MEMBER BLOG

            Around a few forums lately, I've been spotting a lot of threads about the fighting in a lot of video games. I'll start with Metal Gear Solid 4, making an example of "CQC". Now, given my martial arts background, I'm naturally attracted to these types of threads. I like to throw in my two cents and right some wrongs, or simply read and laugh at a lot of the posts. The particular thread about this "CQC" asked: What is CQC? UFC, Karate, Juditsu, Kung Fu? What is it?

             First of all, I would like to point out that Juditsu is not a real form of martial arts. It sounds like a mix of Judo and Jui Jitsu to me. That's odd because Judo was derived from Jui Jitsu, and Brazillian Jui Jitsu was derived from Judo and the traditional (read: Japanese) Jui jitsu.

             Secondly, I simply laughed when I saw UFC. I guess I should have expected it, given that there's some form of it on Spike nearly every time I pass that channel. I suppose it has become so simplified that instead of breaking it down into what it actually is, people made it as simple as they could for themselves. UFC would be MMA, which stands for Mixed Martial Arts, which would then of course break down into Judo and Tae Kwon Do, for example. People have been doing this with their video games for a long time now, as well. In the case of MGS4 (truly an excellent game), our protagonist, Old Snake (Solid Snake, if you're too nostalgic like myself) knows this mystical style called Close Quarters Combat, or simply CQC. The big misconseption of this is that people believe it is actually a style of martial arts.

Ok, people, you're almost right. CQC is not a martial art, but rather a tactic. I could turn a corner and shove my thumbs into somebodys eyes and then knee them in the groin and call it CQC. It's close quarters, and it's combat. I could just as easily turn the corner and stab the guy in the throat. Either way, its combat in close quarters. It is the idea of effective fighting in a limited space environment. Much like Krav Maga, Combat Hapkido (my favorite!), Systema, or even back to the original Jeet Kune Do, the idea of CQC is using what works most effectively, and dropping the rest.

     Alright, hold on...I need to go grab a drink....and I've returned. Anyway, I sometimes wonder if all of the self proclaimed black belts on every forum about anything related to martial arts have actually put any thought to their arguments about this. To me it sounds like they're just trying to enhance that e-peen of theirs, or just trying to look intelligent on the internet. Telling me that you're going to come karate chop my head off because I told you that a reverse jumping hook kick (think MGS2, punch punch kick) isn't a good idea in a real fight just doesn't do anything for me. I guess if we ever meet up somewhere, you can feel free to try it. I guess I'll just walk away while you spin into the atmosphere. I hope you don't hit the sun.