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Soldiers Defend Konami's 'Six Days in Fallujah'
Source: 1up
You can't make a videogame called Six Days in Fallujah, and not expect to stir up strong opinions. Konami announced the shooter -- based on the First Battle of Fallujah that took place in Iraq in 2004 -- earlier this week, and it didn't take long for strong condemnations to surface, from both Iraq War veterans and parents of soldiers killed in action.
But unsurprisingly, not all soldiers see eye-to-eye on the game. G4TV spoke with a number of members of the armed forces -- who also identify themselves as gamers -- to get their opinions on the upcoming title. One of the strongest supporters was Sgt. Casey J. McGeorge, who served three tours of duty (36 months) in Iraq. "As a combat veteran and as a gamer, I have no problem whatsoever with the game," McGeorge said. "As long as it's made as realistically as possible, I believe that this could be a good thing for both combat veterans and for the war in general."
Following Sgt. McGeorge's statements was former Army Sgt. Kevin Smith, who hopes the game will give civilians a better understanding of the realities of the war. "Let it be made, and hopefully it will bolster support for military veterans by giving civilians insight into what this war was actually like for them," Smith said. He also hopes that kind of understanding could translate into more support for soldiers returning from combat.
"A lot of soldiers have had a hard time readjusting when they return from war, and this has caused an extremely high suicide rate," Smith said. "I really hope that this title receives positive press and encourages more empathy towards veterans after gamers have 'experienced' what they have gone through."
Another potentially positive aspect was highlighted by Marine Corps. Gunnery Sergeant John Mundy, who said that the game could help as a supplement to training. "I know Marines would use this as a tool to not only give each other knowledge on the battle itself, but also have another tool to get the Marines thinking about Rules of Engagement and such so that they can play the game together and maybe learn a thing or two," Mundy said.
A consistent caveat in this support, though, is that the game be made into a truly realistic depiction of combat, which seems to be the tract developer Atomic Games is taking. "For us, the challenge was how do you present the horrors of war in a game that is also entertaining, but also gives people insight into a historical situation in a way that only a video game can provide," said president Peter Tamte. "Our goal is to give people that insight, of what it's like to be a Marine during that event, what it's like to be a civilian in the city and what it's like to be an insurgent."
Those who have already announced their opposition to the game have stated that a real-life battle that's still so fresh (in a war that, after all, is still going on) isn't appropriate subject matter for a videogame. "Considering the enormous loss of life in the Iraq War, glorifying it in a video game demonstrates very poor judgment and bad taste," said Reg Keys, the father of a British Royal Marine killed in Iraq in 2003, to The Daily Mail. "These horrific events should be confined to the annals of history, not trivialized and rendered for thrill-seekers to play out."
Source: 1up
You can't make a videogame called Six Days in Fallujah, and not expect to stir up strong opinions. Konami announced the shooter -- based on the First Battle of Fallujah that took place in Iraq in 2004 -- earlier this week, and it didn't take long for strong condemnations to surface, from both Iraq War veterans and parents of soldiers killed in action.
But unsurprisingly, not all soldiers see eye-to-eye on the game. G4TV spoke with a number of members of the armed forces -- who also identify themselves as gamers -- to get their opinions on the upcoming title. One of the strongest supporters was Sgt. Casey J. McGeorge, who served three tours of duty (36 months) in Iraq. "As a combat veteran and as a gamer, I have no problem whatsoever with the game," McGeorge said. "As long as it's made as realistically as possible, I believe that this could be a good thing for both combat veterans and for the war in general."
Following Sgt. McGeorge's statements was former Army Sgt. Kevin Smith, who hopes the game will give civilians a better understanding of the realities of the war. "Let it be made, and hopefully it will bolster support for military veterans by giving civilians insight into what this war was actually like for them," Smith said. He also hopes that kind of understanding could translate into more support for soldiers returning from combat.
"A lot of soldiers have had a hard time readjusting when they return from war, and this has caused an extremely high suicide rate," Smith said. "I really hope that this title receives positive press and encourages more empathy towards veterans after gamers have 'experienced' what they have gone through."
Another potentially positive aspect was highlighted by Marine Corps. Gunnery Sergeant John Mundy, who said that the game could help as a supplement to training. "I know Marines would use this as a tool to not only give each other knowledge on the battle itself, but also have another tool to get the Marines thinking about Rules of Engagement and such so that they can play the game together and maybe learn a thing or two," Mundy said.
A consistent caveat in this support, though, is that the game be made into a truly realistic depiction of combat, which seems to be the tract developer Atomic Games is taking. "For us, the challenge was how do you present the horrors of war in a game that is also entertaining, but also gives people insight into a historical situation in a way that only a video game can provide," said president Peter Tamte. "Our goal is to give people that insight, of what it's like to be a Marine during that event, what it's like to be a civilian in the city and what it's like to be an insurgent."
Those who have already announced their opposition to the game have stated that a real-life battle that's still so fresh (in a war that, after all, is still going on) isn't appropriate subject matter for a videogame. "Considering the enormous loss of life in the Iraq War, glorifying it in a video game demonstrates very poor judgment and bad taste," said Reg Keys, the father of a British Royal Marine killed in Iraq in 2003, to The Daily Mail. "These horrific events should be confined to the annals of history, not trivialized and rendered for thrill-seekers to play out."
