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Video Game Let Players Command Kerry Swift Boat Mon Sep 27, 2004 10:47 AM ET
By Michael Kahn
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A video game company hopes to cash in on the publicity surrounding Sen. John Kerry's Vietnam service by sending players on a simulation of the Swift Boat mission that won the Democratic presidential candidate the Silver Star.
Playing as a square-jawed, machine-gun-toting Lt. John Kerry, gamers lead a team of U.S. Navy swift boats up the Mekong Delta to secure the shore while facing fire from Viet Cong in the nearby brush. Players are able to drive the boat and can jump ashore to chase and battle enemy soldiers.
The game is the latest in a series of missions from New York-based Kuma Reality Games that allow users to reenact actual battles mainly modeled on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Other titles include 'Uday and Qusay's Last Stand' and 'Battle in Sadr City.'
Another is based on the U.S. Army Ranger mission in Afghanistan that led to the death of Pat Tillman, who gave up a lucrative professional football career to join the military following the Sept. 11 attacks. The game is dedicated to but does not feature Tillman.
The Kerry game is based on military records of the Feb. 28, 1969, encounter that has become an issue in the current presidential campaign, Kuma Reality Games Chief Executive Keith Halper told Reuters. Subscription to the Kuma/War service, which includes the Kerry mission, is $9.99 a month.
'We have created a character who is the spiting image of a young John Kerry,' said Halper, who declined to say whether or not he supported the Democrat.
Kerry, whose spokeswoman could not be immediately reached for comment, volunteered for two tours of duty during the Vietnam War and won three Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star and a Silver Star while serving on a gunboat in the Mekong Delta.
A group called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth has criticized Kerry, who became an activist against the Vietnam War after his service, and questioned whether he earned all his decorations in televisions ads. The Bush campaign has denied any connection with the organization.
Halper said the Kerry game would allow players to learn more about the disputed events.
'Video games are wonderful teaching tools that allow people to get inside an event,' Halper said. 'We will bring clarity to people's understanding of the
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