Arma 3 Review (Paperback Writer)
This is the game that got me back into PC gaming after many years hiatus. Arma 3 is arguably one of the best, most realistic, mil-sim, with its "Warlords" mode being the most popular. Arma 3 is neck-and-neck with its successor, Arma Reforger, with this third Arma franchise and Reforger having strengths and weaknesses that make up for and compliment one another. Arma 3's main map, the island of Altis, is an impressive 270 square kilometers in size, making for memorable and unmatched 64-player (max) multiplayer, involving infantry, light vehicles, APCs, tanks, boats, helicopters, and aircraft (close air support and air superiority fighters). To give you an idea of the size of the island of Altis, it takes almost two hours to run across the island. "Warlord" mode games are "East" versus NATO forces, 32-player vs. 32-player. This 64-player dynamic, however, is further complicated by the fact that there are also AI forces scattered across the map, as well as the fact that each of the 64 players can have up to five AI soldiers under their command.
While Arma 3's graphics, physics, and detail are not as advanced as Arma Reforger — and its arsenal and vehicles are not exactly modeled after true weaponry (a knockoff of the F-22 Raptor is called the "F/A-181 'Black Wasp,'" for example) — Arma 3 still posits itself as among one of the most realistic first-person shooters. Despite this game being over a decade old, Arma 3 combines a somewhat complex element of tactical and strategical warfare, simulated over expansive and varied terrain , as well as all types of buildings. While the Arma franchise might not get the same accolades and popularity of say, Call of Duty (COD), or Battlefield (BF), its gameplay reigns arguably supreme. It would not be hyperbole to say that many of those who have played the Arma games rarely go back to COD or BF after they've experienced Arma. The Arma game franchise remains underrated in gaming; but it's slowly getting the recognition it deserves.