GAMETECH: Armies using video games to prepare for real-life battlefields

“WAR isn’t about racking up a kill count, it’s about surviving with your soul intact.” So says Ryan Placchetti, lead writer on the gaming adaptation of Apocalypse Now. Placchetti is better-placed than most to comment — he served with the US army on a tour of Iraq in 2005.

“I love that the lead developers have committed to creating a game experience that captures the essential emotional and philosophical impact of war,” Placchetti says of the adaptation, which is seeking development funding online.

“I have always been turned off by the unhealthy audience disconnect fostered by war-inspired games.”