what does it feel like to be on the front lines of war?

[rh71]

Any war vets here? I see it in the movies and the battle scenes are always intense. You never know when the next bullet or shrapnel will impale you. Describe (in as much detail as possible) how it felt as you're being constantly shot at with grenades and landmines all around...

Is it anything like the movies ? Does it trouble you to speak about it ? Is it a completely different feeling than we would imagine (adrenaline rush, etc.) ?

 

[VBboy]

Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

 

[datalink7]

Originally posted by: VBboy
Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

Yup, playing Medal of Honor is exactly what it feels like storming the beaches in WWII.

 

[tec699]

Play bf1942!! That's like being in Worl War 2! :Q

I swear.. I could feel the bullets wiz right by me!

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: VBboy
Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

I can see what you're trying to say - avoid getting killed... but seriously... being in a real war means you could cease to exist... to your family, to your friends, to anyone who ever cared about you. And it hurts to get shot or lose a limb in real life, I'm sure.

Hopefully you have a lot more respect for those who will soon be fighting for us.

 

[VBboy]

Originally posted by: datalink7

Originally posted by: VBboy
Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

Yup, playing Medal of Honor is exactly what it feels like storming the beaches in WWII.

Ok, well, sorry. Instead of playing a highly realistic game or watching a movie like Saving Private Ryan, why don't we all get together and have a little war for ourselves? We could allocate 20% of us to be killed, 60% to be wounded; and the rest would just work itself out! You bring a tank, I will bring guns, and someone else will bring a little airplane.

 

[tec699]

Originally posted by: VBboy

Originally posted by: datalink7

Originally posted by: VBboy
Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

Yup, playing Medal of Honor is exactly what it feels like storming the beaches in WWII.

Ok, well, sorry. Instead of playing a highly realistic game or watching a movie like Saving Private Ryan, why don't we all get together and have a little war for ourselves? We could allocate 20% of us to be killed, 60% to be wounded; and the rest would just work itself out! You bring a tank, I will bring guns, and someone else will bring a little airplane.

How about you guys bring the guns and try and shoot me. I'll kick all your arses!!

 

[VBboy]

Originally posted by: rh71

Originally posted by: VBboy
Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

I can see what you're trying to say - avoid getting killed... but seriously... being in a real war means you could cease to exist... to your family, to your friends, to anyone who ever cared about you. And it hurts to get shot or lose a limb in real life, I'm sure.

Then why did you ask? Sounds like you already know the answer. You can get hit by a bus and killed "equally well". And that game actually does let you see how many people die, how tough it is, etc. TRY IT.

 

[VBboy]

Originally posted by: tec699

Originally posted by: VBboy

Originally posted by: datalink7

Originally posted by: VBboy
Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

Yup, playing Medal of Honor is exactly what it feels like storming the beaches in WWII.

Ok, well, sorry. Instead of playing a highly realistic game or watching a movie like Saving Private Ryan, why don't we all get together and have a little war for ourselves? We could allocate 20% of us to be killed, 60% to be wounded; and the rest would just work itself out! You bring a tank, I will bring guns, and someone else will bring a little airplane.

How about you guys bring the guns and try and shoot me. I'll kick all your arses!!

Why don't you go right here before you start?

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: VBboy

Originally posted by: rh71

Originally posted by: VBboy
Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

I can see what you're trying to say - avoid getting killed... but seriously... being in a real war means you could cease to exist... to your family, to your friends, to anyone who ever cared about you. And it hurts to get shot or lose a limb in real life, I'm sure.

Then why did you ask? Sounds like you already know the answer. You can get hit by a bus and killed "equally well". And that game actually does let you see how many people die, how tough it is, etc. TRY IT.

There's a reason why I asked for real war vets. Can we please stop with the game comparisons ? There's a bigger risk for death in a war if you're comparing to getting hit by a bus. You go into a war HOPING YOU DON'T DIE.

 

[VBboy]

Originally posted by: rh71

Originally posted by: VBboy

Originally posted by: rh71

Originally posted by: VBboy
Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

I can see what you're trying to say - avoid getting killed... but seriously... being in a real war means you could cease to exist... to your family, to your friends, to anyone who ever cared about you. And it hurts to get shot or lose a limb in real life, I'm sure.

Then why did you ask? Sounds like you already know the answer. You can get hit by a bus and killed "equally well". And that game actually does let you see how many people die, how tough it is, etc. TRY IT.

There's a reason why I asked for real war vets. Can we please stop with the game comparisons ? There's a bigger risk for death in a war if you're comparing to getting hit by a bus. You go into a war HOPING YOU DON'T DIE.

