Pokerface

If you make extensive use of the OTHER tools given to you as commander (namely, the map and the ability to set waypoints and spot stuff), then you don't need a mic, I think. COs work in broad enough strokes that using VOIP to convey the subtleties is not generally as key as it might be with a SL.

Honestly, the REAL trick is making sure that your team reads you text on their HUDs.

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Samoth

Seems to be split 50/50, but I agree sl without a mike is worse.

Because I play at cafes, not at home. When my local store that I know well gets it, I will ask if I can bring my own mike in. Till then, no mike.

Pokerface: Sometimes I really doubt if people look at that text, and even then it get's spammed off the screen, and if people arent looking for messages, they'll miss it.

Telorn

That is true...it is just too difficult to notice text in this game. A message box, as with an MMORPG does not exist and it is not easy to quickly scroll back to see a message. In this game, even if you notice the message somewhere on the left of your screen, it could scroll off before you even finish reading it.

Text was not meant for this game and DICE made that clear. Mic or comma rose is the only way to go.


Samoth,
You not have broadband at home? That's the only reason I could think of why you'd play at a cafe..kinda ingenious, actually

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Samoth

I have broadband, but dont have the 1000 bucks to get a decent computer, battlefield 2, and a mike to top it off.

Telorn

So this cafe provides a computer that is powerful enough to handle BF2? That surprises me. Do you have to pay a fee to use it? Is it like a gamers cafe or something where they provide computers and games for you to play at an hourly charge?

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icky

If you think you just missed some text, you can usually pick it up by tapping ` and bringing up the console.

Mateo

I went into a game cafe in Paris while I was there....they had 80 low end systems for surfing, and 20 state of the art Dells in the back for gaming: Counterstrike: Source, WoW, etc...fees weren't too bad: 2 hours were 10 euros, or something like that.

That's where my "game cafe in El Salvador" dream comes from.

AzrealDarkmoon

An effective CO NEEDS a mike. A micless CO is better than none, but if someone with a mic steps up you REALLY need to back down and let them command, (assuming they aren't going to command from the front lines and bring artillery down on your troops heads unnanounced.) Mics are important for keeping Squad Leaders in on the BIG picture.

I personally don't read text msgs anymore.

Az

Pokerface

That is a problem. Fix that.

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Tempus: Pokerface is nailing it right on the head. Everyone who is arguing against him is simply arguing against reality.
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<LazyEye> yeah when I play on TG the server digs though my trash
Arm yourself with knowledge: TG NS TF2 BF2

Telorn

I would, except BF2 is buggie and my whole console screen is staticy with missing pixels and whatnot and is unreadable.

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