Exchanges ban ‘Medal of Honor’ game - Air Force News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Air Force Times

Exchanges ban ‘Medal of Honor’ game

A video game that allows players to kill U.S. troops as Afghan militants has been banned from military post exchanges around the world.

To “honor military families,” Army and Air Force Exchange Service operations worldwide will not offer the newest incarnation of “Medal of Honor” at any posts worldwide because of its inclusion of the Taliban, according to a statement from the joint command.

“Out of respect to those we serve, we will not be stocking this game,” Maj. Gen. Bruce Casella, AAFES commander, said in the release. “We regret any inconvenience this may cause authorized shoppers, but are optimistic that they will understand the sensitivity to the life and death scenarios this product presents as entertainment. As a military command with a retail mission, we serve a very unique customer base that has, or possibly will, witness combat in real life.”

AAFES will not offer the game, manufactured by Electronic Arts, at any AAFES location on any post, or through its website. Pre-orders through its website will be cancelled, and pre-orders through its GameStop locations will be transferred to the nearest GameStop off the post.

AAFES spokesman Judd Anstey said the decision was made Thursday within the joint command itself.

“Nobody instructed AAFES to make this decision,” he said.

The game’s online multiplayer mode pits elite “Tier 1 Operators” against Taliban fighters. In a preview posted on YouTube, an insurgent fires a rocket-propelled grenade against American troops, calls in a mortar strike on an American position and uses a sniper rifle to take out a lone American soldier.

Gold Star mother Karen Meredith told Fox News in an Aug. 14 interview that EA was “disrespectful” for basing a game on an ongoing war. Her son, Army 1st Lt. Kenneth M. Ballard, 26, was killed in a 2004 firefight in Iraq.

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• U.K. Defence Secretary rips video game with Taliban role

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