Sergeant Alexei Volkov wasn’t supposed to be alive. His platoon had been wiped out in a “training accident” three hours ago. But the bullet that grazed his helmet only knocked him cold. When he woke, the radio hissed a single, impossible message: “NATO has turned. Guba’s loyalists are fighting back. Download the data. Expose the lie.”

He tried to move. The keyboard worked. W, A, S, D. He moved forward through the tall grass. This wasn't the main menu. He was already in the game.

In Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis, you'll take on the role of a soldier in various military units, including the US Army, British SAS, and others. The game is set in the fictional country of Chernarus, a small nation in Eastern Europe that's under threat from Soviet-backed insurgents. Your mission is to complete various objectives, such as rescuing hostages, eliminating enemy commanders, and securing key locations.

The moment the bullet connected, the screen violently distorted. The colors inverted. The sound of the tank explosion wasn't a sound effect; it was a screech of digital feedback that made Elias rip the headphones off.