Joshua Bearman gives thumbs-down to the computer game based on the ridiculous and astoundingly unsuspenseful Left Behind series of books (the first book in the series is available for 1 cent on Amazon), about the end times according to Biblical prophesy.
All real-time-strategy games are about harvesting resources, and I was hoping for a little thrill in the harvesting of souls, but after a couple hours of learning how to train builders to erect cafés and dodge street musicians, I got bored and gave up. I never even saw a Horned Demon (Level 5 evil spirit; special ability: fireball), or any of the holy war that is supposed to be the whole point for supporters and critics alike. If you’re looking for good versus evil on your computer, it’s infinitely more satisfying to stick with standbys from those other two great mythologized Manichaean struggles, The Lord of the Rings (Battle for Middle Earth II) and Star Wars (Empire at War).I should have guessed Left Behind would be disappointing when I read that you could play, but never win, as the Antichrist.
Previously on Boing Boing:
• The Rapture Index: Quantifying the end-times Link
• Hardening an httpd for the rapture Link
• Religious nuts ecstatic over Middle East turmoil Link
• Left Behind deconstructed Link
• Christian Apocalyptic Fiction Link