Week 8

“History of Military Gaming” written by Carrie McLeroy is about how video games slowly progressed to become a tool for the military. I found it intriguing that people as far back as the 1st Century began to use tactics and strategies to overcome the enemy though I‘d say it‘s safe to bet they relied a lot on brute force. Back then the tactics used were of simple basic planning but it was the starting point for devices used today to train the soldiers. Using video games and simulation to help understand what it’s like out on the battle field has many benefits that can cause a major decrease in incidents related to training and minimal waste of ammunition. Although training virtually can be beneficial, it can’t truly bring the emotion of fear unless your out there doing the real thing.

The Germans were so effective in their campaigns and winning battle after battle and careful strategizing and planning must have been a huge factor to their victories. “The Germans were creating the foundations of mathematically driven warfare that would be programmed on computers in the 1950’s.” as stated by Roger Smith, chief scientist and technology officer for the Army’s Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation. The Germans have taken the next step up with probability and advanced mathematics that have lead to today’s advanced simulations and understandings. Hopefully the continuation of video game developing for the use in military combat training is growing to prevent casualties amongst soldiers.

“America’s Army” is a video game developed with the help and the ideas of the US army. This link: http://www.americasarmy.com/intel/ is to the video game main website in which you can view the heroes of today and learn about the rankings of the soldiers and what they do. Video games such as America’s Army engages the player in the important aspects of what a solider in a real battle does. Besides using video games, I’ve always thought that the military had realistic cockpits and virtual simulators that can portray the image of war far better than anything controlled by a joystick. Upon reading the article “Military Training Is Just a Game,” I found that using virtual simulators were effective but it was extremely costly even for the military. Michael Macedonia, chief scientist at the army’s Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation in Orlando Florida states “It’s not really about shooting things, learning how to shoot your weapon is easy. The challenging thing is leading.” Some games such as Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six PC game focuses a lot on the keeping your swat team alive and planning. Many war games put a strong emphasis on the gun where it feels as if you can take out the entire terrorist squad with a powerful gun. Games that are meant to train the soldiers must be more than about the weaponry and focus on leadership and how to react in times of danger.

Who ever knew that the military had a whole bunch of Xbox 360 and Wii controllers in their top secret lockers? According to “Wii All You Can Be? Why The Military Needs The Gaming Industry” by Glenn Derene talks about how the US military needs the help of some of the worlds top video game industries. When it comes to picking the best analog for whatever the military has up there sleeves, they seem to have favored the Xbox 360 and PS3 controllers because of the “portability, durability and easy ergonomics of the gamepad make it ideal for military use.” says Glenn Derene. I can understand how they prefer the controllers over the use of anything similar to a computer keyboard type layout because it’s a lot easier to use your thumbs to move the joysticks rather than having to type and click your way through.