Cultural Games Simulations
Digital Cultural Training Tools (Review: Mar 2012)
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Army 360 Simulator (Season 1 and 2: 2009, 2011)
Learning Objective: Bilateral engagements and general cultural knowledge of select countries. |
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Summary: Army 360 is a video based training program where actors play out roles as military and local personnel in various basic engagement scenarios. Outcomes vary according to COAs students select at key decision points. Package also offers general country customs and area knowledge briefs. Engagement video and briefs have been developed for Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, Djibouti, Colombia and Yemen.
Status: Developed, Available on DVD through TCC Cost: No Cost to user Developer: InVism for ICoE and TRADOC Cultural Center (TCC) |
ELECT BiLAT (Version 2.1: 2009)
Learning Objective: Bilateral engagement and negotiation skills. |
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Summary: BiLAT provides an avatar simulated immersive gaming environment for training skills in conducting meetings and negotiations in Iraq. Skill training is at a more advanced level than Army 360. The player takes on the role of an officer rebuilding a town and conducts a series of engagements and negotiations. Interactions are primarily through menu selections.
Status: Deployed, available thru AKO or Milgaming Cost: No Cost to user Developer: USC Institute for Creative Technologies (ICT), 2009 (with support of ARI) for Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation (PEOSTI). |
VCAT
Learning Objective: Virtual Cultural Awareness Trainer (Afghan: 2011)  |
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Summary: VCAT is a story-driven cultural awareness trainer that focuses on working with interpreters, extending culturally appropriate greetings, building rapport with local populations, and learning basic tactical language. Immersive simulation to apply skills follows lessons. Courses are offered for HOA, Afghanistan, Northern Africa, and Latin America. The Afghan course language focus is about 80% (whereas it is about 40% in other modules)
Status: Available on JKO Cost: No Cost to user Developer: Alelo for Joint Knowledge and Training Develop and Distribution Command (JKTDDC) and Joint training Integration and Evaluation Center (JTIEC) to support COCOMs |
Air University has also developed an interactive negotiation program for Air Force use.
Culture Awareness Afghanistan
Learning Objective: Gain villager’s perspective on subsistence and influence operations.. Culture Shock Game |
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Summary: Culture Shock is an interactive training experience designed for personnel of all ranks to give a multifaceted approach to problem resolution in countries whose ideals and ideologies do not mimic our own. By placing players in the shoes of the people whom they will be interacting with, they can gain a better understanding of the religion, community, and social interactions in faraway lands.
Status: Pilot tested, further development need for more advanced influence modules. Cost: Offered by developer Developer: IDS International, a private effort without government support. |
The First Person Cultural Trainer
Learning Objective: Skills to gain and leverage information. |
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Summary: FPCT is a single-player interactive simulation. The goal is to gather intelligence. Skills trained include subject assessment, relationship building, and development/ execution of tactical level information gathering action plans. At the end of game play, the player is assessed based upon the accuracy of his ratings of mood and reliability of virtual agents. Scenarios are based on uncovering IED and insurgent networks in Afghanistan and Iraq. A SME tool enables modifications.
Status: Developed, Spiral 2 CoN for Leavenworth only. Pending funding for license expected delivery is 2nd Qtr 2013 Cost: No Cost to user Developer: University of Texas at Dallas, sponsored by TRADOC G2 Intelligence Support Activity (TRISA). |
Edge
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Learning Objective: Engagement skills needed in a COIN environment (MCoE Prototype) |
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Summary: Is an online multiplayer game architecture developed by TRADOC G2. Players take on a role and interact with other players and virtual actors. TRADOC G2 is currently working with MCoE to develop non-lethal engagements in a COIN environment (KLE, TCP, info collection to CIED). Once developed, COEs can open up access to other COEs.
Status: Target date for EDGE/MCOE prototype is 4 June 2012. Cost: Development of branch specific games entail local resources (like VBS2) or financial resources Developer: Development of branch specific games entail local resources (like VBS2) or financial resources |
Athena
Learning Objective: Help analysts anticipate medium term (3 months to 3 years) consequences  |
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Summary: A decision support and analysis tool, simulating cause-and effect relations across political, attitudes, demographic, information, economic and time domains over the intermediate term time horizon. Data for the simulation is largely provided by the user. Athena is being developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and is based on the Joint Non-kinetic Effects Model (JNEM) with extended planning horizons and domains.
Status: Athena is a prototype being assessed at OSD, COCOMS, Joint Staff. Expected delivery SEP. Cost: No cost to end user. Developer: JPL with support of TRISA |
Language Focused Cultural Training Programs
| Operational Language & Cultural Training System
Learning Objective: Gain tactical language skills and basic cultural awareness  |
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Summary: Teaches basic foreign languages through avatar modeling, interactive arcade game, and avatar simulation of tactical missions. Modules have been developed for Pashto, Dari, Iraqi Arabic, French (Sahel), and Indonesian.
Status: Developed, available thru Milgaming or Alelo (automatic registration with .mil email) Cost: No Cost to user Developer: Alelo Inc with funding from DARPA and various DOD entities |
Vcommunicator Mobile Translator
| Vcommunicator Mobile Translator | |
Summary: Vcommunicator Mobile is a tactical language trainer based on the Apple iPod platform and briefs the user on culturally-appropriate phrases and gestures (Vcom3D Inc., 2007). |
