A violent Christian game?

[zcwilly]

Video title glorifying religious killings criticized, defended

10:24 PM CST on Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Associated Press

NEW YORK – Targeted largely at conservative Christians, it's a violent video game with a difference: Combatants on one side pause for prayer, and their favored interjection is "Praise the Lord."

Critics say Left Behind: Eternal Forces glorifies religious violence against non-Christians. Some liberal groups have been urging a boycott, and on Tuesday they urged Wal-Mart to withdraw the game from its shelves.

An image from Left Behind: Eternal Forces shows the video game that some want Wal-Mart to quit selling.

However, Troy Lyndon, CEO of Left Behind Games Inc., defended the game as "inspirational entertainment" and said its critics were exaggerating. He expressed greater concern about poor reviews from some video-game aficionados, saying the company would offer a free technical upgrade by Dec. 24.

Mr. Lyndon's company, based in Murrieta, Calif., has a license to develop games based on the popular Left Behind novels, a Bible-based end-of-the-world-saga that has sold more than 63 million copies.

Mr. Lyndon, in a telephone interview, said Eternal Forces has been distributed to more than 10,000 retail locations over the past four weeks. He said sales were going well but declined to give specifics.

The real-time strategy game has received a T (for teen) rating, as its makers had hoped. It offers more violence than an E-rated children's game, but less graphically than M-rated (for mature) games that have often been criticized by conservative Christian groups.

"Our game includes violence, but excludes blood, decapitation, killing of police officers," the company says on its Web site, noting that a player can lose points for "unnecessary killing" and regain them through prayer.

The game's story line game begins after the rapture, when most Christians are transported to heaven.

Earth's remaining population is faced with a choice of joining or combating the Antichrist.

The game's critics depict the ensuing struggle, set in New York City, as one fostering religious intolerance.

"Part of the object is to kill or convert the opposing forces," said the Rev. Tim Simpson of Jacksonville, Fla., who heads the Christian Alliance for Progress. "It is antithetical to the Gospel of Jesus Christ."

Mr. Simpson said he was dismayed by the concept in Eternal Forces of using prayer to restore a player's "spirit points" after killing the enemy.

Mr. Simpson, whose group was formed last year to counter the influence of the religious right, joined in a news conference Tuesday at which he and other speakers urged Wal-Mart to discontinue sales of Eternal Forces.

But Wal-Mart indicated it would continue selling the game online and in selected stores where it felt there was demand.

[-m-]

That's not surprising, the Left Behind novel series is one of the most abominably intolerant pieces of literary shit in the history of literary pieces of shit. It caters to the lowest common denominator in every way by playing to the fears and prejudices of those who interpret the Good Book in the most literal way. Mental masturbation to comfort the lemmings in this period in history where faith based products sales are in the upswing.

[transplant]

Originally Posted by Shitler

That's not surprising, the Left Behind novel series is one of the most abominably intolerant piece of literary shit in the history of literary pieces of shit.

bwhahahahaha!

[Ash]

Originally Posted by Shitler

That's not surprising, the Left Behind novel series is one of the most abominably intolerant piece of literary shit in the history of literary pieces of shit. It caters to the lowest common denominator in every way by playing to the fears and prejudices of those who interpret the Good Book in the most literal way. Mental masturbation to comfort the lemmings in this period in history where faith based products sales are in the upswing.

so are you saying thumbs down?

[-m-]

I've read better cans of soup.

[Funkenstein]

I went through it and I don't find it near as bad as the current real life war we are waging in Iraq. At least in this series, LaHaye and Jenkins kept it fake.



It's supposed to serve as Christian fiction and does quite well at it. How this game got pressed with their approval is beyond me (unless the lust for money is finally rearing its ugly head).

Or if Kirk Cameron said "cool".

[djetaine]

srsly though, good for them. If Christian's try to boycott violent non religious games and cant get em pulled, make one themselves.
Kind of for us to say no don't ya think. Lol.

[-m-]

What Christian function does the series serve aside from promoting a completely inaccurate translation of the scripture and utter intolerance to other philosophical schools of thought? I'm genuinely interested Brian because I consider you to be an extremely intelligent individual and, admittedly, I've only read excerpts of the books.

[Man Nub]

i don't know about ya'll but i'm already working on the code to make the angles nude. ESRB antics HERE WE COME!

[Funkenstein]

Originally Posted by Shitler

What Christian function does the series serve aside from promoting a completely inaccurate translation of the scripture and utter intolerance to other philosophical schools of thought? I'm genuinely interested Brian because I consider you to be an extremely intelligent individual and, admittedly, I've only read excerpts of the books.

I humbly accept your praise and will offer what I "think" to be the case (or at least a short-winded, big-worded opinion):

Two dudes saw how well a Godless version of the end times sold ("The Stand", Stephen King) and decided to give it a go and insert their Sunday school teachings into it. Those who were estranged from religion were shocked at its premise and for the fact that some of the protoganists were people they could relate to.

