It’s possible to write about games dispassionately, taking apart the storyline, the different technical aspects, and the gameplay features. It’s possible to give a game a numerical score in various categories, from sound to graphics to control. This kind of games writing has it’s place, and it may help a person decide whether or not a game is good enough to consider buying. Still, it falls short of really conveying anything meaningful about the game. For that, we need something more.
What we need is for games writers to convey how a game affected them on an individual level. Playing games thoughtfully, carefully, and examining what it is that makes them so compelling is what I’m trying to do every time I write about the subject. The medium’s interactive nature means that the games will often be compelling to different people for very different reasons, and that’s okay. The trick to making a great game is leaving the game open for that. It’s more than just letting the player have their own fun; it’s letting the player express themselves, intentionally or accidentally. Even better, make the player aware of how they are doing so and what the consequences are. Games that follow through with those goals are my favorites.
I write about this subject and point out some ways games have done this in my latest column for GameSetWatch. I’d be interested to hear what you think.
In the postapocalyptic America (renamed “Panem”) of Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games, children and teens are compelled to fight each other to the death on national television. Except for the first-person female narrator and the hint of a love triangle, The Hunger Games bears little resemblance to everyone’s favorite sparkly vampire clan, yet Collins’s trilogy for young adults—The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay—has been hailed as the next Twilight because of not only its significant popularity among young readers, but its appeal for adults as well. As I did for Twlight a few years ago, I’ll be writing a reflection on each book as I read my way through the series, charting the ethical dilemmas of Katniss Everdeen as they unfold.
I’m generally a sucker for the postapocalyptic, so I’m not sure why it’s taken me two years to get around to starting The Hunger Games, but I’m glad I have. The novel’s set-up—Panem consists of a wealthy Capitol that rules the twelve former rebel Districts with a rod of iron—is not breathtakingly original (see: Firefly), but it’s still compelling. In addition to the numbing poverty in which the Capitol keeps the Districts, it demands from each two “tributes”—a boy and a girl, between the ages of twelve and eighteen—to fight each year in the Hunger Games. Out of the twenty-four, the last one alive is declared the victor. Collins has cited the Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur among her source material, but clearly reality shows like Survivor have been an inspiration too, since the Games are televised, and the tributes’ chances of success can be increased if they are audience-pleasing enough to attract sponsors. The Hunger Games aren’t merely a competition of brains and brawn—beauty and personality matter too.
Katniss Everdeen lands herself in the Games when her younger sister’s name is drawn and she volunteers to take her place. Katniss, since the death of her father, has been supporting her family by hunting game in the woods, so her skill with bow and arrow is her greatest asset going into the Games. In the area of on-screen charisma, though, she is woefully lacking in comparison to Peeta Mellark (yes, he has one of the stupidest names ever given to a character), the boy tribute from her District. Peeta is so instinctively talented in winning an audience with his candid demeanor that even Katniss never knows whether to believe what he says in front of the camera or not. Katniss, on the other hand, is reluctant to share the things that matter to her with the Capitol audience that she despises.
Katniss’s struggle with trying to win over viewers without betraying herself is one of the more interesting aspects of The Hunger Games to me, perhaps since I teach rhetoric. How does a person appeal to an audience while staying true to his or her beliefs and values—and, if those beliefs and values actually end up shifting slightly in the process, is that necessarily a bad thing? (Obviously, these questions have relevance for evangelism, too.) The Hunger Games, to its credit, doesn’t give a simple answer; throughout the course of the novel, however, it seems that sincerity and crowd-pleasing are not mutually exclusive categories. Various characters do put on an act for the camera, but sometimes that act becomes reality. In other words, it’s not just a matter of whether a character’s words or actions are true to him- or herself—those words and actions, once performed, have the power to shape the self, at least to some degree. That’s a far more complex notion of identity than is found in most young adult entertainment.
Then there’s the question of whether one “wins” through actually winning the Games or by refusing to play by the Games’ cutthroat rules, by literally losing but showing oneself the moral victor. Katniss wants to show up the Capitol by proving that someone from one of the lowliest, most backward Districts (District 12, we learn, is what used to be Appalachia) can actually win the Games; however, she also fears that if, in order to win, she becomes a monster, then the Capitol wins. Here, too, I was powerfully reminded of various models of the Christian’s relationship to culture. Does a person serve as a better witness to Christ by rising to the top levels of politics, media, and business, striving for excellence—to impress and to affect the world for Christ’s sake? Or does one better represent Christ by refusing to play according to the world’s rules or according to its definition of success, seeking even martyrdom before power? For Katniss, as for the Christian, the answer isn’t easy.
