In case you were worried that the new Medal of Honor would be a flag-waving “Go Team U.S.A!” propaganda game, then worry no more – that really isn’t what the team is going for at all.
Being an American, it’s sometimes perplexing to read about these supposed “other countries” in the world getting “irritated” at the way our “foreign policy” is reflected in modern “videogames” (air quotes mine, of course): What could possibly be wrong about reliving our glory days from World War II where we ran all the way to Berlin to put a foot up Der Führer’s ass? That’s totally how it happened, right?
But while it’s absolutely ridiculous to suggest that these hypothetical foreign-living-people might take umbrage at games showing badass red-blooded U.S. troops stomping all over villainous third-world countries in the name of football and apple pie, sometimes it does actually happen, I guess. Which is why if you’re one of these people worrying that the upcoming Medal of Honor: Bearded Justice reboot would be a flag-waving jingoistic propaganda piece, you might be happy to hear that EA Los Angeles isn’t going for something like that at all.
Speaking with IncGamers, EA LA’s Sean Decker compared the new Medal of Honor to acclaimed war movie The Hurt Locker, pointing out that a piece about soldiers and war didn’t necessarily have to be picking sides or involved in politics at all.
“There’s been a lot of really good movies – the Gotham Awards just came out and Hurt Locker was the top one,” said Decker. “It has nothing to do with the war in Iraq and why it started, or anything else – it’s just about the men on the ground, what they go through on a day-to-day basis, and their emotions.”
Like the film, Decker said that Medal of Honor wouldn’t address the reasons behind the controversial wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, since the focus was to be on the soldiers themselves. “It’s not going to be a big propaganda piece where we wave the flag, or anything like that. It’s literally about the people that’re on the ground,” he emphasized.
Medal of Honor: Awesomest Beard Ever is out on PS3, Xbox 360, and PC this fall. And I have a sinking feeling that people are going to completely miss the sarcastic tone in the first two or so paragraphs.
