Marine Corps touts benefits of wargaming venue under construction

Marine Corps officials are espousing the benefits of its Wargaming and Analysis Center currently under construction.

The 100,000 square-foot venue will house various capabilities to enhance warfighter preparedness.

“This facility is a big deal to us, to the commandant and to those [young men and women] at Parris Island or at San Diego,” Lt. Gen. Eric Smith, deputy commandant for the Marine Corps Combat Development and Integration, said during the recent groundbreaking ceremony conducted aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia. “There are a bunch of officer candidates training right now who have no idea what is going on here today. But they will benefit [from this facility].”

Slated for completion in 2024, authorities indicated the Marine Corps Wargaming and Analysis Center is designed to help Marines better visualize the threat environment, gain competitive advantages over adversaries, and simulate future operating environments.

The venue is also expected to provide data to inform decisions impacting development, force management, and system functionality. At the same time, simulations will support existing and developing weapons platforms and capabilities in all regions of the globe.

“This facility will include a complex set of modeling and simulation, visualization, immersive and analytical tools to enhance wargaming activities,” said Sharleene Prieur, acting program manager for Marine Corps Systems Command’s (MCSC) Working Group Coordinator (WGC). “These tools will enable wargame participants to work through complex problems or develop fully informed, data-enabled decisions to support the Marine Corps planning process.”