Anti-Religious Sentiment in Video Games (have you noticed?)

[Flying-Emu]

That's a nice story, except for the fact that if you could eat a horse, you'd just be a freak of nature. Halo selling 2.5 billion copies would be much more than that.

Yeah... You're still doing it...
MY LIFE IS FILLED WITH LITERALISTS!!! AARRGGHH!!

 

[superbatranger]

I've noticed it in some games, but I never really gave it any thought. In fact, it never bothered me.

 

[CloakedOne]

I've noticed and I'm A-Ok with it. It's a sign that the opiate of the masses may be losing its effectiveness on people and games are making an honest attempt to be the rehab. besides, so many other media are shoving religion down our throats all the time and they need a counterbalance.

I'm sorry, but what forms of media are shoving religion down our throats? Also I doubt that the people who make video games care about being rehab for "the opiate of the masses"(nice term, I'll have to use it sometime).

Hm, you do bring up some good points. Yes, now that I think about it, perhaps claiming that the media "shoves religion down our throats" was a bit too far and presumptuous. Perhaps instead of I should have said that our American society emphasizes the importance of religion and the evils of Atheism. instead of accusing the typically secular media of such things.

You bring up another good point: calling videogames the rehab of the opiate was a bit presumptuous as well. I suppose I was thinking heavily of the disillusion created by such games as Bioshock and to a greater extent Assassin's Creed. the writing seems to suggest it although it is indeed possible that the writers did not intend for it; the same could be said for most games with anti-religious-seeming games: the developers more than likely did not intend the interpretation with the hopes of didacticism. Thanks for setting me straight.

 

[lacktheknack]

It has sold more copies than the Bible

It's sold four to six billion copies? Wow.

And obviously video games are fairly anti-religious. NORTH AMERICA is fairly anti-religious.

 

[antipunt]

I don't really recall that many games nailing -specific/real- religions. (Assassins Creed is an exception, though, it's still 'fictitious')

Most of the time, religious nutjobs are just excellent for parady/villains. These people don't represent moderate religions, keep in mind.

 

[Ninonybox_v1legacy]

what about Hal....damn...ninjad by the topic creator....well played.

 

[Yeslek Ssomllur]

It has sold more copies than the Bible

It's sold four to six billion copies? Wow.

And obviously video games are fairly anti-religious. NORTH AMERICA is fairly anti-religious.

HYPERBOLE!!!! GAAAHH!!!

 

[lukemdizzle]

Ive noticed that the entire moral of the Halo story is that religion is a self destructive lie. nobody els seems to have noticed but think about it for a second.

 

[TerribleAssassin]

Assassins Creed had you fighting Crusaders, and AC2 had you fighting the Pope.

However, the Templars, who were the enemies throughout both games, were actually self-declared atheists who scorned religion and used it as a tool for their own ends. So were the Assassins, though.

But the enitre story is putting out that there's something bigger than a known deity that Abstergo are after.

OT: There will be accidentel Anti-Religion statements in games and purpousful ones, you've just got to be careful not to mix the two.

 

[FieryTrainwreck]

Organized religions, and Christianity in particular, are unfailingly narcissistic. They see themselves in fucking everything. No game or movie or book or conversation is unrelated. No plot twist or organization or base human interaction is immune to direct comparison. It's obnoxious and a little infantile.

I could spend all goddamn afternoon writing utter nonsense, and idiots would still find parallels in the bible. The sheer nonsensical volume of the text enables comparison to anything and everything inside the scope of human thought and creation. It's beyond stifling for anyone attempting to tell his/her own story.

Anyways, to summarize: the OP is seeing religion in all these games because games are frequently about conflict. Conflict arises from two sides staunchly adhering to differing ideas about the world - which is essentially long-hand for "religion". It's almost impossible to create a compelling large-scale conflict (i.e. one that doesn't involve a boring tug-of-war over resources) without evoking a religious tone on one or both sides.

Are some games more in-your-face about it? Yes. That's by design; the audience can more properly relate to the story if it mimics some aspects of their own daily lives. But that's not an outright indictment unless you choose for it to be so. That's your interpretation - not the objective face of it. Until the on-screen action quite literally features real-world religions in an overtly negative light, there's no reason to get your rosaries in a bundle.

TLDR version: the OP is a fantastic example of how religion attempts to forcibly insert itself into EVERYTHING, ALL THE TIME. That's why some people have such an enormous hatred of the very concept. It's rarely, if ever, a peacefully, privately practiced spiritual endeavor.

 

[A Pious Cultist]

"Unitology" is a huge, hilarious middle finger to Christianity, and Dead Space is STILL flying off shelves! Which brings me to my main point.

No, you're wrong. You're just... way off.
Unitology is a fictional cult based off of Scientology. Not Christianity.

 

[Arachon]

It's sold four to six billion copies? Wow.

And obviously video games are fairly anti-religious. NORTH AMERICA is fairly anti-religious.

You can't possibly be serious?

 

[Unesh52]

It's sold four to six billion copies? Wow.

And obviously video games are fairly anti-religious. NORTH AMERICA is fairly anti-religious.

You can't possibly be serious?

I'd say it's split between the virulently anti-god and the proverbial Christianazi. So on average I think it's about it the middle -- fairly anti-religious.

Stuff

If i miscommunicated I apologize. So lets set the record for my original post.

All i meant to say was that they are fictional stories created for our enjoyment.

Not anti-religious propaganda.

My second post was more explaining the difference between Anti-religious and dark interpretations.

As an amateur writer myself I have been taught about the clear distinction of them.

Anti-religious must be done with intent.

Dark reflections are meant simply for interesting stories.

