Looking mildly like Zynga’s first foray into religious Facebook scamming, Journey of Jesus is Lightside Games’ attempt to get us all putting down our other social games and start playing one where we can learn about Jesus instead.
Earlier this week this story was posted, a story which claimed that video games have a ‘problematised’ view of religion. But what does ‘promblematised’ even mean? And is religion represented fairly in video games? We catch up with frequent Kotaku contributor Adam Ruch to discuss.
One of 2011′s more pleasant surprises was The Binding of Isaac, a game Totilo described as “a wonderfully warped Old Testament take on The Legend of Zelda“.
Do video games spend too much time emphasising the violent aspects of religion? A study released by the University of Missouri on Monday says so, concluding that video games present religion in a “problematised” way.
If you’ve ever spent any time in Japan, you’ve seen them: big, black buses blaring right-wing propaganda. And today, you’re going to see an entire fleet of them. If Japanese itasha enthusiasts gather, Japanese right-wingers do, too. Here, it was also to mark Japan’s creation. This weekend, that’s exactly what happened.
The things that make us reconsider who we are and what we believe in are often bizarre, random, coincidental; sometimes completely unremarkable save for the sudden realisation that concusses you. Lately, things I’ve been reading and playing have coalesced into a divine cognisance for me. I’ve been reconsidering my faith.
The debate continues to rage (or perhaps it is at a smouldering point at the moment) as to whether or not video games are art. In an essay from the book, Halos and Avatars: Playing Video Games with God, Andrew McAlpine of the band Andrew M and The Coalition of the Willing, asserts without reservation that video games are not art. His reasoning is simple: The end of art is the aesthetic experience, while the end of video games is the playing of them.
Minecraft, congratulations! You’ve officially arrived. Religious nuts are railing against you.
