Arma 3 Free to Play Weekend

rgMekanic

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In celebration of selling 4 million copies on Steam, Arma 3 is having a free to play weekend, as well as being on sale for $13.59, which is 66% off, and all Arma 3 DLC is on sale as well. DSOGaming has done a good writeup of Arma 3 if you don't know what the game is about, you can pick up Arma 3 on Steam.

I've always wanted to get into Arma, but it always seemed more like an amazing batch of assets that you needed mods in order to actually do anything in. Hopefully some of our readers will enlighten me. I'll be checking out the free weekend, if only to see if performance has improved, years ago I downloaded it during a free to play weekend and it ran terribly on my system.
 
My biggest problem with Arma III is the DLC. Wanna fly jets? DLC. Wanna drive tanks? DLC. Wanna fly helicopters? DLC. $56 for the DLC I don't already have. No thank you.
 
My biggest problem with Arma III is the DLC. Wanna fly jets? DLC. Wanna drive tanks? DLC. Wanna fly helicopters? DLC. $56 for the DLC I don't already have. No thank you.

Plus, even if you DON'T want the DLC you are forced to download GB's of useless data that contains the DLC which of course you can't use cause you didn't buy.
 
I've always wanted to get into Arma, but it always seemed more like an amazing batch of assets that you needed mods in order to actually do anything in. Hopefully some of our readers will enlighten me.

No, you've got it about right. Thought first Arma 2 and then Arma 3 were going to be next big thing in FPS, but the engine is a complete turd and anything they release is unfinished buggy garbage (Arma, DayZ, etc.). You don't just load up Arma and jump into a "game" like you would Battlefield or any other FPS.
 
How long are the rounds? I really wanted to like Rising Storm 2, but the 2-hour minimum playtime to finish a complete round really bored me. Unless you're amazing or you have nothing else to do for an entire day, you're never going to unlock anything.

I'm not going to even try any more online games that have rounds longer than an hour. I haven't had that kind of patience for a decade, which is why I loved TF2 and BF:BC2.
 
This game is for people who have no lives. Not a game where you can jump into the action right away for 30 minutes and then be done.

Also, I have the vanilla game and I get huge updates every once in a while and it contains the DLC that I didn't pay for.

What a joke.
 
The misinformation lol, I'm on [H] right?

Thank god it's not like Battlefield, do we really need another? Other than the basic premise - FPS war game - they're nothing alike. Here you have a company still updating a game a few years old, adding huge land masses, major updates (the DLCs include free updates to the base units as well) and offer tons of tools for mod and mission making and listen to the people that use them... and people are sad it's not like Battlefield lol. Don't worry, there's another $60 update coming for you guys soon no doubt.

I haven't even played this in quite awhile due to work schedule, and the game definitely isn't without it's flaws. But wow is the EA strong in here.
 
The misinformation lol, I'm on [H] right?

Thank god it's not like Battlefield, do we really need another? Other than the basic premise - FPS war game - they're nothing alike. Here you have a company still updating a game a few years old, adding huge land masses, major updates (the DLCs include free updates to the base units as well) and offer tons of tools for mod and mission making and listen to the people that use them... and people are sad it's not like Battlefield lol. Don't worry, there's another $60 update coming for you guys soon no doubt.

I haven't even played this in quite awhile due to work schedule, and the game definitely isn't without it's flaws. But wow is the EA strong in here.

So, you want to actually make me play the game and tell me how long the rounds are? OR you can just get back to bitching at us commoners? :D

I'm not asking a hard question here, am I? Round length in some online shooters has quadrupled in the last decade, and I'm tired of having to find out AFTER setting up an account.
 
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So, you want to actually make me play the game and tell me how long the rounds are? OR you can just get back to bitching at us commoners? :D

I'm not asking a hard question here.

Depends on what type of round you play but they're definitely not short. I think the shortest round I've ever played was an escape stratis round that lasted about an hour. Generally they're closer to 2 hour games with some (talking Zeus matches here) can last legendary lengths of time (8+ hours).

It's not at all like a TF2 or COD or BF2. It's more like a no-time limits chess game in which you spend more time running away from combat than you do running towards it.
 
Depends on what type of round you play but they're definitely not short. I think the shortest round I've ever played was an escape stratis round that lasted about an hour. Generally they're closer to 2 hour games with some (talking Zeus matches here) can last legendary lengths of time (8+ hours).

