Since When Does Brookings Make Video Games?[Call of Duty-Man vs. Machines]

Foreign Policy ^ | 08 May 2012 | MICHAEL PECK

[Theoria]

Military futurist Peter Singer -- and consultant for the forthcoming Call of Duty -- reveals what kind of dark assumptions are baked into the next blockbuster game.

The Internet has been abuzz over details -- and several intriguing YouTube videos -- of the upcoming "Call of Duty: Black Ops II," scheduled to hit shelves in November. A sequel to the 2010 blockbuster "Call of Duty: Black Ops," the latest iteration of the video game continues the saga of American and Russian operatives immersed in a complex 1960s Cold War plot. But much of the sequel takes place in 2025, when the United States is confronting China and when America's high-tech arsenal of robotic vehicles is hacked, hijacked, and turned against its makers. Although the dark plot sounds like science fiction, it is actually based on solid real-world analysis provided by defense futurist Peter Singer, author of the bestselling Wired for War. Foreign Policy spoke with Singer about his work on the game:

Foreign Policy: There have been a lot of delicious rumors about Call of Duty: Black Ops II. What can you tell us about the game?

Peter Singer: [Laughs.] I'm just going to say the things that are already out there in the media. Essentially what they have revealed is that it builds upon the last game [Call of Duty: Black Ops]. The setting is broken into two parts. Some events take place in the Cold War of the 1980s, and most of it in the 2020s in a proto-Cold War that has emerged between the U.S. and China over a series of regional tensions and resource shortages.

[Theoria]

Fascinating.

'But much of the sequel takes place in 2025, when the United States is confronting China and when America's high-tech arsenal of robotic vehicles is hacked, hijacked, and turned against its makers. '

[wastedyears]

I call it Call of Dookie because it's exactly that: crap.

There's nothing good or innovative about the series. It's designed to keep children and adults that don't like using their brains happy until the next popular game comes out.

Gamers like myself enjoy using our brains to succeed and win. There's no thinking required in something like Call of Duty. The series should be boycotted by all.

This was a thinking-man's game, but I don't mean that to be gender-exclusive because there's a few women that played SOCOM. I say few because it got incredibly intense online.

[BreezyDog]

Read at home

[februus]

You’re right, C.O.D. blows - with lousy multiplayer and maps that look small & cheap, weapons that are crap. My 13 yr old whose into playing XBox military games like Battlefield 3 looked at the trailer for the upcoming futuristic BLOPS on youtube and said it looked like they managed to make it worse than it already was.

[max americana]

I have that :)

[Boogieman]

For thinkin’ games, I prefer strategy games. I got tired of FPS games years ago. Trying to beat Civ 5 on Deity level difficulty with only full domination victory enabled, now that gets my juices flowing. Plus, there is the possibility of getting to deploy nuclear-powered Giant Death Robots against France, which is always fun.

[Vince Ferrer]

I don't play games much but here's my recent game:

It is a prequel to a game I played ten years ago. The Deus Ex series is fun, but not just a mindless shooter. An adult can enjoy it.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution

[Theoria]

Heh. I never evolved much past the ol’ Space quest and Kings quest series and games.