Be a wartime journalist in WARCO: The News Game

WARCO: The News Game, a first-person war journalism sim developed by Defiant Development in conjunction with ManiatyMedia and Arenamedia, is seeking a publisher for PC and home consoles.

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Australia-based developers Defiant, ManiatyMedia and Arenamedia are hard at work on a very interesting-looking title called WARCO: The News Game, which looks to redefine the "shooter" part of FPS titles. The game puts players in the shoes of a wartime journalist named Jesse DeMarco, who is armed only with "a flak jacket, a video camera," and a "burning desire" to report on current, worldwide-inspired conflicts.

Funded by Screen Australia and Screen New South Wales, WARCO's scenarios are based on real-world conflicts currently taking place in the Middle East and Africa. Each scenario promises to include "multiple objectives and story leads" for the player to pursue. As any good war correspondent, DeMarco will need to focus on framing and capturing the action while keeping herself safe from enemy fire.

Once a given conflict is over, the player will need to assemble the footage that they've captured into a compelling TV news story. These frontline newscasts can then be shared online. Given the branching nature of each scenario and the dynamic way in which players can construct their stories, Defiant Development claims that "No two WARCO stories will ever be alike."

Defiant Development is currently seeking a publisher for the title, which it hopes to bring to PC and consoles. We'll reserve judgement on its claim that the game will also be a "powerful entry-level training tool for future combat reporters," until we've had a chance to play it ourselves, however.

From The Chatty
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    September 12, 2011 1:00 PM

    Jeff Mattas posted a new article, Be a wartime journalist in WARCO: The News Game.

    WARCO: The News Game, a first-person war journalism sim developed by Defiant Development in conjunction with ManiatyMedia and Arenamedia, is seeking a publisher for PC and home consoles.

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      September 12, 2011 1:09 PM

      Gotta commend them on what I think might be a really fun gameplay and a refreshing take on the genre. Really wish they were using the crytech engine or something prettier though, especially considering that the end result of the game really is about the visuals you capture during gamplay.

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      September 12, 2011 1:12 PM

      My love of Pokemon Snap has made me interested in this game.

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      September 12, 2011 1:19 PM

      I like that they're at least trying something different.

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      September 12, 2011 5:50 PM

      Fantastic idea, really like it.

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      September 12, 2011 5:57 PM

      I hope this gets published, but I'm worried about what some interested organizations like NATO or the various armed forces would say about the "unfilmable" elements in war journalism. Even if it is all fictional locations and factions, there might still be objections.

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      September 12, 2011 9:14 PM

      Good idea. Looks like they're doing a terrible job at making it.

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      September 13, 2011 3:22 AM

      Love the idea, the game its self does not look that great though :(

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