Thursday, December 03, 2009
Can Video Games Really Help War?
According the the article "When War Games Meet Video Games," by Amit Asaravala, you are able to try out different war techniques, and see how it could effect the life after the war happens.
"For instance, military leaders could use Urban Resolve to predict what would happen if they destroyed the electricity source in a particular city. Such a tactic might have the desired effect of preventing the rebels from communicating with one another. Or it could backfire and harm hundreds or thousands of civilians -- something the military would like to minimize."War games the consider these scenarios are not new for military, but they have never been attempted on the grand scale.
"The video game uses realisim, to show the different battle scenarios. But realism isn't the only reason military leaders like the simulator. It also gives them a chance to peek into the future by introducing weapons and tools that don't yet exist into their battle scenarios."This video game is kind of like second life. It includes different avatars who re -in act the different parts of the military.
"Taking this versatility one step further, the soldiers and the buildings in the system could be replaced with almost any characters in any scene, according to the ISI researchers. Doing so could help law enforcement agencies determine the best possible ways to deal with crowds. For instance, police in the United Kingdom might use it to anticipate the sort of behavior to expect from fans after a particularly tense soccer match."I think this is a great idea. This way you have an idea of the outcome you will have throughout the war.
