FILE - A man plays "Call of Duty Modern Warfare III" video game during Milan Games Week 2023 at Rho Fieramilano on Nov. 24, 2023 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images)
Researchers are testing out a program that uses a 19-year-old video game to help train Marines.
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Dig deeper:
Virginia Tech and the University of Memphis recently deployed a program that uses a modified version of the 2007 game Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
The program is being used to engage students at the Marine Corps University in Quantico in "tailored scenarios that allow them to hone skills," according to a Virginia Tech news release.
What they're saying:
"There will be a direct line from this investment into [the real world]," said Brig. Gen. Matthew Tracy, commanding general of Marine Corps Education Command and president of Marine Corps University. "The actual skills translate directly into making good decisions under high stress."
Big picture view:
Researchers aim to help students refine their leadership, critical thinking, decision-making and communication skills.
The modified game also collects data that can be analyzed to enhance after-action reviews.
"The military considers after-action review one of the most important parts of training," Louis Hickman, assistant professor of industrial-organizational psychology at Virginia Tech and principal investigator of the project, said. "After you’ve gone through a training simulation, you sit down as a group, you discuss what happened, what was supposed to happen, what went well, what didn’t, and what you will do differently next time."
Researchers are also able to analyze player positions, orientations of the enemy and shots fired.
What's next:
There are plans to install the project software at the Marine Corps base in Tentynin Palms, California.
The Source: Information for this article was taken from a news release shared on the Virginia Tech website on May 18, 2026. This story was reported from San Jose.