Independent Czech developer Bohemia Interactive has released a statement regarding footage of Arma 3 being falsely used as footage from real-life conflicts, mainly from the current war in Ukraine. “These user-made videos have the potential to go viral, and are massively shared by social media users; sometimes even by various mainstream media or official government institutions worldwide,” Bohemia Interactive said. “The Arma 3 dev team would like to take this opportunity to point out how the general public can distinguish such in-game videos from real-world footage.”
Arma 3 is a unique open sandbox platform. The game takes place in the middle of a futuristic fictional conflict in 2035. The Arma series is known for how open the games are for user customization and user-generated content. Modders can create whole new terrains, ground vehicles, aircraft, weapons, uniforms, equipment, and scenarios. These creations can be shared with a community of players. As of today, there are more than 20,000 Arma mods available to download via the Steam workshop. Arma 3 players can recreate and simulate any historic, present, or future conflict in great detail.
However, there is an issue as Bohemia Interactive notes that “videos taken from Arma 3, especially when the game is modified, are quite capable of spreading fake news.”
“While it’s flattering that Arma 3 simulates modern war conflicts in such a realistic way, we are certainly not pleased that it can be mistaken for real-life combat footage and used as war propaganda. It has happened in the past (Arma 3 videos allegedly depicted conflicts in Afghanistan, Syria, Palestine, and even between India and Pakistan), but nowadays this content has gained traction in regard to the current conflict in Ukraine. We’ve been trying to fight against such content by flagging these videos to platform providers (FB, YT, TW, IG etc.), but it’s very ineffective. With every video taken down, ten more are uploaded each day. We found the best way to tackle this is to actively cooperate with leading media outlets and fact-checkers (such as AFP, Reuters, and others), who have better reach and the capacity to fight the spreading of fake news footage effectively.” says Pavel Křižka, PR Manager of Bohemia Interactive.
Bohemia Interactive has shared some tips on how to distinguish in-game videos from real-life footage. The devs say that in-game videos will contain very low resolution, shaky cam, they often take place in the dark or at night, mostly without sound, doesn’t feature people in motion, the Heads Up Display (HUD) will be visible, unnatural particle effects, and unrealistic vehicles, uniforms, and equipment.