If you like MilSim..............This is your game. Mature gamers only.
The story of development of ArmA2 begin in 1998 when BIS founders got idea to realize the vast open world with infantry and vehicle elements of other games into one single game. It was short miracle that OFP got so many things right whit so few resources they got back in days and they went making game enough open it to fully every single armchair enthusiastic make their own modification to it which is still one of the franchises most notable element to separate it other products.
Community grow up to numbers challenge any other ones especially the amount of content made to it, you still might to find almost every single gun and military vehicle of some army of the world in addons or mods that is some kind of record in any games yet. Some of the community members took their ambitions to sell code to real world armies that which will later to became serving all anglospeaking countries military training simulator as VBS, the fact which really again make this product more feel like counterpart more suited version to gamers needs and demand.
After separation whit original publisher they got need to keep flow of fund which was called ArmA to keep them able to stay on business which taught fortunately a lot lessons to coding team harsh reality of difficulties to ensure game able to work every machine correctly. So how the latest version of ArmA II release has now come of from all this work over the years?
The game obviously in this size of the caliber will be vastly complex. The amazing ambition to push development of the genre has it troubles. When there hardly is any other game of this class its easy to forgive a lot of undone features, coding bugs & elements due there aren't any better product to choice against it.
It would not be fair to too much concentrate to things which obviously lack of work which are easy to put to table. The development team weren't over 100 what it come to BIS coders which means a lot of trivial/simulation features are not coded what a pity!
-Expectations and premises of game
Ultimate Military Simulation is quite a immersing and blatant claim to game so how it can come up?
-Physics the thing what have take grand step over last years .It is still basically the same Poseidon engine from decades ago and some part of isn't got updated. There isn't any ragdoll calculations to human bodies and therefore dead soldiers will stick to animations which might sometimes looks very unnatural. Vehicles and other objects have their share of problems when collision model doesn't work correctly. Damage model is simplified in the vehicles there hitpoint of some part that will determine when .
There isn't yet possibility to correctly calculate the destruction of world in this size due limitation of current technology and CPU/GPU power. New GFX cards and collaboration work of manufacturers drivers and programs push certainly something new but is not yet enough easy to implement and therefore such features like DX10 new possibilities aren't used. So no digging inside ground make potholes or trenches and no . The building have more destruction zones and part can coded to fall apart before the whole block will demolish down to earth. Next instalment might then come whit full support to destructive environment.
-Player movement have been tweaked and make it more appealing regular and casual players in general. It certainly feel less clumsy this time around thought there in time come moment you wish that it would have even more improved in specific situations what confront at times. You can climb over small walls and fences and lean over corners. There isn't shamely that much of options to different height positions especially when shooting behind walls or holes you neither can have a variety of speed on running or other animation.
-AI they have they own ability to work in teams and individually. Player teams can fight on they own and like to keep their asses alive so they wont just look stupidly over their shoulders under fire. In longer rangesunscripted AI can keep their positions without searching any cover or too much bothering get killed what really isn't intuitive. In CQB they doesn't shoot back immediately in all the moment and can be found stuck of some objects. They currently still sometimes keep walking through objects without affect of real force preventing it.
It is important have a lot of variety and randomness on their behavior some should be fearless machines and some life fearing campers. In A2 they not have that much of difference between units ranks or nations but generally all behave more or less similar way.
AI have nasty habit to be known player position without directly seeing them. Sometimes it is rightful from information of other teams or hearing but spotting player when you are far away them on night can still cause bit nerve racking on some.
AI is able on their own search their best calculated route from A to B and leaning over corners and keeping distance to other team members. The teamwork where MG support fire during movement under combat is well done team leader give commands and hand marks.
Grass and vegetation have different view block meaning AI can see through grass but not trees or bushes can which make it unfair to player to shooting back invisible target. The inconsistency of their reaction and play thought is unacceptable stage so far.
-Missions and Campaign are well more got work over them this time. I would go to much of speak of them but quickly reviewing that they have the feel and continuity on them. The plot of marine force invasion is seen but seems work well. Civilian life during mission is great feature over other games empty population. There is a lot different way to approach of objectives meaning you have much choice how and when to do something. Story have its twists and stand up to its peers. Warning word, many missions scripts are broken causing mission not trigger some important objectives and preventing advancing on campaign which should be possible skip using "endmission" command cheat.
