Thus far in this series, we have looked at videogames as an entertainment medium in both positive and negative lights. This form of media certainly has advantages that no other form of media has at its disposal. Along with them come limitations, typically tied to the very benefits they offer. The question, then, is what is a Christian to do with these things?
This post will focus on six objections to Christians playing videogames that are usually brought up, and we will analyze them to see if they have any merit.
Objection #1: Too much time
First, we will look at the idea that games take too much time. It must be noted that, as Christians, our time is very valuable. Our time on earth is as a vapor, and we must make good use of our time, because the days are evil. This cannot be underestimated. We have no business playing games if we are not doing our job as Christians.
On the other hand, is this to mean that there is to be no time whatsoever for recreation? How many of those who wag their fingers at gamers for wasting time have absolutely no recreation? Very few, I suspect. I have heard with my own two ears people say that videogames are a waste of time while the football game is on! I propose that Christians can and should make time for recreation. Whether it be movies, watching the game, reading a good book, or playing a videogame, it is important for everyone to take time to relax.
Unfortunately, even for those who would agree to most of the previous sentence, oftentimes a double standard is used. Whether they verbalize this or not, they contrast the well-regulated movie watching habits of one person (usually themselves) with the extreme unhealthy habit of some gamers who play for 22 hours a day. This is illegitimate. By this logic, I could contrast my well-regulated gaming habit with the extreme movie watcher who spends all day watching movies. It simply doesn't work. Videogames do not, in and of themselves, take too much time. The issue is with the person playing, which is no different from any other form of media. All forms (even books) can be dangerous if used to an extreme.
Objection #2: Too much money
Another major objection is the cost of these games. Admittedly, in comparison they appear rather steep. A book (your average recreational novel; not everyone enjoys recreationally reading scholarly work) costs about $8. An album is about $15. A movie, even your fancy 3D Blu-Ray+2D Blu-Ray+DVD+Digital Copy movie tops out at about $35. A PS4, Xbox One, or Wii U game? $60. And that is after the cost of the system itself, which ranges from $300-400 new (to be fair, the Wii U comes bundled with a couple games). If you want other people to play at home with you, then you have to buy extra controllers. If you want to play online with a PS4 or Xbox One, you have to pay $60 per year (online is free for Wii U). In sum, if you intended on buying a PS4 with one game, an extra controller, and the ability to play online, you are looking at a $550 investment! That is simply too much money to warrant a purchase, right?
Well, let's hold on here. First off, it is important to remember that the system is a one-time purchase. They don't usually upgrade systems for about 6 years. Second, one must realize that games are designed to give experiences that last far longer than movies do. A movie lasts a family about 2 hours. A videogame can last a family well over 30 hours!
So let's do the math here. If a DVD player costs about $50, and a DVD costs about $20, then the experience is $70 for 2 hours of recreation, or $35 per hour.
Using that $550 figure above, if that experience lasted 30 hours, then it would end up costing only $18 per hour of recreation.
Here's where it gets important. Nobody buys a DVD player for one movie, and nobody buys a game console for one game. How does the math play out when you have five movies/games instead of one?
If each DVD is $20, then the total cost of a DVD player and 5 DVDs is $150. That comes out to $15 per hour.
If each game is $60, with 30 hours playability, then the total is $790. While that is very steep, the hourly cost is a paltry $5.26. In the long run, watching movies actually ends up being more expensive than playing videogames. Mind you, I used the most expensive console. If I redid the math with a Wii U, which comes with two games, it would cost only $480, with an hourly cost of $3.20. For what you get out of videogames, they are a very cheap medium.
Objection #3: Silly Christian, Games are for kids!
This one is simply frustrating, and reveals an ignorance of the history of videogames. One should realize that the earliest forms of the videogame utilized WWII equipment, and were made for adults. It wasn't until arcades got big in the 70s that you started seeing more kids in the arcades. There is a deep-seated stereotype that those who play games are male children, or fat male unsocial adults. In today's world, one of the largest percentage of gamers are middle-aged women! Nintendo and the smartphone are to thank for gaming breaking out of that stereotype, and it is time for Christians to understand the changing landscape, especially for pastoral purposes.
Objection #4: Games are unChristian, therefore wrong
This is the one that I don't have a clear answer for. If one takes the position that the only acceptable forms of recreation are those that are explicitly Christian in nature, then one can safely dismiss videogaming as an entertainment medium (this is only true at present; the concept of a 'Christian videogame', while difficult, is likely possible). However, most of those who use this argument are guilty of it themselves. If secular videogames are wrong, then so is secular music, secular movies, and, technically, secular sports! While I don't care for most secular music, I wouldn't say it is wrong to listen to it. One simply has to be more careful, and keep your guard up a little more than with explicitly Christian music (which you should keep your guard up for that, as well). In the same way, one may freely play videogames as a Christian, so long as one guards against secular influences.
Objection #5: Games make kids violent
I'll be honest here. This is the dumbest objection of all, and gives Christians a horrible image in the eyes of non-Christian gamers. The idea that people should not play (any) videogames because the violence of (some) videogames "makes" (some) kids violent is simply asinine.
This is further bolstered by studies that link violent games to violent crimes. I suggest that these studies are confusing causation with correlation. In other words, I propose that 90%+ of the problem is a family that is violent, or that does not restrain them. When they train up their children in the children's way, it is no surpise that violence occurs. The violent videogame is a symptom of a rampant, unchecked sin problem, not the cause itself.
Let us take this logic to the medium of music. Most, if not all, of these violent crimes are committed by those who not only play violent videogames, but listen to very violent music. Damon of Athens, a musician from the fifth century BC, is quoted by Plato as giving the following brilliant proverb:
Give me the songs of a nation, and I care not who writes its laws. The music one listens to is very important. Therefore, I suspect that these violent crimes were committed because of the shootings and other wicked actions described in detail in these songs. Therefore, all music everywhere is violent, and Christians should not allow their children to listen to music, because music makes kids violent.
Anyone ready to pitch their hymns yet? Of course not, because not all music is to be treated the same. It is no different with videogames.
Objection #6: Just read a book
Finally, we come to the claim that reading is better than videogames, so we might as well just read a book. In all honesty, I agree with the first claim. On a level playing field, if I was to grant one medium as the best, I would have to choose the book. After all, the written word is what God used to give us His sacred Scripture. John 1:1 does not say "In the Beginning was the Videogame". Whether written or spoken, words are powerful, and they are the most versatile of all forms of communication.
The issue with this objection, of course, is that it suggests that you can only use one form of media. This is absurd. In fact, oftentimes forms of media are blended. Movies, for example, have had music for the last 75 years. Before that, spoken lines were delivered via text, so that the audience could read them. Videogames are no different.
Whether it is the idea that games make kids violent, or that they are too expensive or take too much time, none of these objections are convincing enough to suggest that Christians shouldn't play videogames. The question that remains then, is how does a Christian play them? What limits should a Christian put on themselves when consuming secular media, gaming in particular? These questions will be addressed in the final post of this series next week.
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