War Games

The NBC Nightly news ran this story about an Army recruiting site in the Franklin Mills Mall in Philadelphia, PA. But it's not your typical recruitment center. It's a place where people can play video games -- war simulation games -- to experience the front lines of an Army unit in a war zone.

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As a marketing tool, I think it's brilliant. It targets young adults who are into video games. The facility has cutting-edge technology and is pretty much an opportunity to 'try before you buy'.

As a learning tool, I also think it has many of the characteristics mentioned in my previous post:

• Personalized and goal based - Individuals are part of a team to accomplish a mission. This parallels the goals and missions defined by military units.
  
• Coaching and immediate feedback - I'm not sure if there is coaching, but there is definitely immediate feedback based on the learner's actions. You can see if your shot was on target, or if you are not careful and get killed.
  
• Flexibility - The outcome of the simulation is based on the learner's actions. The simulation will be different each time it is used. Just as in combat, a soldiers actions have consequences and they must learn how to act and at what appropriate time.
  
• Simple, intuitive navigation - There isn't time to sit down and read the instructions. Just like in combat, learners must be able to hit the ground running.
  
• Hard fun - Because it is a simulation, learners have the chance to make mistakes, see the outcome, overcome challenges and try again.
  

What are your thoughts about the Army Experience? Do you see the learning value is these simulations and video games?