-Weapons are well presented to game theme there is NATO s and marines M4 family most prominent but others are still in. Russians have too a lot AKs. There is pistols, missiles, and such but the few concerns is that lack of customization part such of scopes change during gameplay aren't in, hand grenades throwing isn't that well done there isn't way put them correct places you would like them to go. No hand combat in general. Artillery modules is fine upgrade thought doesn't have easy implementation to custom missions.
Reloading during moving is new feature. Lack of animation to see correctly reload magazines and hand in gun might disappoint some. Shooting feel as it should sharp and accurate when mount and prone although there isn't way to stabilize them against objects. Recoil is done right player hands move whit gun not rest is affected. No stacking of ammo or those are in game. Ballistic, penetration and few muzzle parameters are all what you could expect. The lack of variety of muzzle fire effects doesn't look too fine.
-Sounds in general are gorgeous there is great variety to noises in ambiance and when it comes to firefight the intensity of all the sounds are spectacular.
Radio commands have their problems there is kind of not yet finished system of giving away information about enemies locations and need further work to more specifically give player to know where to look.
Voices of actor aren't the most top heap but do it work. Guns sound varies over some does sound like IRL counterpart and some not there is difference between where they are shot and making more feeling .
Vehicles does sound right and can give away they types even when not visible to player. There is Doppler effect and speed of sounds in game so explosion in 2 miles will take over 10 s to hear.
-Cars doesn't stay on road that easily that you could do IRL due lacking of further development of controlling methods and mechanics that mean that drunken driving in bikes and unarmored vehicles will have lethal consequences in high speed. Destruction models need more stages and individual parts of vehicles should be possible to separated apart each other. Tires loses their air and can be removed and the glass be shoot off entirely.
Penetration values of different ammunition isn't yet that well implemented and will cause many situation where IRL counterpart doesn't work in game . The passengers still might all get fully killed when the damage of vehicle is full up. There isn't way to passengers shoot out of vehicle without scripting and no free movement when moving is possible.
AI have hard time to keep their speed on road and will slow down in some situation in moment least needed. There aren't animation out of open doors or in and transition remain same as in predecessor.
-Tanks they are easy to control as a driver but as a commander you ll get unresponsive AI crew making your life harder. No implemented laser range finder or more complicated tech to shooting but should do general what player would expect them to do giving armor against infantry treat. AI tanks without player control aren't capable to maneuver using real life tactics meaning tanks keep wouldn't expose to enemy their sides or back or using right ammunition to different treat. Enough amount of variety and firepower, suspension also bounces over small rocks and blocks over ground. Tank enthusiastics will stay on Steel Beast Pro.
-Choppers are user-friendly in general flight physics certainly isn't match to DCS BS but still much better than other ones non specific simulator have. Have firepower to keep tank crew on aware their mortality. Joystick user will have more space to multi amount of support. The most annoying is particularly the auto trust which either is full or non there should be in air vehicles implement more sophisticated way trust have elevation between ratios.
-Airplanes does have more controllable turning rate against A1 and generally are more useful the size of map is that small that there isn't realistically too many uses over CAS support and such. Shooting is simple pressing key when aimed. Bomb dropping isn't that hard either in some planes dive bombing if not assisted with laser targeting from other ones. Pilot have vision to keep track of world but spotting of targets is almost entirely to left to radar which will show enemies from allies. Would like to get more slower older types and transport to Russian side.
Lack of counter measures yet will not get any hurray reaction to LOMAC and such fans.
-Chernarus and Utes are done from real world data and make the believable there is enough variety over landscape thought addons to desert climate will soon complete other needs. Buildings, forest & ambiance looks very eastern European. It maybe doesn't have biggest cities and towns but give enough variety of country and urban.
-GFX is wonderful to this type of game. Huge vast world filled of life is important element to get player immersion being in real breathing world. The engine can push a lot shaders, polygons on screen and still stay playable in current generation computers. The vegetation of game is one of landmark of company and definitely the best one of any games released. Units and peoples have now much more polygons on them but still lack of variety of animations and extra behaviors make them somehow lifeless in some situation if left without any further control. Faces hasn't got that much mimics than some other can allow and will bit make close confrontation of interaction whit NPC characters not that much
-Multiplayer is again one half of the whole game, there is massive amount of player controllable things get done. Mission designer can do what ever situation on fly and there is abundance of different game types in general compared to any other games on market. In small mission in general well doing server game doesn't lag which is the most important things. However when you increase the amount of scripts and units on mission the calculation will in some point have its bottle necks. The maximum amount player spot is determined more about the server.
