An Arma mod on my resume helped me eke out the interview for my first full time tech job. As janky as the engine was, I have a soft spot for it. It's a game/platform that _wants_ the user to customize it and have a stake in its technology.

Funny, I had a similar experience. I wrote a script that enabled players to "call in" mortar support, by looking at the target and selecting a distance. Also using shoddy trigonometry and also one of my earliest programming experiences. Very basic from today's perspective, but I was mighty proud back then and so hooked!

Same here; I remember playing ARMA 3 during the early-2013 public alpha, which was an eye-opening look at how the gaming sausage is made in real time (and before Early Access was as established a concept as it is now).

I was rather disappointed when I heard that they had been acquired by BAE Systems, but on further inspection it seems like that was only the BI Simulations arm (responsible for VBS), now rebranded as OneArc. My guess is that a release like this wouldn't have happened were they not still independent.