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US Army investing $50 million into training games photo

The United States Army has announced that they will be putting a large chunk of change into gaming. Having created a new "games unit," they will spend $50 million training soldiers on videogames over five years, starting in 2010.

The Army has been using a modified version of Operation: Flashpoint (called DARWARS Ambush!) for years now as a training tool, but has found it limiting in terms of number of players, map size and customization of scenarios. Their next generation of videogame training, called Game After Ambush, will come with an assortment of modding tools which will allow trainers to make changes to the game during play as well as create custom situations for soldiers to practice on.

Just as with DARWARS Ambush! before it, this new program will be based on a commercial product. There is no word yet as to what game or which developer is being used but an announcement is expected in the next couple of weeks.

In addition to the already sizeable funding, they are also spending an undisclosed amount on "state-of-the-art gaming consoles" which will be put into field operation as early as February of 2009.

[Via Blue's News]








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Conrad Zimmerman is Destructoid's News Editor and home to the busiest mustache in the gaming press. An amateur historian and pop culture fanatic, Conrad possesses a nearly limitless wealth of videogame factoids and a passion for the power of games to teach, inspire and entertain. He enjoys reading, writing and turning things which should be fun into work. Likes Mega Man 2, Arcade Games, Books about games, Board games, Having cultural interests that aren't games Meet the rest of the team



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12 comments | showing # 1 to 12
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Peteru's Avatar - Comment posted on 11/24/2008 09:29
Peteru
Heh, I do have Americas Army still installed and play it once in a while. Some of this money may indirectly benefit their promo games. If they make it realistic in simulations they may also use the same knowagle for realistic next generation of Americas Army game. (Though ofcoure with not-so-funny parts cut out. Like wounds that leave you lying and crying for help ... in promo game you got to either die clean, or still have enough strenght to fire a gun after wounds.)

Actually after first playing AA I don't enjoy multiplayer in any straight shoot'em up FPS's. Even CoD4 is "so low on realism" I can't touch it. And CS feels like some downgrade.
savagesaladin's Avatar - Comment posted on 11/24/2008 09:33
savagesaladin
$50 million is pocket change for military training. But nothing beats actual physical training where there is a real sense of urgency.
DaedHead8's Avatar - Comment posted on 11/24/2008 09:38
DaedHead8
If they are worried about mapsize, they should mod the Battlefield engine. Those maps is large.
hjd uk's Avatar - Comment posted on 11/24/2008 10:22
hjd uk
Operation Flashpoint.
Scale : Full-sized island.
You get shot , you die.
Most 'realisitic' war game to date.
Jetsetlemming's Avatar - Comment posted on 11/24/2008 10:38
Jetsetlemming
State of the art video game systems, not consoles. You'll notice all the soldiers pictured are playing on the PC- a computer game is infinitely more portable than a console game, and the US military does NOT want to fuck around with MS licensing. ;)
PhazonYoshi's Avatar - Comment posted on 11/24/2008 10:58
PhazonYoshi
Oh for christ's sake.

I've played Crysis, does this mean that when super-suits are created, I'm pre-trained? Apparently so. I look forward to it, General Lee!
Noah's Avatar - Comment posted on 11/24/2008 11:16
Noah
I was talking to my wife as we were walking into a shopping mall about how much more prepared I am than her and everyone around me for a zombie outbreak ha ha :)
Velt's Avatar - Comment posted on 11/24/2008 11:46
Velt
They dont need to spend that kind of money, they just have to play Flashpoint and thats it, it doesnt get more accurate than that.

They should really bring the cost of us miliary down.
Cube's Avatar - Comment posted on 11/24/2008 20:51
Cube
When I was in the army that is prett much all we did play PC games over the lan, since we sit around all damn day long until something breaks.
taidicajost30's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/14/2011 17:29
taidicajost30
past an old church belonging to a community of B?guines, I saw by a prilosec online
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