Iraq War Board Game “Battle To Baghdad”: “You Will Take Out Airports, Night Bomb Cities, Hunt Down Saddam Hussein, And Take Over Baghdad”…

Such Sickos, Deviates

Board Games: An Army of Fun
Newsweek

Nov. 28, 2005 issue - The Iraq war has spawned playing cards (remember Saddam as ace of spades?), countless books and even a TV series. Now it has its own board game. An Oregon company, Jiggi Games, has released Battle to Baghdad: The Fight for Freedom. The game is set in March 2003, with U.S. forces racing across the desert. "You will take out airports, night bomb cities, hunt down Saddam Hussein, and take over Baghdad," say the instructions. The goal is to conquer Baghdad without running out of soldiers while drawing cards like "Car bomber ... You lose 200 troops" or "Air drop ... You gain 300 troops." One card shows a female soldier holding a naked detainee on a leash and reads, "Disgrace: Some soldiers are found guilty of unlawful treatment and inhumane acts of violence toward Iraqi prisoners. You lose 100 troops!"

The game was conceived by Rick and Michele Medina of Klamath Falls, Ore., youth pastors who say they wanted a family-friendly game that would support the military. "I was hoping that maybe this would show Americans what [soldiers] are really going through over there," says Rick. They are marketing it to military families and veterans; one customer bought one for her son in Iraq. The game's missing just one thing: an exit strategy.

—Matthew Preusch
© 2005 Newsweek, Inc.

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