We all knew that raising a generation of American kids on violent video games would pay off at some point for the military industrial complex:
The U.S. Army has discovered a remote control gun turret that works, and cannot get enough of them. The army wants over 9,000 CROWS (common remotely operated weapon stations), but is only getting 15 a month. There should be about a thousand CROWS in service by the end of the year.
...But there's another reason, not often talked about, for the success of CROWS. The guys operating these systems grew up playing video games. They developed skills in operating systems (video games) very similar to the CROWS controls. This was important, because viewing the world around the vehicle via a vidcam is not as enlightening (although a lot safer) than having your head and chest exposed to the elements, and any firepower the enemy sends your way. But experienced video gamers are skilled at whipping that screen view around, and picking up any signs of danger. Iraqis are amazed at how observant CROWS is. Iraqis tend to just wrote this off as another example of American "magic." But the troops know better. Video games can save your life.
God bless our Master Chief-loving troops and their mad fragging skills. It turns out splattering Iraqi insurgents from the comfort of your Humvee is that much easier thanks to countless hours spent blasting Covenant Elites. Maybe this means some defense contractor will sponsor a free weekend of Xbox Live.
Normally, I don't go for third-party peripherals but one of these CROWS (pictured above) would make a badass addition to the Xbox 360 (visions of ED-209), especially if they keep the M240B 7.62mm machine-gun and living room-ready grenade launcher. They cost $260,000 a piece, but I'm sure MadCatz could make a cheap version with flimsy buttons and less battery life.
While we're on the subject of the relationship between real wars and console wars, the South Korean Air Force is looking for a few good gamers to help develop next-gen flight simulators.
