About the only thing really wrong with Tom's comments above is, in the interests of full disclosure, Tom probably should've mentioned that he has a bit more than a passing knowledge of theology. :)
Also, Cardiokid - I don't see where Tom was making "devastatingly prejudicial verbal sideswipes at us Christians." Since I'm one of "us Christians" myself. His comments seem pretty accurate to me.
Tom, you're asking for reviews that are filled with spoilers! Even in your rundown of what things in Portal 2 could be analogous to Christian imagery, you're hinting spoilers!
Kenny and Cheryl, thanks so much for your comments, and particular thanks to Cheryl for being so gracious. Cheryl, assuming you're the one who wrote the Portal 2 review, you should give yourself a byline!
If you don't mind me asking, do you think I'm out of line expecting the sort of commentary I suggested? My thinking is that since the Gospel is such an important part of how you consider the world, shouldn't it also be a part of how you consider games? You mention that you think of videogames as just a way to blow off Steam, but I would submit that some games -- and I certainly think Portal 2 qualifies -- deserve more serious consideration, and they can both inform and be informed by how you look at the world.
For instance, if I read a review of Shift 2 from an actual race car driver, I expect something very different from a review written by someone who isn't a race car driver. And that same line of thought can apply to other aspects of our identities. Consider someone who has a daughter. When he plays Bioshock 2, which is an excellent game, he sees it through different eyes, and can have a very different perspective on what makes it great. Or imagine a woman playing Bayonetta, who might consider the game's concepts of sexuality differently than a man.
As multifaceted and complicated human beings, these aspects of our identity are a valuable way to talk about our experiences, and that includes how we talk about videogames. Since you run a site that covers games from a Christ-centered perspective, I hope you'll consider talking more about that perspective rather than limiting yourself to whether games are family friendly. Although I understand the connection, I can't help but feel that "Christian" means so much more than "family friendly", and that you're making your writing less interesting by not addressing the subject more fully.
Anyway, I really do appreciate you commenting and I hope I don't come across as too presumptuous. I support what you're doing even if I do wish you were doing it a bit differently. :)
@Cardiokid: I think your opinion of the average Christian's vocabulary is far more prejudicial and insulting against Christians than anything Tom said in his post above.
Yeah Tom, I'm the one who wrote the Portal 2 review. I can totally see where you're coming and what you're looking for. Again, I'm sorry to disappoint. Right now we provide moral content that the ESRB doesn't cover in games. For example the ESRB doesn't care if there are pentagrams and upside down crosses in games where those images are very insulting to many Christians. That's what we point out. Our reviews have evolved from being simple and straight to the point to where they are now a Christian slanted IGN variant etc. But to address the philosophical opinions you are seeking we are making slowly but steady progress into that arena. Our staff members have blogs where they can post their opinions without having to worry about slapping a moral score onto them. Maybe these blogs can open up pathways to intellectual observations in games and discussions. Thanks for the insight and ideas to pursue in the near future. You seem like a reasonable guy I'm sorry that I initially took offense to your article given it's title. I hope we have a better understanding of each other.
God Bless!
Chreyl
P.S. I did comment in my Bioshock review how I was uncomfortable killing little children given that I was the mother of two little girls at the time....
Rimbo, Tom, Brad and Cheryl, thanks for your responses. Rimbo, thanks for your corrective remarks. Keys, I am "new" to this site (not being a gamer), and I surely failed to reflect the kind of attitude toward Tom that I expect of myself. No excuses. Just blew it.
Tom, I apologize to you for my sarcasm. BTW, I really appreciated the tone of your response to Cheryl, and agree that there should be a way for her to put what she believes as a Christian into her reviews without apology. Of course, if she does that, somebody else even less gracious than I will whack her for that... It's one of those no-win things that all of us encounter, no matter what our theological position.
Thanks, too, for not rising to the bait and going all gansta on me, Tom. You've given me a good example of grace. Have a great week, all of you.
@ Tom -
I just took a look at Pluggedin.com--Focus On The Family's review site--and it's fairly pedestrian as well. If James Dobson's folks can't see their way clear to get worked up about all the commandment breaking and sorcery that are in Dragon Age or Mortal Kombat, who will? Not that I'm implying that CCGR is as politically or socially motivated as FFOTF, but perhaps the tenor of the at-large faith-based game review community is driven less by ideology/theology and more by "the market". Let's face it: gamers as a whole tend to have a pretty narrow taste in critique (present company excluded). Dare I remind you of "Killzone 2 and the Five Foot Stare?" Maybe there just aren't enough eyeballs looking for something other than a utilitarian shakedown of the latest titles. Obviously QT3 seems to be doing well, but maybe when you take that group of gaming malcontents and subtract for non-Christians, or non-Republicans, or non-bassoonists, there simply isn't enough market share to attract ad revenue.