It's not at all like a TF2 or COD or BF2. It's more like a no-time limits chess game in which you spend more time running away from combat than you do running towards it.

Thank you! Sounds like a complete waste of time only fit for Civil War reenactors.
 
My biggest problem with Arma III is the DLC. Wanna fly jets? DLC. Wanna drive tanks? DLC. Wanna fly helicopters? DLC. $56 for the DLC I don't already have. No thank you.

That is false. The DLC does add some new planes and tanks as well as platform improvements to the ones in the base game. However, the default content is shit.

You need to use RHS US Armed Forces and Russian Armed Forces mods, as well as their Green Forces mod. There are 2 or so other good weapon mods I use. These mods are necessary unless you want the shitty future crap. The majority of the mods are garbage though. RHS is top of the line, better than the default content in terms of quality.

How long are the rounds? I really wanted to like Rising Storm 2, but the 2-hour minimum playtime to finish a complete round really bored me. Unless you're amazing or you have nothing else to do for an entire day, you're never going to unlock anything.

I'm not going to even try any more online games that have rounds longer than an hour. I haven't had that kind of patience for a decade, which is why I loved TF2 and BF:BC2.

It isn't a PvP game. I know there are PvP modes but they have always been crap, but that is not the focus of the game. I doubt any of those modes even have anyone playing them. You play for the editor and play real missions. The editor is unnecessarily hard to use and the GUI lacks basic features, but it is good enough for a basic mission without much effort.

The missions can be SP, or co-op, or co-op against other real players + AI, or you can add three factions. Missions can be balanced or lopsided (which is more realistic). Depends on what you play/make.
 
I've honestly had more fun in this game than most FPS. If you're creative and a team player: unlimited fun. Fair warning: It's buggy, performance is awful, and it's a slow paced game -- not for everyone.
 
I love ARMA 3 but I cannot dedicate the hours nowadays for a single play. Pilgrimage user mission on certain maps is my favorite.
 
The misinformation lol, I'm on [H] right?

Thank god it's not like Battlefield, do we really need another? Other than the basic premise - FPS war game - they're nothing alike. Here you have a company still updating a game a few years old, adding huge land masses, major updates (the DLCs include free updates to the base units as well) and offer tons of tools for mod and mission making and listen to the people that use them... and people are sad it's not like Battlefield lol. Don't worry, there's another $60 update coming for you guys soon no doubt.

I haven't even played this in quite awhile due to work schedule, and the game definitely isn't without it's flaws. But wow is the EA strong in here.

Well considering that Battlefield was only mentioned once in the thread (and not even in a gameplay comparison) I'd say "the EA is strong in here" means you're here to white knight for A3. Don't worry, I bought the game when it first came out in all it's buggy and unfinished glory, and taking a glance at the Steam reviews it's pretty clear that people still complain about shitty AI and bugs that were simply never fixed.

Here's a review that says it all:
Great game turned into a cash grab like so many others, and before you try to defend it in comparison to ArmA 2, ArmA 2 had expansion packs that contained multiple units/story/maps/etc for 20$. These stupid vehicle packs and sniper rifles[wtf] for 15$ only contain a few. Its a not needed thing and I'm sick and ♥♥♥♥ing tired of this in gaming, Deus Ex looks like a saint compared to this to which so many people bashed for having content not taken from the game but merely making it less of a grind for people who were too lazy to look for praxis kits in game. This is straight up expecting me to pay 15$ for rifles/tanks that should of been in game already. Go bankrupt with your POS strategy Bohemia, you were once my favorite now you're just another scummy company.. congrats.

You push DLC of these stupid packs on me any time I launch the game which has bugs still from freaking 14' and keep having pop ups constantly barage my screen, go ♥♥♥♥ yourself.
 
Well considering that Battlefield was only mentioned once in the thread (and not even in a gameplay comparison) I'd say "the EA is strong in here" means you're here to white knight for A3. Don't worry, I bought the game when it first came out in all it's buggy and unfinished glory, and taking a glance at the Steam reviews it's pretty clear that people still complain about shitty AI and bugs that were simply never fixed.

