America's Army 3
Available for pre-loading from Steam now ahead of June 17th launch.
Silver Spring, MD June 10, 2009 - The U.S. Army today announced its soon-to-be-released PC game America's Army 3 (AA3) will be available on Steam, a leading platform for the delivery and management of PC games and digital content with over 20 million accounts worldwide. Customers downloading AA3 through Steam will also get the benefits of Steamworks features such as auto-updating, Steam Achievements, and Steam Cloud. Additionally, AA3 is now available for preloading on Steam so players can be ready to go the moment AA3 is launched on June 17, 2009.
America's Army 3 is the only action game that delivers an authentic and entertaining Army experience by reflecting the training, technology, actions and career advancement of a Soldier within an exciting free game experience. America's Army 3 players will be able to download the game for free on Steam ( www.americasarmy.com/steam), as well as from partners listed on the America's Army website ( www.americasarmy.com).
AA3 has more authentic military elements including training, technology, weapons, and audio than any other military game. Built on Epic's Unreal Engine 3, AA3 delivers stunningly realistic environments, lighting effects, animations, and team-based experiences so that America's Army players can experience how the Army has strength like no other in a game like no other.
The teen-rated game will be constantly updated to include new features and missions and to highlight new technologies being incorporated in today's Army.
"We are very excited to work with Valve to distribute AA3 on Steam as it gives us access to great distribution technology as well as a tremendous user base," said Marsha Berry, the Army Senior Executive Producer for the America's Army program. "Additionally, we have incorporated Steamworks features such as Achievements and Steam Cloud to create a richer experience for Steam users. Our relationship with Steam will broaden our reach to a new community and it offers our current players a great new way to get the America's Army game and keep it updated. Players will also be able to download AA3 using the America's Army Deploy Client from the Deploy network of providers listed on the America's Army download site."
AA3 highlights different aspects of the Army from Army Values and the Warrior Ethos to Army career opportunities and lifestyles both on and off duty. Through their in-game characters, AA3 players will be able to experience how Soldiers train, live, and advance in the Army. AA3 players will also experience different types of technologies and equipment used by the Army's high-tech Soldiers. Players are bound by Rules of Engagement (ROE) and gain experience as they navigate challenges in team-based, multiplayer, force-on-force operations. In the game, as in the Army, accomplishing missions requires teamwork and adherence to the seven Army Core Values. In the game, a player's actions and demonstrated Army values will have consequences that are integral to success in gameplay and will affect a player's career progression.
AA3 players will have customizable persistent characters that advance in their virtual careers by completing specialized training and accomplishing missions. The character's career progresses much as it would in the Army. After completing basic combat training players go to advanced training to increase their in-game skill level and progress in their Army career. This specialized training allows players to unlock new abilities and gear, and to customize the gear they carry as well as their equipment loadout. As players advance, they will be able to cross-train and develop many different occupational specialties available in today's Army. Highly-trained players will be much sought after due to the capabilities they bring to multiplayer missions.
Initially, the core of the gameplay focuses on an Infantry Soldier (11B). Players can select from a variety of roles that the 11B performs such as Advanced Rifleman, Automatic Rifleman, Squad Designated Marksman and Grenadier. The first additional Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) players can explore is 68W Health Care Specialist (Combat Medic) which will be added this fall. Players who complete advanced individual training modules can take on new MOS roles that will affect gameplay.
About Steam and Steamworks
The leading online platform for PC games and digital entertainment, Steam delivers new releases and online services to over 20 million PC users around the world. Steamworks is a feature suite for building and maintaining PC games that is available for free. For more information, please visit www.steamgames.com or www.steamgames.com/steamworks.
About Valve
Valve is an entertainment software and technology company founded in 1996 and based in Bellevue, Washington. The company's portfolio of entertainment properties includes America's Army 3, Half-Life, Counter-Strike, Day of Defeat, Team Fortress and Portal. Valve's catalog of products accounts for over 20 million retail units sold worldwide, and over 80% of PC online action gameplay. In addition, Valve is a developer of leading-edge technologies, such as the Source game engine and Steam, a broadband platform for the delivery and management of digital content. For more information, please visit www.valvesoftware.com.
About America's Army
The Army creates and distributes America's Army so that young Americans can virtually explore Soldiering in the U.S. Army like Soldiers experience it - as individuals and as members of teams. Through the Game's virtual experiences, young Americans can explore the Army from basic combat training at Fort Benning, Georgia, and medic training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, to operations in defense of freedom. Along the way, they can join elite Army units and experience the strength of Army teamwork, values and technology within an engaging environment. The game has become an online phenomenon, consistently ranking among the most popular PC action games played online. The game is rated T for Teen and can be downloaded free from various partners listed on the www.americasarmy.com website. They are also distributed at local Army Recruiting stations, ROTC Detachments and Army events.
In the America's Army game, players are bound by Rules of Engagement (ROE) and grow in experience as they navigate challenges in team-based, multiplayer, force-on-force operations. In the game, as in the Army, accomplishing missions requires teamwork and adherence to the Army's core values. Through its emphasis on team play, the game demonstrates these values of loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal courage and makes them integral to success in America's Army.
The Army launched America's Army in July of 2002, and has released major updates to the game every few months. These releases feature new technologies, missions, Army units and occupations. In keeping with the dynamic nature of Soldiering, the America's Army game will continue to expand and will allow players to explore the Army of today, tomorrow and the future.
Stacie Shain
PR Manager for America's Army
816.547.1443
pr@armygame.net