We managed to spend some time with their creative team and ask them some questions about what they do.
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| Play it for Real !! |
Our Question (1):
Why did you start Okto Eight ? Surely lots of organisers already run milsims in the UK ?
Okto Answer:
There are lots of flavours of milsims although most are subtlely different. Our parent Filmsim Ltd already operate a wide range of military and historical simulations, but nothing really like Okto.
Our Question (2):
What is different about Okto Eight ?
Okto Answer:
It occured to us that not everybody who wants to play milsim is young, superfit or wants to spend a whole weekend sleeping rough in game. I've lived outdoors for extended periods, carrying your supplies and washing with wet wipes and while that might excite some, there are others who want to get a flavour of military life without the loss of comfort. What Okto does is to allow players to live in a battlefield for eight hours. Once the ENDEX whistle blows, the game is frozen, people retire to their modern camping tents or go home for a shower and to a soft bed. The next morning, we start again. The game restarts at the same point that it finished the day before - people even stand in the same places. Players get 16 hours of intense battle action.
Our Question (3):
Does this mean you get a lot of older people playing ?
Okto Answer:
Strangely, no.
We have a minimum age limit of 16 and two tone airsoft weapons aren't allowed, so we get a primarily adult group, but we have a wide spread of ages. Players are encouraged to have a social get together on the saturday night and we find the various forces who play in game, tend to have their own campfire and maybe a barbecue on the go. Last game, which was Operation Tailspin, we had three forces and it was great to see the forces mingling and both old and young sitting round the fire, enjoying a beer or two and a bit of competitive and good natured banter. We often wonder if the players enjoy the social more than the war gaming !!
Our Question (4):
Sometimes you hear airsoft players saying that milsims have too much inactivity between the firefights ? What are your thoughts ?
Okto Answer:
Real situations are like this. Skirmishes are fine for fun, but they aren't realistic. On the other hand, if you play milsims, you don't necessarily want to spend your whole weekend guarding an objective with no contacts. We try to find a happy medium. Usually our operations are arranged so that you get enough contacts around less intense guarding, escorting and patrolling activities to make the adrenaline flow. Our sites are the optimal size and the combination of force numbers and objectives and surprises make it work.
If things get quiet naturally, we have ways of livening it up !!
Our Question (5):
How realistic are your games ?
Okto Answer:
Thats a hard one. Each player would probably have a different interpretation of realistic. With airsoft, its not a particularly realistic medium - they (airsoft weapons) look the part but the lack of sound, muzzle flashes and range mean that they don't fully replicate real steel weapons. However, we see airsoft weapons as only a part of the game; effectively a tool in a toolbox. We use realistic scenarios, military vehicles, pyrotechnics and actors to create a mili-sphere; a battlezone world that players enter to become immersed.
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| Plenty of Props at Okto games |
Our Question (6):
Tell us more about immersion ?
Okto Answer:
We could go on all day about this as its one of our passions. The key to a good game is the players. We are only a catalyst that bring out the right stuff in the players. If you come to one of our games with the wrong attitude, you won't enjoy it. People that expect to shoot lots of BBs on full auto or that dont want to use their imagination, generally won't get the most out of an Okto game.
When players enter through the portal into the mili-sphere - the game area, we say "believe you are there - react as you would in a real situation".
If a farmer drives up to you on a tractor, speaking in a Russian accent and with what looks like a bomb round his neck, react for real.
You don't need to be an actor to play. Its simple, if you get hit, fall down - don't put your hand up and shout "hit" as you would at a skirmish.
We encourage players to scream out for help, shout for a medic. Some players really get into it and there are extra points for hammy acting (joke).
Our current series of games revolve around the goings on in a fictional former soviet state called Moldistan. Our past Operations Skylight and Tailspin were set there and we have Operation Firestorm coming up in August. We have seen players adopting Russian accents (some better than our actors) and also players bringing their own props. Okto bring in a lot of props for added realism, but our players are now building their own. We have seen them bringing in base radios, anti air MANPADs and weapon crates which they build in their sheds at home between games - we think its great as they are buying-in to the fun which is Okto.
We also have an active online community where players belong to secure force groups that allow them to receive intel and discuss tactics, even if they live at opposite ends of the country (Some of our players come from overseas just for our games).
Our stories start before the first game and run between the games, which are approximately every four months. Playing with Okto is a regular thing - the storyline runs like a thread in the background all the time. Players can dip in and out when they like.
Our Question (7):
How seriously do you take it ?
Okto Answer:
Thats a really good question. It's a fine line. We don't allow nerf guns and dressing like elves and movie characters, but on the other end of the scale, we don't impose special forces style selection, ranks and saluting. We try and make our games as real as we can, but we impose flexible loadout requirements that allow most people to play, without spending a fortune on kit.
In game, we take the fighting seriously but there is an element of tongue-in-cheek. In one game, we took the rebels to war on a farmers trailer being towed behind a tractor. At the end of the day, its about having fun.
Our Question (8):
How do people find out more about playing at Okto ?
Okto Answer:
Get in touch with us via our Facebook page. Send us a message and make contact. The next weekend game is Operation Firestorm on 22/23rd August and this will be held at our Eversley site, near Farnborough in Hampshire. To maintain the level of immersion that we demand of ourselves, we only have about 50 players in each game. Although this ensures that people get the chance to make decisions that affect the game and play an active role, it means we get booked out quite fast. We still have a few places for Firestorm (as of 19th June), but not many.
THANK YOU
