U.S. Spec Ops Veteran: Modern Warfare 3 Commercial a "New Low"

[TeleSkiingEMT]

Before anything else, let me say that I really don't think Sam or Jonah were meant to represent real soldiers. Apart from the fact they don't wear regulation clothing, use regulation weapons or behave with any sort of tactical awareness; they aren't taking part in realistic "battles" (the airplane/upside down scene is a good example). I'd say they're more like human avatars (no pun intended) taking part in a "real-life" multiplayer match.
And on the subject of multiplayer matches, games like this are more about selling an experience that a product. In the case of MW3, they're selling the experience of being an "unstoppable immortal bad-ass" (thank you, Yahtzee), and I think this add does a fairly good job at conveying this message. The multiplayer ?experience? is meant to be an overly stylized, and risk-free, power-fantasy. I?d say the ?realism? in games like this begins and ends with weapon details.
There have been claims that this add is exploitive or disrespectful to soldiers. Lets pick any big-budget action movie (Transformer series, for example) and ask honestly; do they do any better a job portraying the risks and strains associated with serving in an Armed Service? Personally, I think not.
Those of us who aren?t idiots realize that ?skill? in video games like MW3 doesn?t translate into actual combat survivability. Being able to manipulate a controller is completely different from firing an actual weapon.
I have never served in battle, I have never watched a friend die, and I hope to go the rest of my life without having too. For the bravest citizens who have, thank you for your service and sacrifice.

 

[mexicola]

Even though I've never played CoD multilayer this complaint falls flat IMO, because the footage isn't even trying to evoke real life war situations. Instead it's obviously just glamorizing in-game experience. If a video game commercial is causing him emotional trauma or hurting his tender feelings that's tragic, but I don't see why we should care.

 

[The Human Torch]

I enjoyed the shit out of that commercial. AC/DC only makes it better.

On topic: that army guy should be more worried about the politicians who keep sending people into those senseless oil wars and less about fictional computer game commercials.

 

[CapitalistPig]

Well I'd have to agree that this advertisement is the epitome of the how desensitized gamers have become. It is rather insulting to our military men and women and should have been further reviewed before being shown to the general public. He's right it makes our real life struggles seem like meaningless fun to be enjoyed by all. You should always treat military members with respect for the sacrifices they give and this advertisement doesn't.

NOW, on the devils advocate side. First, all advertising is offensive. How many times have you seen one of those commercials where its starts "tired of (insert supposed problem here)" roll overly frustrated idiot struggling with something asinine clip "well here's (insert solution)" I find that pretty insulting that they assume we are all that stupid. Don't even get me started on PSA's. But thats only tangentially related. The other argument is its not really depicting war its more or less depicting multiplayer gameplay on a fictional game that has a loosely related war single player storyline. Which by all rights should be fun and exciting. It's also showing something we can all appreciate as the gamer audience (you know.....the target one?) what its like to be a noob and how you learn to get better at a game. It made me chuckle. How often do you boot up your Xbox 360 with a somber "war in the trenches isn't what you think" approach. I understand wholly that war is not a thing to think is fun or fantastical. But that doesn't mean this game isn't.

I guess what I'm saying is I'm not supporting it, but this viewpoint only came up over time not as the immediate response. Which shows that most people didn't notice nor cared. So don't get all high and mighty.

 

[Mauso88]

I doubt anyone would watch this advert and think, ''Oh my, that war lark sure looks fun, all those soldiers fighting around the world must be having a jolly good time''. The general populous know war is hell and would never cheapen the sacrifices made by anyone involved in any war by believing that this is what it is actually like.

That being said, how many recruitment posters and tv/radio/internet advertisements lay out the full truth of joining the armed forces? I'm sure none of them say, ''Come join the army and risk life and limb.''

 

[Orcus The Ultimate]

I totally agree with the guy, war isn't something to be trivialized. But the commercial isn't about real war, it's talking about the virtual soldier in all of us, the ability to go online and kick ass in all of us, not about real war. Sure, the imagery is of real-life soldiers, but it's like the Black Ops commercial, it's not meant to be serious.

in reply to this, i'd say the video is pretty hilarious...