Here's a review that says it all:

Read like a typical Steam review. The reviewer was a complete idiot who doesn't understand what he is talking about. I regularly bash ArmA for its shortcomings and bash the community; especially the community post ArmA 2 released which was flooded by casuals via DayZ and similar. But wow, is that guy an idiot and entitled. There has been some free content, such as a whole map, new weapons and platform updates. That is the main point of the small DLCs. They bring new platform changes which are retroactively applied to older content and provide frame work for the modders to use. The small bits of paid content is a way to support the devs. If you don't want them you can still reap the benefits for the updates retroactively applied to the base game content.

Off the top of my head the following weapons were added post release for free: MP5K, AKM, AKS-74U, HK 416 & 417, SIG-556. I think a few others but they are some fictional crap.
 
I can tell by all the "unoptimized buggy piece of shit" comments that a lot of people don't know what they're talking about. ARMA 3 runs great for me and has for a long long time now. Even back when Breaking Point first came out. No, even on my GTX 750 right now I've no issues with the game, it's actually QUITE optimized if you ask me considering what it does on the hardware I have..
 
I can tell by all the "unoptimized buggy piece of shit" comments that a lot of people don't know what they're talking about. ARMA 3 runs great for me and has for a long long time now. Even back when Breaking Point first came out. No, even on my GTX 750 right now I've no issues with the game, it's actually QUITE optimized if you ask me considering what it does on the hardware I have..
Yeah, not sure what the people claiming "it's a buggy POS" have been smoking, but I'd like to take a hit. I'm able to maintain a solid 60+ fps at 4k, not exactly "low fps" in my mind. And for all the "but it's so involved" types: try KOTH.
 
Yeah, not sure what the people claiming "it's a buggy POS" have been smoking, but I'd like to take a hit. I'm able to maintain a solid 60+ fps at 4k, not exactly "low fps" in my mind. And for all the "but it's so involved" types: try KOTH.

Or wasteland
 
The misinformation lol, I'm on [H] right?

Thank god it's not like Battlefield, do we really need another? Other than the basic premise - FPS war game - they're nothing alike. Here you have a company still updating a game a few years old, adding huge land masses, major updates (the DLCs include free updates to the base units as well) and offer tons of tools for mod and mission making and listen to the people that use them... and people are sad it's not like Battlefield lol. Don't worry, there's another $60 update coming for you guys soon no doubt.

I haven't even played this in quite awhile due to work schedule, and the game definitely isn't without it's flaws. But wow is the EA strong in here.

I think these comments are coming because of the premise of the situation, not because "the EA is strong in here". A free to play weekend for less serious games makes complete sense, a free to play weekend for ARMA makes no fucking sense at all, and that is coming form someone who burned many hours in ARMA 2. Players who might check this out for free have good reason to be wary of massive downloads, very complex gameplay, and a buggy engine. At the same time all the people defending ARMA in here would probably just be pissed by random "casual" players coming in and ruining the game for people who know what they are doing.

A free weekend for ARMA is just not a good idea, it's a game for a very specific set of players, and those players already know about or play it.
 
My biggest problem with Arma III is the DLC. Wanna fly jets? DLC. Wanna drive tanks? DLC. Wanna fly helicopters? DLC. $56 for the DLC I don't already have. No thank you.

Okay, this is bullshit. You don't have to buy the DLC to do any of those things, just if you want more choices. Also, MP is playable even with mixed DLC sets, you just don't get to use the DLC assets.

There are certainly reasons to complain about this game (mostly technical/learning curve issues) but the way Bohemia has done DLC is not one of them.

Plus, even if you DON'T want the DLC you are forced to download GB's of useless data that contains the DLC which of course you can't use cause you didn't buy.

The reason for this is that you still can play in missions that use the DLC assets, so obviously they have to be there client-side for you to see them. So rather than fragment the community, they have chosen to allow all players to play together regardless of DLC purchases. I certainly know which method I prefer.
 
I think these comments are coming because of the premise of the situation, not because "the EA is strong in here". A free to play weekend for less serious games makes complete sense, a free to play weekend for ARMA makes no fucking sense at all, and that is coming form someone who burned many hours in ARMA 2. Players who might check this out for free have good reason to be wary of massive downloads, very complex gameplay, and a buggy engine. At the same time all the people defending ARMA in here would probably just be pissed by random "casual" players coming in and ruining the game for people who know what they are doing.

A free weekend for ARMA is just not a good idea, it's a game for a very specific set of players, and those players already know about or play it.

