8 Video Games That Tackle Incredibly Polarising Subject Matter
7. Ghost Recon Wildlands: The War On Drugs
Of all the United States' costly military ventures, not many are as controversial as the War on Drugs. Sure, there is the War on Terror, but I'm saving that for later.
As far as military shooters go, Ghost Recon was never one to tackle conventional warfare. Always the subject of near-future settings, the tactical shooter always aimed to replicate the late Tom Clancy's high-octane yet fictitious style of story-telling, taking place in completely untenable scenarios to the tune of the the author's international post-Cold War narratives.
Wildlands thus sets itself apart from its predecessors, sending the U.S Army's fictional special-forces unit into the heart of Bolivia itself to tackle the also non-existent Santa Blanca Drug Cartel. In a time where the U.S's policy on drug warfare has come under heavy scrutiny, Ubisoft's choice to set their latest title in such a manner is an interesting one, to say the least.
Current estimates place annual US spending on the War on Drugs at around $51 billion annually, with the nations primary focus of aid and combatants being in, you guessed it, South America. There is a danger here that Ubisoft repeat the mistakes of EA and completely forego any discussion there is to be had with U.S policy in South America, but here's hoping their Paris studio at least attempt to offer some examination of the War's contentious nature.
If not, Wildlands could be remembered for all the wrong reasons.