KindOfBlue
Pro Adventurer
- AKA
- Blue
Because of the nature of this game, I wasn’t sure if this topic would be better suited for “politics” but I think it raises some interesting questions pertaining to gaming.
For those not in the know:
Here are some trailers that dropped recently:
As seen with other games that tackle such themes, the question of “is this game political?” has come up. Here are some statements from the developers regarding their intent behind this game.
https://www.polygon.com/2021/2/15/22279600/six-days-in-fallujah-interview-iraq-war-politics
https://www.theverge.com/2021/3/8/2...r-inseparable-politics-victura-highwire-games
https://www.gamesindustry.biz/artic...-dont-think-we-need-to-portray-the-atrocities
The Second Battle of Fallujah in particular is notable in part for the use of white phosphorus by Coalition forces, as well as for resulting in an increase in birth defects and illnesses in Fallujah brought about by exposure to depleted uranium from munitions used in battle. It is considered the deadliest battle of the Iraq War, in which 10,500 American troops, 850 British troops, and 2,000 Iraqi security forces battled against 3,700–4,000 insurgents including affiliates of Al-Qaeda among other militant Sunni organizations, and loyalists of the Ba’ath Party, which had been banned following the invasion of Iraq and the deposition of Saddam Hussein but still continues to operate today.
This battle followed the First Battle of Fallujah in March 2004, in which U.S. forces attempted to apprehend/kill the perpetrators of a highly publicized attack on a convoy containing four American private military contractors from Blackwater USA who were conducting a delivery for food caterers Eurest Support Services. The Blackwater private military company would later receive attention in September 2007 after a group of its employees killed 17 Iraqi civilians and injured 20 in Nisour Square, Baghdad. Four guards were convicted in the U.S. but were later pardoned in December 2020 by then-president Donald Trump.
Overall, the Second Battle of Fallujah depicted in this game resulted in 95 American troops killed and 560 wounded, 4 British troops killed and 10 wounded, 8 Iraqi security forces killed and 43 wounded, 1,200–1,500 Iraq insurgents killed and 1,500 captured, and 581–670 civilians killed according to the Iraq Body Count project or 800 civilians killed according to the Red Cross. It was considered "some of the heaviest urban combat U.S. Marines have been involved in since the Battle of Hue City in Vietnam in 1968."
Naturally, the game and the statements from the developer have attracted a fair bit of controversy, mainly surrounding concerns that this game will be pro-war propaganda that trivializes the experience of the civilians who to this day still suffer the consequences of what many consider to be an unjust war. Some of the more concerned reactions to the game can be found here:
https://www.ign.com/articles/six-da...ainful-for-those-connected-to-the-real-events
https://screenrant.com/six-days-fallujah-procedural-generation-levels-bad-history/
As a fan of tactical shooters, I cannot deny my intrigue in this game. But as a racial minority who considers himself anti-war, I wholeheartedly understand the concerns surrounding this game. And so I would love to see some of your reactions to this. In particular, I’m interested in the conversation of how war is presented in video games. Many people praise Spec Ops: The Line for its portrayal of the horrors of war and consider it the “right way” to portray it, but surely there’s more that can be done? Games like the 2019 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare sometimes present themselves as morally grey, but as much as I love the game I personally find that it makes it pretty clear who the “good” and “bad” guys are. I would love a tactical shooter of a more open-ended nature bordering survival horror, one that doesn’t shy away from the political and moral implications behind the player’s actions and makes the interactions with civilians just as important as the interactions with enemies.
So basically, what are your thoughts about this game and overall what would you consider a good way to portray modern war in video games? What aspects of story and gameplay do you think could present a more honest and perhaps tasteful portrayal of war? What does “politics in games” mean to you, how do you feel about how they’re presented, and how do you think they should be presented?
For those not in the know:
Via Wikipedia:
Six Days in Fallujah (SDIF) is an upcoming first-person shooter video game developed by Highwire Games and published by Victura. Described by Highwire Games as a tactical shooter, it was slated to be the first video game to focus directly on the Iraq War. The game's plot followed a squad of U.S. Marines from 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines (3/1), fighting in the Second Battle of Fallujah over the span of six days in November 2004.