Nah, most of the negative comments are bullshit and come off as someone who has never actually played the game. But you do make a good point, it is not going to be something you get into over a weekend most likely.
 
I think these comments are coming because of the premise of the situation, not because "the EA is strong in here". A free to play weekend for less serious games makes complete sense, a free to play weekend for ARMA makes no fucking sense at all, and that is coming form someone who burned many hours in ARMA 2. Players who might check this out for free have good reason to be wary of massive downloads, very complex gameplay, and a buggy engine. At the same time all the people defending ARMA in here would probably just be pissed by random "casual" players coming in and ruining the game for people who know what they are doing.

A free weekend for ARMA is just not a good idea, it's a game for a very specific set of players, and those players already know about or play it.
Yeah I can sorta agree with that. But that's also the reason "die-hard" ARMA players don't normally play on public servers.
 
The reason for this is that you still can play in missions that use the DLC assets, so obviously they have to be there client-side for you to see them. So rather than fragment the community, they have chosen to allow all players to play together regardless of DLC purchases. I certainly know which method I prefer.

You assume I play on public servers I guess but I don't. Never have never will. I only play Pilgrimage mod in SP or COOP. COOP with friends only with me serving. Therefore I don't care about DLC assets.
 
I can tell by all the "unoptimized buggy piece of shit" comments that a lot of people don't know what they're talking about. ARMA 3 runs great for me and has for a long long time now. Even back when Breaking Point first came out. No, even on my GTX 750 right now I've no issues with the game, it's actually QUITE optimized if you ask me considering what it does on the hardware I have..

Actually the game does suffer from performance issues. You do need an Intel CPU with a good OC for best results. Ryzen / AMD or low clocked Intel CPUs are out of luck. It is single threaded so IPC really matters. The problem really occurs with the more stuff you add to a mission. If you only play small scale missions or MP you might not notice it as much. But the more you add the more screwed up the AI becomes. You will see that AI has trouble following way points in vehicles and will frequently veer off course and get stuck in trees, a fence or something similar. Or AI will accidentally exit a helicopter too early and fall to their death.

It can be frustrating because you may spend an hour or so testing it all before hand and see the AI successfully follow way points or land, but once more AI populates the game it all falls apart. And enemy AI reaction times become even more awkward.

I'm not sure if the latest Intel CPUs at 4.5 to 4.8GHZ help minimize it further, but a 4670K at 4GHZ and a Ryzen 1600 at 3.8 GHZ certainly suffer from it.
 
You assume I play on public servers I guess but I don't. Never have never will. I only play Pilgrimage mod in SP or COOP. COOP with friends only with me serving. Therefore I don't care about DLC assets.

Okay, well, given that the vast majority of the community for this game plays MP I guess they chose to go with the positive decision for most users.

I guess it would be nice if they gave you the option to download assets or not, but I guess they figure it's better than having it error out every time you try to join a mission that uses any of them.
 
Actually the game does suffer from performance issues. You do need an Intel CPU with a good OC for best results. Ryzen / AMD or low clocked Intel CPUs are out of luck. It is single threaded so IPC really matters. The problem really occurs with the more stuff you add to a mission. If you only play small scale missions or MP you might not notice it as much. But the more you add the more screwed up the AI becomes. You will see that AI has trouble following way points in vehicles and will frequently veer off course and get stuck in trees, a fence or something similar. Or AI will accidentally exit a helicopter too early and fall to their death.

It can be frustrating because you may spend an hour or so testing it all before hand and see the AI successfully follow way points or land, but once more AI populates the game it all falls apart. And enemy AI reaction times become even more awkward.

I'm not sure if the latest Intel CPUs at 4.5 to 4.8GHZ help minimize it further, but a 4670K at 4GHZ and a Ryzen 1600 at 3.8 GHZ certainly suffer from it.

It does have performance issues, yes, but as for the AI problems - are you running them locally? You really want to be running a dedicated server for missions if possible, so the AI cost is offloaded to the server.

It's a much higher performance hit for AI in this game compared to others because, well, the AI in ArmA has to be far more advanced in many ways and has a lot more decision making than in other games where it's mostly just scripted garbage.

I will say that they did finally add a 64-bit executable, though I haven't played ArmA 3 in awhile so I don't know how much a difference that makes.
 
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