Christian Game Publisher Looks to Walmart for Help

[Austin MacKenzie]

Christian Game Publisher Looks to Walmart for Help

Left Behind Games hopes that placement in Walmart will help its Christian-themed titles reach gamers.

Christian games have always been rather niche, never having gained much traction in the mainstream market. But Left Behind Games CEO Troy Lyndon hopes to change that as the games will make their way to an assortment of Walmart shelves around the United States.

This distribution follows an early test Walmart conducted in Texas during the 2009 Christmas season, and the company is interested in a more national distribution. Walmart's decision has given greater exposure to Left Behind Games, and Lyndon hopes this will help spread Christian gaming further. "Our Walmart strategy continues to be validated as we focus on placement, promotions and sales for the 2010 holiday gift giving season, when a majority of games are sold," said Lyndon.

Left Behind Games has been moving to create Christian titles more viable with the mainstream by producing games such as Left Behind: Trials and Tribulations, an RTS that pits the player against the forces of the antichrist. With Walmart already receptive to the idea of Christian products, having begun selling Christian music, fiction, and nonfiction, videogames seems the next logical step.

Source: Industry Gamers


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[Assassin Xaero]

I really don't know anyone that goes to Walmart to buy games...
And from living in the bible belt all my life, the though of christian-themed games never fails to make me facepalm.

 

[ShadowsofHope]

Wait. Fiction and non-fiction!? I didn't think Christianity had both categories!

This is clearly a misleading report. Clearly.

 

[Mr.Gompers]

Thus this mean we get to play this game?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WVBQfrQo38&feature=related

 

[Gigaguy64]

Interesting.
i hope they take notes on popular games for theirs.
I like the idea of Christian themed games but, people hear the word Christian Video Game and instantly hear the word Bibleman...(shudders)
Already books like Lord of the Rings and Narnia have brought christian themes into mainstream media very well.
Hopefully they can find a way to bring Christian themes into a fun game without having to completely mask them.

 

[truncatd]

It only has "niche appeal" largely because they probably won't let you play as the forces of the Antichrist. I don't know about you, but that sounds like it would be a lot more fun.

 

[Nitpicker of the Wastes]

Seeing as the Left Behind games are specifically anti-UN (the main baddie is the Anti-Christ, and is also the UN's President), they will never see any sort of praise from me.

I'm very curious as to how Wal-Mart will handle the entire thing.

 

[Ponch]

I, having read the entire Left Behind series(not any of the prequels or teen-oriented ones), would actually like to see a game come from them. Nothing like surviving the Rapture to make you feel like world exploring... in a world where everything explorable has been crushed and/or destroyed by fires.

 

[Sepiida]

So they're trying to push Christian games by working with the Satan of shopping centers. Interesting strategy.

 

[Cheesebob]

Wait. Fiction and non-fiction!? I didn't think Christianity had both categories!

This is clearly a misleading report. Clearly.

Yes. If I had a sig, I would so quote this

 

[Cmwissy]

Wait. Fiction and non-fiction!? I didn't think Christianity had both categories!

This is clearly a misleading report. Clearly.

You, you, are just.. just. great.

 

[Timbydude]

I'm a Christian, and a game based on Left Behind *sounds* cool, but it really was awful from what I've heard.

To be honest, my view on Christian games is the same as Christian music. I don't care if it's religious, I just care if it's GOOD. If the latter arises from the former, then good for them. Unfortunately, this doesn't seem to have been the case for Left Behind.

 

[SilverKyo]

If you're trying to find gamers, you're doing it wrong.

 

[Gaderael]

I really don't know anyone that goes to Walmart to buy games...
And from living in the bible belt all my life, the though of christian-themed games never fails to make me facepalm.

I buy games at Wal-Mart. I don't have much choice though. It's either them, or the two EB Games that have a combined total of twenty PC games in stock.

Also, Left Behind Games are awful. Go look them up. Funny enough, the only place I ever saw their games, was at EB Games, and not Wal-Mart.

 

[GamingAwesome1]

Hahahahaha! Wait........is this for real?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!

I don't know how anyone will take this seriously.....I can't wait for this to bomb in terms of sales and most likely, quality.

 

[fanklok]

such as Left Behind: Trials and Tribulations, an RTS that pits the player against the forces of the antichrist.

That sounds so stupid, if it wouldn't be a massive waste of money I'd actually try playing it find the stupidly over powered unit and complete the campaign in an hour, then never ever touch it again ever.

 

[Starke]

I'm a Christian, and a game based on Left Behind *sounds* cool, but it really was awful from what I've heard.

To be honest, my view on Christian games is the same as Christian music. I don't care if it's religious, I just care if it's GOOD. If the latter arises from the former, then good for them. Unfortunately, this doesn't seem to have been the case for Left Behind.

The games stop just short of advocating genocide, IIRC. So they end up in train wreck territory. I honestly thought the company was in the process of shutting down, given their inability to move (litterally) tons of unsold product.

 

[The Bandit]

Seeing as the Left Behind games are specifically anti-UN (the main baddie is the Anti-Christ, and is also the UN's President), they will never see any sort of praise from me.

I'm very curious as to how Wal-Mart will handle the entire thing.

I'm not a Christian, but this is really taking the whole idea out of context. If Hitler was the UN President, would you support it then? It's not anti-UN.

 

[Sakurazaki1023]

So let me get this straight, a game made by christian game developers about killing demons is fine, but when anyone else makes a game about killing demons it's considered glorifying Satan. I've seen people claim Doom is blasphemous when it's the exact same concept, you (the player) killing demons.

This double standard is so tragically (and ironically) hilarious.

http://lhla.org/breaking_news/?p=3966
http://objectiveministries.org/zounds/gaming.html

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

The games stop just short of advocating genocide, IIRC. So they end up in train wreck territory. I honestly thought the company was in the process of shutting down, given their inability to move (litterally) tons of unsold product.

I was also starting to think that an RTS of Heaven vs Hell would be fun. Like the Southpark where God kills Kenny so he can command Heaven's forces when Hell decides to invade.