Left Behind Eternal Forces

Run time: 08:51 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YMaYEOz3kA   Posted on YouTube: November 14, 2006 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: October 16, 2007 By DU Member: Az Views on DU: 1818

 
This is the fundamentalist idea of a nonviolent video game(apparently its not violence if you are shooting nonbelievers). Go stomp out the nonbelievers. Sure you have to kill a few of them. But you pray afterwards so that makes it ok.

And Christians wonder why non-believers refuse to believe them. :eyes:

I'm assuming you haven't played it.

Violence is the fast-track to losing the game.

Their own video shows violence? Shooting other people, blowing up buildings, how is that not violence?

You'll have to post more if you want to be taken seriously at all.

Az says that this is claimed to be non-violent. No such claim is made. What is claimed is that the "violence" is "spiritual" (magical, essentially) in nature. This is supported by the images of gameplay where people are flinging balls of color light at each other and no one is being physically injured.

One guy shows us how a "good guy" has turned hostile forces neutral. Frankly, I think that's a much better lesson to be teaching kids than the "kill 'em all" of most video games. I'm not crazy about the overall political and theological messages in the game, but I have to give credit where it is due.

Az's implication that this game focuses on "killing non-believers" and pretending that this killing is not killing because the targets are non-believers is not accurate.

Edit: formatting

"This is the fundamentalist idea of a nonviolent video game(apparently its not violence if you are shooting nonbelievers). Go stomp out the nonbelievers. Sure you have to kill a few of them. But you pray afterwards so that makes it ok. "

That's where you went wrong, and that is the misrepresentation I was referring to.

As a huge fan of C&C type games, I played this game to see what it was about and whether the hype against it was deserved. It's nothing like YOU characterized in your OP. The video doesn't even support your captioning. The consequences of taking the violent route were swift and conclusive; as in You Lose the Game.

But even in the good path you have to kill a few nonbelievers. And it is the idea that nonbelievers will be the opposition and that a bit of prayer absolves you from any guilt that makes this game hypocritical and dangerous.

In most C&C type games the bad guys are ... bad. But this game casts anyone who does not believe as the bad guy. Convert or die. That is the motif.

kill any at all.

And the message is not that "A little bit of prayer" absolves you.

I'm still wondering if you've played the game personally?

It doesn't change the fact that nonbelieves being cast as the bad guys is a troubling concept. Convert or die is still a pretty nasty message. I have talked to people who have played the game and they informed me that some killing was required.

you might give it a try, as I didn't have to kill anyone. At least then you'll be speaking from personal experience.

But as I have limited funds to spend on the games I do choose to play I have other games in mind I would rather spend my money on. And add to that I have no wish to add to the bank accounts of anyone advocating converting nonbelievers such as myself.

From the video, it sure looks violent enough to me, and from their own description, it's "special" violence, not real violence with blood and gore but instead a "holy" war that then uses a different kind of violence somehow. Odd. It makes sense that you'd lose the game if you killed everyone (since the goal apparently is getting them into heaven), but it still looks pretty darn violent.

But it is not possible to complete the game without killing a few nonbelievers. But if you pray afterwards it absolves you and restores your spiritual energy.

nonbelievers. It wasn't easy, obviously, but the only situations in which I had to even consider violence were defensive and I avoided it. The picture I came away with was the difficulty in avoiding the violence was worth the avoidance.

I still don't like the idea of nonbelievers being cast as the bad guys. Its a bit troubling.

your feelings on that point.

If it makes you feel any better, it's not actually the "Non-believers" that cause all the ruckus and are branded the Bad Guys, it's the Antichrist and his militants. The Non-believers in general are the "Neutrals" whom you are tasked with getting to join you (But NOT at the point of a sword).

Yet, they are sending copies of this to the troops according to one new source.

I fear all the damn hype about this stupid game has led it to sell more copies than any game of that quality ever would. This may lead the market to more fundie s*** being released more often.

I had no idea that the military tough books the soldiers have permissions to let them play (incredibly bad) video games.

More information here: http://www.americasarmy.com/

The game is a recruiting tool. I've seen it played. It stresses teamwork and strategy over "shooting things as fast as you can" (that's the Blackwater game ;)). Failure to work as a team equates to failure in the game.

I assume that the soldiers are allowed to play this game.

Not at all. No major impact for money spent. I've played it. It's really f***ing obnoxious.

Blackwater game? Army of Two: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6100848326354559584

It seemed like a stupid idea. My brother liked it, but he's in the Army.

Christians don't just want to save the world, they want to remake it.

They've got Christian music, movies, books, stores, clothing and video games. Next they want Christian government, soldiers and police officers. Those are important to guarantee that we don't "back slide" into apostasy (read: thinking for ourselves).

They may be wasting virtual heathen in their games, but once they have the power they'll do it for real. When Christianity has been able to seize the levers of power people always suffer.

