Arma 3 vs Arma Reforger: Which Is Better In 2025?

In the realm of military simulation games, few franchises command the same level of respect as Arma. With Arma 3 holding its ground for over a decade and Arma Reforger offering a next-gen evolution of the genre, the debate between these two giants has never been more relevant. Let's break down their key features, strengths, and weaknesses to help you choose which one best suits your tactical appetite.

Graphics and Visual Fidelity

Arma Reforger: Leveraging the new Enfusion engine, Reforger boasts stunning visuals. From dynamic lighting and realistic reflections to detailed terrain and improved weather effects, it’s a graphical leap forward. Characters feel more lifelike, animations smoother, and environmental immersion is unparalleled.

Arma 3: While impressive in its time, Arma 3's graphics show their age. Lighting and textures are static by comparison, and animations can be clunky. Still, with mod enhancements, visuals can be improved significantly.

Winner: Arma Reforger for next-gen visual immersion.

Arma Reforger looks much better visually than Arma 3. The newer game wins that round of Arma Reforger vs Arma 3.

Gameplay Mechanics and Realism

Arma 3: Years of updates and community feedback have made Arma 3 a deep and rewarding experience. It supports intricate milsim operations, large-scale combined arms missions, and tactical gameplay with an unparalleled level of realism.

Arma Reforger: Offers tighter, more responsive controls and modernized physics. Driving feels more natural, and gunplay is smoother. However, it's still in early access, and some advanced milsim features are either missing or incomplete.

Winner: Arma 3 for gameplay depth; Reforger for modern mechanics.

Modding and Community Content

Arma 3: The modding scene is its beating heart. From the Antistasi campaign to massive Star Wars mods, Arma 3's mod ecosystem is mature and extensive, supporting every kind of experience imaginable.

Arma Reforger: Has official modding tools and a new platform, making it easier to download mods. However, the variety and depth are still limited compared to Arma 3. Many features from popular mods like ACE are not yet fully available.

Winner: Arma 3 by a long shot.

Arma 3 has many more years of modding behind it than Arma Reforger does. So Arma 3 wins this round of Arma 3 vs Arma Reforger.

Multiplayer and Accessibility

Arma 3: Best played with a coordinated group or unit. Public servers can be chaotic, but for milsim veterans, Arma 3 offers the most control and realism.

Arma Reforger: Designed with accessibility in mind, especially for console players. It’s easier to get into thanks to user-friendly interfaces and built-in tutorials. The "Conflict" mode offers a Battlefield-style experience that's straightforward and fast-paced.

Winner: Reforger for newcomers and casual players.

AI and Technical Features

Arma 3: Known for its unpredictable and sometimes frustrating AI behavior. However, the long-standing modding support often mitigates this with custom tweaks and scripts.

Arma Reforger: AI behavior is marginally better out of the box, but still lacks polish. The early access state means many essential features, like AI drivers or Zeus capabilities, are incomplete or missing.

Winner: Neither excels currently, though Arma 3 is more mod-fixable. Though Arma Reforger’s AI may become better over time.

Arma Reforger’s AI needs some work at the time of writing. Then again Arma 3’s needs mods to seem intelligent.

Milsim Experience

Arma 3: With over a decade of content, Arma 3 is a staple in milsim communities. It supports highly specialized roles like sniper, medic, JTAC, and full-scale air operations.

Arma Reforger: Captures about 75% of the milsim experience so far, according to veterans. It’s promising but lacks advanced functionality and depth, especially in niche roles.

Winner: Arma 3 for full-spectrum military simulation. Especially if you want singleplayer milsim experiences.

Arma 3 allows for a lot of fantastic PvE or PvP milsim operations, due to its extensive list of scenarios and mods.

Overall Verdict

Play Arma 3 if: You value deep realism, endless mod content, and immersive milsim operations. Despite its aging engine, it's still the tactical king... for now.

Try Arma Reforger if: You’re new to the franchise, love beautiful visuals, or play on console. It’s a preview of Arma 4's future, but not yet a full replacement.

Final Score:

• Graphics: Reforger

• Gameplay Depth: Arma 3

• Modding: Arma 3

• Accessibility: Reforger

• Milsim Realism: Arma 3

Reforger is a gorgeous and streamlined evolution with strong potential. But until its systems mature, Arma 3 remains the undisputed champion for tactical realism and sandbox depth.

The Best Arma Reforger Settings For Performance

Arma Reforger is a visually rich but hardware-intensive game. Even high-end PCs can experience performance issues if the graphics settings aren’t carefully configured. Whether you're exploring Everon solo or fighting it out in large multiplayer battles, optimizing your settings can make the difference between a stuttery mess and a smooth tactical shooter. This guide focuses on the best Arma Reforger settings for performance so you can enjoy high FPS without sacrificing essential visual clarity.

