Suggestion: Bring Back Classic Combat Event Messages with Map Grid Coordinates to Improve Multiplayer Activity

[KAC]

Dear IL-2 Great Battles Development Team,

I would like to suggest bringing back the classic automatic combat event messages from IL-2 Sturmovik: Forgotten Battles / IL-2 1946, with one particularly important improvement: every combat event message should include the map grid square where the event occurred.

I believe this relatively simple feature could make multiplayer servers feel more active, help players find ongoing battles, and, most importantly, encourage new players to stay online longer and return to the game.

1. Bring Back the Classic Combat Event Messages

Veterans of the original IL-2 series may remember the colorful automatic messages that appeared in multiplayer chat whenever something happened during a mission.

The original netmessages file contained dozens of different messages describing aerial victories, aircraft damage, pilot deaths, emergency landings, and other events.

Here are some authentic examples from that file:

• "{0} neatly saws off {1}'s wing."

• "{0} fills {1} with holes."

• "{1} is blown out of the sky by {0}."

• "{0} destroys {1}'s control cables."

• "{0} scores a direct hit on {1}'s fuel tank."

• "{1} explodes in a million pieces thanks to {0}'s good aim."

• "{0} + flak shell = BOOM!"

• "{0} is definitely a vulcher."

• "{0} successfully crash landed!"

• "{0} is RTB."

These messages added personality, humor, and atmosphere to multiplayer battles.

Instead of displaying only basic kill notifications, the game described what was happening in the skies, making each encounter more memorable.

I believe this is a feature worth bringing back.

2. The Most Important Improvement: Include Map Grid Coordinates

My main suggestion is to automatically include the map grid square in every relevant combat event message.

For example:

• [Grid 1012] Player1 neatly saws off Player2's wing.

• [Grid 0815] Player1 fills Player2 with holes.

• [Grid 0923] Player1 bailed out.

• [Grid 1120] Player1 successfully crash landed!

• [Grid 0714] Player1 is shot down by AAA.

• [Grid 1316] Player1 destroys Player2's control cables.

The grid square should be calculated automatically using the event's location and the existing map grid system.

This would turn ordinary chat notifications into useful tactical information.

A combat message without a location tells players what happened. A combat message with a map grid tells them where to go next.

For example, if a player sees that a friendly aircraft has been shot down in a nearby grid square, they can investigate the area, search for enemy aircraft, or provide cover to surviving teammates.

If someone makes an emergency landing, nearby friendly pilots can decide to protect that location.

The chat would become more than a list of notifications. It would provide a constantly updated picture of activity across the battlefield.

3. Make Multiplayer Servers Feel More Alive

One of the biggest challenges in multiplayer flight simulators is the feeling of emptiness when relatively few players are online.

Even when several aircraft are fighting somewhere on the map, other players may spend a long time flying without encountering anyone.

From their perspective, nothing is happening.

Automatic combat messages with map grid coordinates could help solve this problem.

Players would immediately see which areas are active, where aircraft are being shot down, and where battles are developing.

This could encourage players to move toward the action instead of wandering around the map searching for opponents.

A server with 15 players could feel much more active if everyone could see where important events were happening.

The system would not artificially increase player numbers. Instead, it would help the players already online find one another and participate in the same battles.

This could be particularly valuable during off-peak hours, when multiplayer populations are smaller.

4. Help New Players Stay Online Longer

I believe this feature could be especially beneficial for new players.

Experienced IL-2 pilots usually know the maps, common flight routes, airfields, and areas where enemy aircraft are likely to appear.

New players do not have this knowledge.

A beginner may take off, spend 20 or 30 minutes searching for an enemy, find nothing, and eventually leave the server.

This is not necessarily because the player dislikes the game. They simply may not know where the action is.

Combat event messages with grid coordinates would give beginners a clear sense of direction.

They could identify active areas, learn the map grid system, find other players, and become involved in combat much sooner.

This is particularly important for players who are not members of organized squadrons and do not use TeamSpeak or Discord for coordination.

The sooner a new player experiences an interesting encounter, the more likely they may be to stay online, try another sortie, and return to the server later.

Improving player retention is not only about adding new content. It is also about helping players discover and enjoy the content that already exists.

5. Encourage Player Interaction and Teamwork

Location-based combat messages could also create spontaneous cooperation between players who have never communicated before.

For example:

A friendly aircraft is shot down in Grid 0914.

Other friendly pilots notice the message and decide to investigate.

An enemy aircraft is subsequently reported in the neighboring grid.

Several players begin converging on the area, creating a larger and more dynamic air battle.

This kind of interaction could develop naturally, without requiring mission designers to script every encounter or players to coordinate through external voice communication.

In effect, the automatic chat system could become a lightweight battlefield information network.

6. Give Server Administrators Full Control

I understand that revealing combat locations may not be appropriate for every multiplayer server.

Some communities prioritize historical realism, navigation, reconnaissance, and the uncertainty of not knowing where the enemy is.

For this reason, I suggest making the feature fully configurable by server administrators.

Possible settings could include:

1. Enable or disable automatic combat event messages.

2. Enable or disable map grid coordinates.

3. Display messages to all players or only to the relevant team.

4. Choose which event categories are reported.

5. Select classic humorous messages or neutral notifications.

6. Optionally introduce a delay before revealing an event's location.

This would allow casual dogfight servers to use the full system while more realistic multiplayer communities could restrict or disable it.

The goal is not to force additional information onto every server, but to provide administrators with another useful tool.

7. A Small Feature with Potentially Significant Benefits

Compared with developing new aircraft, maps, or major gameplay systems, this proposal appears relatively modest in scope.

The original IL-2 series already demonstrated how varied automatic event messages could work, and the classic message templates still exist in the netmessages files.

Of course, implementing the feature in the current game would require development work, particularly for identifying event locations and integrating them with the map grid.

Nevertheless, I believe the potential benefits justify considering it:

• More visible activity on multiplayer servers.

• Faster access to combat for new and casual players.

• Less time spent searching aimlessly for opponents.

• More spontaneous teamwork and player interaction.

• Greater immersion and personality in multiplayer battles.

• A stronger connection to the heritage of the original IL-2 series.

• Potential improvements in player engagement and retention.

Conclusion

I would like to emphasize that the most important part of this proposal is the automatic display of the map grid square where a combat event occurred.

The classic messages would bring back some of the humor and atmosphere of the original IL-2.

But adding map grid coordinates would give those messages a practical purpose: helping players understand where the action is and encouraging them to participate.

Every combat event could become an opportunity for another player to take action.

I believe this could be a meaningful improvement for multiplayer activity, especially on servers with smaller populations and for newcomers who are still learning the game.

Thank you for considering this suggestion.

I would also be interested to hear what other pilots and server administrators think about bringing back this classic feature.

netmessages_eng.txt netmessages_ru.txt

[KAC]

I often lost sight of aircraft that were attacking me. I kept thinking there was something wrong with my eyesight and that I simply couldn't spot my opponents against the ground.

Today, for the first time, I actually saw an opponent simply bail out after an attack and disappear without any notification whatsoever.

Now I understand why bombers and ground-attack aircraft sometimes suddenly disappear when you approach them. Their pilots simply bail out, and the game provides absolutely no information about it.