Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Oh Brother
I am sure that everyone has seen this on the news but I had to post about it because it just makes me SO angry!! I am so outraged by the new "Left Behind" video game! If any of you haven't heard about it, its a new game that is apparently set "post rapture" and your goal, I guess, is to kill non Christians. Huh????? Who put this thing out on the market. Is this what we have representing Christianity? Apparently if you kill a christian accidentally then you lose some life but you can earn it back again by praying. How Nice. If this was out in the market and it was Muslims killing Christians it would be an outrage. Who is buying this and who is defending it??? I don't even have words for this! Gee, I wonder why people have such strong feelings on Christians? Could it be the stupid people who always come out of the woodwork to represent us. I sware we aren't all like this!
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I just went and checked out some things on about the game and i found a statement from the makers of the game here:
http://www.leftbehindgames.com/pages/controversy.htm
I also looked up secular reviews of the game and it does seem that there is little violence in the game. But in one of the reviews I read, they were actually disappointed that the game seems to be watered down as to not offend non-Christians. They were expecting the cataclysmic stuff described in Revelation (none of which is really in the game). I guess it's a real time strategy game (think The Sims) where your missions is to form an underground Christian group to spread the "truth" about why 1/3 of the world's population disappeared (with a percentage like that, I guess they had to included the catholics in their rapture).
So the game turns out to not be all that controversial, just boring and horribly executed. The graphics are terrible, the AI is pathetic, the controls are bad.
The real controversy should be how you take Revelation, one of the most vivid and creative texts in the history of mankind (not to mention by far the most alluded to in video games) and make it boring and uninspired.
Whether there's explicit violence or not, it just seems to be a horrible premise for a video game. I don't know how they're going to sell a single copy. It just sounds stupid to me.
Also, I find it disheartening that a lot of the media that comes out of the evangelical church (Yeah, I'm gonna say it, it's the evangelicals) is complete and total crap. I see it in music, in art, in movies... and now in this video game. It's like being a Christian gives you a pass from having any sort of craft or having to learn the principles of the art you're participating in... you can just turn out meaningless albums or paintings or video games that are completely artless and it's okay because it's Christian, so people will buy it.
Also, I haven't read the Left Behind books. Well, actually, I tried to. I picked up the first one at the library and read the first few chapters, and I almost threw up because it was one of the worst written books I've ever read. Worse than the Satanic Bible, even... and if you've read that, you know how poorly that's written.
Anyway, I haven't read the Left Behind books, but I have read an apocalyptic book called "The End of the Age" by Pat Robertson. I think it was a gift from my parents. This book was unbelievably offensive to me. The Christians portrayed in the books would lie, steal, yes even kill to preserve their own lives. Apparently, getting out the truth about the rapture and evangelizing was more important than those silly little Commandments that God set down a couple of thousand years ago. And these people were portrayed as heros! Giants of the faith!
Shame, shame, shame.
I think there were some similar things going on in the Left Behind book where Christians were lying about who they were and bowing before false gods all in the name of self preservation. I think perhaps these authors should read a little Kant, especially where he says "let justice be done though the heavens fall."
I hadn't even heard of it, but it sounds ridiculous to me!
ok i'm gonna be the loser that admits i've not only read all the left behind books but i read the entire series TWICE. let me preface my opinion by saying they are NOT well written as far as being literary masterpieces or anything; however i think that's the point. they were meant for the masses...and need to be easy to read. now the reason I READ THEM TWICE is because revelation has always absolutely boggled my little brain and the books actually helped me in my academic pursuit (believe it or not) as far as figuring out that particular book of the bible. in fact the second time through the series i read it with my bible next to me so i could compare passages. heaven knows there are people A LOT SMARTER THAN I who maybe have a handle on revelation, but for those who don't those books really helped... :)
I can't stand video games as it is. I don't mind the teaching games, the ones with numbers and letters for younger kids, it sickens me when kids and adults spend hours in front of the TV blwoing things up, shooting stuff and whatnot. Ridiculous that they would make up a game with non-Christians as a character or as a symbol. What does that even mean?
I think it means nothing except $$!!! Sometimes I get annoyed by all of the attempts to market things to Christians. Yes, it is a market that is worth exploring, but I'm not going to run out and buy something that has a "christian" name/title just b/c I am a Christian.
Kiki, I feel the same way about video games.LOL!
P.S. Except for Tetris! LOL!
Okay Sara, remind me to turn off my computer when John and E come to visit, and again if KiKi ever comes! I'd be in big trouble!
As I was thinking about this last night, something really began to bother me. In my day there were only three things you killed in video games, robots, aliens, and communists (of the Russian variety mostly). These games kept us on our toes to watch out for the imminent attacks of robots, aliens, and communists (or worst of all communist alien robots). Now, with games like Left Behind, kids are letting their guards down! Maybe this isn't a big deal now, but when I get older and this younger generation is running our government and military, we are screwed! How is a generation ignorant of these foes going to know how to stop an army of cyborgs, or a fleet of aliens, or communists?? I see a dark cloud raising over the horizon people.
Dan, LOL!
Jenny, I'm not saying it's wrong to read the books, but if you want an accurate understanding of Revelation, I'm afraid you'll have to look much further than the Left Behind series. Not only is there some serious anti-Biblical stuff in there, but that view is just one man's opinion. Okay, a lot of men's opinions, but there are a million other theories out there about what Revelation means, the rapture, etc. Many scholars think the events in Revelation have already taken place, some believing it was referring to the destruction of the temple in 70 AD. Many Biblical scholars don't believe in a pre-tribulation rapture.
I don't claim to be a scholar myself, but I just know that there are so many more theories as to what Revelation means and what the end of the world is going to look like, many much more Biblically sound than what is explained in Left Behind. I recommend reading "The Rapture Exposed: The Message of Hope in the Book of Revelation by Barbara Rossing." It's pretty interesting to see how Rapture Theology doesn't really line up Biblically.
Dan, LMAO!
Just think of it... robots... ravaging our cities... banding together in the fight against humanity... melding into one to become... a SUPER ROBOT!
http://www.absoluteanime.com/transformers_robots_in_disguise/index.jpg
My Roomba just winked at me. Sweet Lord, it's all over.
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