Hey Tom I think I found the site you're looking for..Tetris is evil and Minecraft is Christian in origin
Great chunks of modern evangelicalism are nothing more than marketing and customer retention strategies for social clubs based around Jesus as a magic talismen for preserving the appearance of wholesome middle class values. They take their product for granted, compete with other Christians on the basis of their ability to attract new customers, desperately try to keep up with yesterday's social trends, and generally manage to be stunningly mediocre at everything they do. Not everyone mind you, just the vast majority.
History repeats itself: 1000 years ago, Norsemen complained that Thortal 2 was 100% Thor-free. If that helps.
Mr. Kid, no worries! I've had far worse. I also understand how Christians are often unfairly characterized (including some really disappointing comments in this thread) so it's often safe to assume the worst. But thanks for the apology.
Cheryl, that site hurts my eyes! Argh, all that green! :) Do you know Richard Clark's site, Christ and Pop Culture? They cast a much wider net than you guys, and I know the site mainly from a laidback podcast Rich used to do. But I think they have a good handle on how to make it interesting for secular readers like me. Not that you should make that your mandate, and I'll be sure to check out your blogs, but you might take a look at the site if you get a chance.
Cheryl, having now read that Minecraft review, that was pretty entertaining! Thanks for the link.
Hey Tom, you are giving away your big secret of having a theology degree. I guess only a game reviewer with a theology degree would be capable of writing this article. I wonder how many such qualified individuals there are? Judging by the relative incompatibility of the two criteria, I am guessing the answer is one. Tom, you are the one.
@Tom - Thanks so much for the comments about Christ and Pop Culture!
I agree wholeheartedly with you, Tom, that a site with "Christ" in the name (hey let's start a club or something) probably should make that an essential part of the content. It's one of the "rules" we provide for our writers, that every post should be about both "Christ" and "Pop Culture" in some sense. It's not really a moral issue for us, as much as it is an issue of knowing the audience. After all, they'd go to any other review site to get something else - there are even other sites like Plugged In, etc. that provide moral analysis of games.
My humble opinion is that any site whose solitary or primary purpose is all about 1-uping the ESRB on moral content analysis probably shouldn't make a big deal about "Christ" in the title. Tom's right in saying that actual Christianity doesn't have quite as much to do with obsessing over morality as it does with living in light of creation, the fall, and grace. The gospel, in other words.
On the other hand, I did find most of Tom's suggestions in the actual post to be a bit of a stretch - I prefer to deal with a game on its own terms, addressing the themes that are meant to be included, or at least dealing with the reasons why it might resonate with us as human beings.
Sometimes this means talking about morality, but not to say "warning this game contains ______." In fact, I will often praise a game for its unflinching portrayal of immorality. Like someone said earlier, gamers can decide for themselves whether a game is going to "make them stumble", and writing to that point can get kind of old. I find it much more rewarding and helpful to discuss games I am already playing and thoughtfully consider their implications and resonance.
I appreciate sites like Christ-Centered Gamer because I think it's important that there is such a thing as a "Christ-Centered Gamer". I recognize they have good intentions. I just think that those intentions are a little bit misguided.
The site name has a bit of a history to it. My original domain is ccgr.org and I bought that domain calling the site Christian Computer Game Reviews...then console gaming took off. I then changed the name to Christ Centered Game Reviews I could only do so much with that acronym. I was later sent a game to review and they addressed it to Chirst Centered Gamer and I liked that name and bought the domain and got it and felt that it covered a broader range than just computer and console game reviews. We also host Christian Game Servers too.
In Him,
Cheryl
Is this more the sort of review you were looking for?
http://www.thecrossandthecontroller.com/tcatccom/Review.aspx?ReviewID=48
Hey Tom,
As a fellow "repostee" on Kotaku, I was pleased to see this up there. If you're interested in a view of Portal 2 with those kind of views, you should check out Steven Stitely's column about it this week on The Cross And the Controller. You can find it here: Achievement Unlocked: Found the Target
Our site actually tries to do a bit of what you described, though we don't always go in for just Bible images, as we attempt to use Christian Theology as well.
Thanks for pointing to this site as well, never heard of it.
You can be christian without being a fundamentalist evangelical\puritan stuck in the middle ages.