Victura, the publisher behind tactical shooter Six Days in Fallujah, has denied allegations that the game will be used as a recruitment tool for the United States Army.
“The U.S. government is not involved in making the game, nor are there any plans to use it for recruiting,” reads a statement in the official FAQ. “The Marines, Soldiers, and Iraqi civilians who’ve helped us participated as private citizens, and the game is being financed independently.”
The Battle of Fallujah is one of the most harrowing events of the Iraq war, in which scores of innocent civilians were murdered and maimed. The upcoming game was first announced in 2009 by then publisher Konami, but was cancelled when the concept received intense backlash. Unsurprisingly, Six Days in Fallujah‘s revival by Highwire Games and Victura received the same response, including intense criticism from a number of former U.S. soldiers, who took to social media to voice their concerns about depicting the event in a video game. It doesn’t help that Victura is headed by Peter Tamte, who previously received funds from the CIA, and U.S. army recruitment has been on the decline. However, the companies insist that they’re approaching things with caution.
Highware Games has said that players won’t always play as an American character. “Multiple countries had forces in the city, not all of which have been acknowledged publicly,” reads the FAQ. “Additionally, the single-player campaign includes some high-intensity stealth missions in which you play as an un-armed Iraqi civilian.”
Here’s hoping that the game doesn’t turn out to be a hot mess.