The key to boosting performance in Arma Reforger is knowing which settings to prioritize and which ones can be reduced or disabled entirely. With just a few adjustments, you can gain 20–30% more FPS regardless of whether you’re using a modest GPU or a powerful gaming rig.

The Arma Reforger Video Settings menu, where we will be tweaking Arma Reforger Settings to increase your FPS.

Quality Preset and Display Settings

Begin by setting the overall Quality Preset to Custom. This gives you full control over each parameter, which is critical for fine-tuning performance. Use Borderless Fullscreen for the best compromise between fluid alt-tabbing and stable framerate. The Render Scale should be set between 90% and 95% to increase performance while still maintaining clarity.

This adjustment reduces the game’s native resolution slightly but keeps it sharp using FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR). If you're running a weaker graphics card, enabling FSR is essential—it compensates for lower render resolution by upscaling the image with minimal quality loss.

V-Sync should be turned off unless you experience screen tearing. Disabling it will reduce input latency and give you a smoother experience. Similarly, while some users like to cap their FPS to reduce GPU usage, unlocking it entirely provides the most responsive gameplay. If your PC is powerful and stable, keeping the FPS limit off is ideal.

Draw Distances and Geometry

Arma Reforger’s massive maps tempt players to crank up draw distances, but this can crush your FPS. Set the View Distance to 2000 meters—high enough to see distant threats but low enough to maintain good frame rates. Object Draw Distance should be set to Medium. This balances vegetation and structure detail without overloading your system.

These two settings have a significant impact on how the world is rendered, especially during multiplayer matches. While increasing draw distance may add immersion, it costs performance with little strategic gain in most scenarios.

Anti-Aliasing and Visual Clarity

Anti-aliasing smooths out jagged edges but can be a major performance hog. In the Arma Reforger settings, there are two types: Hardware Anti-Aliasing and Post-Processing AA.

Turn off Hardware AA completely (it should also be ignored if you have turned Post-Processing AA on)—it consumes far more resources with diminishing returns. Instead, choose either FXAA (High) or SMAA under post-processing. SMAA offers a sharper image, while FXAA is softer and slightly blurrier. Both are much less demanding and offer a good balance between image quality and performance.

This tweak alone can add a significant number of frames and improve your visual clarity in Arma Reforger.

Post-Processing Effects

Disable Nearby Depth of Field and Depth of Field Quality. These add a cinematic blur that doesn’t translate well in gameplay and slightly reduce performance. You’ll gain a few extra frames and clearer aiming, especially when using iron sights or red dot optics.

Contact Shadows, Screen Space Reflections, and Ambient Occlusion should all be turned down or off. These settings enhance realism but often go unnoticed during firefights. Turning off Contact Shadows alone can gain you 10–20 FPS, especially in urban or forested areas. Set Ambient Occlusion to Low to retain some shading in buildings without tanking your performance.

Scope Rendering and Cursor

Disabling Use 2D Scopes will allow for Picture-in-Picture rendering, which uses more resources but maintains peripheral awareness. If you need extra performance and don’t mind sacrificing immersion, enabling 2D scopes can give a boost. Software Cursor can be toggled based on personal preference—it has no measurable impact on FPS.

Textures, Filtering, and Models

Set Texture Detail to High if your GPU has 8GB or more of VRAM. On systems with less memory, Medium or Low is better. Texture Filtering should be set to Low, as this setting has a surprisingly high impact—changing it can shift your framerate by 5–10 FPS.

Model Geometry Detail should be on Low. The visual difference between Low and Medium is minimal in fast-paced situations, but the performance gains are significant. Terrain Surface Detail can be set to Parallax, which provides decent visuals with stable performance.

Environment and Shadows

Environment Quality is one of the most underrated performance killers in your Arma Reforger settings. It controls things like cloud resolution, which dramatically affects framerate during scattered cloud weather. Set it to Low and you should hardly notice. In most weather conditions, the visual difference is negligible.

Grass Quality and Grass Draw Distance are among the biggest performance drains. Set Grass Quality to the Lowest and Grass Draw Distance to around 100. This change alone can net you up to 20 FPS, especially in grassy fields or forests.

Shadow Quality should be set to Low, and Distance Shadows should be turned Off. These have limited visual utility in tactical gameplay but consume a lot of GPU power. Also, use the Standard Render Target Format for compatibility and stable rendering.

