War games
Submitted by James on Sat, 04/11/2009 - 8:37pm
A Raleigh company that plans to release a video game about one of the Iraq war's bloodiest battles is running into a buzz saw of criticism.
The game, "Six Days in Fallujah," is being made with the help of Marines who fought in the battle, and its defenders say it provides a history lesson about what Atomic president Peter Tamte has described as "the largest urban military assault in about half a century."
History lesson. Riiiiiight.
I wish I had an answer for what to do about the sick business of violence in games and movies. About the misogyny. About the racism.
But there's no stopping it. This is American entrepreneurial spirit at its fightin' best.
Couple Things
First, I have little problem with violence is movies, music, video games, etc per se. I am not convinced that it is a detriment to society but perhaps a reflction of society.
That said, I'm not crazy about these military games because it detracts from the reality of war. There is no reset buttons in war. You cannot turn war off when you get tired of "playing."
All of these war games should have a function where if the player gets killed, the game shuts down and can never be played again. If video games are about realism, that is pretty real.
Again, I'm not for censorship. If people want to buy it people will make it. Fine. But if you want to end war, a reality check is needed. My wife and I were watching footage from Vietnam and she asked why footage from Iraq wasn't on the news now like it was then. It's because when people see real war, they tend to support it less.
Bring back the draft with no deferments and these unnecessary wars are over. And it may take a few of these war-themed games with it.