The guys over at cracked.com have a few innovative ideas for making those unexciting RTS war simulations just a bit more realistic.

In a rant aimed at game developers, David Wong outlines 20 ways of improving realism and turning games into an experience which will give you an "ulcer and a 1,000 yard stare."

Here's a few of his tips for the ultimate war simulation, which is bound to provide you with hours of exciting gaming and PTSD on the side, abbreviated:

I want a sim where I spend two hours pushing across a map to destroy a "nuclear missile silo," only to find out after the fact that it was just a missile-themed orphanage.
I want one-fourth of my casualties to come from friendly fire and non-combat or training accidents.
About every five minutes, I want one of my helicopters to crash, completely on its own, for some ... reason.
I want my Mission Objectives to change every 30 seconds, without anyone letting me know."

Some suggestions are great, some are bizarre and others are downright morbid, but almost all are very funny and definitely worth reading, and if you're into strategies you shouldn't miss his article, here.