Fair enough.

If you must know, I think that it's just a reflection of contemporary distrust and hatred for organized religion that is being added in to make the titles more relateable.

Let me give you another view on that.

When it comes to games involving fear the idea of religion can be for four other reasons.

1)To unnerve you as someone who might take comfort in religious beliefs. Something that calms you is now in front of you, and trying to kill you.

2)To create an atmosphere of confidence agaisnt you. Your enemies are not afraid of you. Life and death are the same to them, and they will pursue you relentlessly. It adds a desperate feel.

3)They are presented as a cult* more so to scare older gamers with kids. Cult* worship is something that scares people with children. It can add a level of fear parents might feel that we don't.

4) Its easy.(explained lower)

*Cult in this case is referring to any non-major religion that's tenants are unknown. Thus the fear for parents.

While there is more though these are the primary reasons i see them added to fear based games.

The scientist in Dead Space that's helping the necromorphs is creepy as fuck for no other reason then in a midst all this chaos he is calmly walking the halls assisting them in there goals, and not dying.

I think #4 about sums it up. In retrospect, you really couldn't have a more prefab motivation for just about any kind of nefarious plot or act of violence.

Still, I think there's more to it than that. I'll bring up Bethesda again because it was in their games that I really started to notice this sort of thing. A lot of times religious groups are not the "enemy," per se (well, unless you decide to stab a *****, then the gloves kinda come off). They're often just a faction that is usually a bastion of hypocrisy and ignorance. Like the chantry in Dragon Age or the church of the Nine in Oblivion. I've noticed in those games particularly that even though the beliefs of their religion are actually quite mundane, they tend to be regarded with scorn and disbelief by those outside it's circle. I find this odd, but I notice similar sentiments outside of the games, in the real world. This leads me to believe that Bethesda at least is just trying to appeal to a broader audience, rather than fill out the world-appropriate spectrum of responses that would be fitting for their games. That's what I was talking about when I said the quote above.

Once more i think people are kinda jumping the gun and applying there own anti-religious beliefs or fear to a scenario meant only to entertain.

As well i realize they can make entertaining propaganda but in video games i do not see that happening.

Yeah, that whole "Secularist media tries yet again to jam atheism down our throats" thing is hogwash. It's not intentional propaganda.

Good fun. Boy it's late. Talk to you tomorrow I hope?

It IS tomorrow.

Indeed you're right, and it was when I said that too. Lol. I need to get another clock for my room back at the house.

 

[lacktheknack]

It's sold four to six billion copies? Wow.

And obviously video games are fairly anti-religious. NORTH AMERICA is fairly anti-religious.

You can't possibly be serious?

Yes I can. See the "Religion and Politics" forum for a good start.

 

[Arachon]

Yes I can. See the "Religion and Politics" forum for a good start.

Are you implying that the "Religion and Politics"-forum is somehow represents a majority of the religious views of North America?

 

[wellhereiam]

I've noticed this in alot of games and I dont really mind it. The SMT games are some of my favorite ever and nearly every one of them shows a religious group in an unflattering light. I think it's healthy to question our beliefs and religious groups have had no shortage of psychotically murderous moments so it's unsurprising that they be used as bad guys.

I think storytelling in games is still maturing as well so alot of game makers will go for the easy target, rather than making a bad guy who isn't really a BAD guy they just make some stereotypically evil dude who wants to do stereotypically evil things and religion is the easiest way to make a moronically bad guy seem sort of realistic, all they have to do is make up some religious mumbojumbo that the bad guy is following and all of a sudden their generic superbadguy ins't a generic superbadguy but is instead a zealot.

I think Tales of the Abyss struck a nice balance with their religious themes, on one hand there was the stereotypically evil "Grand Maestro" or whatever who wanted to start a war because his religion said it was going to happen, but on the other hand his religion's equivalent to the Pope says that people should use his their teaching as a guide to living better lives rather than following the teaching to the letter regardless of what it says. In addition to those two there was also the hidden splinter cell group that was so violently opposed to the religious teachings that they were willing to essentially destroy the entire world just to get rid of it (there's alot more to it than that but that's the gist of what they were trying to do).

 

[wellhereiam]

Fable 2 makes me think that the people at Lionhead are really anti-religious.

I mean, the ideals of Hammer, and then that conversation between Hammer and Garth about midway in the game where Hammer was like;

"It's a bunch of superstitious nonsense that never helped anybody, and if you believe it it can get you killed."

"I agree with you there."

I think the religions in that game were meant to be ridiculous because thats a common asapect of Albion. Religions based solely on being as generically good or evil as possible fit in perfectly with the rest of the game's atmosphere, I dont think it was meant to be anti religious, I think it was just a statement about how ridiculous they sounded, kind of like how all the jokes relating to religion in South Park aren't anti religion so much as anti stupidity.

 

[Lord Mountbatten Reborn]

Just by the simple definitions throws your argument about Halo being a religious parody out the window into a flaming car as it flies off a bridge to explode in vernacular that is Michael Bay.

"Explode in vernacular that is Michael Bay"? Michael Bay is a vernacular?

I wouldn't call Halo a strict parody of religion, but the Covenant themselves are supposed to be fighting humanity on the grounds of their own religious beliefs. The Prophets are the ones that see it the most religiously, and they mostly manipulate all the other races in the Covenant. Remind you of any arguments?

To be fair, the vast majority of people, in my experience, who actively participate in any sort of position of power within a religious institution fit one or both of those descriptions. They're either "true believers" who will do nigh anything for the church, or they're abusing the aforementioned believers to further themselves. Most everyone else has sense enough to stay out.