Six Days in Fallujah

[canes21]

I'll try to keep my response simple. You and I clearly view video games and most media in very different lights. The reason myself and others like me couldn't care less about the issues you raise is because we don't view video games as anything more than entertainment. While you see MAGA in Far Cry 5, I see a parody of American culture that is just there for entertainment purposes. While you see Unisoft trying to make a BLM-like villain, I just see them taking a common symbol and using it for their bad guy and that's it.

With CoD, BF, or this game, I don't look at them and critically think about what is authentic and what is being twisted. All I look for is does it offer what I want from entertainment, specifically video games, and that is engaging and fun gameplay.

If they use real life influences to make some parts feel more authentic, that's fine, but it doesn't automatically make the game some form of art where we need to have a deep dive down the political imagery of the game.

While you say the developers of these games are using a weak argument to avoid criticism, I see it the opposite. I see it as a very valid argument because I see the games in the light of that weak argument. To me they are not political statements(generally). They are just forms of entertainment that draw inspiration from real life events because why wouldn't they?

Edit: I'll use an example of my own work. I create missions for myself and my group in ARMA 3. Every single thing I ever make is inspired by some real event that usually involved the US military. None of my missions have any sort of political motivations behind them, I simply draw inspiration from real world events to have a scenario that is more beleivable/engaging/etc.

When I create a tropical guerilla faction that is inspired by Cuban revolutionaries, my mission isn't some anti-communism political form of art. It's simply a mission where revolutionaries are trying to overthrow a government and you're tasked with stopping them. While I'm not saying some of these devs aren't politically motivated at times, I'm simply saying for gamers like myself, we don't care to think about the politics surrounding these games because we only play them to shoot computer generated images and have fun.

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[peter42O]

No interest in the game whatsoever as it's not for me but watching the video of the map changing every time you play it is pretty damn cool.

[Picci]

I guess I should further explain a response to CM Hooe who I've respected in the years of his presence on these forums, the criticisms from my side without getting into politics.

From what I've heard where its origins are - This is like a CoD game. CoD sells and gaming publishers looking for new ideas got a pitch from the soldiers about their experiences in the Fallujah battle. These vets are now looking to make money. They took orders in life and death situations and had to carry out their duty. Their whole purpose was to make money, not make political statements. No need to lambast whether its accurate or not. It's a game that may sell well because of it's CoD similarities and if more GI's can get $$$$ for help creating wartime gaming experiences, let it be.

I also want to say, I hope they're no more wars. It's horror's should be cemented in mankind's minds for ever.

[bigbob]

I completely disagree with Hooes opinion, but to say he hates America? Come on, now. When someone states facts, they hate a country? Just because I do not have a problem with said war crimes that were committed does not mean it was okay for them to be committed. I live by a very toxic thought process.. If it does not effect me, I do not care. Fortunately, there are people out there that do care who can make change that I do not care enough about to make.

That said.. I cannot wait for this game. It will not be a day one buy (because I cannot keep buying games to add to my backlog, when in five years when I try and buy it, it will be cheaper), but it feels different than any other shooter I have played, so I hope it is successful.

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[dickey1331]

I dont know much about this game or why the controversy is such a big deal but the fact game journalist dont like it makes me want to buy it.

[Cusefan]

CM's arguments are all valid, but it's nothing new. I don't play video games with morality in mind. When I play Heart of Iron IV, the most fun is playing as Germany and trying to conquer the world. My favorite FPS has always been Battlefield: Vietnam, despite the fact that America was certainly not the good guys there.

I'll judge the game based on its merits, which is probably not a good thing for the developer, because I didn't really like what I saw. A realistic game based on Fallujah would piss people off, because most of the injuries and fatalities Americans has were due to ambushes. People would throw their controller at their TV after they got shot in the back or blown up by an IED for the 20th time.

[PVarck31]

Quote: Originally Posted by dickey1331

I dont know much about this game or why the controversy is such a big deal but the fact game journalist dont like it makes me want to buy it.

When IGN was demoing Modern Warfare before it came out, one of the journalists said she wished she could play through the campaign without guns.

Umm, It's Call of Freakin Duty!

And nobody makes you play it. If you have a moral stance on a game, then just don't play it. I can respect that. But they were talking about how it's too real, and shouldn't be this real, and stuff like that. I mean WTF? Come on now.

[CM Hooe]

Quote: Originally Posted by PVarck31

When IGN was demoing Modern Warfare before it came out, one of the journalists said she wished she could play through the campaign without guns. Umm, It's Call of Freakin Duty! And nobody makes you play it. If you have a moral stance on a game, then just don't play it. I can respect that. But they were talking about how it's too real, and shouldn't be this real, and stuff like that. I mean WTF? Come on now.

See, the stuff I'm more concerned about with Six Days In Fallujah has nothing to do with the use of guns; it's a military shooting game, of course it has guns. The use of guns or even the mere presence of violence as a way to resolve conflict in a video game doesn't automatically make it morally questionable by default, and just because a game is morally questionable doesn't mean it should be blacklisted. I've played way too much DOOM and Mortal Kombat to ever argue that lol.

What I am concerned with is more specific things which are more directly applicable to the real world. For example, Modern Warfare 2019's story promotes the use of violent interrogation, no-knock raids, and many other questionable military tactics generally summarized by the phrase "might makes right". Every single time a good guy (specifically an American or British military operator) in that game's story takes a morally grey action such as those listed above, the action is rewarded with in-game success and the story progresses. The only exception is when an allied NPC uses a chemical weapon; that is where the line is drawn in the value set Modern Warfare 2019 promotes.

YouTuber Jacob Gellar authored an excellent long-form editorial video about Modern Warfare 2019 going into more detail about the themes and values the game promotes.

My point is so strongly presenting the criticisms of Six Days In Fallujah that many others have offered is simple: I don't think it's asking too much for us to be more aware of what ideas the story and lore of a video game is introducing and promoting, and I think we should more strongly criticize and question developers that make games which promote problematic ideas. Play whatever game you want, just be aware of what you're playing.