Not all Christians are Dominionists, or Christian Nationalists as I call them.

You are right that when religious authority is mixed with political authority people suffer. Many of the people who have suffered are the religious left; we support separation of church and state, as well as religious freedom (religious faith is meaningless unless it is entered into freely), yet we are often lumped in with the Christian Nationalists.

The Christian Nationalists are a small group that has been given undue attention because they are vocal and organized. You don't see the Christian left as much because we keep our religion personal and private. We try to make a difference in our communities because we believe that it is our duty to do so, but we don't need public recognition for this (in fact, it would be a sin to seek it).

I believe that that pushing all "Christians" out of the progressive tent is a terrible, terrible mistake that is being made by the secular left. You can't fight ideological puritans with ideological puritanism. Ideological puritanism is self-destructive. Progressives of all faiths and no faith need to band together and hold the line against these nutcases until they implode (which they will).

Then, we have to hold the line against the next incarnation of it. It's a tough job, but if we don't do it — together — things will end up as you describe.

Can you steal Satan's car and then run over pedestrians with it?

TlalocW

Where does anyone say this is non-violent? At the beginning of the presentation, the screen says "Rated T(Teen)" for "violence".

Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins can go fuck themselves for all their right-wing militaristic Christian crap, but there's nothing particularly wrong with this video game. It's certainly not about killing non-believers, if you bother to watch their commercial. (Oh, and thanks for making me sit through that eight minutes of hype, just to make a fair assessment, Az!)

I suppose that I must be suspect because I like to send Protoss Zealots and Templars into battle in StarCraft. Then again, so does the Harrisite atheist friend that I play with. Playing the side with magic religious powers is fun. Taste my bloody vengeance, Terran scum!

Edit: formatting

It sets nonbelievers up as the bad guys. And you have to kill a few (as I said) in order to complete the game. But killing them does not end the game nor put you permanently on the path to evil. You merely have to pray to rid yourself of the loss of spirituality due to killing people. If this is part of the positive message they are trying to put out there to kids... its a bit scary.

did you actually play the game to learn this, or did someone tell it to you?

I agree that the beliefs that underlie the whole "Left Behind" phenomenon are pretty scary; I'd go further and say that they are blatant heresies as well. What nauseates me is the vindictive glee that is taken in the suffering of non-believers and apostates in the stories. It's all about "Ha ha! You didn't believe us fundies and now you're really going to be sorry!" One http://www.ambs.edu/Ljohns/">Mennonite theologian (which is kinda like "Progressive Amish") summed it up nicely in http://www.ambs.edu/LJohns/Leftbehind.htm">this piece:

It would be nice to see other games with a sense of morality come from another source — particularly a Humanist source — but ideology (of any sort) tends to work against entertainment.

I don't know that you are suspect though as I am an atheist and I do like to use the Protoss as well. I still have the Zula Pocka Zule(IIRC) line stuck in my head that one of the units would say when selected.

Howdy!

Its in the pipe as we speak and should be released sometime in the near future.

I remember wating forever for Half-Life 2 as well. I haven't seen a release date from Blizzard though.

Though Blizzard has a habit of not releasing until its ready.

Blizzard isn't announcing a date. I'm sure they'd love to make the 2007 gift season, but I'm not holding my breath.

In the mean time, there are a couple of preliminary "game play" videos http://www.starcraft2.com/movies.xml">available on the Blizzard site. Warning, they're huge downloads, but well worth the wait — as I expect the game to be.

I didn't even realize the videos were available!

Christian maufacturers and consumers have this superiority complex when it comes to their products verses "secular" ones. It's astonishing how this promo video slams the very industry it's trying to market and gain acceptance in. The game looks no better than any other C & C i've seen in recent memory. Next thing you know they are going to be ranting how it's not getting any award recognition just like when the Passion of the Christ didn't get nominated for best picture at the Oscars. Let the game speak for itself. I just wish the game company didn't make a crappy promo video trying to depict how "cool" the game is with fundy preachers and old slang straight out of a 1980's After School Special :)

But please don't generalize the "Consumers." I love C&C and I enjoyed this game as well. Technically speaking, this game was inferior to a recent C&C but was enjoyable to play. I don't see either as superior or inferior from a moral standpoint. They are games to me and that's all.

Bart has to spend time with Flanders' kids and they wind up playing a game where they have to go out and throw bibles at nonbelievers to convert them. The funny line is when Bart nails one and gets excited about it only to realize he only winged him and turned him into a Unitarian.

I am trying not to over generalize. Sorry if I offended. Some who consume Christian products tend to do so on the basis that they're "Christian" and therefore better. That is nonsense and in many cases that's simply not true.

I just like to take opportunities to make the distinction when I can, because there is so much negativ attention out there right now.

at Walmart Music dept in the Inspirational section.

He's the lead singer of an indie band called JEEZUS

He gives Nemos a badder name and that's hard to do.

does killing for Christ give him a woody?