Wow, this week’s Steam midweek sale is a must have for anyone into FPS or military simulations. ArmA II with 80% off, for only £3.99 (that’s about $5) or the Combined Operations which includes ArmA II and ArmA II: Operation Arrowhead for £17.99 (approx. $27). However you can also buy Operation Arrowhead as a standalone for a little less than the combined ops price making it cheaper to purchase both games seperately as opposed to buying the combined ops version. there is no difference in actual game content and you can still play the combined ops version via the seperate titles once both are installed.
This game is the best military simulation on the market today, with a few hundred plus square miles of terrain to explore. If you get the combined operations deal you get three theatres of operation a lush temperate environment full of open fields, forests, a few small towns and many villages, a Mediterranean environment based on an island of several square kilometres and an arid Afghan style desert region again of a few hundred plus square kilometres that’s full of small villages, a small town, green valleys but mainly arid scrubland with oil terminals scattered around.
Here’s what Steam says about the first instalment:
Building on 10 years of constant engine development, ARMA II boasts the most realistic combat environment in the world. It models real world ballistics & round deflection, materials penetration, features a real-time day/night cycle and dynamic wind, weather and environmental effects. The simulation of a combat environment is so effective, the engine forms the basis for training simulators used by real armies the world over.
Although ARMA II is set in the fictional ex-soviet state of 'Chernarus' the game world is actually a 225 square kilometre chunk of the real world! ARMA II's highly detailed landscape is a meticulous facsimile of real terrain, modelled using extensive geographical data. This recreated region is brought to life with spectacular environmental effects and populated with dynamic civilian settlements and wildlife. Wild animals roam the atmospheric forests while the people of Chernarus try to live out their lives among the war-torn streets.
The 27th U.S. Marine Expeditionary Unit have been deployed to the former soviet country of Chernarus in this third instalment in the series of award winning PC war simulators from Bohemia Interactive, creators of Operation Flashpoint*: Cold War Crisis and ARMA: Combat Operations.
Force Reconnaissance Team “Razor” are among the first to fight. This elite five-man team are about to fall down the rabbit hole, trapped in a war not only for control of the country, but the hearts and minds of its people. With the might of the USMC offshore and the Russians anxiously watching from the north, the stakes couldn't be higher. The fate of Chernarus is balanced on a razor's edge...
Key Features:
PLAYER-DRIVEN STORY:
Command your troops through a branching campaign full of twists and surprises.
THRILLING REALISM:
Explore the 225 square kilometer of highly detailed landscape, modelled using real-world geographical data and master each of 81 weapons and 120+ vehicles.
AUTHENTIC SIMULATION:
Game simulates various aspects of combat and evironment effects from bullet ballistics, material penetration, ammunition types and stopping power to weather conditions.
EXTENSIVE MULTIPLAYER:
Play the campaign missions in cooperative mode or join duty in the massive multiplayer battles with up to 50 players.
ADVANCED AI:
Compete the ultimate next-gen AI: no scripts, no predefined pathways. All units react on actual game situation.
MISSION EDITOR:
Design your own missions by the intuitive, easy-to-use mission editor and become part of one of the biggest and most creative PC gaming community ever.
CHEAT PROTECTION:
Optional anti-cheat BattlEye (www.battleye.com) available to help secure dedicated servers. In addition BE adds 'RCON' (remote control) for game's dedicated server software.
DEDICATED SERVER:
To support smooth multi-player experience there is 'dedicated server software' available for Windows (included with game) and Linux (download-able from game's website).
System Requirements for ArmA II:
Minimum:
OS: Windows XP or Windows Vista
Processor: Dual Core CPU (Intel Pentium 4 3.0 GHz, Intel Core 2.0 GHz, AMD Athlon 3200+ or faster)
Memory: 1 GB RAM
Graphics: GPU (Nvidia Geforce 7800 / ATI Radeon 1800 or faster) with Shader Model 3 and 256 MB VRAM
Hard Drive: 10 GB free HDD space
Recommended:
OS: Windows XP or Windows Vista
Processor: Quad Core CPU or fast Dual Core CPU (Intel Core 2.8 GHz or AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ or faster)
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Graphics: Fast GPU (Nvidia Geforce 8800GT or ATI Radeon 4850 or faster) with Shader Model 3 and 512 or more MB VRAM
Hard Drive: 10 GB free HDD space
The following is information about ArmA II: Operation Arrowhead:
Three years after the conflict in Chernarus, portrayed in the original Arma 2, a new flashpoint explodes in the Green Sea Region. Coalition forces led by the US Army are deployed to Takistan to quickly restore peace and prevent further civilian casualties.
