ARMA II: Operation Arrowhead

Operation Arrowhead has a lot of great ideas, and some are able to shine through the multitude of problems. It can be stamped as one of the best and most realistic combat simulation games of this generation. However, whether that makes it fun or enjoyable is another story altogether. For anyone with no prior experience with the ArmA series, playing the demo before purchasing it is strongly recommended.

ArmA II Operation Arrowhead doesn’t fix what isn’t broken, but unfortunately doesn’t fix what is either. The expansion’s flaws are nothing new, as they are the same things that kept the original ArmA II from being a true classic. That said, Operation Arrowhead does a fine job of giving the hardcore fans of the series exactly what they want, no more and no less.

Arma II: Operation Arrowhead is an excellent expansion. It provides an abundance of new content, including at least 15 hours of gameplay before you even touch the editor or enter a multiplayer match, a beautiful new Central Asian setting, and a respectable number of new factions and armaments. Additionally, it fixes some significant flaws from the previous game, most importantly by avoiding the infuriating bugs that marred Arma II's single-player campaign.

It features new campaign missions and a number of new toys to play around with, and is still an incredibly comprehensive war experience, despite its issues with performance and artificial intelligence. It's best played with others with the patience to appreciate how much detail has been packed in here, ranging from graphical fidelity to the sheer number of vehicles and weapons included and the way they all control differently.

I have two major beefs with Arrowhead. The first is the calibre of its storytelling. Give Bohemia Interactive a country to create or an assault rifle to replicate, and they'll do a splendid job. However, give them a tale to weave, and they're like newborn foals on an ice rink. There's nothing inherently wrong in drawing on recent events in Iraq and Afghanistan for a plot, but drawing on them so nakedly, and with so little flair or imagination, is inexcusable.

Combined with ArmA 2 itself, however (and you can purchase a Combined Operations pack which includes both games) the overall game becomes much more than the sum of its parts. It might not be better than ArmA 2 and it doesn’t really fix what was broken in its bigger brother, but the two games combined does provide an improved experience, and at the end of the day, that’s what expansion packs are all about.

ArmA II: Operation ArrowHead es un juego intenso, aunque en algunas ocasiones pueda parecernos que avanzamos por el desierto sin rumbo alguno. La emoción reside en la incertidumbre y en el hecho de no poder dar nada por sentado, y saber que en cualquier momento podemos ser sorprendidos por el enemigo. Puede que no se trate de un título pensado para todos los jugadores pero los que estén acostumbrados al género, o tengan ganas de iniciarse en el mismo, estarán sumamente agradecidos con el trabajo de Bohemia Interactive.

Warum muss ich eigentlich wie schon beim Vorgänger Armed Assault auf das erste Addon warten, bis ich das bekommen, was versprochen wurde: eine waschechte, zumindest meist funktionierende Militärsimulation. Okay, die KI ist immer noch zu oft überfordert, um nicht zu sagen ignorant. Und zugänglich oder durchweg fair ist auch Operation Arrowhead nicht. Aber als Gesamtpaket kann sich die Erweiterung sehen lassen, denn mehr anspruchsvollen Spielspaß suchen Sie im Genre anderswo vergebens.

Si vous n'aviez pas accroché à ArmA II, Operation Arrowhead ne vous réconciliera pas avec la série. La seule différence avec le titre original réside dans l'ajout de nouveau contenu, à un prix plus que raisonnable puisqu'il est "stand alone" (environ 30 €). Mais pour le reste, c'est toujours grosso modo le même jeu, en proie avec les mêmes démons, et qui mérite la même note.

Migliorato soprattutto dal punto di vista della "quantità" rispetto al gioco base, ArmA II: Operation Arrowhead ci propone una sostanziosa campagna, una serie di missioni singole piuttosto varie, la simpatica modalità armeria e un multiplayer online di grande interesse. I veicoli e le armi utilizzabili sono numerosissimi e si nota fin dalle prime battute una grande attenzione verso il realismo, grazie anche a un motore grafico di straordinaria potenza (ma decisamente elitario).

Увы, ностальгия не в силах подсластить пилюлю. Operation Arrowhead — одно из главных разочарований года. Дело даже не в том, что играть скучно, а в нереализованном потенциале. Вдвойне обидно, что многие болячки перекочевали из оригинала. Танковые баталии по-прежнему вызывают кривую ухмылку, а враги, похоже, еще поглупели. Хотя фанаты ArmA 2Краткая информация об игре неприхотливы.