Ukrainian military says Call of Duty gamers would make 'great' drone pilots in a real war

Ukrainian special military unit says that Call of Duty players make for great drone pilots, thanks to gamers' quick decision-making skills, reactions.

Ukrainian military says Call of Duty gamers would make 'great' drone pilots in a real war
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Gaming Editor
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TL;DR: The Ukrainian military believes Call of Duty players make excellent drone pilots due to their experience with fast-paced decision-making and complex controls. However, real drone warfare is more complicated and dangerous. Ukraine's Typhoon unit highlights the differences between gaming and actual combat, emphasizing the lack of a restart option in real-life operations.

Have you ever sat there playing Call of Duty and thought 'man, I'd make for an awesome drone pilot in a real war', well, the Ukrainian military agrees with you... saying that COD players make great drone pilots in a war.

Ukrainian military says Call of Duty gamers would make 'great' drone pilots in a real war 34

In a chat between battling it out in a war, Ukraine's special drone unit somehow had the time to speak with Business Insider. The unit is called Typhoon, saying that real drone warfare is far more complicated and more dangerous than using drones in games like Call of Duty.

Uncrewed systems, including a range of first-person view drones (FPV) are being used on Russia's special military operation in Ukraine, with Ukrainian operators comparing how they fly their drones, and how they play video games. FPV headsets aren't like VR systems, and while the controllers can be similar, they're different beasts.

You can even download a game called "Death From Above" that puts gamers in the position of a Ukrainian FPV drone operator, where gamers can fly through the battlefield, target enemies, and drop bombs on vehicles. That is a game, and the operation in Ukraine is very real: drones are flying over head, constantly threatening soldiers, tanks, and more.

A Typhoon operator told Business Insider: "People might think flying a military drone is like playing Call of Duty, until they realize there's no restart option. Gamers make great drone pilots because they are used to fast-moving situations on the screen, just like in real drone operations. They already have experience making quick decisions, reacting fast, and controlling complex systems, which are all important skills in combat".

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Anthony joined the TweakTown team in 2010 and has since reviewed 100s of graphics cards. Anthony is a long time PC enthusiast with a passion of hate for games built around consoles. FPS gaming since the pre-Quake days, where you were insulted if you used a mouse to aim, he has been addicted to gaming and hardware ever since. Working in IT retail for 10 years gave him great experience with custom-built PCs. His addiction to GPU tech is unwavering and has recently taken a keen interest in artificial intelligence (AI) hardware.

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