Yes, a rip-off... even being free.
So, back in the day when America's Army was announced, and it was known it would be powered by Unreal Engine 2.0, of course I got all giddy. And indeed, the game was a bit odd here and there, but hell, it is free! And it was a great experience for the price. It supplied me with a good tactical content, even if it could be a bit TOO realistic at times.
In any case, when I heard about America's Army 3, I was ready to enlist, again. So, I downloaded it through Steam. I know many people have too many problems with Steam, but I just left it overnight along with another game so I wouldn't have the grief.
So, i got the game, I take my time to create my profile and my soldier and begin the usual Training process. I've always found that process quite interesting because it tallies the skills of each player, and allows to see what they are profficient for. In any case, I start the Basic Training, then go to the Marksmanship Training, then go to the Advanced Marksm... wait, why can't I proceed? I just aced that test! Crap. Authorization takes quite a bit. Oh well, maybe the servers are full. So, i go play some L4D meanwhile and when I come back, as I expected, I had to repeat the training. Having psychologically prepared myself for that, I started repeating the process, only to find myself with the same auth error. I was understanding, and thought "this may be momentary". Sure enough, I was overjoyed to see they had released a patch that addressed those issues, so I went back into training, confident that I could show my military prowess to the world.
And indeed, I made it through trainings. Very cool. Now, into the action!.
And here is where the game is unforgivable.
Sure enough, i had witnessed the not-so-great graphics at bootcamp, but then again, training missions are not always the most important part. Even so, while i like great graphics, I don't expect Cryengine 2 graphics everywhere.
So, I was baffled when I see just how badly the US Army botched the Unreal Engine 3. It's just terrible. The texturing is sloppy, the models are mediocre at best and the architecture and level geometry is only passable. There are invisible walls everywhere, and the graphical effects like fog and sparks are barely there graphics-wise.
This thoughts flew through my mind in 5 seconds. The Best Part Of Me said: "Hey, you still enjoy CounterStrike 1.6! Screw the graphics, let's have some fun!". And I was smiling again... Until I tried to select my ACOG sights. That's a no go soldier. None of the equipment I had unlocked was available. Patient as I am, I chose the only weapon I could choose and entered the fray. Then I noticed the graphics are not only bad, they are glitched as hell. The weapons are missing the stock, there are no tracers and clipping errors abound. The Best Part Of Me was struggling to hold my smile, but the constant, severe lag and poor level design kept pulling my lips down. After the match ended, I was left with the sensation that I had lost 13 hours of my life, irreversibly and abhorrently lost.
One thing that baffles me is that the US Army has a tremendous budget. Sure, not all of it goes into game development, duh, but you would expect they would release something better than this half assed mimicry of a game. Sure, some people may say "What else do you want? It's free!", but in this state, I should be payed for even trying this game.
The potential is there, but the hinderances are so steep and so many, that it becomes secondary compared to your disappointment. I recommend you get it (it IS free) but don't play it. Yet. As is, it's a pain in your ass.