A debate or just stupid..

[Tramble]

Arma 3 is a "simulator"
others find that arma 3 is just a "multi-content fps game"

whats your vote

[Carver]

Simulator...

To me a multi-content fps game would be Battlefield 4, etc.

[CPT (Ret) Richardson]

Titles don't matter. Some people find enjoyment playing the game as a RTS while in ZEUS. Others find enjoyment playing it as FPS. Others log countless hours in aircraft and treat it as a flight sim. I'm sure some day there will be a mod that turns ARMA into a MOBA. The benefits of supporting the mod community is that Titles become meaningless. The game can be crafted to fit any title that your heart desires.

[Metzger]

Some food for thought: Virtual Battle Space (VBS) and VBS2 were built from the ArmA engine for use as training aids that the U.S. Army could use to simulate a combat environment without spending tons of money on fuel, ammunition and all such related field exercise supplies. While I personally haven't gotten to use it, our COLT team used it for awhile to do convoy training and call for fire exercises.

[Tramble]

Some food for thought: Virtual Battle Space (VBS) and VBS2 were built from the ArmA engine for use as training aids that the U.S. Army could use to simulate a combat environment without spending tons of money on fuel, ammunition and all such related field exercise supplies. While I personally haven't gotten to use it, our COLT team used it for awhile to do convoy training and call for fire exercises.

i dont think thats guna get their mind set for the actual deal. since their just moving with their fingers and not using their full body.. i think that is dumb to train army soldiers

[Metzger]

Some food for thought: Virtual Battle Space (VBS) and VBS2 were built from the ArmA engine for use as training aids that the U.S. Army could use to simulate a combat environment without spending tons of money on fuel, ammunition and all such related field exercise supplies. While I personally haven't gotten to use it, our COLT team used it for awhile to do convoy training and call for fire exercises.

i dont think thats guna get their mind set for the actual deal. since their just moving with their fingers and not using their full body.. i think that is dumb to train army soldiers

In the present realm of budget cuts and difficult times, some training is better than none. Using a simulator like VBS2 is preferable to using PowerPoint as VBS2 is largely dynamic and interactive. Sending your guys to the field is more preferable, but costs thousands of dollars in fuel, food, and ammunition. For the price of a two week artillery FTX firing 100+ rounds of 105mm HE, you could buy the computer systems for VBS and train those fisters (13F's) more often and for less. The Army is in the midst of a large scale cut-back - money is tight all over.

[Caine]

Not every skill needs a lot of muscular movement. The program is great for visualizing training and techniques on a limited budget (as said earlier). Though nothing replaces actual hands on training the key reason to use VBS2 or 3 is the limited budget. The guy who mentioned his COLT team using it is a good example. Calling for fire, close combat support or close air support is not that much different whether your watching some target take an actual strike or watching a digital target take a digital strike; the procedures and feedback is similar.

At the original question, I would say simulator. Out of all of the FPS games I can quickly think about that comes close to simulator I think of BF1942. Their artillery required adjustments with every shot, there were weak and strong points to vehicles, it did not require you to be a good twitch player to be good at the game and there was a reasonable hit to kill ratio (meaning you couldn't just soak up bullets because). However, it's still an FPS for one main reason, the health bar. Eventually hand grenades could kill a tank wHile in something like ARMA you could try all day but you would just be annoying.
So I think what defines ARMA as a simulator is the realistic weapon feedback with the player as well as the realistic weapon interaction with their targets.

[2LT (Ret) Storm]

When I describe ARMA to individuals that have never heard of it, I describe it as a "simulator".

ARMA is unlike any shooter I have ever played: no upgrades, points flashing across your screen, promotions, etc. It's not about K/D ratio; it's about keeping you and the guys next to you alive while maintaining combat effectiveness.

[MSG (Ret) Main]

Titles don't matter. Some people find enjoyment playing the game as a RTS while in ZEUS. Others find enjoyment playing it as FPS. Others log countless hours in aircraft and treat it as a flight sim. I'm sure some day there will be a mod that turns ARMA into a MOBA. The benefits of supporting the mod community is that Titles become meaningless. The game can be crafted to fit any title that your heart desires.

its a sandbox. its an amazing sandbox.

[SPC (Ret) Filley]

Titles don't matter. Some people find enjoyment playing the game as a RTS while in ZEUS. Others find enjoyment playing it as FPS. Others log countless hours in aircraft and treat it as a flight sim. I'm sure some day there will be a mod that turns ARMA into a MOBA. The benefits of supporting the mod community is that Titles become meaningless. The game can be crafted to fit any title that your heart desires.

its a sandbox. its an amazing sandbox.

I was thinking the same thing. It's all a matter of application, not definition.