InspiredMedia d/b/a Left Behind Games Inc., worked out the pilot release of its titles in 100 Walmarts in the Houston and Dallas areas. The sales will test the games' viability in additional Walmart locations.

In a news release, Inspired Media sees Texas as fertile ground for its products, noting that the Lone Star State is home to more than 23,000 churches and an evangelical Protestant population of 5 million.

Inspired Media produced 2006's Left Behind: Eternal Forces, a real-time strategy game in which the player attempts to pray opposing forces into submission after all faithful souls leave the Earth during the Rapture, and the world reforms under a secularist order that loves, among other things, rock n' roll. It was followed by Left Behind: Tribulation Forces for PC in 2007. Eternal Forces racked up a Metacritic score of 38.

Christian Games Hit Texas Wal-Marts [Game Politics]

Following a post on The Nation by Max Blumenthal in which he slammed the game's inclusion, which was due to be mailed overseas with socks, snacks and other evangelical instruments, it appears that OSU may have decided to nix the poorly received game. For those not in the know when it comes to Left Behind: Eternal Forces, it puts the player in a post-Rapture scenario, in which you command an army of holy soldiers against those left behind (get it?). Either convert your enemies, putting the love of Jesus in their hearts, or blast the bejeezus out of them by shooting them in the heart.

The game has received its share of detractors, seeing public outcry from liberal groups, Islamic groups, Christian groups and, naturally, The Daily Show.

Kill Or Convert, Brought To You By the Pentagon [The Nation]

Outside of potentially good taste, why does the CAIR take issue with Left Behind? From the recently issued press release:

We believe the message this game is promoting is one of religious intolerance. The game's enemy team includes people with Muslim-sounding names. When asked about the Arab and Muslim-sounding names, Left Behind Games' President Jeffrey Frichner said, 'Muslims are not believers in Jesus Christ'—and therefore cannot be on the side of Jesus in the game. As you may know, Muslims do in fact revere Jesus as one of God's prophets.

Ooh! Factual smackdown! The group also warned Wal-Mart that they believe "this type of product only serves to dehumanize others and increase interfaith hostility and mistrust." Will Wal-Mart cave?

Full release and more of the letter after the jump. Michael McWhertor

CAIR Asks Wal-Mart to Drop Game Glorifying Religious Violence

WASHINGTON, Dec. 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today asked Wal-Mart to stop selling a video game that glorifies religious violence and may harm interfaith relations.

CAIR says it has received complaints about the game "Left Behind: Eternal Forces," produced by Left Behind Games Inc. The game reportedly rewards players for either converting or killing people of other faiths.

In a letter to Wal-Mart CEO H. Lee Scott Jr., CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad wrote in part:

"We believe the message this game is promoting is one of religious intolerance. The game's enemy team includes people with Muslim-sounding names. When asked about the Arab and Muslim-sounding names, Left Behind Games' President Jeffrey Frichner said, 'Muslims are not believers in Jesus Christ' - - and therefore cannot be on the side of Jesus in the game. (San Francisco Chronicle, 12/12/06) As you may know, Muslims do in fact revere Jesus as one of God's prophets.

"In the post 9-11 climate, when improving interfaith relations should be a priority for all, this type of product only serves to dehumanize others and increase interfaith hostility and mistrust.

"Each year, CAIR issues an annual report on the status of American Muslim civil rights, outlining hundreds of incidents involving anti-Muslim discrimination, harassment and hate crimes. It is our experience that many of these incidents result from Islamophobic rhetoric and negative images of
Muslims in popular culture. . .

"We have no desire to stifle creativity or inhibit freedom of speech. However, it is our duty as America's leading Islamic civil rights group to promote mutual understanding and ensure the safety of Americans of all faiths.

"We also believe that as a company that prides itself in hiring and offering services to a diverse group of people, it is Wal-Mart's corporate social responsibility to take into account the potential social impact of
its decision to sell this harmful game. We, therefore, respectfully request the removal of the video game 'Left Behind: Eternal Forces' from your shelves."

CAIR, America's largest Islamic civil liberties group, has 32 offices and chapters nationwide and in Canada. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties,
empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

The BBC has an interesting story up on the furor surrounding the release of Christian video game Left Behind: Eternal Forces. An alliance of liberal groups is trying to get Wal-Mart, among other retailers, to stop selling the game.

The story includes quotes Talk2Action, the Left Behind folks and me. I managed to stay above the finger-pointing, or at least tried to, and concentrated on pointing out that this is proof that games can deal with meaningful messages without trivializing them.

Mr Crecente, the games writer, has not seen Quest for Bush (also known as Night of Bush Hunting, the literal translation of its Arabic title).