I go outside hoping I don't die. Ok, no more game comparisons, though.

 

[datalink7]

Originally posted by: VBboy

Originally posted by: datalink7

Originally posted by: VBboy
Oh man, you absolutely have to play Omaha Beach mission in Medal Of Honor Allied Assault. It is as close as it gets to being on the frontlines. Gives you a whole new perspective. It's not just a game.

Yup, playing Medal of Honor is exactly what it feels like storming the beaches in WWII.

Ok, well, sorry. Instead of playing a highly realistic game or watching a movie like Saving Private Ryan, why don't we all get together and have a little war for ourselves? We could allocate 20% of us to be killed, 60% to be wounded; and the rest would just work itself out! You bring a tank, I will bring guns, and someone else will bring a little airplane.

Don't try to say watching a movie or playing a "highly realistic game" is akin to being in a real war.

I doubt that ANY soldier storming the beach in Normandy stopped to think "wow... this is really cool!" as just about everyone who plays the game thinks. And they didn't have the comfort of a "auto-reload" key either.

 

[EagleKeeper]

On the ground at the front line - scared but pumped. That is what you are trained for.

In the air, a rush and less scared; current situation from this vantage point is that until you have to get down into the weeds, it is similar to training exercises.

/experience on
The commercial gaming world does not generate any close comparison of the actual feelings.

 

[GoodToGo]

I havent even remotely been in war but I am sure that if you are on the superior side, the initial feeling of nervousness would be quickly be replaced by confidence.

 

[Parrotheader]

Maybe I'm just old school, but in addition to talking to a vet, why don't you try reading a book if you're really interested? There are hundreds if not thousands of biographies and autobiographies by soldiers who've experienced intense combat. They shed incredible light on the subject from the perspective of the soldiers themselves. Having spent a great deal of time studying WWII over the course of my history major my personal favorite was an autobiography of a young German soldier who spent most of his time on the Russian front (and if you know anything about WWII that was a TOUGH place to be):

The Forgotten Soldier - by Guy Sajer

 

[Jzero]

Off-the-cuff answer: I don't know and I hope I never find out.
More introspective answer: One of the first thing that really freaked me out about playing paintball was the realization that one shot is all it takes. You're not Rambo. You don't get hit by 5 bullets and keep going. One bullet. And you're done. Maybe in a real situation, your wounds will be minor or a medic will keep you alive until you can be rescued, but all you can do is try to limp to a safe place and hope your brothers find you before your enemy does.

But that's just what I picture. Crouched behind a wall or in a bunker, knowing I've got to do something. But one bullet is all it takes.....

One bullet.

 

[XZeroII]

Originally posted by: Jzero
Off-the-cuff answer: I don't know and I hope I never find out.
More introspective answer: One of the first thing that really freaked me out about playing paintball was the realization that one shot is all it takes. You're not Rambo. You don't get hit by 5 bullets and keep going. One bullet. And you're done. Maybe in a real situation, your wounds will be minor or a medic will keep you alive until you can be rescued, but all you can do is try to limp to a safe place and hope your brothers find you before your enemy does.

But that's just what I picture. Crouched behind a wall or in a bunker, knowing I've got to do something. But one bullet is all it takes.....

One bullet.

*sniff* How do you nominate a post for an oscar? Is there a postcard you fill out or something?

 

[johninabq]

Originally posted by: rh71
Any war vets here? I see it in the movies and the battle scenes are always intense. You never know when the next bullet or shrapnel will impale you. Describe (in as much detail as possible) how it felt as you're being constantly shot at with grenades and landmines all around...

Is it anything like the movies ? Does it trouble you to speak about it ? Is it a completely different feeling than we would imagine (adrenaline rush, etc.) ?

I was in Riyadh during the Gulf War. We had to jump into trenches when the air-raid sirens went off. But, I felt relatively safe in this huge tent city. I never questioned the ability of the Patroits knocking out the scuds. BTW, I was sent to the gulf region to fix honeywell mainframe probs as a sailor. Other than that, I was never really in harms way.

I do remember, however, the reaction at "Saving Private Ryan." I saw the movie with my wife at Arrowhead mall in Glendale AZ. The mall was right next door to Sun City and there were plenty of retirees at the show. A gentleman sitting right in front of me with his wife started shaking about 10 minutes into the movie. He finally got up and left the theater. His wife turned around and apologized to us for his reaction. She told us that he had never once talked about his experiences during D-Day. We decided to follow her to make sure her husband was OK. We found him in the lobby with other vets grabbing and consoling each other. We ended up going to dinner with Colby and Gert and became "friends" after that. Colby told me later that it was the most horrifying experience of his life and the movie was dead-on for the first twenty minutes (we attended another showing later on with them).