You will enlist into various roles within the US Army, from basic infantrymen, through special operatives, to pilots and tank crew in this new installment in the award winning line up of military simulators for PC from Bohemia Interactive.
Building on 10 years of experience and constant engine development, Arma 2: Operation Arrowhead boasts the most realistic combat environment in the world. It models real world ballistics & round deflection, thermal imaging, materials penetration, features a realtime day/night cycle and dynamic wind, weather and environmental effects.
NOTE:
Arma 2: Operation Arrowhead is a standalone product and does not require the original Arma 2, however when you own both games you can play it as combined operations.
Key features:
NEW PLAYABLE CONTENT:
New story campaign for both SP and MP gameplay. Wide range of new tutorials, single scenarios and multiplayer modes.
MASSIVE GAME WORLD:
Three brand new Central Asia-style large maps including expansive urban, desert and mountainous terrain featuring a fully destructible and interactive environment.
ULTIMATE WAR EXPERIENCE:
Fully integrates with the original Arma 2 for unmatched warfare simulation.
UNIQUE GAMEPLAY ELEMENTS:
Detachable backpacks with equipment, advanced weapon optics, material penetration modelling, remote real-time simulation of Unmanned Arial Vehicles (UAV), freedom of decision and repercussive actions.
EXTRA UNITS AND VEHICLES:
Multiple factions for all sides including US Army, United Nations, Takistani Army and Guerrillas making a collection of 300+ new units, weapons and vehicles.
MISSION EDITOR:
Design your own missions by the intuitive, easy-to-use mission editor and become part of one of the biggest and most creative PC gaming community ever.
GAME MODIFICATION:
Create Your own custom game content with complete editing tools suite (freeware SDK kit) and modify the game in ways where the only limitation is Your own imagination.
EXTENSIVE MULTIPLAYER:
Play the campaign missions in cooperative mode or join duty in the massive multiplayer battles with up to 50 players.
CHEAT PROTECTION:
Optional anti-cheat BattlEye (www.battleye.com) available to help secure dedicated servers. In addition BE adds 'RCON' (remote control) for game's dedicated server software.
DEDICATED SERVER:
To support smooth multi-player experience there is 'dedicated server software' available for Windows (included with game) and Linux (download-able from game's website).
System Requirements:
Minimum:
OS: Windows XP or Windows Vista
Processor: Intel Core 2.4 GHz or AMD Dual-Core Athlon 2.5 GHz
Memory: 1GB
Graphics: Nvidia Geforce 8600GT or ATI Radeon 3650 or faster with Shader Model 3 and 512 MB VRAM
DirectX®: DirectX 9.0c
Hard Drive: 10 GB free space
Recommended:
OS: Windows 7
Processor: Intel Core i5 or AMD Athlon Phenom X4 or faster
Memory: 2GB
Graphics: Nvidia Geforce GTX 260 or ATI Radeon HD 5770 or faster with Shader Model 3 and 896 MB VRAM
DirectX®: DirectX 9.0c
Hard Drive: 20 GB free space
Original thread from over a year ago:
Here’s a copy of a post I made about ArmA II when it first game on sale via Steam over a year ago: You can find the thread HERE
I'd actually forgotten how amazing this game looks until I'd checked out the videos which you can see below by following the 'HERE' links, plus the several images I copied from the net. I got a little carried away with the images but only because I wanted to show you how amazingly life like this game looks. You should hear the game while in the middle of a fire fight; with the surround sound turned up as much as I dare (the windows rattle if I try to put the volume on full, lol). The audio is fantastic and really adds to the overall immersivness that this game gives you. Wear ear defenders if you decide to play it on full volume, lol.
