ARMA: Cold War Assault

The series began as Operation Flashpoint in the early 2000s. It has always been known for brutal realism in everything from infantry to all of the vehicles. This series was adapted for use as a military virtual training program. Don't let that intimidate you, it is easy to get in to and you will get into it quick. It may take some getting used to coming from arcade shooters like call of duty or battlefield. In this series you can drive jeeps, trucks, halftracks, tanks, planes, helicopters.... or just be a soldier in a unit running across miles long battlefields. It does not have the greatest graphics, even though they're passable and hold up today, and there are bugs here and there. Despite this, it is the series I've most enjoyed for wargaming. The sound is fantastic and immersive. The best part are the never ending mods for each game that recreate nearly every conflict, nearly every military unit you can think of, and maps and campaigns to keep you going. There is a robust mission editor that is user friendly with plenty of guides on sites like armaholic or the bohemia interactive forums. Each game in the series has sufficient WW2 mods to make it by far the greatest WW2 game. Just search the internet for some videos of "Arma WW2", or any conflict you may be interested in. Even with this being one of the oldest in the series and not the greatest of the series, it is well worth the full asking price. Here's hoping they can complete the series and get Arma 2 back, get Arma 3, and Iron Front Liberation 1944 here!

Takes open world to a whole different level. More of a simulator than a shooter, theres a lot of bang for your buck here. The resistance expansion is GENIUS as it has you fighting a guerilla war, making you collect the weapons you use to fight.

This is as close to war as you can get without going to a warzone. When you get the addons (you will need a lot of space for all the mods, somewhere around 1 terrabyte of mods out there), it gets even better. The singleplayer is amazing, and well scripted. Sure it is very glitchy, but you have to remember this is a first gen engine that does a heck of a lot. The truth is that this game is what started VBS, which is what the USMC, ADF, and MOD use for training their soldiers. Had it not been for OFP, we wouldn't see things like VBS. Now there is ArmA, which is good, but the singleplayer sucks compared to OFP. As far as realism goes, this is stunning. The one main problem is that you actually need to know people who play OFP to play MP, as the MP community is very small and tight.

Operation Flashpoint requires a level of sophistication, and tactical awareness, above and beyond every other game in its class. It's learning curve is steep, but its a close to real tactical combat as you can get. This dedication to realism is likely why Flashpoint alienated so many FPS gamers, who were used to sprinting in and blasting everything in sight with ridiculous arrays of weapons and machinery. This is no HALO. It's not even Battlefield. Your character is not an invincible, bullet soaking machine capable of carrying 19 weapons, and single handidly operating every weapon in the arsenal of the United States, but for those who enjoy tactical shooters, that's part of the fun. It's especially nice that this game includes all the expansions. Each has its own to offer, and gives a unique spin on the game mechanics. The difference between playing as a Marine and a resistance fighter are striking. Each operates largely the same, but requires you to think differently, and each has fun and exciting tactical situations. If you've never played Flashpoint before, I recommend you give it some time. It takes a while to master, and you may have to play through the single missions often before you're prepared to tackle the campaign. The payoff, however, is well worth it.

First, I knew this game by the name "Operation Flashpoint" So when I saw the screenshots, it brought back one memory from within the game. On one mission we had to assault a village, I remember me and the squad starting engaging and then through the battle I lost my entire unit, and pretty soon we lost half the force that started the assault. Our RPG carrier took a bullet right in front of me and fell to the ground just as an enemy tank was on the horizon. I remember picking up the RPG quickly from the body of my fellow soldier and going into shelter before the tank could see me, I hid quietly behind a car or something while bullets whistled all over and finally was able to take the tank down before he was able to take another friend of the squad.. Anyhow, long story short, eventually I was the only one left alive on my side, and with the mission objective completed all I had to do was to return to our camp which was around 10km from where the mission itself took place, I was waaayy outnumbered and lack ammunition on my m-16 so I had nothing left to do but to try and make a run for it towards base. I ran quickly to a nearby soviet (i think it was) car and started to drive to the base full speed ahead. Sadly, the enemy saw the car and all and started shooting, the car didn't last much longer after that and due to the face I lose a wheel I got the car crashed into a tree. My char was badly wounded, and could not stand at all, so I had to crawl back to base (took me around 10 minutes..Which is a lot in game time when all you do is crawl) while bullets whistling all over but finally I made it back to base and was led to a nearby medic... That's just one story I remember.. Overal, AMAZING game which you must own.