CTI will be certainly be the most prominent mp mod due massive landmass and towns and will get all friend of it play this games surely. You can see too some specific type of minor things like RPG of socialization of some nerds who enjoy spending whole day looking after each other in Chernarusville type missions. Game seems thought all the openness able to prevent hacking and cheating so far using different techniques. There certainly isn't ranking up officially or something other prices to evaluate gameplay but it will promote more team work and VOIP works fine. Cooperation against massive AI companies should be base setting there also will be whole campaign able to be playable by any amount of players.
-Modification is always been there from beginning if the editor doesn't make something mission editor wish then some extra scripting out of game surely will make it work. The mods will easily be ported over A1 and there is ability on moment when officially game got tools or released be so much new content that for years to come there is always something new to come out. Game engine almost allow any WW2 modification made much more better than any full priced game could ever deliver. New maps new SP,MP missions, and so much more. Community over forums and worldwide is making sure that this game will not be anytime soon to be forgotten.
The developers should more focus of community cooperation getting talented people work for modules/addons/game engine changes which will later implemented officially and in bug fixing have more working relationship to have official tools and website to bug reports and voting of features.
To produce more end-user marketing more contest of multigaming, website have all the people there to show the progress and quality control.
Ability adjust new technological products making sure the game will be as well able to fully utilise all power any system will let them and more customize the game to different audiences such the simulation freaks of vehicles get their own options have everything as close of reality as possible and arcade/RPG/adventure who doesn't care that aspect would have options to close such of options off. Distinguishing everything to making them able customize their own gameplay as they want it to be "you dint necessarily shouldn't be forced to restrained to on pre-made animation, which play on everyone exactly same".
PROs +
+feature-rich war game sandbox
+ambition to working livable work is right there
+for 50$ product excellent purchasing value
+graphical design is very great considering how much it have to work to drawing long view distances and same time to keep the micro details
+focus on so many game types is making it playable to many people
+multiplayer people will have great time fun what ever is gametype from DM/CTI to RPG or RTS
+Mission editor is enough easy to beginners yet complicated to more complex mission making
+more fluid gameplay and controllable characters
+There is more gametypes out of box than in general such of SP campaign/single missions/tutorials/skirmishes/editing/simple Armory/encyclopedia,MP
+Open non-linear campaign is still not yet overdone in gaming and surely have so many interesting moments
+Step ahead from A1 in sense of optimized engine to able pull
+An Animals and massive amount of plants/trees/landscape objects make authentic atmosphere
+the AI have it strengths , in some way is new evolution of FPS genre and they make you on hard setting afraid of your life any moment.
+future of community developing extra content things will certainly keep interest many years,
+there is so much of potential for further development which will mean that the life curve will be much longer than in any other games
+BIS will deliver patches and even new content for long time to come
+The real successor to 2001 OFP is certainly got the feeling in general as it should have
CONS-
-Need much more quality control which means more employees to code and test game before release version to get better ratings and peoples reception
-customization to different gameplay aren't supported out of box
-restricting animation still in making some quick gameplay impossible
-lack emphasis to deeper hardcore simulation of warfare all the tech advantage in past 50 year have missed example FLIRS,laser meter,electrical computing etc
-not modification tools yet out meaning the content will be follow much later period of games life when they will be released
-inconsistency in scripts working due complex nonlinear design
-bugs are very trivial ones and can be annoy a lot of the people different ways
-people doesn't have enough much time to learn and find many things in game and will never understand them and therefore ignoring some of the very important things that rise the game overall value
-game engine is in the pieces which means some things have got much more focus than other ones and game isn't so called "balanced" which actually is good thing
-AI has many moment of freezing,super ability to spot anybody without notable reason , working different situation such of driving of vehicles and not able to work independently without mission designer assign
-will again be bashed by so many other peoples who prefer CQB in tunnels and not appreciated of the so many more of content over minor ones
Overall it is a big stack of masterpiece which will set limits & standarts to come and no PC gamer should in any case miss it!