What do men who’ve answered the real call of duty think about military games?

Digital Trends - For better or worse, violence in videogames has remained a point of debate in mainstream media and national politics ever since the gaming industry became a widespread form of entertainment, and that is unlikely to change any time soon. It goes back decades. From the pixilated driving game Death Race, which was eventually removed from store shelves following a public outcry, to titles like Doom, which is seemingly quaint by today’s standards, there have been people claiming that gaming leads to violent behavior. Recently, the public’s attention has increasingly turned toward the massively popular military shooter genre.

[ATi_Elite]

Having served my country by spending WAAAAY too much time in the Middle East,

Military Shooters are pure entertainment, Hollywood Entertainment and does NOT represent anything that a real Marine, Airman, Soldier, or Seaman has ever encountered.

Sure the weapons and uniforms are there but everything is all Glamore and Glitz in video Games and should NEVER be used as a representation of what REAL LIVE COMBAT is all about.

There is Nothing fun or entertaining when you step off that plane in a combat zone and you hear the sounds of Live Gun fire and ordinance exploding in the distance. The ONLY thing going through your mind is focusing on your training and safety protocols.

But on a lighter note: Red Orchestra and Arma are pretty much the most team based, skilled oriented, and intense shooters out there that represent some aspect of real military action.

in these games you will pay dearly if you make a mistake thus making them more intense in fire fights than the Rambo style of play of COD or BF where you can jump out in the OPEN and literally take a bullet if you know you got a better gun than the enemy.

That's NOT happening in Real Life, Red Orchestra, or Arma.

[mastershredder]

I'm a vet and a life long gamer. The only thing that I have ever experienced in games that comes close to something that almost feels like "I'm there again", were the characters in Bad Company 1 and 2. The characters and dialogue (not the action or rest of what is found in those games). For me, those were the experiences you would have conversing with your fellow soldiers (the camaraderie, arguments and horseplay). The COD dude-bro "I'm a hard bad ass" is BS and all Hollywood. BF3 jumped onto that Hollywood style too. I'd like another Bad Company entry, because it in some ways takes me back to those asinine conversations you would have in the strangest of situations and locations. With people you probably would never think twice about conversing with or working with in civilian life. In the service, they are one of your buds and you would do anything for them. I made lifetime buds from my short 4 year jot and we all came from different walks of life from different parts of the US. We had different personalities, different views on politics, different styles, so many different things, but as a team we were a whole and the same. That's why Bad Company offers the only realism I found (it's just a small aspect of those games), and is the only realism I want to see. The rest is a game. If you want real, it's going to be at least 90% tedious tasks and boring.

[JessiePinkmanYo]

Couldn't agree more. Well said, the horseplay in Bad Company is common in all the military units

[JessiePinkmanYo]

As a Marine and Iraqi Freedom Vet, games are just that-games. They are fun, and real combat is NOT. There are no reset buttons, spawn points or rage quitting. Combat is mostly sheer terror with a LOT of boredom, downtime and bullshit in between. If you're looking for a job similar to what you play in Call of Duty, I recommend the paintball park, not the military. As far as some of the simulations (uniforms, weapons etc) some games are spot on with the visuals, but the use of them are WAY off. No Marine or SEAL I know could fling these weapons around like they do in games-they are extremely heavy. The tactics are way off too-"Akimbo?!" Lol, plus picking up and firing an enemy weapon doesn't happen.
That said, games like Battlefield, Call of Duty etc are fun to play and a great way to meet new people (and a few idiots) but overall, enjoyable. If it spurs a kids interest in the military and they research and understand what it's really about, I'm all for it.

[mydyingparadiselost]

I love that the second soldier interviewed calls the contractors mercenaries, it's a great statement. On topic, it makes sense that men and women in service don't see the games as anything more than entertainment since being in a combat situation is nothing like those games and generally shouldn't be. I do wonder if these opinions will change if these games try offer a more realistic combat experience though

[shadowmist13]

These people walking into schools with guns and killing people,it is easy to blame videogames,but what happend to "crazy",people that does stuff like this is crazy,i was playing violent games since i was 6,and im fine...and about the soldiers,its like if you lose a family member,and you watch a movie where somone loses a family member,the movie makes it look so much more easy to cope than it actually is,in real life it feels like you want to go crazy if that happens,so i feel for soldiers.

[Lwhit6]

So many people getting mad and annoyed with this article for some reason and some idiots are mocking the soldiers and talking bad about them. Those people can simply fuck the hell off. These people risked their lives so you could freely act like an asshole with no brain, at least show them some respect you imbeciles.