DESCRIPTION

Mixing elements of first-person combat and the evening news, Kuma\War was designed as an inaugural entry into a new category of interactive entertainment: "Reality Gaming." The squad-based, first-person shooter serves up missions based on current events and set in real-world locations. Following the early success of shows such as Cops and MTV's The Real World, "reality television" moved to the forefront of mainstream broadcasting in the late '90s. Kuma Reality Gaming is placed to facilitate a parallel expansion in video gaming, beginning with the release of Kuma\War.

Content in Kuma\War is developed under the consultation of a board of military advisors, in order to make the missions, settings, strategy, and tactics realistic. The game offers a series of single- and multiplayer missions, designed to give a taste of "reality gaming." Once these missions are completed, players are encouraged to check the online Kuma\War Service, which is continually updated to deliver new maps and missions based on current, international events.

A pioneer of "episodic" gaming, Kuma\War later became free to download and share. In its first few years of operation, the Kuma/War Service catalog grew to offer over 80 individual missions, many based on events occurring during the U.S.-led Coalition's "Operation Iraqi Freedom," including the deadly standoff against Uday and Qusay Hussein, battles in Baghdad, Mosul, and Sadr City, and the capture of Saddam Hussein. ~ T.J. Deci, All Game Guide