Final Tweaks for Efficiency

Don’t overlook your Field of View (FOV). A 90° FOV offers better situational awareness with no impact on FPS. Map your most-used functions, like your in-game map, to side mouse buttons to reduce delay and keep your hands on movement keys.

If you experience issues joining modded servers, it helps to clear your mod list, then redownload the required content from the Workshop rather than through the server browser. This isn’t a direct graphics setting, but it prevents crashes that could interrupt your optimized gameplay.

Wrap-Up

By applying these optimized settings, you're getting the best Arma Reforger settings for high FPS on virtually any machine. The focus should always be on removing the most taxing effects that have little gameplay value, such as contact shadows and environment quality during certain weather. While everyone’s system is different, these recommended adjustments provide a rock-solid baseline that balances visual clarity with smooth, responsive gameplay.

Tweak these suggestions based on your specific hardware, but always remember: in Arma Reforger, clarity and fluidity will win the fight long before fancy lighting or extra grass will.

Among Us VR Maps

Among Us VR reimagines the wildly popular social deduction game for virtual reality, delivering an immersive and physically interactive experience. At the heart of this adaptation are two distinct maps — The Skeld II and Polus Point — each offering unique gameplay mechanics and strategic depth.

These environments transform classic tasks and sabotage tactics into hands-on challenges that redefine how players approach teamwork and deception.

The Skeld II

The Among Us VR Map of The Skeld 2

Among Us VR brings a transformative experience to the classic social deduction game, and The Skeld II is a standout example of how virtual reality can reinvent a beloved setting. Based on the original The Skeld map from the 2D version, The Skeld II retains the familiarity that fans cherish while enhancing it with immersive VR interactions and spatial gameplay elements.

The map is compact, allowing for fast-paced rounds that demand quick thinking and decisive action. Players navigate through narrow corridors, which increases tension and proximity-based interactions. The use of VR adds a tactile dimension to the gameplay — tasks like swiping cards, fixing wiring, and aligning engines now require actual hand movements, making even routine tasks feel engaging. This physicality elevates the immersion and also opens up opportunities for strategic deception, especially with tasks that take longer to complete.

One of the most notable enhancements is the spatial audio system. Voice chat is proximity-based, so players can only hear each other when close by. This dynamic adds an entirely new layer to the social deduction element, encouraging whispering suspicions in quiet corners or overhearing conversations when hidden nearby. It also makes emergency meetings and in-game communication feel more urgent and personal.

For impostors, The Skeld II offers familiar venting mechanics but with increased depth. In VR, visually observing a player vanish or appear can be much more dramatic, forcing impostors to be more careful with timing. The close quarters mean impostors must rely heavily on misdirection and alibis, as sneaking around is riskier in VR than in the 2D version.

Polus Point

The Among Us VR Map Of Polus Point

Polus Point is a fresh map exclusive to Among Us VR and contrasts starkly with The Skeld II in both design and gameplay. It’s a larger, more open map with environmental effects such as snow, dynamic lighting, and a variety of unique room layouts. Inspired by the original Polus map but redesigned from the ground up for VR, Polus Point encourages exploration and extended encounters between players.

The tasks on Polus Point are uniquely tailored to VR mechanics. Players assemble tools, operate cranes, and manipulate objects in three-dimensional space, providing more variety and physical involvement than traditional tasks. This not only diversifies gameplay but also affects how players are perceived during tasks — an impostor faking a task has to convincingly mimic these hand-based interactions.

Strategically, Polus Point introduces challenges related to visibility and movement. Its open spaces make it easier to spot players from a distance, yet also make it harder for impostors to isolate targets without being seen. Rooms are often multi-leveled, and the verticality adds new considerations when planning routes or escaping suspicion. Sabotages in Polus Point tend to pull players across wide sections of the map, forcing teams to split up and creating prime moments for impostors to strike.

Overall, Polus Point feels more adventurous and offers greater strategic depth. It rewards players who enjoy long-form deduction and exploration, while The Skeld II suits those looking for tighter, high-stakes rounds.

The New Arma Reforger Antistasi: Arma Reforger Overthrow Mod

In the world of military sandbox simulations, the Arma Reforger Overthrow mod emerges as a powerful spiritual successor to Arma 3’s beloved Antistasi mod. Designed to capture the gritty reality of asymmetrical warfare while leveraging the cutting-edge Enfusion engine, Overthrow transforms Reforger’s technical base into a dynamic revolutionary experience.

Much like its predecessor, the mod places players in the boots of an underdog resistance fighter, pitted against a better-equipped occupying force—be it Soviet or American. The emphasis is on grassroots rebellion, civilian interaction, and using your limited resources carefully.

