ArmA 3

ArmA 3
Developer	Bohemia Interactive
Publisher	Bohemia Interactive
Platforms	PC
Release dates	March 5, 2013 (alpha) June 25, 2013 (beta) September 12, 2013 (launch)

ArmA 3 is the fourth main title in the ArmA series.

Overview

The first game in the series to be set in the near-future, ArmA 3 is the fourth main game in Bohemia Interactive's long-running ArmA series.

ArmA 3 was initially released as an Alpha on March 5th, 2013, and was later updated to an open Beta on June 25th, 2013. The full version of the game was finally released on September 12th, 2013, and was later expanded with additional content in the form of three more campaign episodes titled Survive, Adapt, and Win.

Expansion pack (1)

Main article: Apex DLC

Released on July 11th, 2016, Apex is ArmA 3's primary content expansion pack and adds many new weapons, vehicles, aircraft, boats, and other interactive objects.

It includes a brand new island terrain in the form of Tanoa, along with the Apex Protocol multiplayer campaign. Several new factions have also been added which feature their own set of usable content.

As of April 14th, 2020, the expansion also includes the bonus Old Man mini-campaign/scenario.

Unlike ArmA 2's Operation Arrowhead expansion, Apex is not standalone and requires the base game to install.

Expansion pack (2)

Main article: Contact DLC

Contact is a military science fiction-themed spin-off expansion that adds two new factions, a standalone campaign, the Livonia terrain, several weapons, vehicles, outfits and equipment. The Contact expansion pack was released on July 26th, 2019.

It was primarily developed by Bohemia Interactive's Amsterdam team in collaboration with the studios in the Czech Republic and Thailand. A teaser trailer was initially released on May 21st, 2019. The expansion's title and content were finally revealed on May 23rd, 2019.

DLCs

Following on from its predecessor's model, ArmA 3 features a multitude of DLCs that further expand the base game's content:

• Karts, released on May 29th, 2014
• Helicopters, released on November 4th, 2014
• Marksmen, released on April 8th, 2015
• Jets, released on May 16th, 2017
• Laws of War, released on September 7th, 2017
• Tac-Ops, released on November 30th, 2017
• Tanks, released on April 11th, 2018
• Art of War, scheduled for release sometime in November 2020*

(*) Art of War will initially be released as a premium DLC but will become freely available to all players on September 12th, 2021.

Owners of the Supporter Edition (no longer available for purchase) are automatically granted access to all DLCs and both expansions.

For non-Supporter owners, the DLCs can be obtained individually or through the DLC Essentials bundle which includes Karts, Helicopters, Marksmen, Jets, Laws of War, Tac-Ops and the Tanks DLCs in a single package.

Alternatively, either the Apex Edition Bundle or Contact Edition can be purchased. These packages combine the expansion pack(s) and additional DLCs depending on the version:

• The Apex Edition Bundle combines the base game with the first expansion pack (Apex) and three DLCs (Karts, Helicopters, Marksmen). It does not contain the Jets, Laws of War, Tac-Ops and Tanks DLCs.
• The Contact Edition only contains the base game and second expansion pack (Contact). It does not contain any of the premium DLCs.

For new ArmA 3 players looking to gain access to all premium assets, the Ultimate Edition contains both expansion packs (Apex/Contact) along with every official DLC from the Essentials bundle (Creator DLCs are not included).

Existing players who have already purchased all official DLCs (aside from Contact) can also opt to buy the Ultimate Edition in lieu of the latter at a discount. Owned DLCs will be subtracted from the total price without affecting the player's DLC library.

Free content

In addition to the premium DLCs, ArmA 3 was progressively updated with major patches and free DLCs that are available by default to all players:

• Zeus DLC, released on April 10th, 2014
• Bootcamp Update, released on July 14th, 2014
• Nexus Update, released on December 2nd, 2015
• Eden Update, released on February 18th, 2016
• Malden DLC, released on June 22nd, 2017
• Encore Update, released on August 1st, 2018
• Warlords Update, released on December 3rd, 2018
• Old Man Update, released on April 14th, 2020

Creator DLC

Produced by external third party developers but published by Bohemia Interactive, DLCs released under the Creator DLC programme are intended to provide more original quality content to owners.

Unlike in-house premium releases, DLCs under the Creator DLC programme do not contain platform updates and are completely optional to acquire. They will not be downloaded unless the player owns the DLC and activates it via ArmA 3's Launcher:

• Global Mobilization - Cold War Germany, released on April 29th, 2019

It should be noted that owners of the Supporter Edition are not granted access to Creator DLCs.

Plot

ArmA 3's campaign takes place in 2035, two decades following the events of Operation Black Gauntlet. It is predominately set on the Republic of Altis and Stratis, an island nation located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea.

Prologue

Main article: Prologue

Deployed to the island nation of the Republic of Altis and Stratis, NATO peacekeepers and Altian government forces conduct training exercises together and carry out counterinsurgency operations against a growing insurgency movement calling itself the FIA.

Viewed from the perspective of U.S. Army Sergeant Conway, the peacekeepers will soon find themselves caught between a hammer and an anvil as full-scale civil war threatens to break out once more on the island country.

The East Wind

Main article: The East Wind

One year after the events of the Prologue, the peacekeepers from the multi-national Task Force Aegis are scheduled to depart the island nation as their peacekeeping mandate comes to a close.

