Classic Game Review: "Left Behind" -- We Answer Your Questions

 

 

Awhile back, I was given a copy of Left Behind:  Eternal Forces.   I did not pay for Left Behind:  Eternal Forces.   I also did not steal Left Behind:  Eternal Forces.  I quite literally don't know who gave me Left Behind:  Eternal Forces.  

I answered the questions below -- the ones simmering on your mind -- in an effort to review the game.

Does Left Behind:  Eternal Forces let you kill people?

Yes.  But only in self-defense.

With a tank?

Yes.

 

But you're protecting others, so it's morally good, then.

No, it costs you Spirituality Points.  It's still bad.  But sometimes, you have to kill bad guys, but it's still morally bad, but you should do it sometimes, but it's morally bad, but sometimes you just have to, you know?  But it's bad.

How can you tell who the bad guys are?

They cuss.

No, seriously.

No, seriously.

What do you mean?

Each character has special traits and abilities.  The Christians all have "Pray" under their special ability section.  Like, there's a woman who's the Worship Leader, and her special abilities are "Pray, Crowd Worship"  When you equip her with "music" and "public speaking" training, she gets the ability to "positively rivet the audience nearby."

Awesome.  But she doesn't cuss.

No.  Bad guys have "Swearing" as their special abilities.  All of them.  For example, non-Christian musicians get special abilties "Swear, Sing" or "Swear, Play", or -- for the Level 3 Rock Star -- "Swear, Perform Concert"  And she wears a scanty blouse-thing, which should tip you off that she's fixin' to swear.

ALL the bad guys have "swear" as their special ability?

Yes.  It's pretty realistic of the end-times, when cussing will increase ten-fold.  The Gangster bad guy has "Swear, Rumble", the soldier has "Swear, Explosive Bullets" and thief, curiously, has "Swear, Pickpocket, Poison", which is an awesome name for the next Shaun Groves CD, in my opinion.

Swear, Pickpocket, Poison?

Swear, Pickpocket, Poison.

Is there a David Crowder Band song in this game?

Yes.  For me, this is causing some cognitive dissonance.  I don't know how to account for this.  I do kinda wish he, himself, were in the game, and he could drive the tank and stuff.

Who recommends Left Behind:  Eternal Forces on the game box?

Someone named Beverley LaHaye, with Concerned Women for America.  Miss (Mrs.?) LaHaye says "...here is a game we can heartily recommend..."

Back to the good guys/bad guys.  You mentioned they have to be trained or something, to get their special abilities?

Yes.  The good guy Christians get trained at, primarily, something called The Mission Training Center.  Also Churches, Cathedrals.  Christian Level 1 Soldiers get skills like "Pray, Explosive Bullets".

So they're trained at Mission Training Centers.  Where are the bad guys trained?

All the evil people are trained at...you guessed it..."college".

You made all this up.

I made nothing up.

posted by Brant Hansen at 7:00 AM on May 28th, 2010
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Thank you for including me in the best video game review of all time.

"Swear, Pickpocket, Poison" will be on Family Christian Store shelves in time to celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace.
Posted By Shaun Groves | June 2, 2010 @ 7:35
Christians created meaningful contributions to our culture?

Well...me neither. But I remember reading about it.

Absolutely amazing review. May I ask what is happening in the screenshot? Are those Christian soldiers or are those college-trained mercenaries?
Posted By Todd | June 2, 2010 @ 8:06
As in wife of Left Behind author Tim LaHaye.

Nothing like a little nepotism when it's rapture time!

And Shaun, I triple-dog-dare you. Do it! DO IT!!!!
Posted By Princess Leia | June 2, 2010 @ 8:08
So the "Comment Title" thing didn't work so well...

The title of my previous comment was "MRS. LaHaye" The first sentence makes more sense that way.
Posted By Princess Leia | June 2, 2010 @ 8:10
Me too, Princess Leia.

The first sentence in mine was "Remember when..."
Posted By Todd | June 2, 2010 @ 9:00
Being a Christian ... I find this game offensive!! When are these people going to wake up?! This kind of stuff just gets me going ... this is NO WHERE NEAR to who Christ really is or what He represents! I kept hoping to see it was a joke by the end of the article!
Posted By TEE DUBYA | June 2, 2010 @ 1:13
Please do not take this wrong, but in case no one has told you, I would like to listen to a different radio DJ besides you. This is not because i don't care as a christian about you. I think your gift is to visit places and report about that, and things as such. But to listen to your voice seriously everyday i just turn the station until your off. Your voice is so nasal to me, and your jokes are really not that funny. Of course now you will think i am attacking you but please this is so far from it. You have that gift but i don't think to be on the radio everyday. Your radio ratings and listeners would go up also if you were not on Brandt. I am sorry to relay this to you and to your station, but i know what i feel when i listen to you. I am sure i am not the only one, but i am nice eneough to tell you and your station. I hope they will make the changes and take you off and let you work in the background. Your gift to me is that travel kind of thing thankyou for your time but it is time for a new DJ. Thanks Tony Profeta.
Posted By Tony Profeta | June 5, 2010 @ 8:25
I've actually played this game and found it to be boring boring boring. Take away the rapture/prayer bits and you're left with just a poorly done shoot 'em up. Don't even waste your time with this one.

And Tony Profeta...I find your comment on a thread about a game to be inappropriate. Keep on topic please or change the station.
Posted By Donna | June 5, 2010 @ 10:21
Tony -- I'd normally thank you for the constructive criticism, but I'm afraid there's not much I can do about my voice or my humor. My voice is what I'm given, and my strange humor is kinda who I am. (I did have a cold this week, and apologized for being more nasal than usual.)

