After almost a month of insisting that the controversial military shooter Six Days in Fallujah was not a political game, publisher Victura has backtracked saying that the events portrayed in the upcoming title are “inseparable from politics.” Since the game was re-announced in February, gamers and non-gamers alike have accused Six Days in Fallujah of irresponsibly depicting the bloodiest battle of the Iraq War.

Six Days in Fallujah has been surrounded by controversy since the beginning of its development. It was first announced in 2009 as a survival horror title in development by Atomic Games, but was criticized by military veterans and anti-war groups. They argued the real-life events that took place during the 2004 battle were too horrific to be turned into a video game. The controversy led Konami, Six Days in Fallujah’s original publisher, to drop the game only a few weeks after it was announced.

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Many gamers believed Six Days in Fallujah was indefinitely canceled, until publisher Victura announced the game was back in development by Highwire Games. The controversy that canceled the game more than a decade ago came roaring back, leading Victura to insist that Six Days in Fallujah was not intended to be a political commentary. However, the publisher backtracked on those comments earlier today when it released a statement explaining that the game “gives voice to a variety of perspectives.”

The statement reveals that the game will feature a mix of first-person shooter gameplay and documentary footage to tell its story. The game’s creators interviewed a number of US military veterans who took part in the battle, as well as 26 Iraqi civilians, in order to “share their stories.” Most of the game will be played from the perspective of a U.S. marine, but some segments will feature stealth-oriented gameplay from the perspective of Iraqi civilians who were attempting to survive in the chaos.

The statement seems to be a direct response to accusations that Six Days in Fallujah would take a US-centric approach in its storytelling by glorifying the experiences of US soldiers and ignoring the atrocities that were committed against Iraqi civilians. The US military admitted to using white phosphorus against civilians during the conflict, an act that is considered a war crime under International Law. At least 800 Iraqi civilians and almost 100 U.S. soldiers died in the battle, according to the Red Cross.

The battle of Fallujah took place almost 15 years ago and remains a traumatic memory for those who were involved. It will be a difficult task for Victura and Highwire to turn Six Days in Fallujah into a critically acclaimed game under so much scrutiny. Many of the game’s critics seem to have a good point, and the fact that Victura CEO Peter Tamte once worked with a company backed by the CIA only seems to strengthen the allegations that Six Days in Fallujah is a recruitment tool for the U.S. military.

Six Days in Fallujah is expected to release late 2021 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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