Seen from the view of U.S. Army Corporal Ben Kerry, one of the few non-combat support personnel left on the island, what follows soon after will set the stage for an escalating global competition of influence between NATO and CSAT, as the island nation teeters on the brink of all-out war.

Altis Requiem

NOTE: Only available with the Tanks DLC.

Main article: Altis Requiem

As NATO forces launch their retaliatory invasion against the island nation in response to the attack against the peacekeepers of Task Force Aegis, AAF tank commander Captain Kyros Kalogeros is assigned to take charge of his armoured unit in the defence of his country.

Apex Protocol

NOTE: Only available with the Apex expansion pack.

Main article: Apex Protocol

Following the events of The East Wind and Altis Requiem, Apex Protocol has players assume control of a four-man special operations team as they work to hunt down an elusive warlord commanding the Syndikat, a paramilitary insurgent group on the island nation of the Horizon Islands.

Remnants of War

NOTE: Only available with the Laws of War DLC.

Main article: Remnants of War

War in the Republic of Altis and Stratis has ended, but the many scars of conflict continue to remain in the island nation.

As all sides work to heal the country's wounds, veteran field consultant Nathan MacDade from the IDAP Non-Government Organisation is deployed to the long-abandoned mountain village of Oreokastro after reports come in of a civilian being killed by a landmine.

During the arduous de-mining process, MacDade recalls the events and stories of the village in the lead up to its destruction to AAN News journalist Katherine Bishop.

Old Man

NOTE: Added as bonus free content but requires the Apex expansion pack to play.

Main article: Old Man (campaign)

Disaster has once again struck the South Pacific nation of the Horizon Islands. A super-strain of malaria has left much of the Tanoa province quarantined, and local authorities are being overwhelmed by the ensuing humanitarian crisis.

Players assume the role of a retired French Foreign Legionnaire known only by his nickname of "Santiago". Santiago has received a tip-off from an old contact of his, and as he will soon discover, the super-strain is far from natural. One chain of events will soon reveal that the outbreak is linked to a much wider conspiracy that could upend the world's balance of power.

First Contact

NOTE: This campaign was included with the release of the Contact expansion pack but is considered to be non-canonical in the official timeline.

Main article: First Contact

At a time of heightened tensions with the Russian Federation, U.S.-led NATO forces are conducting joint military exercises with their allies in the semi-abandoned region of Nadbór, Livonia. Players will be stepping into the shoes of Specialist Aiden Rudwell, a drone technician attached to the U.S. Army contingent.

Not long after the exercises commence however, one incident will spark a chain of events leading to humanity's first contact with unknown entities...

Gameplay

As the fourth iteration in the series, ArmA 3 continues to use the same standard of gameplay set by its predecessors as a tactical shooter in a sandbox platform.

Combining a third/first person perspective camera, players are able to take command of an infantry squad, drive ground vehicles, boats, as well as pilot various fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. ArmA 3 similarly contains both a single player and online multiplayer mode through the Steam client.

Unlike previous games in the series, ArmA 3 does not utilise the old 2D-style mission editor and instead features the new Eden editor, which allows creators to develop far more expansive scenarios and campaigns with greater flexibility.

Requirements

	MINIMUM	RECOMMENDED
OS	Windows 7 SP1 64-bit	Windows 7 SP1 64-bit Windows 8 Windows 10
PROCESSOR	Intel Dual-Core 2.4 GHz OR AMD Dual-Core Athlon 2.5 GHz	Intel Core i5-4460 or faster OR AMD FX 4300 or faster
GRAPHICS	NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GT OR AMD Radeon HD 5670 OR Intel HD Graphics 4000	NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 OR AMD Radeon HD 7800 Series
GPU MEMORY	512 MB	2 GB
DirectX®	10	11
RAM	4 GB	6 GB
HARD DRIVE	32 GB free space (HDD)	35 GB free space (SSD / Hybrid HDD / SSHD)
AUDIO	DirectX® compatible on-board	DirectX® compatible soundcard
OTHER	Internet connection and free Steam account to activate	Internet connection and free Steam account to activate

Accurate as of September 2018

Screenshots

Video

Arma 3 - Launch Trailer

Arma 3 - Survive Trailer

Arma 3 - Adapt Trailer

Arma 3 - Win Trailer

Arma 3 - Bootcamp Update Trailer

Arma 3 - Nexus Update Trailer

Trivia

• ArmA 3 was initially slated for release in July 2012 but was postponed following an incident involving two of its development leads on the islands of Lemnos and Agios Efstratios, Greece (the real-world islands that the in-game Altis and Stratis terrains are inspired by). Its tumultuous development cycle resulted in no less than three iterations of the storyline being established.
• In its initial concept, ArmA 3 was referred to internally as ArmA Futura and was planned to have a vastly different setting compared to its final version.
  • Not only was the setting meant to be science-fiction and post-apocalyptic based, but was also intended to be a Role Playing Game (RPG) instead of a military sandbox.
• Official premium DLCs were initially separated into two DLC Bundle packages that contained Karts, Helicopters and Marksmen (1) or Jets, Laws of War, Tac-Ops and Tanks (2). They were eventually deprecated from both the Bohemia Interactive Store and Steam Store, and were combined together into the DLC Essentials pack.

External links

• Official page
• Steam Store page

See also

ARMA series
Main games	• •
Legacy games	• •
Expansion packs	• • •
DLC	• • • • • • • • •
Spin-off	•
Entries are listed in order of release dates from left-to-right.