Question for expert players

[JohnTheMutt]

Do the bots (godlike setting) give you any challenge in DM compared to other online players?

I ask this out of great curiosity and respect because I hear that regular online players are very, very good at this game and I won't even play online until I can at least hold my own with these bots which are owning me big time... So far the best I can do is 2nd place in DM against experienced bots...

Personally I suck badly at this game and couldn't even finish the 'offline' campaign without resorting to the 'casual' gamer difficulty. Though what I found to be the hardest was warfare, then CTF and finally DM was the easiest at this setting. It just seemed hard to sync into my teams AI in warfare.

Well, I appreciate any feedback. Thanks!

[Cobi^^]

You hear?
Fire up your game, join a server and make up your own mind. Some players suck, some are good, some are brilliant.
Personally, I don´t know what bots I can beat and I don´t care much, because I am just having too much fun playing online with the other guys @ Warfare.

[jehjoa]

I always tell people that if you can win a duel against a godlike bot, you're ready for online DM.

The key to beating a godlike bot is not trying to out-aim it or playing aggressively (no way you can win against the bot closerange flak or linkgun), but to deny it any powerups (by taking them yourself), know where it is at all times (get a good headset and turn off music and ambient sounds so you can hear where it is better), and try to get some prediction shots on it (for example by shooting a pack of rockets at a hallway where you know he will pop up when the rockets get there). In short, don't constantly try to kill it, staying alive is much more important. Always be on the way to a health or armor pickup. This is where map knowledge becomes important.

Once you get used to those tactics you will see how dumb and easy to beat godlike bots actually are.

This still won't make you a superstar online, but atleast you'll understand what the basic strategies are in a DM game. From there you can start getting used to the way human players move around a map, etc.

I play only DM though, so I can't help with the other gametypes.

[bclagge]

Play with just one weapon at a time until you get the feel for each one. Every weapon has it's place, and it's beneficial to be proficient with each one.

Also, be prepared to die quite a bit. And don't feel bad about it, it's the natural progression of things. You'll get better through practice. And no matter what you do there will always be people better than you. And the ones who are really good spend a lot of time playing, more time than most people are willing to dedicate.

My final word of advice: Play online! It's so much more fun to play real people, with varied and unpredictable strategies. If you get smeared in one room, join another looking for a less experienced crowd. And, btw, Warfare is a great game type to play online because your team will win or lose and it doesn't have to be dependant on you. So if you want to sit back with the Nightshade, or a sniper rifle or an AVRIL and just pick people off you can do that.

[Giggity]

Off-topic:

Sos_your_face is alot more funny than So's_your_face :P

On-topic:

Bots are predictible but have godlike aim, humans are unpredictible with terrible aim. Use both modes to practise different things.

[ElementOfInertia]

Be proficient in your "controlling" powerups and health. Like jehjoa said, it's all about thinking one step ahead of your opponent. I like to count hop directions (online) and know who has progressive timing (players with rocket launchers). And remember, just because you see an opponent, doesn't mean you have to kill him or her. Make sure you're comfortable with your map, you're healed, and planted. Then pursue your opponent when they're most vulnerable, or looking to heal themselves. if you can master these steps on bots. You'll rock a good majority of humans.

[SpineShanK]

bots can help you learn maps and weapons but it's very different online. tactics that work on bots won't work online and tactics that work online won't work on bots.

now if you want to improve the usual answer would be play online. to learn from other veteran players. just watch out for jumping rabbits spamming rockets or other stuff and try not to copy those.

i had the same feel about vctf and warfare being harder than dm or tdm offline. because bots are good at shooting nodes and are bad at defending them ^^

but online those mods are not harder than any other

[Brad.G]

how to be a fantastic player:

Step one:
Observe Brad G playing UT3 for at least one hour

Step two:
now do the opposite of everything Brad G done.

providing you have followed these instructions to the tee, you will no longer die or play poorly.

[speedjunkie92]

i brought UT3 purposly for the online mode and modding so i dont know about the bots. i suck (abit) online but it just takes time to practice... at first i used the kayboard but i managed to get my 360 control working so now i am getting better at it... just take your time and practice!

[UDoKuoio]

Jehjoa says all you need.

[Henrik]

Use the "quick match" option to play online, it will usually find games where your opponents are at a similar skill level to yourself.

[Guyver1]

the only thing that improves when increase bot skill is their aim.

dont bother with bots you wont learn anything, play with real people, join some irc channels that deal with 1v1 or tdm and join in.

playing with real people will see you progress and advance in skill far quicker than playing against any sort of bot.

[CreepyD]

Godlike bots have much better aim than any player can possibly have.
But they don't have anywhere near the brains.
I just been playing through the campaign on Insane, must have won about 30 odd maps so far, only lost about 2-3 times so far (they were all TDM where my team sucked, I had more than double any of my team mates scores!).
Also you can't rely on them to attack in CTF or WAR, I have to do it all myself or we will simply never cap anything.
So no, godlike bots are nowhere near as good as a good human player, even with their aimbots.
Most people in public servers wont be at this kind of level though, as good players generally don't play on publics as they are no good practice once you are past a certain skill level.

[JohnTheMutt]

Thanks for everyones advice!! I really appreciate it and will practice more.

Lol, it seemed not so long ago that I was beating Far Cry on realistic and thinking how great that was. Only to realize now that it is just a beginning step for me in UT3 and UT3 players are quite a bit more advanced. So much respect to all of you for your skill and knowledge and thanks for passing it along to a newbie.

[PyroFiRE]

Godlike bots are so easy to kill now after playing tdm online a lot, but I always die to them at close range with a flak cannon or a shock rifle, they're not that good but they just have aimbot like aim