Article written by Tuffcub.
Published on 12/10/2010 at 01:30 PM.
A former US Marine has given his thoughts on the new Medal Of Honor game and they are rather sobering. Benjamin Busch served as an infantry officer in the United States Marine Corps and has served two combat tours in Iraq.
“I honestly don’t like that Medal of Honor depicts the war in Afghanistan right now, because — even as fiction — it equates the war with the leisure of games. Changing the name of the enemy doesn’t change who it is.” he said.
“Imagine how frustrating this game would be if, just as you began to play it, an invisible sniper shot you dead every time. The game would not be popular, because being killed that way isn’t fair — just like war. Reality has a way of correcting misconceptions.”
Mr. Busch makes a strong argument on behalf of serving soldiers and – unlike certain British MPs – has a balanced view of the game, noting the title is unlikely ‘to lure anyone into Islamic fundamentalism.’ Also, unlike British MPs his words have a hell of an impact;
“A video game can produce no wounds and take no friends away.”
“Those who truly want to play for a Medal of Honor, recruiters are standing by. Only eight have been awarded since we invaded Afghanistan. All but one have been posthumous.”
If you wish to read the entire article from Mr. Busch (or listen to it – it’s taken from a radio show) then click here.
To be honest I’ve never given the setting of Medal of Honor much thought, it’s just another game and you could argue that we have all been slaughtering Russians, Japanese and Allies in countless games without giving two hoots.
The difference is they were faceless, nameless grunts. Benjamin (pictured to the left) has mates who are in Afghanistan, being shot at right now.
Source: NPR.
well there is the irony, i have served in both iraq (twice) and afghanistan ( twice), and im really looking forward to this game.
yea i think this is the problem with this whole issue. some dont see a problem, its just a game with team names from real life and others see it as disrespectful using names of armys killing people the game is mostly sold in.
I think your either one or the other, for me, im not to fussed as its just a game. and using the current names would give the game more relevance and me more connection to the story.
Excellent. Are you single? :D
Hmm, it’s a tricky thing basing any game on any conflict in reality but harder still when that conflict is still current? I’ve nothing but respect for those serving in the armed forces and I suspect most of you have too? That said it does bring up some moral questions as to if we should base games, a fun pastime, on such an issue but I don’t really know were or if a line should be drawn?
Don’t even know why they bothered with Afghanistan… they could just set it in a dusty country called xxxxxxistan and it would have made zero, perhaps even less than zero difference to the gameplay.
They could have still enlisted the advice of US Special Forces (although I’m not sure friendly fire missions are needed in a game) for that added sense of faux authenticity which makes a nice bullet point on the back of the box but makes little difference to the game they were going to make with or without their involvement.
Its all one big marketing exercise without which we’d have spent the last couple of months talking about CoD:BO hardly giving this a mention
dirkdirkistan ;)
Laurelandstan?
Mynameisstan?
would the real stan, please make himself known!
Backestan, Frontiestan,F**kingstan ok i stfu now.
who cares he choose to go to war how does this concern him
How splendidly immature. The game depicts soldiers that he can associate with and the crux of the matter is how tasteless such depictions are.
Completely agree with Bunimomike. He has served two tours in Afghanistan and you are saying that it doesn’t concern him?
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Good job he did isn’t it? These blokes fight for our beliefs. If more people played games instead the world would be a far more dangerous place.
eh?
all i can add to this is that its a game, its to be taken in the context to which it was created, this is in my opinion more tasteful than cod mw2′s airline terminal. i guess my arguement here is that society seems fine with any game based all be it loosely on an “old” war/scenario but takes great offence when its based on a conflict here and now, which to me seems silly and really very unfair. for example cods airline terminal massacre, seems to be a tad excessive and glorifies the innocent slaughter of alot of people but because they were russians all the censors gave IW a slap on the wrist and said naughty naughty, as no one cares about the cold war scenarios anymore, moh seems to be paying (in my opinion only of course), tribute to the tier one and other soldiers fighting out in afghan. but it being a “current” war the politics takes over, in a few years time after afghan scenario is no longer an option, MOH will be looked at and people will ask what all the fuss was about.
im sorry to all for any offence, this is just my opinion, and i for one will definately be playing this “game” when i t arrives thurs or fri.
i agree, we dont hear from the japanese when a bunch of americans are calling them slopes and burning them in world at war for example. When the war is truely over and afgahnistan and iraq are regularly feature in fps’s, no one will bat an eyelid
Look at all the WWII movies AFTER WWII and all the ‘nam movies AFTER ‘nam
See my comment above, its all just one big publicity stunt
wow, I just re-read that sentence! awful! LOL
Just had to cancel my pre order , gutted but food is more important than games plus i just discovered the oil sump on my car is corroded and leaking slowly . I predict it will get 8/10 simply because its not cod .
I am still in love with BFBC2 and just got my 120hrs 5 day patch award . Hopefully I can pick it up cheap around Christmas.
My 8/10 prediction was correct !
its true that real war is very different to games for a start you work as a team and rehearse 1 tactic time and time again to get it spot on where as games there are no tactics and no teamwork. to make a game really realistic would be boring to say the leased. i think thats why devs give us places we recognise so a game is instantly playing in our sub conscience as real
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He’s no objecting to the Taliban, more that the game is turning what is a horrific ongoing conflict in to entertainment. It’s vey tricky area, if you condemn this then you condemn every movie about Jack The Ripper.It really comes down to time – historical events have their atrocities dulled by time, there are not many WW1 verterans around to object to games.
There are loads of films out at the moment though like the Hurt Locker and Green Zone that turn the current war into entertainment. This is only getting so much attention because it is a game, and therefore the root of all evil.
Yeah but look how they deal with the subject matter in comparison to:
run around shoot anything that moves, get killed, respawn, run around and shoot anything that moves, get killed, respawn…
Can you imagine the vids uploaded to the internet and therefore seen out of context of a videogame?
Films are massively better at storytelling and therefore providing reasoning behind the violence that videogames are still a long way from
Agree with CC – with films you have (or at least if the film makers do it right, should have) an emotionl attachment to characters. If the die, you should be upset. You dont get that in games and I think that is what Busch is getting at. Life is cheap in gaming.
I agree with what he’s saying, I think its totally in-sensitive to have a game, which is designed to be entertainment set in a place where right now, our soldiers are getting injured and dying.
Agree with cc_star and Tuffcub and how hardly with Mr.Busch. There is such a difference from watching a movie to playing a game. There are two different types of attachment here. Like what Tuffcub said, if a writer or director does their job right you can get so emotionally attached the story/characters your watching. With games we are just not at that level yet, until we have our great games that can tell a story like the movies can that moves gaming to the next level I don’t think gaming will get the level of social acceptance that it deserves. I think we’re getting there, the Uncharted games have great stories to tell, Naughty Dog are good at that and I would like to see what they could do with a compelling issue like the afghan war.