14 DAY TRIAL // It seems that the United States Armed Forces, the best prepared military force on Earth, is aiming to step up the use of videogames in the training process of most troops, the idea being that a soldier who has gone through videogames as close as possible to real life will be better prepared for combat than one who has only experienced limited live fire training, which is both costly and potentially dangerous.
James Mattis, who is a General and in charge of the United States Joint Forces Command, said during an appearance in front of the House Armed Services Committee that “I've been in a lot of fights, and this isn't scientific, but I'd say... half the casualties I've seen on our side were for silly, stupid reasons,” adding that “If we can put people through simulation, it's not so they know one way to take down an enemy stronghold, but so they know five different ways to do it.”
The United States Armed Forces have already backed the launch of America's Army series of videogames, initially released in 2002. The series is managed by the Office of Economic and Manpower Analysis at the United States Military Academy and is free to play to everyone interested in it, the military hoping that it will attract more potential recruits and that it will serve to deliver a positive image of the duties the United States Armed Forces perform.
The most recent issue of the influential magazine Foreign Policy, which focuses on the future of warfare and its impact on the lives of every citizen of the planet, also talks about the increasing use of videogames not just in military training but also in actual military operators.
The experience of a drone pilot who fires their weapons from the safety of their home against an insurgent somewhere in the no man's land between Afghanistan and Pakistan is not too different from that of a gamer playing the latest strategy title or first person shooter.