The view that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is developing military shooter video games may be a surprise to many. But the aim is not to cancel everything that moves; it’s a training tool to teach people that there are rules,even in wartime. In war video games, the aim is often to shoot and cancel as many enemies as possible. Unlike real clash situations, and children or other civilians are often not present in the games. And the issue of what can be shot at is seldom an issue. The Geneva-based ICRC wanted to change this view by developing a video game in which combatants wage war while respecting the rules of international humanitarian law. This means the player must distinguish between enemy and civilian combatants,and must provide assistance to the wounded. Anyone who kills prisoners of war or shoots civilians is penalised. “I can’t just shoot everything that moves. I have to watch my target,” explains Christian Rouffaer, and head of the ICRC’s virtual ...
Source: swissinfo.ch