It seems that the multiplayer would be the obvious thing to get up and running first. It's almost as if Neoqb is oblivious to the faults of its own product. At this point I don't see how single player can be rescued without a major overhaul and at the rate Neoqb is working...well... It would be nice if the developer would at least provide a tentative roadmap for what is to come.

The communities that spring up around multiplayer is what keeps a lot of these sims alive. For ROF all I see is a bunch of empty or near empty servers with half of them password protected (well that part isn't Neoqb's fault anyway).

Which of us here would not pay forty quid to fly the SoW beta. Must be a small list

Not dead just resting, it's what you do before a sally. It's gathering the forces, it's girding

Ming

Not looking to be recruited. If this is most online squadrons' attitude, then it certainly makes sense that multiplayer is lacking in population as people are adopting an insular and exclusionary stance.

this really gets on my nerves,

Ive only managed to get online once for MP, and that ended for some unknown reason after about 8min. No worries..Ill just go and play single player...o no I cant because chuck norris is flying for the AI and headshoots me from a near impossible deflection/snapshot that only chuck norris could pull off.

So there you have it, near on impossible to get a good online match or trying to fight chuck norris in his N28

A lot of the times when you see a locked WarHawks server we're testing a new mission. It's very hard to communicate to people on ROF when they aren't on our TS. Sometimes we're constantly stopping and starting/restarting. Instead of aggravating everyone that might not understand what we're doing, we lock it down.

Other times we're running a squad campaign, we have upwards of ten or so people now playing at once. It's an awesome experience, something you probably won't get from RoF at this point without seeking out and joining some type of online group.

At all other times we play with an open server and are eager to have people join us.

And like Joe said, we aren't running some dedicated server, usually it's off of his computer, it can only handle so much, another reason the campaigns are locked down.

Maby you think we're being anti-social but what we're actually doing is enjoying this game to its fullest.

Most of the talk on game or sim forums involves the new model, new missions or new mods that came out.
Since that isn't happening here, I guess there just isn't a whole lot to talk about. IL-2 is busy because there is always something new showing up, especially since they stated modding it.
Interest will die if they don't keep this interesting. Keep those planes coming, a new map...etc.
And wait 'til the third party guys start showing their stuff.
Of, course, like me, a lot ' folks may be busy trying some of the new stuff. I just picked up Dragon Rising, and ARMA2, both of which I've been enjoying the Hell out of!
Hopefully that's all it is, and not that this is already dead.

Yer everyone loves to watch a train wreck....

I also drop by cause I live in hope that they might see reason and get rid of the always online and deliver a real career mode i.e. not IL2 style canned missions.

I know realistically there is more chance of me hooking up with the Queen, the fine filly that she is, but as no animals are hurt by me dropping by every now and then I see no harm in doing so.

The only reason that I still fly ROF at this point is the mission based multiplayer aspect. For this to work, good communication is key. Good communication requires the use of teamspeak, ventrillo, etc, trying to 'chat' in game just doesnt cut it (I know I cannot type and fly at the same time....course, I cannot chew gum and walk at the same time either). The WarHawks have several custom co-op missions that really open up this game in multiplayer mode, avoiding the 'been there, done that' pitfall that seems unavoidable otherwise.

Yes, we do lock the servers, mostly to avoid annoying other players when we restart the game (usually because I crashed on takeoff) and allow everyone to join up. When the server is open to the public the intent is not really to recruit members for the Warhawks, but rather to recruit like minded players. Players who are willing to use communications to enjoy the game and interact in coop missions. We have players join us from other groups, as well as individuals who do not have the time or the inclination to be a member of a group. As far as I am concerned that is fine, as long as they like to play as a team, they do not have to join the team.

For these reasons, I do not think that RoF is dead, nor is it dieing. Neoqb might fail in their business plan, I hope not for our sake, but if they do I hope someone else picks up the franchise and we see a future for this sim.

Notice how the OP throws the equivalent of a hand grenade into the forum then swiftly retires never posting again