Amid the many salacious revelations in Prince Harry’s memoir, Spare, one of the most concerning was not about his family. Harry revealed that he killed 25 members of the Taliban while serving in Afghanistan, and that he viewed them like pieces on a chessboard. His comments sparked criticism from top military figures and prompted Afghan families to call for his prosecution.
Harry’s comments suggest that military technology has advanced such that a soldier can say with certainty the number of kills they have made. But it also reveals how much “gamification” of warfare could become part of the military mindset.
Advancements in technology have allowed warfare to become more remote and operators more distant from their targets. Some argue that this makes them more likely to make risky decisions. Remote warfare is exemplified by the use of drones (unmanned aerial vehicles) in the US war on terror.