Plus, who never acted like Rambo in the early days right?

*remembers Soldier of Fortune 2 multiplayer*

 

[TheDrunkNinja]

This is kind of how I view them, which makes me think they got the slogan wrong. They wouldn't do this for marketing purposes but the truth is it isn't really "There's a soldier in all of us", but rather it's "There's a child in all of us". That's what's really going on in this commercials, but it would probably get a good portion of the MW fanbase players panties in a bunch to suggest it.

I don't have much of an opinion on the commercials themselves and haven't seen the one in question, but all I can think of when I see them is that these can't sit well with the anti-video game violence crowd.

Eh, semantics. Really, if we analyzed deeper, I could say that technically being a child is rather broad in terms of playing pretend games, and the commercial is meant to target those inner-child flights of fancy of being a soldier, in this case the specific game of pretend soldier. So, I would say the tagline is as accurate as it was meant to be.

But what you probably meant was that the concept plays to a "childish" attitude; so, yeah, I'd say you hit it on the nose in that case.

 

[Mariahsyn]

I am not shocked in the least that someone didn't like the commercial. Then again you can't make everyone happy all the time. Most soldiers who I know got a kick out of the commercial actually and thought it funny. It really is a satire not of warfare or conflict but instead I think that some people missed the point that it was about the players of such games and poking fun at them.

But sometimes all some people can see are helicopters,intermediate caliber assault weapons and high explosives.

I guess my point is that yeah someone could be offended, but perhaps only because they failed to see the intent of the commercial and misinterpreted it? Because if that isn't the case all the talk about "No re-spawn in real life" is a rip on the genre of military shooters. War isn't a game, but games about war are games.


Funny world we live in, eh?

(My husband to be served in Iraq, my cousin is presently on a tour in Afghanistan and I come from a military family.)

 

[sheah1]

Ugh. It's not depicting real-life events, it's depicting made-up events that are made-up in the made-up portion (multiplayer) of an already made-up videogame.

Okay, just stop that. Stop that now. No matter how wrong an opponent's argument is people need to stop using that argument as it's complete bull. How about this? If an argument can be used to defend pedophilia cartoons and nazi comics, it shouldn't be used. Sound good?

 

[FarleShadow]

Christ, its a wonder we're allowed to speak, for fear of 'being insensitive to [Insert group here]'.

If the game didn't trivialise war, then you'd spawn, get hit once by an IED and spend the next six months in hospital.

 

[Creamygoodness]

I feel the line : "THERE'S A SOLDIER IN ALL OF US.", is pushing the limits of good taste. But I also feel that the commerial is trying to show a live action representation of what playing the game is like. I am sad to hear that it has offended so many in our real veterans. In the end I fear that our veteran will have to deal with other marketing like this because it does represent a portion of the gaming community.

 

[CapitalistPig]

Ugh. It's not depicting real-life events, it's depicting made-up events that are made-up in the made-up portion (multiplayer) of an already made-up videogame.

Okay, just stop that. Stop that now. No matter how wrong an opponent's argument is people need to stop using that argument as it's complete bull. How about this? If an argument can be used to defend pedophilia cartoons and nazi comics, it shouldn't be used. Sound good?

Well first its not bull cause thats what all fiction is. If you have beef with this idea go QQ to every single fiction writer and movie director starting with Micheal Bay. Or did you miss the part where he made humans and the Military in particular look like self aggrandizing bitches in his transformer movies. (if you didn't watch them I can understand since they did suck.)

Second, wah? Why did your mind go to those places? How does defending pedophilia have ANYTHING to do with a video game advertisement made to poke fun at its own gamers? I'm sorry you don't react and realize like the rest of the gaming community does that this advertisement was meant for its own base but those are your demons. You can't bar an argument just cause you are not creative enough to defend against it.

 

[Hyper-space]

But I agree with the statement that they're making. A lot of marketing for war games such as Call of Duty or Battlefield bring the impression that war's fun, and that's not the depiction that they should bring out. That's a problem you expect to run into when you market your game the same way you would an action film. And besides, it's Call of Duty, and at this point, the series is about as artistically bankrupt as a vending machine.

