Army Games for Good

Computer games are being adopted by dozens of different industries to conduct training, information visualization, data  analysis, education and exploration. A recent New York Times article (July 23, 2006) explored the use of games to promote awareness of critical international issues. ImpactGames’ “PeaceMaker” illustrates the issues surrounding the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians. Deepend’s “Food Force,” a game supported by the United Nations, brings attention to the mission of the World Food Program. MtvU’s “Darfur is Dying” demonstrates the struggle for basic survival in the refugee camps of the Sudan.

In addition to the many civilian examples of Games for Good (G4G), the U.S. military has created some very interesting and useful games focused on medical training and cultural education. Within the Army there are thousands of emergency medical personnel who deal with the physical traumas of war. Their jobs are to save lives and begin the movement of people through the military medical system that will restore them to health.

The Army is also operating in a number of countries that possess very unique cultural and social structures. When two cultures collide, opportunities for misunderstanding and conflicts are created. Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan have challenged American soldiers to understand a new culture. To support this, the Army has created a number of cultural education games.

MEDICAL G4G

Upon arriving at the scene of an accident, the initial steps a civilian Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) is trained to take are: check the patient’s airway, get them onto a backboard, and apply a neck brace. In a civilian environment, these steps address the most common and life-threatening issues facing a patient. The job of a combat medic, on the other hand, is very different. Patients must often first be rescued from the line of fire, therefore medics are instructed to “grab any body part that is still attached and drag the soldier to a safe location.” Teaching these lessons and other skills for combat-medicine require unique educational materials, devices, and immersive environments. Creating military training games is one part of instilling and refreshing those skills in a combat medic.

The pre-hospital care provided by combat medics continues to be the most important aspect of battlefield medicine because 90 percent of all combat deaths occur before a victim reaches a definitive care facility. Soldiers die from three main preventable causes: hemorrhage, airway compromise, and tension pneumothorax. The Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TC3) simulation allows combat medics to practice focused life-saving skills. The simulation immerses soldiers into scenario-driven events to test and evaluate their knowledge of essential tactics, techniques and procedures. The medics must triage a group of patients, determining which patients require immediate care, and administer that care. Their actions must be applied in the correct order to save as many lives as possible. Consistent with battlefield procedure, the medics must drag the patients to safety, then assess all vitals, treat victims using the equipment normally available, and call for medical evacuation. Medics must also be aware of their fellow soldiers and be ready to respond to enemy contact at all times. TC3 is being developed by U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command’s (RDECOM) Simulation and Training Technology Center in partnership with the Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (MRMC).

The Human Patient Simulator is more than a game. It is a medical patient robot It has vital signs that can be measured with traditional medical equipment and will respond to injections of medications and emergency treatments. This simulator has been jointly developed by the military, academia, and industry to create different versions that are customized to the needs of each community. The developer of the system, Meti Inc., is creating a wireless robot for the military that does not have external electrical, pneumatic, or hydraulic connections. This selfcontained unit will allow a medic to drag, lift and carry the robot as he or she might a real patient on the battlefield. Such a system would be equally valuable to civilian EMTs and emergency responders in any type of disaster.

CULTURAL G4G

Historically, Iraq has played an important role in the creation of culture and technologies that have been dispersed throughout the world. The country has been known as Mesopotamia, Babylonia and the Fertile Crescent and was home to some of the world’s first civilizations, including the Sumerian, Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian and Median societies. These civilizations produced some of the first writing, science, mathematics, law and philosophy in the world, earning the area the title of “the cradle of civilization.”

The country is filled with significant historical sites like Hatra, the ancient ruined city in Al Hadr. It was an important fortified city of the Parthian Empire and withstood repeated attacks by the Roman Empire. The rich history and culture of Iraq are often completely unknown to the young soldiers called to serve in the current conflict there. Understanding all of this and the impact it has had on the population is a significant challenge. Teaching young soldiers to understand and deal with foreign cultures can potentially eliminate inappropriate actions and inaccurate interpretations of what is happening around them. These are some of the immediate benefits of cultural training with games. There is also a longterm benefit that may accrue more broadly. When American soldiers live and work in a foreign country, over time they develop an appreciation of the culture and the people. In fact, in Germany, France, Japan, Vietnam, and Korea, the wartime American presence has led to permanent relationships that have benefited both countries for decades.

Cultural G4G can contribute to the creation of a bond between the U.S. and these countries. In addition to teaching soldiers how to perform military tasks, they also expose the soldier to the richness of the culture and the value of the people who have created it. This type of blending can make long-term allies of former enemies.

In the past, most culturally-based games have been very shallow, focusing only on military-specific tasks, but the games are becoming richer and more inclusive of cultural information. Every Soldier a Sensor Simulation (ES3) creates a non-threatening urban environment in which a soldier is allowed to navigate typical neighborhoods, observe the environment, and interact with the native population. Its intent is to improve observation skills, but in doing so, it forces the player to experience and think about the city and the people as a valuable place to live, maintain a family, conduct business and maintain traditions.

The Tactical Iraqi Language Trainer (TILT) creates an immersive environment in which a soldier can practice speaking the language to 3D avatars in the game. But it also emphasizes body language, hand gestures, customs and social courtesies within the Iraqi culture. Marines who have used the game praise its ability to help them break out of their own customs and recognize the appropriate behaviors for the culture they are about to enter.

Asymmetric Warfare–Virtual Training Technology (AW-VTT) is the Army’s first foray into Massively Multiplayer Online Gaming (MMOG) with a military purpose. It currently focuses on missions like handling road checkpoints and searching buildings. In order to make these scenarios realistic, the developers and the human players have had to incorporate proper social customs into the missions. Given the distributed 3-D environment that it provides, it has great potential for creating a large and culturally rich representation of a city. Commercial MMOG’s like “World of Warcraft,” “Everquest,” and “Guild Wars” come with a very rich social context, reflecting the importance of these factors in stimulating and mediating interactions between large numbers of people. AW-VTT’s will need to increase its cultural richness as well if it is to be applied to more complex missions, an area that the games creators at Forterra Inc. are looking into.

The Bilateral Negotiation Environment was developed by Army Training and Doctrine Command to improve soldiers’ ability to hold meetings with community and clan leaders with whom agreements must be reached. Part of this program focuses on the importance of understanding the culture and the social norms of the other party so that the military members do not unknowingly sabotage negotiations merely by misunderstanding the people.

CONCLUSION

These are just a few of the Games for Good that have emerged from the Army. More will follow, each richer than those before. The goal is to improve the behavior, relationships, and perceptions between American soldiers and with whom they people interact. The richness of these games can contribute to each soldier’s appreciation for the history and culture they are dealing with and the motivations of the people they meet every day.

Like all government research, the medical, behavioral and cultural models within these military products will also find their way into commercial games over time, exposing a larger audience to emergency medical care and to the cultural standards of these countries. ♦
 

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