The final major announcement in airsoft for 2013, being that of Tokyo Marui during the Tokyo Hobby Show 2013 held early this week, we expect mainly quick announcements from other manufacturers for the remainder of the year. Nothing will be in the innovation front with the exception of the Thunder HTS-14 from Hephaestus Custom in cooperation with GHK Airsoft, which is their take on the OTs-14 Bullpup AK.

What we do expect is that this month of September up to November, is that many airsoft players will be looking at the video game industry as the biggest First Person/Tactical Shooter titles will be released such as Battlefield 4 and Call of Duty Ghosts which will be released in October and November, respectively. And for this month of September, the expansive open world tactical shooter, ARMA 3, was released with few fanfare, especially that it was overshadowed by Grand Theft Auto 5's release earlier this week.

Set in the 2030s somewhere in the Greek Aegean island called Altis, ARMA 3 has both a single player and multiplayer modes. Whilst it is indeed  exciting to play in the single player mode, I have been more keen on the multiplayer mode of the ARMA Series as it the play is just expansive and its most come on feature is the Combined Arms Warfare. For every MilSim player, whether virtual or airsoft, Combined Arms Warfare is full warfare as it takes all land, sea and air assets into the campaign rather than just small unit actions. It helps in strategic and tactical decision making and modern warfare is mainly combined arms, especially if we are talking about conventional warfare.

I am still learning the ropes about the new ARMA 3 since it's been sometime since I last played this game. There are many hints and tips in the game that even in airsoft, it will make practical sense and thus the Community Guide, which was developed by Andrew Gluck or "Dslyecxi"from the ShackTactical with Bohemia Interactive to guide from individual movement, small unit actions, vehicles, support, and Combined Arms.

The beauty of the Community Guide gives you an appreciation what that ARMA 3 is and helps you dive into the game with a better understanding and mindset in playing the game. It may not be exactly like Battlefield or Call of Duty Multiplayer, but it will satisfy your need for military simulation, especially if there's no big MilSim event to go to.

Thus, spend the weekend understanding ARMA 3 if there is nothing for you to do. Watch all the videos in the Community Guide below and if you want to get into the game, ARMA 3 is just a download away.

Community Guide: Introduction:

Community Guide: Basic Infantry Combat

Community Guide: MP Teamwork

Community Guide: SITREP I

Community Guide: Helicopters

Community Guide: Snipers & Launchers

Community Guide: Combined Arms