Getting Arma

[Terremer]

Hey guys. I've been wanting to try out Arma, but im still kinda on the fence. Everyone always drops in the prbf2 channel on teamspeak and says how arma is all great and awesome and that we should stop playing and go play Arma instead. The PRBF2 coop server has been really bad the last few days, weve been getting all these new players or people who just mess around and dont teamplay at all, and its been hard to get a good game in.

I got the arma2: free demo thingy, and its pretty cool so far. But you cant do much in it except some tutorials (which are mainly assets and troop leading, which i wouldnt be doing at the start anyways). I see that we've got two servers here and i always see a lot of people in the arma TS channels so i assume there'd always be people to play with.

Anyone that's played both bf2PR and arma2, could you compare them a bit maybe?

Also if i get arma, which version do i get? I read somewhere on here that the steam version of arma doesnt work quite right? And do i need the two DLC or just arma2 and OA?

Thanks

Terremer

[Jager]

Well I can't answer you on the Arma VS PR stuff but Arma now has a PR mod for whatever that is worth.
To play on either server you need Arma 2 and Arma 2 Operation Arrowhead, the two DLC "PMC" and "BAF" is entirely optional, they only add better textures and campaign.
And I've been running Arma on steam since I got it with no problems.
As for teamplay that really depends, I'd like to say that the VG servers are overflowing with skilled players that communicate well but that would be a lie.
Truth is that a minority are very much into the teamplay stuff and work well as a team but for the rest of the public players it's fairly random, Without anything to base it on I think the PR mod for Arma has a more teamplay based following.

[=VG= SavageCDN (Inactive Duty)]

I've played PR since last December and Arma since about May. Both are fantastic games.. just different.

PR is 'easy' to join up and play with good players and some great teamwork... with a game that is quite realistic in scope. It's usually a lot of fun and you get a good bang for your time spent gaming.

Arma is more of a military simulation than a game.. requires more patience and less trigger-happiness. It's as close as you can get to realism in a mass-market video game (especially with ACE/ACRE mods). It's a sandbox-style environment meaning you can do whatever you like and modify any part of the game. If I want to create Python-style attack bunnies I can. It's not a 100% guarantee of a fun time though.. a lot of waiting and quirks in the game itself that can discourage certain players.

I can't speak for PR-Arma as I've only tried it once.

Make sure you get Combined Ops as this gives you Arma2 and Arma2:OA in one package. I have the Steam version and never have problems.

[Terremer]

Thanks for the replies guys. I do like all the modding that you can do to it, always keeps the game fresh instead of playing the same exact maps and settings every time. I might have to look in to modding if i get it, i'm in school for computer science and would be fun to do some scripting and such. And yeah i guess expecting everyone to work together is a little optimistic, but i figured since arma was a little more expensive and graphically demanding it would weed out the 'casual' players (i have no problem with people who dont take games seriously, as long as it isnt in a game made to be played seriously such as pr/arma). Also thanks for the feedback on the steam version, ive got lots of games on steam and im quite fond of it.

[=VG= SemlerPDX]

Terremer LAN_WROTE ...

... i figured since arma was a little more expensive and graphically demanding it would weed out the 'casual' players...

Me too. Don't worry. There are sooo many people who play arma who are team players. There are whole clans dedicated to it. (...ahem....) But it is true that in public servers you will always have to deal with the public element. From "run and gun" Rambos to "camping for the weekend" Snipers. But they will never get the true experience that ArmA affords by playing in such a way.

And you better have your chips in line, cause this game likes multiple cores, several Gig's of ram, fast hard drives, and $200 graphics cards just to get 45FPS at a nice texture setting (and then you get into the shit with bombs going off.....you get the idea).

I say it's worth any cost of any upgrade by far!!! Oddly though, FPS is less important in ArmA than it is in games with faster action and smaller "maps". Longer distances, less CQC than most gamers are used to.
You'll find yourself covering 500m on foot regularly, sometimes uphill, but it's worth it!! We walked a mile tonite (1609m) to one particular AO from Strongpoint Savage.

This evening, with a fireteam of 6, we approached a heavily armed AO at night, a couple soldiers with silenced weapons on point keeping our insert quiet, and began to recon the area. Poffadder was our forward observer for artillery, and 4 of us (coincidentally, each rocking a different anti-tank weapon - Dragon, AT-4, SMAW, NLAW) aquired different HVT's and priority targets of opportunity, ready to fire right as the salvo of steel rain sent the enemy to high alert.

We caught them off guard and in less than 3 seconds took out 4 enemy vehicles and one of the enemy's D-30 artillery pits in a concert of coordination that continues to keep me interested through Arma's sometimes 3 minute long heli flights to the AO, or the much longer overland approach with armor.