I know I'm not going to be everybody's cup of tea. And that's okay. I do frequently ask God to help me not get in the way.

I don't think I'm going quit right now, though. I see some good things coming out of my job, some really encouraging things, even with my shortcomings.

As a general rule, just so you know, most of the time, if you tell someone you don't know that he's failing at his career, and should find another one, he will tend to take it personally, and it's not terribly loving or helpful. Most guys want to feel like they're doing a good job, and it's also a way to provide for a wife and children.

God's best to you, and I do hope you can find something else in the morning that you enjoy.
Posted By Brant Hansen | June 5, 2010 @ 10:37
Personally, I find your humor interesting, and while the accordion is not my thing, you pull it off. But that aside.

All of the info on the game is interesting, but you have not answered the key question when reviewing a game. That being, WAS IT FUN? Was it worth the time you put in on it or was it just a nice concept?

I realize any answer will be just your opinion, but then, aren't all reviews, for anything, opinion?
Posted By GMan | June 5, 2010 @ 10:52
So... what you're telling me is that I should drop out of college if I don't want to be some "evil", blouse-wearing, potty-mouthed floozy?

And I personally find your humor refreshing and promising. My brother has Asperger's Syndrome, and it makes me so happy to see that he can be successful by your example, especially in the line of work that you do where a lot of it depends on the social aspect.
Posted By Linds | June 5, 2010 @ 11:26
Please.
Posted By Dan | June 5, 2010 @ 12:02
To the person who stated that (in not so many words) that violence and Jesus in the same idea is offensive:

This game is based upon the Left Behind series of books by Tim LaHaye and Jerry. B. Jenkins. The series is a New York Times best seller (like... all 13 books of it), and depicts a fictional view of Armageddon. Reading through the book of Revelation though, you will notice that the last seven years of this planet are anything but peaceful.

Christ will rapture his church, and violence will erupt all over the planet. In fact, any sign of peace triggers another violent act. Earthquakes, hail, scary beastly things, and most of all... WAR. ...and lots of it. Most of the planet's population will perish in these acts.

But the catch is that, if you've accepted Christ as your Savior, your going to go to Heaven when you do die. If you don't die, then you'll be alive to witness God establishing his 1,000 year rein on Earth. So with that being said, If I'm to stay alive to witness that, but I have a soldier pointing a gun in my face because of my faith, yeah, I'm going to get violent.
Posted By Trevor | June 5, 2010 @ 12:08
Good job once again on finding something completely entertaining to write about. This article has made me see that there's hope for Christian media (I'm not referring to the game, mind you, but to your whit, Brant). I actually giggled out loud in reading this. Congratulations on finding the perfect job to express your gifts. I'm glad my husband and I found your radio show to make our commute go by quicker in the morning.
Posted By MicahJoy | June 5, 2010 @ 4:53
Thank you for your comments Mr. Profeta. While we aren't willing to fire Mr Hansen at this time, we have provided him with a supply of Afrin and airfare to places he would really like to visit - Fiji and Butte, Montana. Your input only works to improve our efficiency here at the radio station.

Sincerely,
Radio Management
Posted By Josh Knight | June 5, 2010 @ 7:31
Great job Brant! Along with Linds, we have a child with Aspergers too. Refreshing is the term and genuinely real. Thank you for that! And Josh Knight, I really enjoyed your diplomatic and professional comment. God certainly gave us medications and it is always a good thing (for anyone here) to take them if you need to... :) I would like to try the game. I always liked the Left Behind series.. OK...Great job!!
Posted By Becky | June 6, 2010 @ 6:42
To Mr. Profeta, no one is making you listen to Brant's "nasaly" voice. God allowed inventors to make the DIAL for a reason. And it's really not Christian to criticize one another. Jesus said it best: Pull the plank out of your own eye before you pick out the speck in your brother's.

Brant, you're awesome and it would be a dream to have a job to simultaneously be yourself and reach so many people in the name of Jesus! And I personally think you're gut-splitting hilarious! Even the accordion. And I don't know of another radio station that's so connected to facebook and actually responds to its fans!! God bless!
Posted By Bethany | June 6, 2010 @ 4:18
Folks like Trevor scare the daylights out of me....
Posted By J | June 7, 2010 @ 8:48
After reading the comment that your skills are best used for travel and reports about travel, I felt like I needed to respond. I was a loyal, every-morning listener when you were in Illinois. Since you left that station, the people who have worked the morning show are fine, but I do not feel like I connect as much with what they talk about. This is not just some of the people, but all the people after you. There is nothing wrong with them; I just don't find myself nodding my head in agreement with a lot that they say. Several months ago I found out that I could listen to your show online, and when I am able, I do that. I appreciate that you realize situations have more than one side, and I enjoy your out-of-the-box way of thinking. Also, I have a grade-schooler now, and I like how you give listeners warning before you start talking when you are going to talk about something that is not appropriate for kids that age. So, thanks for doing what you do, and keep up the good work.
Posted By Kristi | June 17, 2010 @ 12:33
That game was more shockingly horrible than I found out from the demo. Please, throw the game in the trash. Please, just do it. This game proves that Christians are horrible game developers. I wish Christian game developers would make something at least decent but there's not much to work with in Christianity although a spiritual warfare game would be interesting if done right.
Posted By Hunter | July 16, 2010 @ 6:39
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