Perhaps you guys can help me out here. I've watched this trailer about half a dozen times now and I'm still at a loss to understand what's so damn wonderful about the "Real Virtuality" engine powering this game. I'll concede that the character models move pretty well in most situations, which counts for something. Maybe it's the low resolution at which the video was sent but this just doesn't strike me as awe-inspiring.
It's especially mediocre when you couple this with the revelation that this engine has supposedly been in development for over a decade. The publisher claims that military forces worldwide are using this in their simulations. It really makes me wonder which ones.
Milton Keynes – 505 Games is today pleased to release a new video showcasing the incredibly realistic military action on offer in ArmA II, the follow-up to the hugely popular PC shooter Armed Assault. ArmA II will be available on PC in 2009.
Developed by Czech-based studio Bohemia Interactive, ArmA II features incredibly in-depth combat and tactical warfare on a massive scale. In fact, the game engine that powers ArmA II (Real Virtuality) is so realistic that armies across the globe use it as a framework for their virtual simulations and it’s been constantly refined and improved during more than 10 years of development.
This first in-game trailer showcases the Real Virtuality engine and demonstrates its ability to produce incredible military simulation. Whether you’re flying an attack chopper, blowing up houses in a tank or creeping through the forest ready to pick off your enemy, ArmA II offers unprecedented realism and intense action.
In ArmA II, you’re part of an elite squad of American soldiers sent behind enemy lines to restore peace to Chernarus, a Soviet country ripped apart by civil war as warring rival factions fight to take control of the troubled state. In an epic story full of plot twists and turns, it becomes clear that the troubles plaguing Chernarus are deeper than anyone thought and the battle intensifies to extreme levels.
Building upon the foundations laid by its predecessor, ArmA II features refined graphics; unscripted AI opponents that ensure no skirmish ever plays out in the same way; 225sq km of gameplay area including more than 50 different towns and villages, alongside lush forests and wind-swept beaches; 136 different vehicles variants including helicopters, tracked armoured vehicles, boats and even bicycles and 81 weapon variants.
ArmA II will be published by 505 Games in Europe in 2009.
11:46 AM on 11.24.2008, 
Check out Into the Night with Chris Crawford & Jason Rohrer
The best videogames of 2009 ... so far
Destructoid interview: StarCraft II's Dustin Browder
Videogame characters that I would have sex with
Top ten Jeff Goldblum games (because I think he is dead)
My Father the Phone: A tribute to Ness's dad
A difficult subject
The Destructoid Comic: Face to face
