MMO Training
Yes, even the U.S. army is gaming nowadays.
According to Men’s Health, soldiers at Fort Hood in Texas are using an MMO (massive multiplayer online) as a way to practice battle tactics and how to maneuver expensive equipment. More specifically, the men running tanks in D Troop, 6th Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division are running test runs of how to operate their vehicles before even touching them.
Part of the reason for this is, of course, the coronavirus pandemic. Currently, there have been 4,912 reported COVID-19 cases within the armed services. Within that, there have been two deaths. Because of this, the army has chosen to “protect the force” by adjusting the way non-deployed soldiers train. The other part of the reasoning is that D Troop is currently waiting for new M1A2 Abrams tanks. With all that in mind, the troops’ leaders have turned to other means of training soldiers.
The D troop is now utilizing an MMO game called War Thunder to help players train how to communicate while out in the field, how to maneuver vehicles through testing excursions, and more.
According to the U.S. Army:
“A typical session will normally start with a brief from the section leader or platoon leader followed by rehearsals. It will also include required readings from training manuals. The crews then will meet up online and execute the training for that day. Following the training, they will conduct an after-action review to discuss lessons learned and ways to improve.”
Gaming And Army Life
This, of course, isn’t the first time that a real-life army troop has used video games to help train or to educate about protocol and procedure. In fact, the established army/war genre within the gaming industry has an intimate relationship with army forces. Thanks to that, not only do soldiers use games to train, but games seek out professional advice on how to make better and more realistic gaming.
Plus, we now get videos like the one below where a South Korean Navy Seal playing Call of Duty Modern Warfare. Check out the video above to see all his thoughts on how the game realistically (or unrealistically) includes real army practices. Though, CAUTION, the game includes graphic violence.
h/t: Men’s Health