I was a little disappointed that Collins has shied away from placing Katniss in some of the more wrenching ethical dilemmas that she would likely face during the course of the Games, but perhaps she’s saving some of these for later volumes in the trilogy, so that we can see some further character development. As a whole, The Hunger Games is well-paced—that is to say, hard to stop reading or listening to (incidentally, this was the first book I’ve “checked out” as an e-audiobook from my library, and I listened to it in the car over the course of a couple of weeks). There were moments when, having reached a tear-inducing or gut-punchingly horrific moment just as I arrived at the gym or at my doctor’s office, I had to take a moment to regain normal-person-unaffected-by-good-book composure.
Because of some of those horrifying moments in The Hunger Games, I probably wouldn’t recommend it to readers under the age of twelve—or to squeamish older readers, though most of the violence does occur off-screen, so to speak. Speaking of screens, The Hunger Games movie is in development, and there’s a lot of speculation about whether the film can show kid-on-kid brutality and still slide in with a PG-13 rating. The book, at least, never struck me as wallowing in gore. I’m looking forward to reading the other two volumes of the trilogy, and I hope they live up to the promise of the first installment.
RetroPost is a weekly repost of an older Christ and Pop Culture that has some relevance to current pop culture events or releases.
This Week: With Halloween just around the corner, many Christians are engaging in a yearly ritual: debating with others and themselves whether Halloween should be engaged in at all. Ryan Holmes rethinks the issue…
As I grew up my family didn’t participate in Halloween. And by not participate I mean lights off, lock the door, and hide out. In essence Halloween was a yearly hurricane we had to weather and avoid. We survived the onslaught if we didn’t have to interact with anyone. Trick-or-treaters—avoided. Parents with miniature superheroes next to them—avoided. Other Christians—avoided.
In recent years I’ve been thinking about whether that is a distinctly Christian response to Halloween or not. Ultimately, there tend to be 3 predominate positions towards Christian involvement in Halloween:
1) Halloween is evil and Christians should avoid every aspect of it,
2) Halloween is potentially evil and only church approved functions should be attended, or
3) Halloween is acceptable when done in moderation and we should have fun
A Halloween-centric blog post on Pen and Parchment got me thinking about which view I hold. Obviously, growing up it was the first option. The blog post, however, pointed me to a Christian cliche which has me wondering if I’ve had the wrong view. It sounds cheesy but in regards to Christians and Halloween—WWJD? If Jesus were around today would he hide up in his house, turn off his lights, and hope that nobody knocked on the door? Would Christ, who was accused of being a glutton and a drunkard, try to avoid all signs of Halloween (Luke 7:34)? Is this the same Jesus that was friends with sinners and tax-gathers (Luke 5;27-32)? To be accused of being a glutton or a drunkard, or friends of the unfriendable don’t you have to be hanging around those types of people in the first place?
In thinking of how Christ acted throughout the Gospels, I’m starting to think that on Halloween Christ would have all the lights on in his house, have the best lawn decoration (he was a carpenter after all), and be handing out some of the sweetest candy in the neighborhood. While I think it’s unnecessary for Christians to make Halloween an explicit Gospel presentation, like handing out tracts instead of candy, I do think it’s an excellent opportunity for Christians to get involved with their neighbors. What other time do people explicitly come to your door in droves looking for interaction? How often do you get to be benevolent to your neighbors? And why are we always saying, “Go out into the world and make disciples” but on Halloween we take the day off? It’s almost like we want to suspend out Christianity on October 31st.
I’m starting to think that my reclusive childhood may not have been as distinctly Christian as I have been led to believe. Maybe I need to engage those around me more than I usually do on Halloween. Maybe I need to leave my lights on tonight. Maybe I should be the house handing out the best candy on the block. Where do you stand on Halloween participation?
Ready to listen to Britney Spears’ Gimme More? Oi vey, never thought I’d post a Britney Spears stream, but we can’t resist the Google AdSense possibilities, kids. Thanks, Berg.
