A video game based on the 1993 raid in Somalia known as "Black Hawk Down" is due to hit US stores soon.
The company producing the game, Calabasas, California-based NovaLogic, said the game was patriotic, intended in part to educate the public about the US mission in Somalia.
But some critics question that aim and whether the game risks blurring the line between history and entertainment, as well as altering perceptions about the bloodiest firefight in US military history since Vietnam.
Some even speculate it could lead to games about other tragedies - maybe even Sept 11th. NovaLogic said it has a game in the works about US soldiers in Afghanistan.
Mr Mark Bowden, the author of "Black Hawk Down" the best-selling book about the Somali raid, said he declined to be involved with the game because it was not in line with his purpose in writing the critically acclaimed non-fiction book.
"We were approached by them and I just told my agent I didn't want to be involved," Mr Bowden said. "To me there's a qualitative difference between making a game and telling a story."
NovaLogic said the upcoming military adventure game "Delta Force - Black Hawk Down" would center around a series of US commando raids against Somali warlords, allowing players to take on the role of special forces troops.
In the real-life battle that inspired the book and a hit movie based on it, US troops hunting for Somali warlord Mohamed Farah Aidid entered Mogadishu on Oct 3rd, 1993, and were caught in a fierce firefight after a Black Hawk helicopter was shot down. A total of 18 soldiers were killed.