Arma 3 - A Preview Of Things To Come

Arma 3 - A Preview Of Things To Come
By Vik Mcgee

In June 2012, Arma 3 was unveiled to a select group of avid gamers and industry professionals at the E3 Electronic Entertainment Expo. During the event, Bohemia Interactive revealed a variety of new features that would take the game's technical aspects and gameplay to the next level. Some of these new features were highlighted in six showcases that provided players with the opportunity to try them out in a real game setting. These showcases included:

• Night Ops
• Diving
• Vehicles
• Supports
• Helicopters
• Infantry

In each showcase, players were assigned a simple mission that demonstrated the latest advancements in Arma 3. In the Supports showcase, players were given access to new features that allowed long distance engagement of the opponent. Also featured were the revamped Artillery, Close Air support features, and the context-sensitive hint system currently under development.

In the Vehicle showcase, players found themselves in the thick of vehicular gaming action, face-to-face with enemy patrols. This particular showcase was also notable for the introduction of the Strider, a slew of new and exciting sound effects, a unique infrared feature, and a host of new vehicles, that includes the company's much-anticipated PhysX driving model.

Fans of undersea action where treated to a host of new undersea features in the Diving showcase. The main goal of the mission is to clear the immediate vicinity of enemy divers, and with the new enhancements introduced, Arma 3 set the stage for a whole new take on the underwater gaming paradigm. Players were given access to a variety of new vehicles, movements, and combat tactics in a superbly rendered undersea environment that truly highlighted what the game had to offer.

The Night Ops showcase gave players the opportunity to join in on a nighttime mission that superbly demonstrates the game's new lighting enhancements. Even in the space of such a quick firefight, it was apparent how much work went into ensuring that each individual feature worked together to create a superb gaming experience with plenty of innovative touches.

Superb new lighting enhancements 

The new lighting enhancement showcased in the Night Ops mission is actually a large part of what makes Arma 3 such a significant departure from its predecessor. Subtle and detailed in some parts and highly dramatic in others, the game's lighting really emphasizes Arma 3's focus on integrating innovative new features into the feel of the game. Rather than standing out on its own, each key feature (including the lighting) contributes to the overall look and feel of the game in a perceptible way. It was in fact one of the primary goals of the game developers to make the lighting in Arma 3 as "realistic as possible", a goal that was achieved by way of innovative enhancements to the point-lights and light-emitting materials, as well as the overall lighting.

Revamped gaming engine 

Great lighting is of course an essential part of the gaming experience, and Arma 3 undoubtedly sets gaming standards in this regard. However, the innovation that went into the game goes a lot deeper than mere cosmetics. The gaming engine has also been revamped to more efficiently handle high dynamic ranges. This gives Arma 3 unprecedented detail and flexibility, allowing for richer and more vibrant night time operations, more detailed scenes, and a host of new gameplay features. While Arma 2 made waves for its innovative features at the time of its release, the enhanced gaming engine of Arma 3 almost makes this latest incarnation a totally different game.

Innovation on the ground level 

Terrain is something that the developers of Arma 3 take very seriously, and the inclusion of new playing environments drawn from the Greek islands of Lemnos and Stratis make the game a serious contender in the gaming world indeed. As far back as two years before the game's release, a team of Bohemia Interactive designers were already stationed at the two islands, gathering images, video, and data that would serve as the direct inspiration for the fabulous new terrains that would be featured in Arma 3. The team worked intensively to capture the look, feel and essence of the islands, with the goal of incorporating these elements into the game environment. The result is a host of new playing environments that merge the best that the Greek islands have to offer with the imaginative features introduced by the Arma 3 design team. For Arma 3 gamers, this means a much richer and more rewarding playing experience.

Conclusion

Combat games aren't exactly new, and even multilevel games will really need to be packing something extra in order to grab the attention of the now-jaded gaming community. Simply put, Arma 3 has more than a few of these "extras". With the superb lighting enhancements, the breathtaking environments, and the overhauled engine that imparts the game with unprecedented detail and gameplay options, Arma 3 is bound to make history for Bohemia Interactive yet again.

Visit http://www.games2gohome.com to read about this and more games.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Vik_Mcgee
http://EzineArticles.com/?Arma-3---A-Preview-Of-Things-To-Come&id=7189173