Brace yourselves. Britney Spears is ready to hit the airwaves next week.
The title of Britney Spears’ new airplay track is Gimme More, and sources at Jive Records are optimistic fans will embrace and listen to Gimme More, the first track off Spears’ upcoming studio album.
Produced by Timbaland collaborator Nate Hills, who is more familiar to music fans as Danjahandz, Gimme More is an uptempo dance floor track that Jive Records was hesitant to identify as a carrier single or an airplay-only track.
Other producers working with Spears on her new album featuring Gimme More, include J.R. Rotem and Sean Garrett, who gushed over a track in a June interview with Billboard Magazine as one that would “shake up the world. It’s uptempo, out of control … it’s wowzers.”
Gimme More, the first track of Spears’ follow-up to 2003’s multiplatinum In the Zone, is rumored to debut at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, an event favored by Spears in recent years to grab headlines.
Go on over to Berg’s to listen to Gimme More by Britney Spears.
Britney Spears Gimme More lyrics after the jump.
GIMME MORE Lyrics
Britney Spears
It’s Britney b****
I see you
And I just wanna dance with you
(laugh)
Everytime they turn the lights down
Just wanna go that extra mile for you
You got my display of affection
Feels like no one else in the room
You get me down like there’s no one around
Keep on rockin’
Keep on rockin’
Cameras are flashing my way
Dirty dancing
They keep watchin’
They keep watchin’
Feels like they’re probably saying
Gimme gimme more (more)
Gimme gimme gimme
Gimme gimme more (more)
Gimme gimme gimme
Gimme gimme more (more)
Gimme gimme gimme
A center of attention
Even when we’re up against the wall
You got me in a crazy obsession
If you’re on a mission
You’ve got my permission
You get me down like there’s no one around
You keep on rockin’
You keep on rockin’ rockin’
Cameras are flashing my way
Dirty dancing
They keep watchin’
They keep watchin’
Feels like they’re probably saying
Gimme gimme more
Gimme more gimme gimme more)
gimme gimme more gimme more gimme gimme more
Gimme gimme more
Gimme more gimme gimme more
gimme gimme more gimme more gimme gimme more
Ooh (puh puh puh)
If they want more, well, I’ll give them more
Ow!
Gimme gimme more
Gimme more gimme gimme more)
gimme gimme more gimme more gimme gimme more (Give me more)
Gimme gimme more
Gimme more gimme gimme more (Give me more, ooh)
gimme gimme more gimme more gimme gimme more
Give me more, yeah
Give me more, ooh, give me more
Give me more, give me more, baby
Ring oh ring oh ring
Uh ooh uh ooh uh ooh uh uh uh uh
Bet you didn’t see this one coming
The incredible Largo
The legendary Miss Britney Spears
Haha
And the unstoppable Dang hill
You’re gonna have to remove me
Coz I ain’t goin’ nowhere
More more more
(Listen to You Are Everything by Matthew West, off his third studio album Something to Say. You may also read the You Are Everything lyrics on this post. GannsDeen.com does not offer Matthew West mp3’s for free download or paid downloads. If you like what you hear, please leave a comment in the Comments box. Come back to GannsDeen.com for the latest and best in Christian, country, and pop music.)For the record, I think Matthew West is one of the most brilliant contemporary Christian songwriters of our generation.
I can honestly say that without exaggeration. His latest album, Something to Say, features a range of songs written during a point in West’s life where a health crisis threatened the possibility of his ever singing again. As a musician myself, I can vouch for how scary that may be. Instead of wallowing in self-pity, the venerable West penned a love song, You Are Everything, which speaks of faith and trust in a supreme God who will come through in ways we can’t even begin to comprehend.
Something to Say drops January 15. Be sure to get your copies; it’s gonna be legendary!
