Just when you thought the Department of Homeland Security couldn’t get much more hip, DHS breaks out a cutting edge video game that not only gives responders experience in hard-to-simulate disasters, but will also eventually improve training strategies by collecting information about reactions to the game’s scenarios.

Zero Hour: America’s Medic was created in partnership with the National Emergency Medical Services Preparedness Initiative (NEMSPI) at George Washington University to help responders construct strategies in a real-time environment full of the same chaos and resource-tapping constraints they’re likely to deal with in real life.

Governing Magazine reported last week that the game, which uses the technology similar to that of the Halo 3 video game and would eventually allow for multiple-player online gaming, was available for $14.95. A note on the NEMSPI website today, though, said overwhelming interest in the game had sent designers back to the drawing board to retest the system. They expect to relaunch in the next few months.

For more information on the project, visit the NEMSPI website at or get a glimpse of the game action on YouTube.