War, Games

by JustSandN — | 9 comments

War. War never changes, at least that’s what Fallout says, Metal Gear Solid on the other hand assures us that war has indeed changed. As far as warfare in gaming goes Metal Gear seems to be right on the money, the fundamentals of combat games have stayed the same, but recently the emphasis has been less about obliterating hundreds of enemies and more about creating grittier realistic combat simulators.

A lot of games claim to be realistic but without signing up you’d never know if these claims were true, being both a gamer and a soldier I’ve seen both sides of the same story and I have to say I’m surprised as to which games captured the experience and which didn’t. Obviously games, as with any form of entertainment, ultimately act as escapism from our every day lives, I don’t think anyone expects any war game to represent just what being on the frontline is like any more than anyone expects Mario Kart to portray a realistic drive in the countryside. During my most recent tour in Helmand Province I saw and experienced things that I would certainly never want any other person to have to live through and in that sense the fact that games will never be able to capture the reality of war is probably more of a blessing than you’d realise. That’s enough of the serious stuff for now, lets crack on with looking at some games.

Of all the games I’ve played none come as close in visual fidelity as the early levels in Modern Warfare 2. The game’s tutorial in Baghram Airfield feels picture perfect. The uniforms of the soliders around you and the vehicles on display in the background are spot on, as is the sense of scale they manage to portray it’s a truly massive place and the game captures that perfectly. The sheer amount of dust in the air is something I wouldn’t have been able to appreciate until I was there either, that stuff gets everywhere, and the almost mist like nature that you see in this section of the game isn’t an exaggeration. The soldiers chilling out between operations are a nice touch as well, and are a good reminder that it’s not all doom and gloom out in field. Shortly after running through some training you’re sent out on the ground in vehicles into the city and once again it’s fantastic. From the tower blocks to narrow alleyways and chain-link fences I’d go as far as to say it’s 100% authentic. It instantly bought back memories of a previous tour and patrolling the streets of Kabul… Except for the humvee and mini gun of course… Then you come under contact (get shot at) which for me is where the realism is starts to fade slightly.

This where Modern Warfare 2 fell short, the game unsurprisingly handles like a game. Movement is far too fast and crisp. There’s no sense of being weighed down with body armour and ammunition. Weapons snap into view when aiming and the enemy stand in the open just begging to be shot.

It feels incredibly strange saying this, but a  game about a war in the future, set on a planet light years away, featuring flying deployment vehicles and death dealing robots is the one that best captured the feeling of what real world combat is like! Unlike Infinity Ward’s effort, Killzone 2′s movement is sluggish and restricted. You feel like you’re weighed down not only by your equipment but also by your weapons. Compared to reality the game is still lightning quick when aiming but it’s slower than other games and you see your character actually bring their weapon into the shoulder when they look down the sights.  This level of detail is carried on into the sprinting, when you start running the world around you loses focus and when you stop inertia carries you on for a few steps. Almost no other console game handles this way. The pacing of the combat itself is slower too. You’ll have a few minutes of action then it’ll quieten down, this is probably the most realistic aspect of the game and most like my experiences in Helmand. You know the enemy is there, watching, but you’re not spending every second of every day in all out action.

The game also heavily restricts the amount of ammo available forcing you to consider every shot taken. Much like real life you don’t know how long you’re going to have to last until you can get a resupply. Despite the sporadic pacing and limited ammunition it’s still gripping stuff, you’ve got rounds bouncing off the scenery around you, people yelling and screaming as dirt is kicked up in the air by stray explosives. You don’t completely know what’s going on. A feeling I’m all too familiar with.

This brings me on to my next point. Casualties. Modern Warfare doesn’t really give much of a feel from losing anyone. Your non-storyline comrades are faceless names that are immediately replaced, in fact they even provide a source of ammo for you, making them less of a teammate and more of an ammo tin that needs the lid shot off. Killzone on the other hand partners you up with someone and tries to make you feel that he is your characters best friend. Throughout the game he’s always there, you like him. You think he’ll always be there. And when he’s killed it hits you and your team hard. This person you’ve gone through so many rough times with isn’t there any more. The game does a fantastic job of bringing you into this world, allowing you to build a bond and then unexpectedly takes it away from you. Again, something I’m sadly all to familiar with.

A few other games touch on taking casualties, such as Gears Of War and Army Of Two. Both are fantastic and best played with friends in split-screen to fully understand the rapport of the battlefield. You’re close to your buddy. After all you’re likely on the same sofa! So when they get hit you feel a desperate compulsion to get to them and bring them back into it. With Army Of Two you’re not forced to heal a wounded teammate in the open; you can drag them to somewhere safe to treat them. This is far more immersive in my opinion than just running over and giving them a kick and telling them to man up. Capturing the desperation of getting to your friend, dragging them somewhere safe to protect them while you try and save their life brings a real world feel to these otherwise over the top action movie style games.

Now I’m not for a minute saying games should go into great detail when it comes to casualties. Nobody wants to develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from a game! Plus it would be pretty disgusting to have to realistically patch people up. Most importantly it would slow down the pace of a game to stop and treat every wounded character you come to. They need to keep going to maintain their entertainment. No game will ever be able to fully get across what it’s like to take a casualty and treat them as it just wouldn’t be fun any more. And that’s what we need more of in this world – fun!

So in summary if you’re looking for a game that’s visually stunning and great fun to play Modern Warfare 2 is the place to go. When it comes to Co-op gaming you can’t go wrong with a little Army Of Two. If you’re after the most gritty, closest to reality, console game (yet still great fun to play) I’ve got to say that your best bet is Killzone 2.

For those out there still wanting to know what it’s truly like to go to war, I’m sure my telling you not to won’t stop you. What I will say though is getting shot at gets very old very quickly. Safe gaming all.

About the Author;

Jay is a soldier in the British Armed Forces and JustSandN’s go-to-guy for military discussions, tactical advice and tips on keeping upper lips warm. When he’s not carrying extraordinarily heavy kit around the warzones of earth Jay can be found playing games, reading comics, writing or drawing, and generally being a nerd – a nerd with a gun – so we’re all very nice to him..

Tags: Army Of Two Casualties Combat Killzone 2 Modern Warfare Most Realistic War Games Pew Pew Pew Woosh Bang BOOM! Realisim Soldiers War