Listen to You Are Everything by Matthew West
Lyrics to Matthew West You Are Everything after the jump
YOU ARE EVERYTHING Lyrics
Matthew West
I’m the one with two left feet
Standing on a lonely street
I can’t even walk a straight line
And every time you look at me
I’m spinning like an autumn leaf
Bound to hit the bottom sometime
Where would I be without someone to save me
Someone who won’t let me fall
You are everything that I live for
Everything that I can’t believe is happening
You’re standing right in front of me
With arms wide open
All I know is
Every day is filled with hope
You are everything that I believe for
And I can’t help but breathe you in
Breathe again
Feeling all this life within
Every single beat of my heart
I’m the one with big mistakes
Big regrets and bigger breaks
Than I’d ever care to confess
Oh but
You’re the one who looks at me
And sees what I was meant to be
More than just a beautiful mess
Where would I be without someone to save me
Someone who won’t let me fall
You are everything that I live for
Everything that I can’t believe is happening
You’re standing right in front of me
With arms wide open
All I know is
Every day is filled with hope
You are everything that I believe for
And I can’t help but breathe you in
Breathe again
Feeling all this life within
Every single beat of my heartYou’re everything good in my life
Everything honest and true
And all of those stars hanging up in the sky
Could never shine brighter than You
Are everything that I live for
Everything that I can’t believe is happening
You’re standing right in front of me
With arms wide open
All I know is
Every day is filled with hope
You are everything that I believe for
And I can’t help but breathe you in
Breathe again
Feeling all this life within
Every single beat of my heart
Avalon’s Still My God will be out on digital single soon before the release of their Greatest Hits CD sometime in February. Avalon Still My God lyrics after the jump.
STILL MY GOD Lyrics
Avalon
Up and down like the tide is moving
In and out, we’re in motion
And the ocean pulls us under
and even there, You’re found
You never change so I will sing
If I’m standing on a mountain
or drowning in the sea
If I am filled with hope or crying out for mercy
If I’m singing Hallelujah or scared to make a sound
If I am learning how to walk or when I’m falling down
I’m saying You are still my God
Still my God
In a world where so much seems uncertain
You remain both for the strong and broken
No matter where we are
You are never far
And nothing changes who You are
If I’m standing on a mountain
or drowning in the sea
If I am filled with hope or crying out for mercy
If I’m singing Hallelujah or scared to make a sound
If I am learning how to walk or when I’m falling down
I’m saying You are still my God
Jesus You are still my God
You were, You are, You will be forever
You were, You are Yeah Yeah
You were, You are God
If I’m standing on a mountain
or drowning in the sea
If I am filled with hope or crying out for mercy
Yeah
If I’m learning how to walk or when I’m falling down
If I’m standing on a mountain or drowning in the sea
If I am filled with hope or crying out for mercy
If I’m singing Hallelujah
When I am learning how to walk or when I’m falling down
I’m saying You are still my God
Jesus You are, You are still my God
Jesus You are still
my God
Still my God
Still my God
Perhaps you saw this photo on Facebook or Twitter: a church had hung three brightly colored banners over its front door that read “Worship”, “Teaching”, and “Friends”. When put together they created that most (in)famous of Internet acronyms.
As someone who graduated with a degree in advertising, and whose day job is at a marketing firm, I’m probably more sensitive than most to marketing — especially marketing that may be beyond the pale, or at the very least, embarrassing and even potentially harmful to the brands with which it’s associated. And as a Christian, I’m doubly sensitive when I see such marketing coming from within the Church.
When I first saw “WTF Church”, I’ll admit, I laughed at the obvious naivete on display. I think my first thought, after my laughter subsided, was “If they had anyone in their congregation under the age of fifty, they’d see what a mistake that was.” And of course, my co-workers and other friends all had a good laugh about it, too. But the more I thought about it, the sadder I became. Here was a church that, for all I knew, loved Jesus with all of their hearts and was being faithful to the Gospel, and they were quickly on their way to becoming a laughingstock — even among Christians — as a result of their cluelessness.
“We are aware of what ‘WTF’ originally stands for, and that is actually why we chose it,” says Rob James, with Copper Pointe Church, the Albuquerque, N.M., church behind the college and young adult ministry, Wake. “It is something that our target audience is very familiar with. We are a progressive college group located in Albuquerque, N.M., and we know that any college-aged person is a phone-weilding, text-sending machine. So why not use what they are familiar with?”
Suddenly, it was no longer about a church that was simply out of date and/or clueless in their marketing and branding. It was now about a church that was purposefully being irreverent and even crass in their outreach materials in order to be seen as relevant.
