Kuma War: Battle in Sadr City
by Kit

Wednesday, July 14 2004

Kuma War releases new mission.

Kuma\War has released its latest mission, the Battle in Sadr City. Based on an actual US Army operation that occurred on May 23, 2004, players will join the US Army’s 1st Cavalry Division in battling radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr’s “Mahdi Army” in the Baghdad slum known as Sadr City.

Rocket propelled grenades and small arms fire rain down on players in this online game re-creating the actual 48-hour battle. The online game pits the US Army’s most experienced force against well-armed insurgents, but the player is ultimately in control. This week, Kuma adds the Remington 870 shotgun to the player’s arsenal, a weapon often used in room clearing and urban assault.

In this weekly Kuma News video segment, Major General Thomas L. Wilkerson (USMC, ret.) provides historical context for the battle, casting it within the turnover of power to Iraqi control. As in all Kuma\War online game missions, detailed information from national news sources and unclassified Department of Defense give an in depth look at these real world events.

“Online games have come along way since Quake and Counterstrike,” said Kuma Reality Games CEO, Keith Halper. “Gamers can re-create events in a simulated environment, experiencing the war in a uniquely informative and emotionally powerful manner. By using online games to accurately model real war stores we’re providing a valuable adjunct to traditional news.”

Every month, online game players can expect to receive at least three new missions further exploring the explosive situation in Iraq and elsewhere in the war on terror. Upcoming online games include missions set in Baghdad's Sadr City, deadly clashes with al Zarqawi militants in Northern Iraq and the ongoing hunt for al Qaeda leaders in the border region between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The Kuma\War online game service is available for free download and game demo at www.kumawar.com or can be purchased for a $9.99 monthly subscription fee. As a salute to the men and women in uniform who have served their countries, Kuma Reality Games will donate $1 of all paid subscriptions to The Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, which was created to assist the families of the nation's fallen heroes killed in duty.

--- Kit