I don't think a person can understand the feeling of being there through a book, or a movie. It's a first person perspective that can only be felt by the person living it at the moment. I have another friend that is a special ops vet. He said the closest movie that describes the real thing is "Blackhawk Down." That is probably the closest you'll get to the real thing, without being there yourself.

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: johninabq

Originally posted by: rh71
Any war vets here? I see it in the movies and the battle scenes are always intense. You never know when the next bullet or shrapnel will impale you. Describe (in as much detail as possible) how it felt as you're being constantly shot at with grenades and landmines all around...

Is it anything like the movies ? Does it trouble you to speak about it ? Is it a completely different feeling than we would imagine (adrenaline rush, etc.) ?

I was in Riyadh during the Gulf War. We had to jump into trenches when the air-raid sirens went off. But, I felt relatively safe in this huge tent city. I never questioned the ability of the Patroits knocking out the scuds. BTW, I was sent to the gulf region to fix honeywell mainframe probs as a sailor. Other than that, I was never really in harms way.

I do remember, however, the reaction at "Saving Private Ryan." I saw the movie with my wife at Arrowhead mall in Glendale AZ. The mall was right next door to Sun City and there were plenty of retirees at the show. A gentleman sitting right in front of me with his wife started shaking about 10 minutes into the movie. He finally got up and left the theater. His wife turned around and apologized to us for his reaction. She told us that he had never once talked about his experiences during D-Day. We decided to follow her to make sure her husband was OK. We found him in the lobby with other vets grabbing and consoling each other. We ended up going to dinner with Colby and Gert and became "friends" after that. Colby told me later that it was the most horrifying experience of his life and the movie was dead-on for the first twenty minutes (we attended another showing later on with them).

I don't think a person can understand the feeling of being there through a book, or a movie. It's a first person perspective that can only be felt by the person living it at the moment. I have another friend that is a special ops vet. He said the closest movie that describes the real thing is "Blackhawk Down." That is probably the closest you'll get to the real thing, without being there yourself.

Thanks for sharing that. I recall the most powerful scene to me in Blackhawk Down was when the 2 guys dropped in to save the downed helo... and soon ran out of ammo... facing countless rifle-wielding rebels who didn't need much luck to take care of the 2 soldiers. I cannot imagine doing that... putting myself in that position voluntarily... knowing you're going to die. But I guess training for the marines attempts to prepare your mind for something like that. That's why they always come back a little "different" afterward... if they come back at all...

 

[Arkitech]

Originally posted by: johninabq

Originally posted by: rh71
Any war vets here? I see it in the movies and the battle scenes are always intense. You never know when the next bullet or shrapnel will impale you. Describe (in as much detail as possible) how it felt as you're being constantly shot at with grenades and landmines all around...

Is it anything like the movies ? Does it trouble you to speak about it ? Is it a completely different feeling than we would imagine (adrenaline rush, etc.) ?

I was in Riyadh during the Gulf War. We had to jump into trenches when the air-raid sirens went off. But, I felt relatively safe in this huge tent city. I never questioned the ability of the Patroits knocking out the scuds. BTW, I was sent to the gulf region to fix honeywell mainframe probs as a sailor. Other than that, I was never really in harms way.

I do remember, however, the reaction at "Saving Private Ryan." I saw the movie with my wife at Arrowhead mall in Glendale AZ. The mall was right next door to Sun City and there were plenty of retirees at the show. A gentleman sitting right in front of me with his wife started shaking about 10 minutes into the movie. He finally got up and left the theater. His wife turned around and apologized to us for his reaction. She told us that he had never once talked about his experiences during D-Day. We decided to follow her to make sure her husband was OK. We found him in the lobby with other vets grabbing and consoling each other. We ended up going to dinner with Colby and Gert and became "friends" after that. Colby told me later that it was the most horrifying experience of his life and the movie was dead-on for the first twenty minutes (we attended another showing later on with them).

I don't think a person can understand the feeling of being there through a book, or a movie. It's a first person perspective that can only be felt by the person living it at the moment. I have another friend that is a special ops vet. He said the closest movie that describes the real thing is "Blackhawk Down." That is probably the closest you'll get to the real thing, without being there yourself.

Damn, thats really something to think about. I can't imagine the mental anguish that some of these vets have to live with, it almost makes you kinda pissed that our veterans are'nt better cared for by the goverment.

 

[rh71]

^ for more vets.