This 2017 special edition of the CSIAC Journal focuses on wargames and the many uses of Modeling and Simulation (M&S) that support decision making needed at the various levels of combat. In this issue you will find a selection of topics ranging from the uses of serious games for education and training to use of early synthetic prototyping to construct a physics-based game environment for assessing how new technologies might be employed on the battlefield through the use of user/soldiers participating in games.
Articles In This Issue
Introduction to Serious Games to Enhance Defense Capabilities – Modeling & Simulation Special Edition
It is our honor to introduce the Modeling and Simulation (M&S) “Serious Games to Enhance Defense Capabilities” Special Edition of the Journal which focuses on wargames and the many uses of M&S that support decision making needed at the various levels of combat. The origins...Learning Cyber Operations Through Gaming: An overview of current and up and coming gamified learning environments
Cyber warfare, cyberterrorism, and cybercrime are serious existential threats to the national security of the United States. This is driving a demand signal for expert cyber operators that is far outpacing the supply. As a result, there is a pressing need to rapidly establish innovative,...Serious Gaming Design for Adaptability Training of Military Personnel
As the world in the 21st century has become more dynamic and unpredictable, the need for adaptive behavior in the military is of increasing importance. A serious game (SG) seems to be a suitable intervention for improving adaptability to prepare the military to deal with...Crowd-Driven Tactical Decision Game: Training Tactical Creativity
In this article we describe how we used the concepts of serious gaming and crowd-sourcing to design, develop and play-test a game to train tactical creativity for staff officers (level 5-6, battalion and brigade) in the RNLA. In the game, trainees solve complex tactical challenges,...Early Synthetic Prototyping Digital Warfighting For Systems Engineering
It is widely accepted that many state and non-state adversaries are approaching technical parity with United States military. This is especially the case where commercial research and development produces militarily useful technologies such as cyber, robotics, and drones. (The Operational Environment and the Changing Character...