By Joseph Luster
Based on true stories from the Second Battle for Fallujah in 2004, Six Days in Fallujah was originally announced back in 2009 but was eventually cancelled. That has since changed, and now publisher Victura has brought the first-person shooter back with plans to launch it on consoles and PC sometime in 2021. With a new publisher in place along with new developer Highwire Games, this one looks to show what went down by letting players experience a representation of it for themselves.
The notion of virtually living the reality of Fallujah comes out of a quote from former Marine Sergeant Eddie Garcia, who proposed the idea in 2005 after being wounded in the battle himself. “War is filled with uncertainty and tough choices that can’t be understood by watching someone on a TV or movie screen make these choices for you,” Garcia said. “Video games can help all of us understand real-world events in ways other media can’t.”
The cancellation of the first crack at Fallujah came after controversy surrounding the ability of video games to cover such challenging real-world events. New publisher Victura is embracing the challenge with the latest version of the game and hopes to bring both it and other games based on true stories to fruition. To do so, Victura and Highwire spent the past three years and some change building special technologies and mechanics to bring the uncertainties of war closer to players, while working in close partnership with frontline Marines and Soldiers who fought in the Battle for Fallujah.
The stories that inspired the developers came from over 100 Marines, Soldiers, and Iraqi civilians who were there at the time. They shared their personal truths along with photographs and video recordings to help the team better understand each unique perspective and add more authenticity to the proceedings. Will this add up to a quality game that accurately and thoughtfully reflects this thorough education? We’ll have to wait until Six Days in Fallujah is finally in our hands to decide.
Genre: Shooter
Platform: PC, consoles
Publisher: Victura
Available: 2021
