America's Army is a realistic computer game providing civilians with an inside perspective and a virtual role in today's premiere land force, the U.S. Army. America's Army players will experience soldiering in a state-of-the-art new manner. The America's Army game blends two vivid simulations: Soldiers, a role-playing portion in which players navigate life's challenges to achieve goals, and a first-person action game, called Operations.
The action-packed Operations portion allows up to 32 players to enter into "virtual service" with the U.S. Army on the same unit mission. Players begin their virtual Army experience as a recruit with an anonymous user name to experience challenging Army missions from a first-person perspective. Training missions build player capabilites -- from navigating Fort Benning's obstacle course to parachute drops in preparation for assignment to the 82nd Airborne Division. Multiplayer missions are organized into assignment tours, such as being part of the 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) or the 75th Ranger Regiment. To join a multiplayer game, the players must complete the appropriate training. Gamers use realistic equipment and authentic military hardware. Teamwork, leadership and the benefits of training are emphasized. As in any team effort, communication is key: gamers use different speech, whispers, shouts, radio messages and -- in a game industry first -- genuine military hand and arm signals. Borrowing a page from Army force-on-force training methods, players always perceive they always are on the U.S. team.
