There’s a branch of the U.S. military ordered to protect the nation’s satellite network and defend the country against attack from beyond the sky, making sure everything from cellular communications to the digital economy remains operational — and they’re looking to gamers to lead their charge.
Most Americans know very little about the U.S. Space Force, the sixth branch of the country’s military, joining the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard. Admittedly, its name sounds like the title of a 1950s sci-fi radio show, but its theoretical history dates back to the end of the Second World War as the U.S. accelerated its rocket programs. Though officially installed in 2019 under then-President Donald Trump, you can trace the Space Force’s developmental path back through the Obama Administration to the Reagan-era concept of the Star Wars defense initiative, all the way to the Eisenhower era.
With China and other potential adversaries eyeing everything from bases on the moon to orbital weapons platforms, the Space Force has aggressively amped up its operations with the following officially stated mission duties: Provide freedom of operation for the United States in, from and to space; conduct space operations; protect the interests of the U.S. in space; and deter aggression in, from and to space.
To make sure the world learns about the Space Force and understands its function, the nonprofit Space Force Association (SFA) came together to tell the service’s stories and celebrate its personnel. Garfield Reeves-Stevens is one half of a highly successful writing and producing team with his wife, Judith. Together they now serve as story and technical consultants for the SFA.
Co-producers on the fourth season of the Star Trek series, Enterprise, the Reeves-Stevenses also developed, produced or wrote for Batman: The Animated Series, Phantom 2040, Flash Gordon, G.I. Joe and Primeval: New World. Meanwhile, their multiple tech-thriller novels put them on the New York Times and Los Angeles Times best-sellers lists. With Space Force, their flare for fiction has transitioned to describing some very real threats.
“Space Force is absolutely crucial,” says Garfield. “So much of modern warfare is centered on space-based assets. Meanwhile, we live in a space-based civilization from communications satellites, to the GPS system that controls shipping, to banking networks.”
While most of what the Space Force does remains highly classified, Reeves-Stevens adds that the service draws from an unusual talent pool compared to the other military branches. Their recruits — called Guardians — are both tech-savvy and imaginative, and include coders, hackers and gaming enthusiasts.
“Obviously, we can’t look up and see satellites,” he says. “Space Force needs Guardians who think conceptually to operate in an active, strategic space. Gamers are perfect for that.”
Space Force First Sergeant Mike Sullivan began his military career in the Air Force, coordinating their space capabilities at U.S. Strategic Command before becoming a Guardian. He credits the simple excitement of influencing the development of a new military service, coupled with taking on the unknown, for urging on his decision.
Importantly, from the perspective of his Space Force training, he’s a gamer.
“Due to current family and work commitments, I consider myself to be a casual gamer,” Sullivan says. “I will still put a few hours into playing video games where possible, but nothing compared to my dedication to gaming a few years ago. Previously I would have told you that I was a ‘hardcore’ gamer, meaning I put in significant time to various game titles and had a seriously competitive attitude.”
Sullivan spends more time on role-playing games these days, and the occasional mobile game when his schedule allows. He wouldn’t say that gaming alone prepared him for military service. Still, he insists the time spent playing them throughout his military career kept his thinking skills sharp, while developing social networks that are key to maintaining a successful career and a cohesive military organization.
“I’d break down gaming in the Space Force into two categories: fun and ‘serious games,’” he explains. “Fun is exactly what you think, but at a massive scale. A few years ago, myself and others were on a mission to convince the Air Force (since Space Force didn’t exist yet) to host and fund a gaming community for the service. Today, that community is Air/Space Force Gaming and hosts 41,000 Airmen and Guardians around the world.”
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The celebrated photojournalist, who recently opened his first solo exhibition in Milan, has been on the front lines of conflicts from Gaza to UkraineSullivan explains that the “why” of promoting community gaming is to build organic camaraderie and connection, whether via video games, RPGs, or tabletop and board games. He emphasizes that those connections break through traditional communication barriers that can be present when wearing the uniform. All participants share the experience of service and a passion for gaming.
As for Sullivan’s “serious games,” he describes them as more practical and aimed at building a better fighter in the real world.
“The concept of ‘serious games’ and gamification of defense is the idea of leveraging gaming, game technologies and the community of gamers to advance our military,” he adds. “That gaming extends beyond just AR/VR/XR, which are used prolifically throughout military training and operations for realism and relevancy. Even something as simple as using a team-based, commercially developed video game to teach basic leadership skills like communication, resource management, etc., becomes useful.”
According to Sullivan, the Space Force established itself as a “digital service,” conducting many of its operations in that arena.
“For the future, that means an even deeper dive into exploring how ‘serious games’ can bring a positive impact to how we operate as a service,” he says. “And, of course, gaming for fun will never die, so the need for these social communities like Space Force Gaming will only increase as each new recruit or digital native raises their hand to serve in the U.S. Space Force.”
As the SFA director of volunteer support, Diane Ward’s work focuses on educating and inspiring those digital natives — teaching students about space in the hope of creating aerospace professionals and potential Guardians of the future.
“We start with middle grade and high school students, some international,” Ward says. “We see no reason to wait until they’re 22 or 23 years old since they’re already really good with technology. A lot of these kids might be the nerdiest ones at school, and they may get picked on sometimes. It’s important they get to see what they can do now and in the future in the digital space.”
Ward highlighted the SFA Creator League as a key element in the development of potential Guardians. Headed up by Sergeant Sullivan, the league uses a coding environment where participants compete not by playing games, but by collaboratively building the software for new ones.
“I got involved in the Space Force Association because my own kids are interested in being Guardians someday,” Ward added. “I decided this was important and got involved myself.”
The concept of ‘serious games’ and gamification of defense is the idea of leveraging gaming, game technologies and the community of gamers to advance our military.
– Space Force First Sergeant Mike Sullivan
Reeves-Stevens is crystal clear on the importance of the relatively new military branch. As he reports, an immediate threat that the Space Force is focused on is hostile space actions by Russia, China and North Korea.
“While much of what Space Force does is ‘burn your eyes out’ classified, it would like to make clear to the country what the threats really are to our civilization,” he says. “Space Force remains the arm of the military that will protect access of going into space, operating in space and returning from space — and not just for the U.S., but for its allies.”
He stresses that, to keep the Space Force nimble and progressing in its mission, its top brass wants the creative minds of gamers. Those are the young professionals who can perceive, deduce and create swiftly enough in a dangerous environment to effectively respond to rapidly evolving threats.
“The most interesting aspect to us, as people who write about the military and study the military, is Space Force operates under a much different model,” he explains. “The command wants people who constantly question the status quo. You will rarely hear that in the military as the other branches of the service focus on chain of command. Space Force operates so quickly and so critically they need to get operational authority down as low as possible. They need to be lean and responsive.”
That’s where gamers who can hold a 3D environment in their heads come in, whether they’re playing first-person shooters, real-time strategy or world-exploration titles. Reeves-Stevens stresses that a young mind that can operate in those worlds and can enjoy operating there at high speed is perfect for, say, taking the seat of a satellite operator in the Space Force.
He says those seats need to be filled now, even if the public doesn’t fully understand the constant threats they face.
“That’s why Space Force is so important,” he adds. “All it would take is, say, the Russians or Chinese to detonate an EMP [electromagnetic pulse] in the upper atmosphere, and we’d all be back living in the 1950s.”
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