Let’s get the news out of the way first: According to an SEC filing discovered by Stock Market Quarterly, Left Behind Games “will be featured in a limited number of Walmart stores covering a broad area of states. This new market test is a follow-up to the marketing trial conducted in approximately 100 Walmart stores in Texas during the 2009 Christmas sales season.”
Walmart is very interested in distributing the Christian games around the country, but before it invests heavily, the retailer would like to see how the games perform in broader regions first.
Troy Lyndon, CEO of Left Behind Games believes this opportunity will allow his company to “further test our sales model regionally will provide us with ongoing market insight and a chance to enhance sales. Our Walmart strategy continues to be validated as we focus on placement, promotions and sales for the 2010 holiday gift giving season, when a majority of games are sold.”
That’s the news, now here’s the reality: When video games first came on the scene, they were family friendly interactions that everyone could enjoy, but as time passed, and great progress was made in technology, things began to change and games were inching ever closer (still are today) to realism. With that progress came more violence, strong language, blood and Gore, and the last to hit the scene was nudity.
So things have changed, but people remained the same…… especially Christians, our values never change. But we love games.
My name is Ernice Gilbert and yes I’m a born again Christian and Founder/Editor-In-Chief of www.GamesThirst.com. It’s no secret that I love, and appreciate the art form that is video games. But something is definitely wrong with the direction we’re carelessly racing in without anyone stopping to ponder the consequences. With Every year that passes, developers seem to push the boundary ever closer to numbing the minds of teenagers and adults alike who play games by disturbingly and foolishly inserting vulgar behaviors in games even when those behaviors are totally uncalled for. Let’s start with the language – this one really pisses me off.
Killzone 2 is the prime example of a game made stupid by inserting F-Bombs and other dirty language in situations totally uncalled for. And for what, to say the game is mature? That’s crap and bad writing skills if you ask me. I have many Christian friends, and you know what we did? We tried playing the game but realized from the inception that we couldn’t so we threw the thing away.
Same with Call of Duty: Wolrd At War – we opened the game (pumped to play) and the first word to come out of the title’s narration was a F-Bomb. Why in the freaking world would they do that is beyond me. It was not called for.
The first Modern Warfare was cool, but the second, in the Afghanistan scene, a F-Bomb was let loose.
I commended Battlefield: Bad Company for giving an option to eliminate the vile language, but the second does not give said option. Why not? Really, the first did so why not the second? It was a great step in the direction of respecting people….. But EA and DICE lapsed.
I am not trying to change the industry here, but if we’re going to trod certain paths, why not do it with precaution? There’s a huge Christian market in almost every form of entertainment. Look at what The Passion Of The Christ did in Hollywood. It’s still one of the biggest grossing films of all time. The music industry is no different: Christian artists sell millions of records every month – the gaming industry can do even better if the leaders decide to take steps to lure them in. They’re not. They’re driving Christians further away and in the process loosing hundreds of millions of dollars.
And why in the world a good action-packed Christian game hasn’t been created? I’m not talking about the low budget Left Behind series; I’m eluding to God of War type action games, especially stories from the old testament. Think of a game based around David and Goliath, or Samson, Elijah, Joshua and countless others who were constantly placed in the daunting position to defend their city, their people and values of their God with the sword. I reckon, a game like what I just explained would sell millions and millions without the vulgar language and uncalled for sex scenes that go into these new games.
They can do it, but they don’t. I’m talking about publishers and developers. It’s a risk yes, but definitely one worth taking. But who am I kidding? These people don’t give a crap about me and my Christian values – to their own loss.
Again, this is not an attempt to “change the industry”, neither is it an attempt to rile up religious wars. But it’s definitely a call to developers to create the option in games that would allow gamers to disable certain aspects of it if they chose to.
Nudity
Strong Language
Blood And Gore
Are the three main reasons why the Christian community haven’t delved full throttle into the industry. Also, developing a great Christian game would do very well. I have some ideas, so if you devs are lacking, call on me.
God bless you all and long live the industry.
Let’s start with the language – this one really pisses me off.
How are you going to write something like this and expect anyone to take you seriously? You’re a hypocrite with a special place in hell.
agreed
let me just say before i begin that i believe %100 in every thing the bible says. ok you, and any other commenter that agrees with you really confuse me. if your such a great and caring Christan then you shouldnt be playing a fps in the first place. come on your really trying to say that is ok to shoot and kill someone in a game as long as theres no bad language or blood? you have got to be kidding me! Another thing that gets me is that you care more about language than you do about violence. Have you ever seen the south park movie? no didnt think so, well your acting just like kyles mom did! with all that said i will totally agree that adding a censor for language would be great for those who dont like hearing that kind of stuff but dont say that you dont want to hear it because your a christian, your playing a fps…(killing people)with or with out blood its still immoral.
wait i just remembered you also listed nudity wow your really confused arent you
shacnback make up your mind…
Ok firstly, you’re being a hypocrite by swearing in this article. And secondly…
“That’s crap and bad writing skills if you ask me.”
…it’s not bad writing if a soldier lets off a few curse words during a firefight. That’s just realism and immersion. I am a Christian just like yourself, and I can tell you now I would most certainly swear my mouth off in a firefight.