Arma Reforger Overthrow encourages you to play it smart with ambushes at first.

At its core, Overthrow is a hybrid of open-world sandbox gameplay and dynamic mission generation. Whether playing solo or in co-op, you begin your journey as a civilian revolutionary with nothing more than a beat-up vehicle, a modest amount of cash, and a dream of liberation. From this humble start, the game tasks you with gradually building a resistance movement.

This involves completing jobs like raising local support by posting propaganda flyers, aiding civilians with medical supplies, or carrying out sabotage and assassination missions against collaborators and enemy forces. As your reputation grows, so too does your ability to earn passive income from supporter donations, which helps fund weapons purchases, ammunition, and the development of FOBs (Forward Operating Bases).

The mod incorporates a nuanced support and stability system that affects each town dynamically. Towns have their own populations, levels of political stability, and thresholds for backing the revolution. For example, stability can drop due to acts of violence or propaganda, while support increases with medical aid or flyers.

You will need to get money to buy things in Arma Reforger Overthrow. It’s an RPG mod just as much as a shooter.

Some towns are harder to sway due to their proximity to enemy radio towers, which reduces the effectiveness of propaganda. Players must weigh whether to take high-risk actions to eliminate these outposts or focus on towns outside their influence to establish strongholds.

Gunfights feel tense, and AI behavior is noticeably more reactive compared to vanilla Reforger. The mod makes excellent use of Reforger’s modern engine capabilities, offering improved soundscapes, terrain rendering, and tactical movement.

While AI is still limited in some areas due to Reforger’s current development stage the missions in this Arma Reforger Mod remain tense and challenging. The price of failure is much higher than in other Arma Reforger mods that are more multiplayer focused.

You’ll have to do a lot of driving in the Arma Reforger Mod Arma Reforger Overthrow.

Buildings can be used as safehouses, and gear can be stored for later use. As you gain momentum, setting up FOBs allows for quicker deployments, respawns, and even partial base management.

Community involvement plays a pivotal role in Overthrow’s development. The mod is frequently updated, and its creator is active on Discord, taking feedback and pushing out iterations.

Despite being a work-in-progress, the game already feels like a compelling successor to Antistasi. It holds true to the original’s core: empowering the player to wage guerrilla warfare creatively against superior foes in a living, breathing sandbox.

For those eager to dive in, the mod is available on Reforger’s official Workshop. Installation is straightforward but requires downloading dependencies. While server options are still limited, Overthrow can be played in full as a single-player experience, making it accessible to both lone wolves and squad-based players alike.

In summary, Arma Reforger Overthrow isn’t just a mod—it’s a revolution reborn. It captures the spirit of Antistasi while evolving it for a new generation of Arma fans. With its layered gameplay, emergent mechanics, and a commitment to player agency, Overthrow delivers an experience that feels both familiar and refreshingly new. Though right now it still clearly needs more time and love to be all that it can be.

For anyone who loved the cat-and-mouse resistance narrative of Antistasi, Overthrow is an essential continuation of that legacy—and a glimpse at what might await in Arma 4.

Beginner Guide To Arma Reforger Loadouts And Gear

Getting started with Arma Reforger can feel overwhelming, especially when building effective loadouts. This guide breaks down essential gear for the top three Arma Reforger classes: Infantry, Sniper, and Medic, helping you make smarter choices on the battlefield.

There are also some other great Arma Reforger Guides to read if you are interested in more general gameplay advice.

Also keep in mind that this article is about Vanilla Arma Reforger Gear. There are a lot more options in some of the fantastic Arma Reforger Mods out there.

The Infantry Arma Reforger Loadout

An example Arma Reforger Loadout of a US Infantryman. Nevermind the wound and half empty magazine.

The Infantry class is the most accessible and essential among Arma Reforger classes. Whether you're securing objectives or pushing into enemy-held zones, your goal is to remain combat-effective without exhausting your team’s limited supply pool. The default loadout for each faction is an infantry loadout.

Primary Weapons:

• US faction: M16A2

• Soviet faction: AK-74

Both rifles are highly capable, affordable, and efficient at medium to long range. Players should leverage the semi-auto mode for increased accuracy, especially in open engagements.

Explosives and Secondary Weapons:

• US: M320 grenade launcher or M72A3 LAW (note: one-shot, non-reloadable)

• Soviet: RPG with optional two-round backpack upgrade

Explosives are critical for disabling enemy vehicles, fortifications, and clustered infantry. While they offer powerful utility, avoid overloading with too many rounds—especially when deploying from remote bases with limited supplies. Also keep in mind that the more weapons and explosives you carry the slower you will be in game when running.