But he says both it and Left Behind: Eternal Forces are part of an effort in the gaming world to deal with important issues.

"Whenever games take on something important, they are accused of trivialising the subject," he says.

"This shows that video games have gotten past the birthing pains. They are no longer just about amusing people, but about trying to send a message."

It's a short, though interesting read, if you have a second. Brian Crecente

Christian video game draws anger [BBC]

The game we are ashamed to actually like, Left Behind: Eternal Forces, is getting fire and brimstone from Christian groups who say the title promotes violence and intolerance.

Presbyterian minister and president of Christian Alliance for Progress Rev. Tim Simpson says the PC games promotes "faith killing" and mucks up biblical prophesies. Left Behind Games CEO Troy Lyndon counters with:

The game is designed to be a classic battle between good and evil, but it does not gratuitously depict violence or death.

Chalk up those criticisms to one thing: Street cred. Brian Ashcraft

Christian Group Doesn't Like Christian Game [Next-Gen]

Confession: When we checked out Left Behind: Eternal Forces at E3, we liked it. And we really wanted to hate it. The Christian RTS for the PC has been criticized for violence and creeps out folks with its religious bent. Game site Firing Squad interviews the game's associate producer Greg Bauman, who says the title's point is to "wipe out the other guy" like any other RTS. Those comments are peppered with Bauman stating, "Eternal Forces is a great alternative to the gratuitous content that is so commonplace in the market these days." A contradiction? Bauman asserts, "We think that given the choice, any gamer would pick the game that was more fun to play, not necessarily the one that contains excessive violence." Amen. The game drops from Heaven late October or early November. Brian Ashcraft

More Here [Firing Squad]

Left Behind: Eternal Forces needs some divine economic intervention. The Weekend Edition of MarketWatch dubbed the company behind the PC Christian game as the "Stupid Investment of the Week." Left Behind Games was formed to capitalize the best-selling series of books by the same name, Left Behind. The company has yet to turn any revenue since it was started in 2002, and what's more, MarketWatch says that it will be months before investors know whether the game is a success or not. Until then, pray, we guess. Brian Ashcraft

More Here [GameSetWatch]

Leave it to The Daily Show to prove that Christian game Left Behind: Eternal Forces is sinfully funny. In the show's "This Week in God" segment, Rod Corddry dissects the game, adding remarks like:

I've always said the difference between murder and eternal salvation: Three points.

Zing! Brian Ashcraft

More Here [Joystiq]

Valve released the trailer for it's first person puzzle game, Portal, causing millions of Half-Life, Day of Defeat, and Counter-Strike fans to uncontrollably evacuate their bowels with glee. We're not sure how you could have possibly missed this last week, as it was everywhere — and for good reason. This game looks to blow off serious numbers of socks.

And don't miss this brief teaser for the other bonus available with Half-Life 2: Episode II, the extremely sexy Team Fortress 2 trailer.

Senator Hilary Clinton is looking to make video games a violence scapegoat, pushing the issue as part of her campaign platform, according to our sources. Will the "video game tax" become a reality or just another issue dodging talking point?

Microsoft finally let us know all about their portable entertainment device, the Zune. Err, sort of. It's not going to play games (yet), so don't flush your PSP and DS down the crapper, but will most likely feature that neato Live Anywhere whiz-bang-ery that Bill and crew were touting at E3.

Nintendo released the "Noble Pink" DS Lite in Japan last week, which prompted Brian "I Swear This Pink DS Is For My Wife" Ashcraft to snag one at the nearby Yodobashi Camera. Watch in awe as Brian queues up with other grown men looking to buy the latest girly portable.

Speaking of the DS, there have been some rumblings about minor hardware defects in the form of cracked cases. Our readers polled at about 14% affected, while Nintendo claimed it was less than 1%. Regardless of the ratio, Nintendo says they'll fix 'em for free.

Agenda gaming is hot, hot, hot! We're talking about title such as Christian feel-good RTS Left Behind: Eternal Forces. Brian "Kirk Cameron's #1 Fan" Crecente takes a look at video games that (ewww...) have a message.

Folks looking forward to the sequel to the best PSP launch game (and still best PSP game), Lumines, got a tiny flick in the nuts this week, as Buena Vista announced what musician's videos will appear in the Miz's next puzzler. For every up (Chemical Brothers - "Star Guitar"), there's a down (Hoobastank - "Born to Lead"). Time to reap, time to sow, etc.

Finally, we'll try to end on a humorous note. Tired of watching World Cup bully Zidane headbutt Materazzi? Neither are we! And neither are the folks at Ubisoft. Oh, you kids and your headbutting!

