Global War Game: The First Five Years

Global War Game 1979 was the start of the first five-year series of global games that explored conflict in a worldwide setting. These games focused on developing insights into how maritime campaigns might be conducted on a global scale. Consequently, the emphasis in this first series was largely naval. However, as the series progressed, it became clear that naval play could not exist in isolation and that political actions and the activities of other services impacted heavily on the decisions for maritime force employment. Therefore, both interservice and intraservice participation, as well as civilian representation, were increased in order to provide a broader perspective. Initially, advice and assistance were solicited from the Army and Air Force regarding methods to make the game more realistic. Both services provided full cooperation, particularly the respective war colleges at Carlisle and Maxwell and the School of Command and Staff at Leavenworth. By the end of the first series, the focus of the military play was clearly joint, with the Army and the Air Force sending large delegations, which were fully integrated into the play of the game in all its aspects. The second five-year Global series, building on this foundation, stressed all aspects of military operations.