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Bohemia Interactive have put out Virtual Programming's latest update of Arma 3 [Steam] for Linux, it includes 64bit support and finally fixes the texture issue I had.

Note: The Linux version of Arma 3 is still considered experimental. There is no SteamOS icon on Steam due to this, but it is fully playable.

The problem I had, was that I couldn’t select textures above Low and sometimes Normal. This is due to the way OpenGL works with 32bit applications, but no more! I still find it strange not many others saw the issue, but the 64bit built works perfectly allowing me to change all the graphical settings. For me, this is such a massive change that I can now actually play the game.

The Linux version previously sat at 1.64 since December 2016, so this update is a pretty big one for us. Both in terms of the time it took to come out and what’s changed. We’re now at Arma 1.70, but we are still lagging behind the Windows version, so you might have trouble finding people to play with online.

To be honest, the amount that has changed between 1.64 and 1.70 is insane in terms of the changelogs. The game has gone through literally hundreds of tweaks and trying to parse them into anything meaningful for an article was a bit of a nightmare. In the end, I gave up, because if you’re into Arma 3 you’ve likely kept yourself up to date anyway.

However, here’s a few cool things I found when browsing through the updates: It has a new audio engine for footsteps, Ambient Occlusion was overhauled, 64bit support, sounds for vehicles colliding with water, improved airplane audio, Sounds when getting in and out of helicopters, Rain sounds on car surfaces while inside of the vehicle and the list just goes on and on. Seriously, I don’t think I can overstate just how big of an update this is for us.

You can see what’s new in Arma 3 1.70 here, we also jumped past the 1.68 update so take a look there too. Also, since we’re now on Arma 3 - 1.70, this also means the Jets DLC will be compatible expanding the game even more for us (VP confirmed this).

Performance does seem better than when I originally tried it. There are some big dips when new areas are loading in, but they do seem to eventually smoothen out. Apparently that's an issue in the Windows version too. Some areas do have quite low performance unless I turn down quite a few settings, but it is much more playable than it was before.

Tip: If you have more than one monitor, you should be able to move it around using this as a launch option:

--eon_force_display=*monitor*Where *monitor* is a number.

Good work from Virtual Programming. Hopefully they can get some of the newer updates out a little more quickly, but that likely depends on Bohemia Interactive too, since ultimately they control what happens with it.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly came back to check on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly. Find me on Mastodon.
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pete910 Sep 14, 2017
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Damn shame, was hoping to be in line with windows. I know a lot that play on windows :(

But, progress is progress!
Furor Sep 14, 2017
I can't wait until is officially supported and in sync with the Windows version. Anyway, this is a great update!
Brisse Sep 14, 2017
Oh, nice. Played this game a lot before ditching Windows (Steam says 1416h). It's a shame they can't update the Linux port more often, otherwise I would probably start playing it again.
Kithop Sep 14, 2017
...did they finally fix HID support? Like, can I use a controller to fly a chopper without right trigger being double-mapped to yaw right and 'fire guns', with no way to remap it? :p

Better yet, can I use my G27 wheel+pedal combo to drive ground vehicles and my X52 Pro HOTAS for flight and mouse & keyboard for on-foot without them all messing each other up, like I can under Windows? ;)

I guess I'll have to test these at some point and report back. I can live with being a bit behind the Windows version in terms of raw features/patches, but that was an absolute deal breaker for me playing under Linux. What's the point of having a HOTAS + wheel if I can't use them, etc.
Greaser Sep 14, 2017
Finally we have 64bit support! Better late than never. I hope they will update the linux build more often in future and please: Treat it no longer as experimental, Bohemia :-)
Emazza Sep 14, 2017
Is cross platform online multiplayer supported?
Brisse Sep 14, 2017
Quoting: Guest
Quoting: EmazzaIs cross platform online multiplayer supported?
With matching versions yes

Which in practise means: Multiplayer in Mac/Linux ports is completely barren, unless you can find a group of friends to play with.
m2mg2 Sep 14, 2017
Quoting: FurorI can't wait until is officially supported and in sync with the Windows version. Anyway, this is a great update!

Probably won't ever happen, but it's better than nothing.
Emazza Sep 14, 2017
Quoting: Guest
Quoting: EmazzaIs cross platform online multiplayer supported?
With matching versions yes
So are now the latest versions matching?
tumocs Sep 14, 2017
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Quoting: Emazza
Quoting: Guest
Quoting: EmazzaIs cross platform online multiplayer supported?
With matching versions yes
So are now the latest versions matching?

No.
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