“The streets, for the most part, were narrow, sometimes not more than fifteen feet wide, and we fired at each other from only yards away. We fought to gain inches, cleaning out one room after the other. It was absolute hell!”
-A soldier's reminiscence of the battle of Arnhem from Cornelius Ryan's "A Bridge Too Far" |
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General
Gameplay Questions:
Violence/ Exploitation:
Security:
What is Full Spectrum Warrior?
Full Spectrum Warrior is a squad-based, tactical action game that focuses on critical decision making by the Squad Leader (the player). The game is based on a light Infantry training simulator designed by Pandemic Studios for the U.S. Army as a tool to reinforce Army doctrine and team effort among troops, simulating today's urban combat, peace-enforcement, and peacekeeping missions. Full Spectrum Warrior delivers a level of realism and accuracy that has never been seen in a military-based game.
How does Full Spectrum Warrior differentiate itself from all the other war games out there?
Three Key Points:
- Realism and Authenticity – the core technology in Full Spectrum Warrior was developed as an urban combat training device, making this the most realistic and authentic military game to date.
- Squad-based Tactical Action Gameplay – Full Spectrum Warrior is more than just a typical action game, the game’s groundbreaking squad-based gameplay puts players in full control of the action through a simple, intuitive interface.
- Artificial Intelligence – FSW accurately simulates the actions and reactions of a squad of soldiers (2 teams) in an intense combat environment
How does Full Spectrum Warrior differ from Full Spectrum Command (FSC is an interactive program developed by ICT that received media coverage during the war)?
Full Spectrum Command is a training program for higher commanding officers and involves more high-level, “book-learned” command akin to moving symbols on a map. While Full Spectrum Warrior integrates intense action with elements of strategy and team management - the player is on the ground engaging in combat with his platoon.
How is Full Spectrum Warrior different from other squad-based military games or titles like Ghost Recon and Rainbow 6?
Most of the other titles on the market actually revolve around controlling one soldier and giving commands to others. FSW truly puts players in the commander’s seat in control of two fire teams, and offers plenty of strategy elements to keep the experience fresh.
How did ICT come about and what is their role within the Army?
In August 1999, the U.S. Army awarded a five-year contract to the University of Southern California to create the Institute for Creative Technologies (ICT). The ICT's mandate is to enlist the resources and talents of the entertainment and game development industries and to work collaboratively with computer scientists to advance the state of immersive training simulation. The goal of the ICT is the creation of the Experience Learning System (ELS), which provides the ability to learn through active, as opposed to passive, systems. In addition to specific military training tasks, the ELS will have applications for a broad range of educational initiatives.
How did you tackle the challenge of creating a MOUT training tool?
The biggest challenges Pandemic faced were:
- How do you control nine soldiers with a console input system and issue all the orders a squad leader would in as quick a manner as in the real world (where he basically points and says "go there")?
- How do we keep this game accessible to a broad spectrum of end users?
- How do we make the soldiers behave like soldiers (i.e. doctrinally correct) but appear human? We needed the Army player to make a real human connection to the soldiers. If someone dies in the game, the player has to have some sense of loss because, in the real world, the Army has zero tolerance for friendly casualties.
I have the PC version, and I am behind a firewall or router. Which port do I need to unblock for multiplayer sessions?
You will need to unblock (forward) port 15151. See the instructions that came with your firewall or router for information on how to enable port forwarding.
What is the gameplay like?
We call it tactical–action. Gamers will experience a lot of intense action where they will have to react quickly. They will be leading an eight member squad comprised of 2 teams – alpha and bravo. There are also strategy elements and a small element of resource management.
Can you control individual soldiers? Can you shoot from a first person POV?
FSW is based on controlling squads of men. It was created to teach squad leaders how to command, not to simulate individual control of soldiers. While we may let you give individual fire sectors in the final game, letting you have full control of an individual soldier disrupts the flow of the game and actually removes you from your command position.
Does the game take place in Iraq? Set against the current conflict?
The game is set against a modern day fictional urban backdrop reminiscent of middle-eastern locales. More storyline will be revealed in the coming months.
Do you discourage violence in the game?
As in real world conflicts, the player will need to operate under Rules of Engagement (ROE). He will need to be sensitive to the culture and people he is fighting amongst. This is one of the challenges in urban combat. For example, your ROE may prevent you from firing into a mosque. If the enemy enters a mosque you may have to seek alternative actions.
Doesn’t the commercial release of an actual military training program compromise our armed forces?
The game does not contain any content that could potentially be used against U.S. forces. The game is designed as an authentic military experience and assumes that the characters in the game have already gone through basic training.
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