The Arma 3 Developers Do Not Want Their Game Used As Propaganda

The Arma games have always been known for being extremely realistic depictions of war. This franchise is the answer to people who genuinely think that games like Call of Duty or Battlefield are “realistic” military shooters, but that realism comes as a double-edged sword because the Arma games keep getting their gameplay used as propaganda footage for real wars.

 

The developers of Arma 3, Bohemia Interactive, have released a statement about this issue, and they have stated that while they are flattered that people think the games look real, as that is what the games are going for, but that they condemn their game being used in videos as if it depicts real-life combat. They also note that this has happened before, where Arma 3 footage supposedly depicted conflicts in Afghanistan, Syria, Palestine, India, and Pakistan.

The PR manager of Bohemia Interactive, Pavel K?ižka, stated: “We found the best way to tackle this is to actively cooperate with leading media outlets and fact-checkers (such as AFP, Reuters, and others), who have better reach and the capacity to fight the spreading of fake news footage effectively.”

The statement includes a list of things to look out for when trying to differentiate between real-life combat and Arma 3 gameplay, and this includes things like the video being low-resolution, using shaky cam, being in the dark or at night, lacking sound, having a HUD display, and several others. These are all the kinds of things that propagandists may attempt to use to attempt to pass this footage off as real footage of a warzone.

Generally, the mainstream media struggles to differentiate real-life combat from realistic gameplay, so gamers need to step up here and note these things where possible. We need to fact-check the media companies that report on this incorrectly. The statement ends by asking those who share Arma 3 footage to clearly state that the footage is gameplay. Games have gotten too realistic now, and people need to pay closer attention than ever before.

Justin van Huyssteen (@LC_Lupus)
Senior Editor, NoobFeed