In short, those who didn't have religion tried to get at least a touch of some. Whether it was the right reasoning to do so, I couldn't tell anyone. Each person will do as they will, but I've found solace in belief. The actions that the book portrays isn't killing in the name of, but rather taking out the different heads of the snake that pop up each time (since in their books, Satan runs the government in the form of the GC ((Global Community)).

By the end of their books, Judaism, Catholicism, and all the faiths of the world are shown to be wrong and that only PERSONAL acceptance is the way to "come to Christ".

At least Stephen King did it all in one book instead of twelve, LOL.

[zcwilly]

Originally Posted by djetaine

If Christian's try to boycott violent non religious games and cant get em pulled, make one themselves.
Kind of for us to say no don't ya think. Lol.

Right, I don't see the ACLU jumping to their defense...

[-m-]

Originally Posted by Rufus P. Funk

I humbly accept your praise and will offer what I "think" to be the case (or at least a short-winded, big-worded opinion):

Two dudes saw how well a Godless version of the end times sold ("The Stand", Stephen King) and decided to give it a go and insert their Sunday school teachings into it. Those who were estranged from religion were shocked at its premise and for the fact that some of the protoganists were people they could relate to.

In short, those who didn't have religion tried to get at least a touch of some. Whether it was the right reasoning to do so, I couldn't tell anyone. Each person will do as they will, but I've found solace in belief. The actions that the book portrays isn't killing in the name of, but rather taking out the different heads of the snake that pop up each time (since in their books, Satan runs the government in the form of the GC ((Global Community)).

By the end of their books, Judaism, Catholicism, and all the faiths of the world are shown to be wrong and that only PERSONAL acceptance is the way to "come to Christ".

At least Stephen King did it all in one book instead of twelve, LOL.

Brian, you don't have to justify to me your reason for being Christian. It's a choice that I wouldn't ever personally make, but that's in the context of my own life and nobody else's. I'm sure I come off on here as a Christian hater, but really it's the perversion of it that I find so disturbing. And the perversion in this case is the interpretation of Revalations to fit the aim of the series. For one, the theme of the apocalypse is one that tells of the ending of a cycle and the beginning of the new one. Round and round, so to speak. Some feel that it's a prophecy of a shift from the Christian paradigm to whatever is to replace it as our species becomes more self actualized and needs a new worldview to serve its needs. And some feel that it's the rantings of the author, "John", who was railing against the Jewish prophets who were unaccepting of Christ during the time of Christianity's infancy. In any case, any credible source will tell you that Revalation is NOT about the "end of the world". How could anyone even seek to predict such in a time when people living in the fertile crescent were unaware of the Chinese?! People have sought to impose the symbolic language of this story over the goings on in the world at the time since it was written and have been repeatedly proven wrong.

The end is near? Not so much.

I find this use of artistic license with this piece of scripture to be particularly dangerous because, well, a lot of Christians swallow this sort of thing whole because they treat the metaphors of The Bible as concrete, historical fact. People in our government openly admit to the influence that scripture has had in the execution of our policy in the past (Reagan, among many others was very concerned with Revalations and spent much time studying it during his time in office). And that's not to mention the villifying of anything non-Christian by the authors. I shouldn't have to go into how destructive such literature can be.

Do I think the Left Behind series is going to bring about the end of the world? Of course not. But it's heart is not in the right place and it's just another pillar in the unstable foundation of the Fundamentalist Christian worldview that I could do without.

Sorry for the novel. I'm sure I'll get quoted and picked apart but that's how I feel.

[Funkenstein]

Originally Posted by Shitler

People have sought to impose the symbolic language of this story over the goings on in the world at the time since it was written and have been repeatedly proven wrong.

Truth on the internet.

Originally Posted by Shitler

The end is near? Not so much.

While I highly doubt it, one never knows. That is the every present danger of living is knowing that the end must inherently come at some point or time.

Originally Posted by Shitler

I find this use of artistic license with this piece of scripture to be particularly dangerous because, well, a lot of Christians swallow this sort of thing whole because they treat the metaphors of The Bible as concrete, historical fact. . . I shouldn't have to go into how destructive such literature can be.

It's all good. I know what you're saying and there are always hardheads ruining it for the rest of us balanced folk out here in the real world.

Originally Posted by Shitler

Do I think the Left Behind series is going to bring about the end of the world? Of course not. But it's heart is not in the right place and it's just another pillar in the unstable foundation of the Fundamentalist Christian worldview that I could do without.

Sorry for the novel. I'm sure I'll get quoted and picked apart but that's how I feel.

I hear and understand your viewpoint. Save your reading for something that interests you. I almost got bored to tears finishing the last 4 books (it's like reading "Wheel of Time" but in End Times format as recited by Ben Stein, LOL).

No apologies needed, I respect your stance and know about your plans to overthrow anyway. I called Homeland Security while I was typing this post.

See you in 30!



- Da Ruf

[-m-]

You told them I was an illegal immigrant, didn't you? TRAITOR!

[Funkenstein]

Originally Posted by Shitler

You told them I was an illegal immigrant, didn't you? TRAITOR!

/moves up ladder into twelfth level Mason