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Last week, some footage leaked from the upcoming Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Though it has since been taken down—with Activision claiming "copyright infringement"—the short video left a lasting impression. It depicted Russian terrorists gunning down what appeared to be innocent civilians in an airport. What made this scenario so shocking was that it wasn't a cut-scene, instead the player was actually controlling the carnage, forced to shoot civilians to proceed. You, as the player, will be given the opportunity to put noncombatants in the crosshairs and pull the trigger.
Unsurprisingly, the leak has garnered its fair share of controversy, with voices shouting out both for and against the scene in Infinity Ward's game. Some say it's a sign of the maturation of the medium. Others say it's tasteless. Ars decided to get the opinion of someone with a unique perspective: a former US Marine.
Timothy Bertram spent more than a decade in the US Marine Corps, while his son, David, just finished up a six-year stint, which included two combat tours in Iraq. Both are avid gamers, playing everything from real-time strategy games to first-person shooters. They are currently playing Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising—which Timothy claims is the most realistic FPS he has ever played—and both have the prestige edition of Modern Warfare 2 on pre-order. So what does Timothy think about the leaked video?
"In the real world is this [terrorists killing civilians] far fetched?" he explained, "No, not at all."
"The question is," he continued, "just because that is the way it is, do we need that in a video game? I don’t think so. In my opinion it dumbs down the absolute horror and viciousness of these tactics, and glorifies the acts. I personally have played some of GTA, but abandoned it after continually being forced to shoot police officers."
You can skip the sequence
Activision, the game's publisher, has since clarified the sequence. "The scene establishes the depth of evil and the cold bloodedness of a rogue Russian villain and his unit. By establishing that evil, it adds to the urgency of the player’s mission to stop them. Players have the option of skipping over the scene," the company said in a statement. "At the beginning of the game, there are two 'checkpoints' where the player is advised that some people may find an upcoming segment disturbing. These checkpoints can’t be disabled."
Of course, the fact that it's a "rogue Russian villain" makes all the difference. But what if players were controlling actual US soldiers?
"I’ll be interested in seeing if MW2 has civilian NPCs in the mix of combat, and if so, are the US forces players penalized for killing them?" Timothy told Ars. "I know combat veterans, many of them including my son. They have seen the enemy die by their own hands and they have seen the civilian carnage in that same mix...If a game allows you to play a US or Allied soldier/Marine and even puts the opportunity for you to kill civilians, it sends a terrible message about those Americans and allies that actually have to do this tough job for real."
But in spite of this trepidation, he's unsure of how to go about treating this sort of controversial material.
"Should this stuff be censored? I personally don’t think that is the answer, I am a supporter of free speech, but game companies should show some tact, respect, and judgment before glorifying these actions by allowing players to do these things in a game," Timothy told Ars. "There seems to be a double standard in the gaming industry in regards to things allowed, or accepted into many games. For example: name me a modern WWII FPS, or RTS for that matter, that has the German Forces using the swastika? They don’t do that, they use the standard German Cross on flags and vehicles. Is that swastika more offensive then killing innocent civilians?" [Editor's note: some games do in fact use the swastika, which leads to issues when the titles are released in Germany]
For its part, developer Infinity Ward has refused to comment on the leak, saying that the scenario is being judged out of context.
"Won't comment on leaks," IW Creative Strategist Robert Bowling wrote on Twitter. "Too many spoilers out there being viewed out of context. I'd avoid watching and reserve judgement till you play."
And it won't be too long before we'll all be able to experience the controversy for ourselves, as Modern Warfare 2 launches on November 10.
Killing innocents: a Marine's take on Modern Warfare 2 leak - Ars Technica
Unsurprisingly, the leak has garnered its fair share of controversy, with voices shouting out both for and against the scene in Infinity Ward's game. Some say it's a sign of the maturation of the medium. Others say it's tasteless. Ars decided to get the opinion of someone with a unique perspective: a former US Marine.
Timothy Bertram spent more than a decade in the US Marine Corps, while his son, David, just finished up a six-year stint, which included two combat tours in Iraq. Both are avid gamers, playing everything from real-time strategy games to first-person shooters. They are currently playing Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising—which Timothy claims is the most realistic FPS he has ever played—and both have the prestige edition of Modern Warfare 2 on pre-order. So what does Timothy think about the leaked video?
"In the real world is this [terrorists killing civilians] far fetched?" he explained, "No, not at all."
"The question is," he continued, "just because that is the way it is, do we need that in a video game? I don’t think so. In my opinion it dumbs down the absolute horror and viciousness of these tactics, and glorifies the acts. I personally have played some of GTA, but abandoned it after continually being forced to shoot police officers."
You can skip the sequence
Activision, the game's publisher, has since clarified the sequence. "The scene establishes the depth of evil and the cold bloodedness of a rogue Russian villain and his unit. By establishing that evil, it adds to the urgency of the player’s mission to stop them. Players have the option of skipping over the scene," the company said in a statement. "At the beginning of the game, there are two 'checkpoints' where the player is advised that some people may find an upcoming segment disturbing. These checkpoints can’t be disabled."
Of course, the fact that it's a "rogue Russian villain" makes all the difference. But what if players were controlling actual US soldiers?
"I’ll be interested in seeing if MW2 has civilian NPCs in the mix of combat, and if so, are the US forces players penalized for killing them?" Timothy told Ars. "I know combat veterans, many of them including my son. They have seen the enemy die by their own hands and they have seen the civilian carnage in that same mix...If a game allows you to play a US or Allied soldier/Marine and even puts the opportunity for you to kill civilians, it sends a terrible message about those Americans and allies that actually have to do this tough job for real."
But in spite of this trepidation, he's unsure of how to go about treating this sort of controversial material.
"Should this stuff be censored? I personally don’t think that is the answer, I am a supporter of free speech, but game companies should show some tact, respect, and judgment before glorifying these actions by allowing players to do these things in a game," Timothy told Ars. "There seems to be a double standard in the gaming industry in regards to things allowed, or accepted into many games. For example: name me a modern WWII FPS, or RTS for that matter, that has the German Forces using the swastika? They don’t do that, they use the standard German Cross on flags and vehicles. Is that swastika more offensive then killing innocent civilians?" [Editor's note: some games do in fact use the swastika, which leads to issues when the titles are released in Germany]
For its part, developer Infinity Ward has refused to comment on the leak, saying that the scenario is being judged out of context.
"Won't comment on leaks," IW Creative Strategist Robert Bowling wrote on Twitter. "Too many spoilers out there being viewed out of context. I'd avoid watching and reserve judgement till you play."
And it won't be too long before we'll all be able to experience the controversy for ourselves, as Modern Warfare 2 launches on November 10.
Killing innocents: a Marine's take on Modern Warfare 2 leak - Ars Technica
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