SITREP #00194

FROM: High Command
TO: Arma 3 Users
INFO: Malden Dev-Branch, Hotfix 1.70, Tanoa Structures
PRECEDENCE: Flash

SITUATION

It's been two weeks since Jets DLC was released, and we're excited to see the response and creations from the community. Internally, we've been evaluating its development and we're making plans for the future. Of course next up is the Malden Free DLC, which is approaching fast (June 22) and you might have already seen the star of the show land on Dev-Branch.

INTELLIGENCE

Since last Friday Arma 3 Dev-Branch players have had their first opportunity to explore a massive new (and free!) addition to the game: Malden 2035. This new terrain is a re-imagination of the iconic fictional island that featured in the very first Arma game. Malden was developed primarily for Project Argo (Prototype), but it was later expanded to fit as a new sandbox for Arma 3 as well. Kudos to the Argo devteam for their hard work and dedication. As with every addition to Dev-Branch, we'd like to ask you for feedback on our forums. It's very much appreciated!

You might recall that we deployed a new sandbox coop mode, Combat Patrol, on Dev-Branch late last year. This procedural multiplayer mode delivers true tactical gameplay in a sandbox environment, and is a great starting point for everyone who wants to get into Arma 3 open-world military gameplay. Today we're proud to announce that Combat Patrol will be included in the free Malden DLC package. However, for those who can't wait, you can still try out the new mode on Dev-Branch. To facilitate this, we'll have a handful of official servers running Combat Patrol on Dev-Branch during the weekends up until the release on June 22. So playing Combat Patrol with your friends should be even easier!

ModDB.com has started their Mod Appreciation Week for 2017. Besides showing your love to PC modifications and their creators, you can also win various games! Needless to say, mods for Bohemia games, including Arma 3, take up a large presence on the site as well. Let us celebrate modding, content creators, and communities together by highlighting your favorites and using the #modlove2017 tag!

OPERATIONS

Jets DLC brought new premium content, but was also be supported by free new platform features and content, which were all delivered in Update 1.70. For those who have joined our community more recently, we recommend you to read our original "DLC Strategy" blog, which explains why our DLC packages include both premium content as well as free platform updates, and how that helps us to prevent a split in the Arma 3 playerbase. Additionally, if you're interested to learn more, be sure to watch the presentation on Arma 3's DLC strategy from our Project Lead Petr Kolář earlier this year at the White Nights Conference in Prague. While we recognize that the benefits of our approach are not always immediately clear, we strongly believe this has been a great solution for a diverse game such as Arma 3. Thanks to this method of developing and distributing DLC, we've been able to sustain development and build upon the Arma 3 platform for already 3+ years since its official release. And there's still much more to come!

After the release of Update 1.70, we discovered some issues that had slipped past our QA defenses and ended up on Main Branch. To address these, we published a hotfix shortly after the update. For example, after evaluating the feedback on the helicopter external camera, we came up with a universal solution to make flying helicopters enjoyable again. We hope to revisit the configuration again in future updates by tailoring the camera to specific vehicles or vehicle types for an even better experience.

As was to be expected, we've noticed that Tanoa structures - part of the new terrain introduced in the Apex expansion - are also frequently used on community-made terrains. However, this could create an obstacle for those who do not own Apex and still want to play on the community terrains. To ensure better compatibility, we'll be making the structures part of every Arma 3's player data, which means that everyone will be able to enjoy terrains that are based on Apex assets and vegetation, whether you own Apex or not. Access to the Tanoa terrain itself will remain limited to owners. This change will become active with Update 1.72, but Dev-Branch players can already benefit from it right now.

LOGISTICS

A security update has landed on Main Branch to improve the stability of Dedicated Servers. We advise everyone to contact BattlEye directly in case they encounter any related issues.