There are trade-offs when you jump from a realism mod for BF2 to ArmA, but as someone who played BF2:PR for hundreds of hours on VG, I gotta say that ArmA is so much worth any hastle, downtime, or bull you may at one point have to deal with. The enemies alone keep me from going back to BF2:PR. Seriously, these bots can think, and flank, and in ACE mod, they are a serious intelligence to be dealt with. Add realistic ballistics and TrackIR support, not to mention all the working military gear you can just grab out of an ammo box and go use....any variation you can imagine....and you have one gem of a wargame.

Five Stars! Lucky Best Number 1 Military Video Game!

(hope I don't sound as biased as I feel !sarc )

[Terremer]

=VG= SemlerPDX LAN_WROTE ...


And you better have your chips in line, cause this game likes multiple cores, several Gig's of ram, fast hard drives, and $200 graphics cards just to get 45FPS at a nice texture setting (and then you get into the shit with bombs going off.....you get the idea).

Yeah my rig is good, its almost 2.5 years old now but its kicking strong. I can run the demo on high/max settings smoothly.

=VG= SemlerPDX LAN_WROTE ...

The enemies alone keep me from going back to BF2:PR. Seriously, these bots can think, and flank, and in ACE mod, they are a serious intelligence to be dealt with.

Yeah this is a huge plus. On bf2pr coop, the bots are only hard because they aimbot and such, but they're annoying because they just run straight at you and are really predictable.

well i think im going to get it then, ill probably be playing next week if i get it downloaded by then! Thanks for the feedback

[Guest DantetheFuzz]

Well, I may not be the best to ask, but.. Seeing as I have played about 120+ hours of BF2:PR with VG with only 19 hours of ArmA 2 with VG. I did study both heavily. It is true that the bots are more like artificial intelligence, The graphics are great, and It is a bloody good time waiting for the go ahead to attack a main AO, Trek to and from a side mission, or sit in base and wait for the enemy while someone (Semler) is off lolly gagging in the real world. I love both games. But have only played ArmA as of recently seeing as PR doesn't want to work for me.

The realistic military simulation that is ArmA has you constantly thinking of the next move, Marking Overwatch or flank routes on a map, or ducking behind a massive rock when stuff goes south. You may have times when a squad mate is in a CAS such as an A-10, or Attack Littlebird. You laze up some armor and wait for the fireworks. You run into the main AO taking short breaks to take down the platoons of soldiers stretching across a mile of land. You finally make it to the radio tower. Plant your satchel and wait for the go to blow it. Then you either walk back or wait for a friendly transport.

I have had many experiences like this in the game and I still almost wet my pants when a danger close bomb is dropped, or the enemy is firing artillery on my position making it difficult to move. I have to say I love the game and highly recommend it to ANY person who'd ask.

[Guest Sweeet5]

i am seriously thinking of switching from bf2 pr, to arma2 oa,currently waiting on delivery of OA,so i can try it !?...i have played arma2 a little.. way back when it was first launched,but am gonna be a noob at this so could use a little heads up with any pointers/tips... do's/dont's...patches/mods or any thing that i will need to play on the VG server,providing you except noobs that is !prank

please PM me !ok

regards Sweeet

[PITN]

Arma 2 Combined Ops. (Arma 2 + Arma2:OA) or Arma 2:X (everything Arma 2 related released to date).

[Guest Sweeet5]

i got ArmA2 waiting on OA...whats "everything" !dntknw

[Guest =VG= Raptor902]

the BAF and PMC addons, Cold War, and ArmA: Gold. along with all the media.

[=VG= SavageCDN (Inactive Duty)]

All you NEED is Arma2 and OA. If both are installed you can combine them somehow (Combined Ops). The PMC and BAF expansions are optional (better textures on these items).

As for mods.. there are like a billion. Currently we are playing with a map called CLAfghan. You'll want to look at client-side mods like Blastcore (visuals) and JSRS (sounds) that really improve the game.

If you are going to play with mods a lot I recommend getting an 'Arma Launcher' (there are a few) for managing mods and keeping them up to date.

Just hop on teamspeak and we can get you going...

[=VG= BLuDKLoT]

Off Topic, I have 4 free copies of A2CO that will soon be prizes in the Arcade for those that still need a copy, try to win it!

[Guest Sweeet5]

ok thanx fella's for the input,am gonna go ahead and get ArmA 2 and Arrowhead installed first!,

regards Sweet

[=VG= SemlerPDX]

Awesome! And BLuD, that's sweet! Bitchin prizes, man.