The premise of the game was the subject of controversy in 2009, with questions raised as to its appropriateness, especially given the fact that the true events the game is based upon were recent at the time. It was originally to be published by Konami, however, in April 2009, a spokesman informed the Associated Press that Konami was no longer publishing the game due to the controversy surrounding it. The game was originally slated for a 2010 release, but it was cancelled due to controversy; the game was put on hold until 2016 after its original studio, Atomic Games, went bankrupt in 2011.
In February 2021, the game was announced to be back in development at Highwire Games, consisting of former Halo and Destiny game developers. Published by Victura, Six Days in Fallujah is expected to be released on PC and consoles in late 2021.
Here are some trailers that dropped recently:
As seen with other games that tackle such themes, the question of “is this game political?” has come up. Here are some statements from the developers regarding their intent behind this game.
https://www.polygon.com/2021/2/15/22279600/six-days-in-fallujah-interview-iraq-war-politics
https://www.theverge.com/2021/3/8/2...r-inseparable-politics-victura-highwire-games
https://www.gamesindustry.biz/artic...-dont-think-we-need-to-portray-the-atrocities
The Second Battle of Fallujah in particular is notable in part for the use of white phosphorus by Coalition forces, as well as for resulting in an increase in birth defects and illnesses in Fallujah brought about by exposure to depleted uranium from munitions used in battle. It is considered the deadliest battle of the Iraq War, in which 10,500 American troops, 850 British troops, and 2,000 Iraqi security forces battled against 3,700–4,000 insurgents including affiliates of Al-Qaeda among other militant Sunni organizations, and loyalists of the Ba’ath Party, which had been banned following the invasion of Iraq and the deposition of Saddam Hussein but still continues to operate today.
This battle followed the First Battle of Fallujah in March 2004, in which U.S. forces attempted to apprehend/kill the perpetrators of a highly publicized attack on a convoy containing four American private military contractors from Blackwater USA who were conducting a delivery for food caterers Eurest Support Services. The Blackwater private military company would later receive attention in September 2007 after a group of its employees killed 17 Iraqi civilians and injured 20 in Nisour Square, Baghdad. Four guards were convicted in the U.S. but were later pardoned in December 2020 by then-president Donald Trump.
Overall, the Second Battle of Fallujah depicted in this game resulted in 95 American troops killed and 560 wounded, 4 British troops killed and 10 wounded, 8 Iraqi security forces killed and 43 wounded, 1,200–1,500 Iraq insurgents killed and 1,500 captured, and 581–670 civilians killed according to the Iraq Body Count project or 800 civilians killed according to the Red Cross. It was considered "some of the heaviest urban combat U.S. Marines have been involved in since the Battle of Hue City in Vietnam in 1968."
Naturally, the game and the statements from the developer have attracted a fair bit of controversy, mainly surrounding concerns that this game will be pro-war propaganda that trivializes the experience of the civilians who to this day still suffer the consequences of what many consider to be an unjust war. Some of the more concerned reactions to the game can be found here:
https://www.ign.com/articles/six-da...ainful-for-those-connected-to-the-real-events
https://screenrant.com/six-days-fallujah-procedural-generation-levels-bad-history/
As a fan of tactical shooters, I cannot deny my intrigue in this game. But as a racial minority who considers himself anti-war, I wholeheartedly understand the concerns surrounding this game. And so I would love to see some of your reactions to this. In particular, I’m interested in the conversation of how war is presented in video games. Many people praise Spec Ops: The Line for its portrayal of the horrors of war and consider it the “right way” to portray it, but surely there’s more that can be done? Games like the 2019 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare sometimes present themselves as morally grey, but as much as I love the game I personally find that it makes it pretty clear who the “good” and “bad” guys are. I would love a tactical shooter of a more open-ended nature bordering survival horror, one that doesn’t shy away from the political and moral implications behind the player’s actions and makes the interactions with civilians just as important as the interactions with enemies.
So basically, what are your thoughts about this game and overall what would you consider a good way to portray modern war in video games? What aspects of story and gameplay do you think could present a more honest and perhaps tasteful portrayal of war? What does “politics in games” mean to you, how do you feel about how they’re presented, and how do you think they should be presented?
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