To be honest, it's not the all-you-can-eat communion wafers or vats of red wine that has me feeling all tingly inside, it's the chance to get my hands on Left Behind: Eternal Forces. The real-time strategy computer game will be on hand for me to play at the Denver convention center. I'll get a chance to talk to the people who created the game.

From the press release:

"LEFT BEHIND: Eternal Forces represents the first part of our long-term strategy to present the good news in a manner which will appeal to the mainstream and Christian audiences, believers and unbelievers alike," Strategic Marketing Manager Jerome Mikulich explains.

"The story explains that Earth may not be a pretty place for those left behind," says CEO Mr. Troy Lyndon. "But the gamer gets to be a part of the battle, making real life decisions. Parents who want their kids to think about those alternatives, and be faced with the personal choices one faces in life, will find the game an attractive entertainment option for their children in an industry that so desperately needs redeeming content."

I can't friggin wait. Brian Crecente

Left Behind Games to Show Highly Anticipated, Inspirational PC Video Game at International Christian Retail Show in Denver [Business Wire]

A group tracking religious rights activities says the Christian game Left Behind is wall-to-wall spyware. Game play and ad viewing will be tracked once the title is installed on PCs. The software can't be deleted or removed. Moreover, it apparently locates where in the world your computer is and reports how many times a day you use it. Don't think "spyware," think "computer angels."

In related news, Left Behind Games, the company behind Left Behind: The Game (clever, eh?) just brought on some new senior VP—David Klein who used to work at Electronic Arts and 3DO. Klein said this about his new position:

I believe in the mission of Left Behind Games and the vision of its founders. After witnessing the degradation of game content over the last many years, I feel revitalized to be a part of a company that can provide an excellent gaming experience and still hold itself to a higher standard.

And that higher standard is God. Brian Ashcraft

New Exec [Next-Gen]
Spyware Left Behind? [Talk To Action] Thanks, Dsamsil!

We decided Left Behind was actually good, but can the producers justify it? Our money's on no, but watch to find out!

Every jaded journalist and cynical blogger I talked to about the Left Behind demo was super jealous that I received the coveted appointment to view Left Behind: Tribulation Force. Left Behind's Christian RTS pits you (the good Christians) against the bad (rock stars, cult leaders, demonic hellspawn, etc.). I suppose that every other materialistic, spiritually devoid staffer wanted to go in and have a quick giggle at their quaint little God game. I know I did.

But then it turned out to be kinda good. Kinda damn good. And the people were so nice. So damn nice. Who's nice anymore?

Left Behind: Tribulation Force doesn't look like it's going to be shatter any RTS conventions. It's still a resource harvesting, unit gathering action strategy title, it just that the resource is human beings and it sports tons of Bible scripture and Christian rock.

I have to hand it to them, they know what they're doing. The game is an instructional, inspirational tool and packaged in a way that, if you don't know the Left Behind brand, wouldn't shove the whole "God thing" in your face from the get-go.

Yes, you can play on the side of the anti-Christ. Yes, you get power-ups in the form of Bible scripture. Yes, you have to pray to keep your spirit levels up. Yes, there is a ton of violence and carnage. Yes, Kirk Cameron is in the game. Maybe. I think I saw his righteous afro on an in-game billboard. But, no, we can't make fun of it just yet.

Damn it. Why'd it have to be good?!

The Christian best selling Armageddon page-turner Left Behind is getting converted to the PC. Christened Left Behind: Eternal Forces, the game will be unveiled at E3. The story involves a battle between the Tribulation Forces and the demonic Global Community Peacekeepers lead by the Antichrist. According to the game's fact sheet, players engage 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."

Hillary Rhodes at the Associated Press's ASAP writes, "now you can market an exciting, conflict-ridden game to the Christian community, enticing them with something that, if packaged differently, might come across as potentially harmful to wholesome Christian youth. But on the other hand you have ... something that's potentially harmful to wholesome Christian youth (or any youth for that matter)."

According to Newsweek, the game is as violent as GTA, but the CEO of Left Behind Games says that's not the case. The title won't be rated any higher than a "T" for teens and feature what he describes as "Star Wars violence." Wait, back up. The name of the company is Left Behind Games? So, there's going to more? Oh. Swell.

Full Article Here [ASAP]

Culture" Gamers' Good News [MSNBC]

The pre-order campaign for the apocalyptic adventure based on the popular books is underway. What will Left Behind preorder-ers net? A unique bracelet. Like one of those really unique "WWJD" ones? No more jokes from me, I don't want to get struck down at my desk this afternoon.