The church is, if their blog is to be believed, pretty happy with the results: the “WTF” branding has helped them go viral on Twitter, Facebook, etc. And I’ve read a number of responses that cheer on the church. For example, one commenter over at The Daily What — a blog that helped spread the photo initially — wrote:
[R]ead up on some of the other things being said about them online – they’re redefining something and they’re redefining church. how many college kids would invite their friends to a boring church over one that’s unafraid to take risks like this? i think what they’re doing sounds awesome.
There are a couple of issues at play here. First, there’s the issue that any church in this modern media-saturated age faces: how do you break through the multitude of signals that bombard people every day and convince them to pay attention to your message and subsequently, attend your services, get involved in your ministry, etc? How do you become relevant, for lack of a better term, to the people to whom you feel called to minister and to witness? One obvious answer to that question is that you meet them where they’re at, which is something that Christians have been doing ever since St. Paul ventured onto Mars Hill.
And it seems to me that’s what Copper Pointe is doing here: they’re using terminology that their target audience — college-aged persons — is very familiar with, and they’re using it in a way that is certainly attention-getting and provocative.
But that brings us to the second issue: when attempting to address the first issue, what means are permissible in doing so? We must be careful when reaching out so as not to diminish or dilute the Gospel, nor to associate it with anything that may reflect negatively on it. (Obviously, we’ll reflect negatively on the Gospel simply because we are sinners, but our desire and goal ought to be to minimize that as much as possible.)
And this is where, for me, Copper Pointe’s approach begins raising questions (and I risk sounding like little more than an old fuddy-duddy). Irreverent, post-modern, deconstructionist, and snarky though we may be, words and language do have meaning and do matter. And the simple fact is that “WTF” is, at its core, a profane saying.
It’s not so much the mere existence of the profanity that is bothersome, as it is that said profanity is explicitly (npi) being used in association with the Gospel of Christ. And it’s the hook, the first impression that people have of the church, their message, their priorities, and so on. Is it worth risking a besmirchment of the Gospel in the interests of marketing? In the interests of being hip, edgy, relevant, viral, and all of those other things that are deemed so important in this day and age?
Such an approach may result in greater attendance — not a bad thing, mind you — but, in the end, what is being attended? What is the mindset of those who attend? Copper Pointe has taken steps to prevent anyone from getting the wrong impression from their branding, but “WTF” is “WTF”. Regardless of how you spin or present it, the “F” word will, more likely than not, be in the back of the congregration’s mind? And is that acceptable?
I would hope this would be obvious, but just to be safe, here’s a disclaimer: I am, in no way, calling into question the faith of Copper Pointe and its leaders, nor am I questioning their commitment to Christ and their desire to share His Gospel with those around them. I am, however, questioning their sense of taste and propriety.
After a bit of a hiatus, the podcast returns! Now a twice a month, more casual affair, every episode we’ll simply get together and talk about popular culture. What will we talk about? Whatever happens to be on our minds. It’s that simple!
This week:
Violent video games and the Supreme Court
Mid-Term Elections and a fickle public
Halloween and scary media
Brette Favre, Randy Moss and ethical sportsmen
The Rocky Horror Picture Show & The Rocky Horror Glee Show
We love feedback! If you’d like to respond you can comment on the website, send an email to christandpopculture@gmail.com or comment below. We would love to respond to feedback on the show, so do it now! Subscribe to us in iTunes by clicking here. While you’re at it, review us in iTunes! We’ll love you forever!
(For your listening pleasure, this blog post contains a stream of One Word by American Idol Season Five finalist Elliott Yamin, off his debut album Elliott Yamin. GannsDeen.com does not offer Elliott Yamin mp3’s for download. If you like what you hear, please leave a comment in the Comments box. Come back to GannsDeen.com for the latest and best in Christian, country, and pop music.)
I promise this will be the last Elliott Yamin-themed entry on GannsDeen.com for a long time. As a fitting conclusion to week-long coverage of Yamin’s Philippine tour, we are uploading Yamin’s new American single, One Word, for your consideration.
One Word is a slow-to-midtempo ballad much in the same vein of Yamin’s surprise hit, Wait For You. When Yamin tested One Word during his Philippine tour, it received quite a positive response, which could bode well for Yamin’s nationwide push when the single is officially released for airplay on October 16.
