"Do not count days, do not count miles, count only the number of Germans that you have killed!"

[Båtsman]

As a young teenager, I of course cut my gaming-teeth at playing WW2 shooters. And the first WW2 shooter I ever played was Call of Duty: Finest Hour. In this game, the opening sequence has you crossing the Volga as a Russian private in a scene "inspired" by the one in Enemy at the Gates (as opposed to the PC game, that one straight up copied the movie):

The whole sequence is fantastic. It is short since the character has already introduced himself (in a cod game!), and the whole sequence is scored to this magnificent orchestral rendition of Oh the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus, which hilariously pretty much is the Soviet theme for this game. But now I've found out that the speech by the commissar during the boat ride is based on an actual piece of WW2 Russian propaganda, supposedly penned by one Ilya Ehrenburg. Would any forumite happen to know more about any of this. Say, what exactly is the context behind this?

Thanks.

 

[Sanny]

Great opening sequence, the game was so far ahead for its time.

To your question, Soviet Propaganda (even German Propaganda) was huge in Stalingrad, but for crossing the Volga, motivational speeches were needed to get those men onto the boats. Russian reinforcements mostly arrived by train from the otherside of the Volga and the soldiers would cower in fear at what they saw on the opposite bank, a city in flame, it looked like hell to them and the Germans were waiting for them. Cowards were shot of course even on the boats, if they tried to jump out.

I'm not sure why that exact speech is used other than it was to give the men heart to fight a seemingly unwinnable battle.

 

[Count Blue]

...And the first WW2 shooter I ever played was Call of Duty: Finest Hour
Thanks.

Been there, done that, great game.
Unforgettable experience, like you´ve been in history.
and everything @Sanny said.

 

[Grandpa Maur]

Umm, i remember something similar from one book... let me check...

Wiki to the rescue:

His article "Kill" published in 1942 — when German troops were deeply within Soviet territory — became a widely publicized example of this campaign, along with the poem "Kill him!" by Simonov.[3][4] In "Kill", Ehrenburg wrote: "We shall kill. If you have not killed at least one German a day, you have wasted that day... Do not count days; do not count miles. Count only the number of Germans you have killed."​