Why is it when that countless of movies do the exact same thing, everyone just shrugs it off, BUT WHEN A VIDEO-GAME DOES IT, STOP THE MOTHERFUCKING PRESSES!

The commercials for Modern Warfare have always been about the online component, which can neither be held as an effort to depict how war really is nor be judged as if it were trying to.

snip

I double this.

 

[Srkkl]

Ohh boo hoo. Anyone with half a brain would realize that it's trying to be a live action version of the game. It's not trying to sell war, it's trying to sell a war game.

 

[Vampire cat]

I can't get myself to see that this isn't just some dicking around... It's not serious, it doesn't look very serious at all. I'm not sure why this is really any worse than every action movie and game ever made (or even book! XD) where they continuously glorify violence. Personally I would have left the "There's a Soldier in all of us" part out, primarily because I can't figure what it's doing there... Surely there must have been a better line of text they could have thrown in at that point?...

 

[Smeggs]

Sorry, but no.

The commercial is meant to depict the stereotypical average gamers found in COD multiplayer. It is in no way attempting to make people think they could do such things in real life. Why in the hell do you think they got Jona Hill-a guy who stars in multiple comedies-to be "The Noob?" Because they knew that the dopey player becoming a badass MLGPro by the end of the battle montage would make the commercial that much cooler and get that many more sales, also because it's a celebrity plug.

If anything I think this commercial should be commended for showing what the multiplayer aspect of a game-and let's be clear, it's a commercial about A Game-could be like if the good players helped the lesser players to become better, rather than insulting them and spouting racial slurrs.

 

[Xanadu84]

I respect that this guy is genuinely offended, and I respect his opinion. He is not crazy. He is just wrong. The game is wish fullfillment at its finest, a powerfantasy in and out. And a desire to pretend that you are as cool as him does not reflect on what he has experienced. Would he be offended by a child playing soldiers? How about a game of paintball? When a Disney movie tells kids that they can be whatever they want to be does he angry yell at the theater screen, "bullshit, not everyone can be a soldier!". Of course not. If anything, it is a compliment that the ideals he stands behind are being put on a pedestal. I have no doubt that the guy is a decent person but seriously, he is failing to understand the concept of fantasy in his half baked argument.

 

[Dw Drawings]

To start, as a marketing major, I though the commercial was great! It sold the game and it was a commercial that made you remember the product. I think the article is the wrong way to look at the commercial. This is playing on the online multiplayer aspect of the game. It is not promoting real warfare. I have a friend in the US Army right now and I understand the fact that he may not come back the way he left. CoD is not here to say pick up a real gun and go kill people, they are showing the excitement and fun of the game, because the characters in the commercials do end up dying but they are always moving on a re-spawning else where in the game. One other fact, why is this causing a big stink now when the game came out months ago? If you remember, Halo had a long line of real life commercials promoting their games, like the ODST game. That showed war in a very similar way.

 

[Bmagada]

Are you kidding?

Its because they have been done so much before that its pointless, COD has taken an ongoing war and marginalized it. Besides the fact that the older wars have been over long enough for kid to have learned about them in school, but the current war has gone through the process of being popularized and demonized through the various types of media like none before it. You can currently go online and watch be-headings and attacks on coalition forces. The main problem with the ads is context. There is not a soldier in everyone. Not everyone signs away their rights and the ability to not be on call 24/7, no matter what. Not everyone chooses to give up their lives and everything they know to fly 5000 miles away and fight other people because their country tells them to. Less than 2% of Americans will have ever served and only about a quarter of them actually put boot to ass. Honestly the first time I saw it and I thought it was hilarious, mostly because I can take a joke, but they never provide a disconnect. This is how this generation's young people who will never go to war see it. I had a kid ask me if I've ever ran around with a knife and killed people while I was in Iraq. I've had a friend from college ask me if I ever shot someone in the head. In the end its just a game but questions like these tend to make a person think the country is getting more ignorant by the second. You can't trivialize something like this because then you miss the impact that it has on the people that have been through hell and have seen friends die. Not had friends die over there, we've seen it. It kinda makes people feel like maybe people see that kinda loss as trivial and meaningless, at least meaningless enough to make it seem like anyone can do what they did.