The above YouTube video up there illustrates exactly why I'm super pysched to play ArmA II -- the latest realistic tactical combat sim from the creators of Operation Flashpoint -- and why I'm sort of dreading it as well. Five minutes of amazing, awesome, unprecedented, wide-open, utterly sublime spectacle highlighting the cacophony and frenzy of modern war.

Then it ends in a split second and I never even knew what hit me.

The game is still several days away from release in North America, but included with press copies is a handy list for clueless reviewers (isn't that redundant?) who might not understand the difference between a bug and a game that isn't an action shooter. The list addresses common complaints such as "I was taking cover but the AI was still shooting at me!", "I don't understand what those dudes are saying on the radio!", and "There are strange cracking sounds during combat!". It politely explains "the AI is laying down suppressing fire", "the directions are relative to your squad, not wherever you've wandered off to", and "that's the sound bullets actually make when they fly by your ears". It even tries to explain a few things about ballistics, fatigue, and the fact that if you swim for a long time you might lose your weapon because you had to drop it so you wouldn't drown. It explains that it's dark at night and that NPCs might lie to you. Plus this tidbit:

ArmA 2 does not support jumping.

All of which just further illustrates why I'm super psyched to play ArmA II and why I'm sort of dreading it as well. C'est la guerre!