I know this is old but I've been away from the site and I wondered if any of you all had any opinions on this topic.......
I have been a U.S. Marine for the last 10 years and I'm also a serious gamer. I think that the Medal of Honor ban is a bit overboard. I do know that EA has now removed the name Taliban from the game and switched it to "Opposing Forces", but I think there is still a problem present. Here in Japan our local Base Exchange(department store), will not be selling this title because of the former Taliban multiplayer option. I've been to Iraq and Afghanistan a total of four times, so I understand how the "War on Terror" effects the families and friends of those who serve. My wife and children could explain a little as well. Sadly I've seen my leadership and and close friends die in these wars.
With that said, it's O.K. to shoot Germans, Vietnamese, Japanese, Bolivian, Cubans, British soldiers, Canadians and oh wait other Americans in many many other games to date. Veterans as far back as World War I are still alive and kickin, have we not disrespected the sacrifices that they and their families had made? As most of you may know, there is a convoy simulator, developed by the U.S. Army, where we play as "dudes with towels wrapped around their heads , speaking Persian accents" against each other. T.V. and movies can get away with playing the bad guy,
why, because it's not "interactive", insert eye roll here. This type of reaction will make it so that games like "Fight For Fallujah" will never happen because we're scared of what, Now? "World Trade Center", "United 93", "Generation Kill", "Over There", "The Hurt Locker" and many more movies have people who portray the "enemy" of today. Are
they unpatriotic for doing so?
The [uĀĀrlĀ=www.pantagraph.com/news/national/article_cbe87626-b1f3-11df-846c-001cc4c002e0.html]upset Mother from San Jose[
/url] has every right to mourn her son's death and be proud of the CHOICE he made to serve his country, but she shouldnt impose that guilt on the gamers to feel bad about possibly playing as a real world "bad guy", again what actors do all the time. I have seen what we call "the enemy" and truthfully(this will sound harsh) she nor her son knew exactly who's hand he died by, be it Al-Qaida, Taliban, or some dude trying to protect his home, as we would if the tides were turned......
Maybe I miss the point on why this was inherently bad but the last nine years of my life has been shaped by this conflict and if it's one thing I've learned it's that there is always something bigger than self. Thoughts?