Left Behind: Eternal Forces — of God, good, evil, and PC games

Can video games bring children closer to God? At least, that’s what the makers of the Left Behind game hope for. The popular Christian book Left Behind, which depicts the classic battle against good and evil, will soon be converted into a PC game entitled Left Behind: Eternal Forces. The game follows the storyline of the New York Times Bestseller written by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins: it’s the last days of the earth, the believers have all been taken to heaven, and the rest are left on earth making last minute efforts to save their souls. In this Christian-themed video game the good Tribulation Forces battle it out with the evil Global Community Peacekeepers (led by the Antichrist) for the remaining secular, neutral people of New York. According to the game’s fact sheet, players participate in “physical and spiritual warfare: using the power of prayer to strengthen your troops in combat and wield modern military weaponry throughout the game world”. You read it right: power of prayer. In fact there is a “pray” button in the game, which has the parents who previewed the game excited  about the prospect of a video game that will instill stronger Christian faith.

But if Left Behind: Eternal Forces has the parents clapping their hands, the now infamous Christian lawyer Jack Thompson still has reasons to shake his head. Thompson says of the Left Behind game, “You’ve got a generation of boys in this country who are spending sometimes dozens of hours a week blowing away people… Now they’re going to have the opportunity to do it in a Christian setting and, you know, where does it stop?”

And there may be a reason for alarm. A Newsweek article announced last month that the Left Behind PC game includes violence that is so close to that of Grand Theft Auto‘s.

But Left Behind author Tim LaHayes defends the Left Behind game developer, “Rather than forbid young people from viewing their favorite pastime, I prefer to give them something that’s positive.”

And in answer to the Newsweek article, Left Behind Games CEO Troy London says that Left Behind: Eternal Forces “has no blood, no decapitation, no vulgar language” and illustrates only “Star Wars violence”.

The actual PC game has not yet been released, yet Left Behind: Eternal Forces has already sparked an ongoing debate as to whether a Christian-themed video game will be good for the kids or not. Well, we’ll just have to wait for the Left Behind: Eternal Forces debut on E3 next month and see whether it will bring children closer to God.

Can video games bring children closer to God? At least, that’s what the makers of the Left Behind game hope for. The popular Christian book Left Behind, which depicts the classic battle against good and evil, will soon be converted into a PC game entitled Left Behind: Eternal Forces. The game follows the storyline of the New York Times Bestseller written by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins: it’s the last days of the earth, the believers have all been taken to heaven, and the rest are left on earth making last minute efforts to save their souls. In this Christian-themed video game the good Tribulation Forces battle it out with the evil Global Community Peacekeepers (led by the Antichrist) for the remaining secular, neutral people of New York. According to the game’s fact sheet, players participate in “physical and spiritual warfare: using the power of prayer to strengthen your troops in combat and wield modern military weaponry throughout the game world”. You read it right: power of prayer. In fact there is a “pray” button in the game, which has the parents who previewed the game excited  about the prospect of a video game that will instill stronger Christian faith.

But if Left Behind: Eternal Forces has the parents clapping their hands, the now infamous Christian lawyer Jack Thompson still has reasons to shake his head. Thompson says of the Left Behind game, “You’ve got a generation of boys in this country who are spending sometimes dozens of hours a week blowing away people… Now they’re going to have the opportunity to do it in a Christian setting and, you know, where does it stop?”

And there may be a reason for alarm. A Newsweek article announced last month that the Left Behind PC game includes violence that is so close to that of Grand Theft Auto‘s.

But Left Behind author Tim LaHayes defends the Left Behind game developer, “Rather than forbid young people from viewing their favorite pastime, I prefer to give them something that’s positive.”

And in answer to the Newsweek article, Left Behind Games CEO Troy London says that Left Behind: Eternal Forces “has no blood, no decapitation, no vulgar language” and illustrates only “Star Wars violence”.

The actual PC game has not yet been released, yet Left Behind: Eternal Forces has already sparked an ongoing debate as to whether a Christian-themed video game will be good for the kids or not. Well, we’ll just have to wait for the Left Behind: Eternal Forces debut on E3 next month and see whether it will bring children closer to God.