Now I personally don’t think there is anything wrong with putting Blood, Gore, Nudity (why is this even bad anyways? There is nudity in the bible, do you close your eyes when you pee?), Sex or God forbid, swearing, into a video game or any form of entertainment. If you don’t like those, well fine, that’s your choice. You really should just not play any games with those things in them then. I am a writer (and a Christian), and I would never ever censor out any aspect of my work, and I would be appalled at someone asking to have an option to turn certain bits off or cut bits out of my work. Everything in the game is intended as it is, if you don’t like it, don’t play it. Simple as that. So I would be completely and utterly against any form of censorship, even if it’s just an on off toggle, in games. Plus, it would mean devs have to waste time going through their game taking bits out, when they could be focusing on more important things, like the gameplay or story.
I really think you are giving a bad name, and a reputation of hypocrisy to Christianity with this article. This is basically a complaint about swearing in games and how you personally dislike it, it has nothing at all to do with being a Christian or Christian values at all. Now I don’t love swearing in games either, and if it’s out of context then I usually dislike it, but when used in the right context, I have no problem with it at all.
you know what your right i take back what i said they shouldn’t have a censor option!
How in the world you would “swear you mouth off” and then call yourself Christian? The last time a checked the bible said let not vile language come from your mouth.
But the bigger thing is… HOW IN THE WORLD IS ASKING DEVELOPERS TO GIVE AN OPTION TO GAMERS WHO DO NOT WANT TO HEAR STRONG LANGUAGE GIVING A BAD NAME TO CHRISTIANS?
You need to come again. Seriously.
hey ernice how can you play a violent and call your self a chistian.
(game)
Hey Ernice, good article! There are a good amount of bashing on this post, but hey, I strongly agree the industry should consider inserting an option to M rated games just as Battlefield 1 did. There are diverse game players and right now some of them(like myself) are just about disgusted with the useless swearing, nudity etc. in games. What? Does entertainment have to be filthy? Isn’t gaming an escape from reality? Was it not an art created to enjoy overcoming obstacles and challenges? Someone please inform what in GOD’s world games were invented for, and yes GOD’s world. Insert an option game devs!
We’re in the minority in the comments section here GameHeadEd, but I’m sure some devs have already read this article and are taking the advice into consideration.
Many have come here and turned this into a Christian-bashing charade, and why, because a humble call for an option was raised?
Please…
This article is all over the internet now, and I mean ALL over. I hope the devs act upon this.
YOUR KILLING PEOPLE!!! read the bible then tell me if playing a war game without swearing is ok! its still not
Sorry I meant a good amount of bashers……….
I’ve said this already and I’ll say it again:
I see NO problems with creating a function that would disable strong language as an OPTION is an game. Underscore OPTION.
If you like that type of stuff then suit yourself… But give others the OPTION. That’s all the article states..
Ive registered just for this, so here it goes:
1: people shouldnt try to change the world to suit their needs; soldiers say fuck, motherfuckes, suck my dick, lick my ass and the like as much as everyone does. In a game portraying war, and i know soldiers speak those, why would i want to have them say rub my belly or not swear at all? It would be false, which is not what devs and i want.
If we play like this, then next thing we know we are asking all glood and gore removed from m rated games. . .hell, i hate blue so ill petition for the removal of all blue in games because it irks me and my beliefs.
Now, i like gore and bad language and nudity so ill ask nintendo to give a m6 to mario and have his hp doubled everytime he gets a lap dance from the princess. . .see where were heading?
2: am against this, for what you request, not because your a christian. In that regard, am sure lots of what you hear everyday, the ways of society, the tv, lots of things go against your beliefs. I bet you try to abstain from whatever might offend God. Please explain why a game where you just kill others is no offense to God and more importantly, how just removing bad language helps you in abstaining from offending God. You see, how is that different from waging wars in name of god when is all because of things men want?
You seem to think youre more entitled to be protected from bad language because youre christian. What if i were a satan worshipper and demanded even more obscenity from devs? Would that be less important than your claims?
Do you watch porn movies? I would guess a no, because thats totally against god’s teaching on what and how sex is. Would u ask the actors and directors to tone it down or cover it somehow so christians could watch it? No. What you do? You stay clear from all that. If the samw happens with videogames, why dont you stay clear from them??
I think youre a hypocrit and youre lieying to yourself if you think censoring video games would in any way help you be more christian in any way possible with the mindset you have.
Dont hide your inadequacies behind the christian mask.
It was because that kind of thinking that millions were killed in the name of several and nameless gods, including Jehovah.
That was a long read but again get this:
He was not asking the developers to REMOVE strong language altogether; just have an option so those who are not interested in hearing such language could have the luxury of turning it off….
Nothings wrong with that> Nothing. Geez I swear some of you are God haters around here.
Anything good get scorned.
i think i know why people are so confused by this article. your saying that devs dont respect your religion by not being able to turn off bad language. well Christians arent the only people who dont like strong language in games so to say that this industry doesnt care about you because your christian is ridiculous.
The problem here is not the how or the what, is the why and the who
Whoa. This thing is heating up man. Another website has already responded to your article Ernice and all the forums are going Crazy.
http://www.games4m.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=68&Itemid=61