Christians, shooter games and war

[Nick]

Ok, now I know quite a few members here including myself love first person shooter games, I love CoD, F.E.A.R., Halo, Frontlines etc, you get the picture.
I also recall a number of our members (and some that also like shooter games) have/are in the military.

Just wanted to ask - does you experiences in the military change your ideas on shooter games, and violence in games and movies generally?

 

[jasoncran]

Ok, now I know quite a few members here including myself love first person shooter games, I love CoD, F.E.A.R., Halo, Frontlines etc, you get the picture.
I also recall a number of our members (and some that also like shooter games) have/are in the military.

Just wanted to ask - does you experiences in the military change your ideas on shooter games, and violence in games and movies generally?

duh, you think i have had flashbacks in the middle of a ww2 reenactment, and have watched tv shows that triggered them. i avoid overly excessive violence.

jason

 

[kimberlyb0112]

Not for me..

We all get together around here and have played Halo and several other games,
and being in the military doesn't really change anything... and I don't think it does
for the other guys either..

We all just have fun and realize it's just a game, I know video
games are escapes for alot of soldiers out here.. get away
from work, etc.. and just play a video game

 

[Nick]

Not for me..

We all get together around here and have played Halo and several other games,
and being in the military doesn't really change anything... and I don't think it does
for the other guys either..

We all just have fun and realize it's just a game, I know video
games are escapes for alot of soldiers out here.. get away
from work, etc.. and just play a video game

I haven't been in the military but that's the way I look at it: a game and nothing else. It must be nice as an escape. I find it good to release stress or anger as well.

 

[jasoncran]

Not for me..

We all get together around here and have played Halo and several other games,
and being in the military doesn't really change anything... and I don't think it does
for the other guys either..

We all just have fun and realize it's just a game, I know video
games are escapes for alot of soldiers out here.. get away
from work, etc.. and just play a video game

I haven't been in the military but that's the way I look at it: a game and nothing else. It must be nice as an escape. I find it good to release stress or anger as well.

or for me create anger, at times i get mad when i loose,but i come back and beat it.

 

[Ashua]

The only games that I play that can be considered "shooter" games are Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil (To a lesser extent) and I used to play America's Army.

The first two I play for the story line-- not senseless killing. War and killing is justified in the Bible if done under righteous cause. America's Army is a government funded propaganda game which is pretty senseless, but not entirely 'murder glorifying' either.

 

[jasoncran]

the u.s. army and all branches are goverment proganda machines?

perhaps you are confusing recruitment with that stuff. there are subcultures within each branch of service. and the military is a subculture in of itself.

if you care to learn i will show you how that is in the army, army reserves, and national guard.
i have worked with all and been in the active army and now i am in the guard.

 

[Pard]

All my military friends play video games. I was playing with a bud of mine in the Marines yesterday, he was on some RR after a mission in country. He was hanging out in one of our bases in Germany and playing Modern Warfare 2 with me. It's funny, in real life he is a sniper... in COD I would never even let him go near one!

He says they play video games in country also and that it is a break from real life. He says that it's nice to be fighting in a game where when you die you just respawn.

 

[SamW]

I spent 8 years on submarines, and greatly enjoy the Silent Hunter Wolves of the pacific game. Although not a first person shooter, you are still attacking an enemy. I've played the WW2 CoD games and enjoy WWII flight simulators. Some ex submariners despise the submarine games.

The response to first person shooters by ex military is highly subjective. It depends on a combination of what they've experienced and how its affected them. Two people can experience the same event and have it affect them in completely opposite manners.

I have one friend that was the only survivor of an attack on his platoon as they were getting ready to evac in Vietnam. He won't go near a first person shooter game.

I know others that enjoy them.

Because of the combination of experience, age, and the affect of, especially combat, on each individual, there is no across the board response to how (ex)military personnel feel towards these type games.

 

[hisvessel1]

Being a Nam Vet, there are some games i'll play; and some i won't touch with a 20 foot pole. I mostly play strategy games like Hearts of Iron.

 

[Strangelove]

I used to play COD4 multiplayer a lot. Like....every night for 2 hours or more. It's HIGHLY addictive. I still have it installed on my PC.

But as I got more and more into Jesus I started spending more time on forums and reading the Bible and stuff.....not conciously but it just happened.

I ended up so into Jesus that I just.......forgot to play video games.....forgot to watch the football.....etc

I think it was God's will to pull me away from that stuff and into my studies.

I would say that video games are a negative thing to be doing in general. Especially ones that involve guns and killing. How that relates to actual military men I wouldn't know......but I cant imagine it would be a good thing.

Just my take....I know in my heart that video games are not things that God loves. They are one of the most earthy,,,fleshy things that you can spend time on.

That doesn't stop me from picking up a slinced AK.....UAV jammer.....3XFrags and domintaing all comers on Bog now and again though...Lolz.


Doc. (lifelong gamer....new disciple to Jesus Christ....still learning)