Listen to Elliott Yamin One Word mp3
Elliott Yamin One Word lyrics after the jump.
ONE WORD lyrics
Elliott Yamin
I’m so into what you’re giving and it feel so good to me
You’re beautiful and critical
It’s hard to live without you, baby
When I wake up in the morning
All I want to see is you
Heaven’s blessing that is sent me unconditional and true
Girl you mean the world to me and I hope you understand
I will give you anythhing and I’ll do the best I can
to make you see what I see
One word is all I need to say exactly how I feel
One word, a single word that’s from the heart and keeps it real
One word, and baby I know this one fits you to a tee
One word
All I can say is “Amazing”
Always there when I was going through all kinds of changes
You kept me lifted, said I’m gifted and you know I’m gonna make it
So when you’re tired and frustrated you can always count on me
Girl I love ya and I want ya to know
I’ll be all you need
Girl you gave the world to me and you made me understand
You would give me anything and you do the best you can
You are what I hope to be
One word is all I need to say exactly how I feel
One word, a single word that’s from the heart and keeps it real
One word, and baby I know this one fits you to a tee
One word One Word
I just want to celebrate you, baby
And thank the Lord for sending you down to me
And your love is the reason why I believe
You’re amazing
So amazing
Just amazing to me
One word
One word
One word
One word
One word
One word
One word
One word
One word
All I can say is amazing
One word is all I need to say exactly how I feel
One word, a single word that’s from the heart and keeps it real
One word, and baby I know this one fits you to a tee
One word
All I can say is “Amazing”
September 20th was “Everybody Pray for Hitchens Day”. The writer and well-known atheist has cancer of the esophagus, and several of his friends in the clergy enlisted their congregations to pray for him. Hitch was understandably indifferent to the idea — “unless it makes you feel better” — but I was surprised to see a religious leader suggest that praying for Hitchens may actually be “hateful”:
As Mr. Hitchens’ beliefs regarding God and religion are more than common knowledge, perhaps abstaining from doing that which is hateful to him is the best way for anyone who calls him- or herself a “person of faith” to uphold this biblical proscription.
Mr. Hitchens, who is the consummate gentleman, has been mostly tolerant of the array of religious groups who have organized this day of prayer despite his firm objections. Yet it seems quite intolerant, disrespectful, and contrary to religious practice to pray for a man who has stated firmly and clearly that he wants no such thing.
Sometimes being a person of faith — being a person in general — means putting the needs of another before one’s own. Christopher Hitchens neither wants nor needs our prayers. This is hateful to him. The rest is commentary. Go and learn it.
I don’t know anything about Rabbi Krause, but I feel safe saying that when we speak of “prayer”, we are talking about totally different things.
She seems to think of prayer as just another physical act, and that its efficacy to the one prayed for doesn’t extend beyond the feelings of comfort in knowing that someone is praying for him.
I think her last statement is most interesting. We should certainly put the needs of others before our own, but which needs? If you traffic only in felt needs, then it would be unnecessary, perhaps even wrong to pray for Chris Hitchens. If you don’t recognize any higher needs, this is where the story ends.
But when you recognize those higher needs — the need for salvation, faith, identification with Christ — it becomes pretty difficult to think it would be “contrary to religious practice” to pray for someone, even if he was opposed to it.
So, is it loving or hateful to pray for an atheist who doesn’t want your prayer?
Ready to listen to Britney Spears’ Gimme More? Oi vey, never thought I’d post a Britney Spears stream, but we can’t resist the Google AdSense possibilities, kids. Thanks, 
(Listen to You Are Everything by Matthew West, off his third studio album Something to Say. You may also read the You Are Everything lyrics on this post. GannsDeen.com does not offer Matthew West mp3’s for free download or paid downloads. If you like what you hear, please leave a comment in the Comments box. Come back to GannsDeen.com for the latest and best in Christian, country, and pop music.)For the record, I think Matthew West is one of the most brilliant contemporary Christian songwriters of our generation.
(For your listening pleasure, this blog post contains a stream of One Word by American Idol Season Five finalist Elliott Yamin, off his debut album Elliott Yamin. GannsDeen.com does not offer Elliott Yamin mp3’s for download. If you like what you hear, please leave a comment in the Comments box. Come back to GannsDeen.com for the latest and best in Christian, country, and pop music.)