New video game contest promotes respect for health-care personnel and facilities

17-10-2014 Feature

The special "Health Care in Danger" contest on content creation for the Arma 3 military game will end on 28 October.Launched by the ICRC and Bohemia Interactive in April this year, the award aims to promote respect for health-care facilities and personnel within the virtual reality of combat simulation.

"As part of this contest, developers could create a special game module where providing first-aid to a wounded enemy would be rewarded," says Christian Rouffaer, ICRC legal expert and one of the judges of the Make Arma Not War contest. "Another example is that 3D modelling experts could create hospitals, ambulances, medical personnel and equipment that other players and mission builders can use to enrich their gameplay. The same mission builders could highlight the role of combat medics and medevac teams on the battlefield."

The ICRC has been expanding contacts with the producers of video games that simulate real-war situations to study the opportunities that such games represent for spreading knowledge of international humanitarian law. This contest aims to generate a change in virtual reality which can hopefully be carried into the real world. The entries to the contest will be accepted until 28 October. The winners will be announced on 15 January 2015 and will go on a one-week trip to an ICRC delegation.

 


 

The ICRC's virtual training tools expert, Christian Rouffaer, explains why the ICRC and Bohemia Interactive have launched a special "Health Care in Danger" award as part of the Make Arma Not War content creation contest for the Arma 3 military game.

 

More information on the topic:

● Contest page of Bohemia Interactive

● "Beyond the Call of Duty: Why shouldn't video game players face the same dilemmas as real soldiers?" in the International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 94, No. 886

Questions and answers about the contest

Red Cross Red Crescent Magazine: Programmed for war, issue no 1 - 2014