Loadout Essentials:

• 2 Bandages

• Morphine

• Tourniquet

• 2 Frag Grenades

• 2 Smoke Grenades

• Bayonet Knife

• Map, Compass, Flashlight

• Radio

Gear Upgrades to Prioritize:

• Suppressor: A game-changer in combat—prevents your position from being revealed when you fire.

• Red Dot Sight: Great for faster target acquisition without the recoil drawbacks of magnified optics.

• Chest Rig and Backpack: Increases ammunition capacity and mobility. Choose the rig corresponding to your weapon type (e.g., sniper rig for sniper rifles or machine gunner rig for a machine gun).

Pro Tip: US grenades are quieter than Russian ones. Picking up enemy grenades when you are Soviet can provide a stealth advantage.

Key Utility:

• Deployable Radio: Enables fast travel and tactical reinforcements for your team near contested objectives. It turns a good infantry player into a strategic asset.

The Sniper Arma Reforger Class

An Example loadout of a US Arma Reforger Sniper found in the “Elimination” scenario.

Snipers in Arma Reforger operate best far away from firefights, eliminating threats, draining enemy supplies, and harassing enemies from the edges of their bases. They’re among the most high-risk/high-reward Arma Reforger classes.

Primary Weapons:

• US: M21 Marksman Rifle

• Soviet: SVD Dragunov

These rifles cannot be suppressed but can be equipped with powerful long ranged scopes. While alternate ammo types like FMJ or armor-piercing slightly increase muzzle velocity, sticking with standard rounds allows you to master shot timing and bullet drop consistency. Whatever round type you try to use make sure you use it consistently.

Secondary Loadout Tips:

• Use compact, suppressed secondaries like:

  • US: M16 Carbine

  • Soviet: AKS-74U

• Carry just a few magazines to keep your supply cost minimal and your weight at a manageable level. Being mobile is key as a sniper.

Optics & Rangefinding Tips:

• SVD Scope: Use the 1.7m reference line to range enemies—align feet to base and head to top line.

• M21 Scope: The bottom dot equals 1m. Use it to estimate distance (e.g., waistline at 4x zoom = 400m).

Movement & Stealth Strategy:

• Fire and relocate regularly to avoid counter-snipes.

• Rest your weapon for stability using the "C" key (A on Xbox, X on PS).

• Take advantage of terrain for concealment—especially on ridgelines or rocks above objectives.

Loadout Essentials:

• Standard ammo

• Suppressed carbine (for emergency close-range fights)

• Basic medical gear (1–2 bandages)

• No grenades necessary—stealth is key

Sniper’s Role in Economy:
A good sniper bleeds the enemy's respawn tickets and logistics without ever engaging in direct confrontation. However, a bad sniper just becomes a drain on your own resources. Hone your aim and positional awareness to make the class worthwhile. Be patient and stay on the move once you take some shots and give away your position.

Medic Arma Reforger Gear

An example of Soviet Medic Arma Reforger Gear. Note that the health kit has no supplies in it. Make sure yours does.

The Medic class is the unsung hero among Arma Reforger classes. Their role centers on maximizing team survivability and minimizing supply loss—crucial in long engagements and remote battles.

Weapons & Loadout Philosophy:

• Avoid combat. Choose a carbine (M16 Carbine or AKS-74U). A suppressor is also good.

• Limit yourself to just 2–3 magazines to reduce supply burden and keep your focus on healing.

Medical Gear Setup:

• Medical Kit: Comes pre-loaded with bandages, morphine, and saline.

• Medical Backpack: Offers extra space for essential gear.

• Ambulance Vehicle: Only vehicle that allows for in-transit healing. Needs to be stocked with supplies from a depot or base.

Recommended Loadout Adjustments:

• Swap frag grenades for extra smoke grenades to cover downed teammates.

• Keep gear weight light to enhance mobility behind the front lines.

Healing Protocol:

1. Use bandages and tourniquets to slow or halt bleeding.

2. Use saline to restore lost blood.

3. Apply Morphine Last (also remove any tourniquets)
   This sequence ensures the fastest stabilization of your teammates and maximizes survivability.

If you have a medkit though then as long as it is loaded with supplies you can heal team mates much more quickly and easily.

Strategic Impact:
Every soldier you heal equals a full Arma Reforger loadout saved. In supply-limited environments, medics directly influence whether a team can continue pressing objectives or is forced to retreat.

Pro Tip: Use a field hospital or operate near supply depots to maintain healing effectiveness over time.

Enjoy! Oh, and if you ever get bored of the Arma Reforger loadouts you can put together in Vanilla then there are a ton more to try in the Arma Reforger Mods.