Gamertell

The Army has a history of using computer games for training simulations. Due to the technology being a bit outdated, the Army is looking to revamp the game technology and system so that it can utilize more possibilities to so that the soldiers can be better prepared to survive real-life occurrences. According to BizJournal, this revamping as well as development of more training computer games will cost the army $50 million. While the simulation can be helpful, some manners of training actually work better than others.

Game-based training is not new. America’s Army, for example, came out partially as a recruiting ploy and also a game showing the rigors of service. Full Spectrum Warrior is based on an actual urban training game for light infantry groups. There are other such games for…

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Videogames offer the unique chance to not only learn about past generations but the chance to walk in the boots of those who have fought and died for this country.

While there are a lot of shameless war games on the market, more than a few have gone above and beyond offering a more realistic experience (in as much as a videogame can).

Click through for at look at three war-based video games that have influenced the industry and those who played them…

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A month after Ubisoft announced it had acquired the rights to the entire Tom Clancy universe, Ubisoft debuted a new independent Clancy game. Surprisingly, it isn’t a tactical shooter. It’s a flight simulator.

Titled Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X, (apparently thinking it is still cool to misspell words with an “X”) Ubisoft is hoping to take a chunk out of Namco’s popular flight simulation game, the Ace Combat Series. H.A.W.X will still be set in the Tom Clancy universe and will feature a number of notable characters from previous Clancy games including the Captain Mitchell and…

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You’ve heard me talking about my military gamer friends (two are in the photo on the right) in past articles but recently I found a copy of Stripes Gamer and was amazed and happy to see the military now has its own gaming news outlet.

When my friends are deployed they have no clue what is going on in the gaming industry here in the United States. I know when they e-mail me they feel so left behind when I tell them about the latest games that are out. Games they won’t be able to play until their one-year mission is complete. It’s even bad enough that they are not always included in the statistics published about gamer demographics, our troops are often the forgotten demographic.

According to the managing editor of Stripes Gamer, Tony Haugan, those serving in the military are also part of a “video game generation that has grown up and they’re taking their games with them when they deploy,“ he explained. “A lot of times they live in extreme boredom or extreme terror…

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Coming out of left field, rumor has surfaced about a possible Call of Duty MMO. 

IGN reports that, while speaking to a group of investment analysts yesterday (February 4 2008) at the 008 Morgan Stanley Technology Conference, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick commented that his company might be considering turning its Call of Duty series into a massively multiplayer online game. Whether or not this statement has any truth to it, or is just Kotick thinking out loud, certainly shows that Activision, who last year joined in a partnership with Blizzard, sees that a MMO could be the next…

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More and more gamers are laying down their lives so we can have the freedom to say or do what we want stateside. (Told you there were gamers in the foxholes.)

While these brave gamers are overseas dodging bullets, cautiously looking out for improvised explosive devices as well as their buddies’ backs, a few find peace in their chaotic lives overseas by gaming. Although she admits it seemed childish to her at first, Army wife Stefanie Shea couldn’t help starting a non-profit group to offer these gamers a bit of relaxation and escape from the war by collecting and shipping games and systems for deployed U.S. military personnel.

Seeing grown men hunkered down over a handheld game controller, fingers racing frantically to throw a football pass, slay the dragon or free a princess seems like kid stuff, Shea admitted.

“You actually hold this controller and you hold it kind of like it’s a bowling ball and you go through the motions,” she said. “It’s really crazy. If you haven’t tried it you have to seek one out.”

Shea first experience with videogames took place when she and her husband, Sgt. Michael Shea, would play Nintendo Wii games together with friends at Fort Campbell, KY, until Michael had to deploy for his second tour in Iraq a few weeks ago (October 2007). She said that since her husband will miss the next two Christmases at home she asked his opinion of what he thought soldiers there truly needed to relax and have a bit of holiday cheer despite being miles away from home. The answer was fun and relaxation to help them decompress the stresses of their duty. It was then she knew the only technology she could find that could provide just that - videogames.

Together with friend Dana Blackman Brady, who owns a consulting firm in Langhorne, Shea applied for nonprofit status for their organization, Fun For Our Troops. Together, they intend to collect money, gift cards and donated game devices from 2005 or newer to send to troops overseas. By word of mouth alone she raised more than $100 in one week to help collect the games for the troops.

“I need to keep myself busy,” Shea said. Keeping busy is something most military wives of deployed soldiers do to keep themselves from fearing the worse has happened to their loved ones when they are unable to call or a news channel announces a fire fight in their soldier’s general location. “Projects are always good.”

Brady, married to a former Army Ranger, said the games could be beneficial as well as provide a comfort from home.

“What they really appreciate over there is the true comforts of home,” Brady said. “The stress relief and the escapism involved in these games, we really think could be beneficial. We’re hoping to get (the games) throughout the year. We don’t want to have [soldiers] wait. We do foresee the issues with Christmas. It’s going to be a crunch for those games.”

Blackman Brady said she plans to write to companies to see if games could be donated. But, in the meantime, she is trying to get schools and communities involved.

At that rate, the duo will need many dollars to pay for the games and systems, which Blackman Brady said range from $80 to $700. Buying warranties for the devices will be another expense, but one worth the money, she said.

For more information or to make a donation visit the Fun For Our Troops website.

Currently the group is accepting gift cards, cash donations that will be used to purchase high-tech game systems and devices for shipment overseas. Contributions can be made on the group’s website or mail letter to:

Fun for Our Troops
c/o Dana Blackman Brady
506 Corporate Drive West
Langhorne, PA 19047

For more information e-mail stefanie.doctor.shea@us.army.mil.

Although the Department of Defense will not officially support these efforts, these Army spouses got together to plan on a website where troops or their family members can register a soldier as a recipients of a game and those who already have a system the registration form will help the group select the appropriate game.

Read [Buck County Courier Times] Site [Fun For Our Troops] Email [Fun For Our Troops]

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