If I had to score the necessity for having this game; (well for a FPS and war gaming addict); on a scale of 1 to 10 I'd give this a 9 (lol)
The game reminds me a lot of Operation Flashpoint, however, there’s a reason for that. It’s because it’s the second Armed Assault game that was created to follow on from the original Operation Flashpoint and its expansions, which were released from 2001 to 2002. You can get the original for as little as $5 or less. It's packaged as the ‘Game of the Year’ edition and includes the original game, called Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis plus two expansion packs called Red Hammer and Resistance. It’s still a great game in my opinion, and is probably one of the reasons it hasn't been converted to freeware like some FPS games from that period (e.g. Hidden & Dangerous plus one I'll be posting next week in the free games project) I’ve recently reinstalled the original Operation Flashpoint; the graphics are fairly basic, but it's graphics were actually really good for the time (much like Line of Sight: Vietnam {though that was released a year later}) and is similar to ArmA and ArmA II in game play, though they have far superior graphics. I usually give my older games away (anything pre 2002), but Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis, is one of those games I just can’t part with. Armed Assault (ArmA) was released early in 2007 (unless you lived in Russia which got it late in 2006), then an expansion pack was released later in 2007 called Queens Gambit.
ArmA II was released late Spring/early Summer and was in my opinion a great game, unfortunately I wasn’t as gobsmacked with it as I am with the latest Operation Flashpoint; though there was a good reason for that - I’d bought several games at the same time as ArmA II and couldn’t decide which to play. I was really into Fallout 3 at the time and one of the games in the package I received included a hard copy of the first two DLC’s (The Pitt and Operation Anchorage), so apart from checking the game out to see what I thought about it, I hardly played it, also I was buying games from Steam like they were going out of fashion (I’ve bought 212 games via Steam since late January 09 - yeah I know, I'm mad). Still I played it enough to be able to say that the game play comes pretty close to the realism of the latest Flashpoint game.
If you like first person shooters with a lot of realism, Armed Assault II (ArmA II) will give you lots of it and then some. The graphics are nearly as good as Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising, though maybe the soldier models are not quite as realistic, however, the environments look as good. I think Flashpoint wins in the AI department as well, but then again it has had several months more pre release tweaking than ArmA II. It’s not a run and gun type shooter, nor is it a linear style game that dictates where you head for throughout the game. If you want to succeed in game you'll need to play it as though you are really in a theatre of war, using tactics and stealth.
The game world is massive and is played as a sandbox game, which means you can go almost anywhere in the game world (though some restrictions do apply while taking part in missions). It’s basically a spiritual prequel to the latest Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising, which was released about two weeks ago; only Dragon Rising is even more polished than ArmA II. I love the challenge of all the Flashpoint and Armed Assault games, apart from the first of each series, they look, sound and feel almost real, though the first armed Assault is actually a good looking game as well, but the environmental realism doesn't quite hit the spot like ArmA II and Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising. Of course, graphics are not the be all and end all, but they definitely add to the game play experience in my opinion. Thankfully, the game play is as good as the graphics, so the game isn't relying soley on it's graphics like some games I've purchased over the last year do (e.g. Damnation, Legendary, Velvet Assassin and Dark Sector.
If you are a shooter fan, especially a FPS fan (you can play the game in FPS or TPS) I highly recommend you buy ArmA II while it’s on sale. I‘ll be digging my copy out again once I tire of Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising. I may even re-install the first Armed Assault and it's expansion Queens Gambit as I hardly touched the expansions missions - (the usual reason, getting side tracked by newly acquired gammes, lol)
I do think the controls for this game are overly complex. I had to create a stand-up card with all the key bindings written down when I played the game for the first few time (I still have it). The controls reminded me a little of the Battlefield 2 key commands, with seperate sections for infantry, land vehicles, aircraft controls as well as team based controls. Looking at the game manual I roughly count over 80 seperate key commands, though some such as movement are repeated in the vehicles and infantry commands. That said, once you've played the game a few times the key bindings do become easier to remember. Many of the key bindings are common to most FPS games, and it's only because you have vehicles and squad based commands that there are so many keys to remember
You can see armed assault II (ArmA II) in action via the following video’s, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE,
The following are reviews worth reading before you decide whether to buy this fantastic game or not. Check ‘em out HERE, HERE and HERE
You can find out details of the offer HERE. As always, it’s a Steam game so you’ll need a Steam account and the Steam client to get this game (both of which are free)