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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsWorld of Warcraft listed as one of the 30 most offensive games
by Adam Holisky 
Jan 9th 2009 at 5:00PM
The conservative Christian investment firm, the Timothy Plan, has released a list of the 30 most offensive games on the market (Warning: link is to a PDF file). This list details the areas of sex, nudity, gay / lesbian, violence, cartoon violence, language, comic mischief, drugs, alcohol, tobacco, gambling, demonic, and game addiction as things that are against any "morally responsible" mutual fund to invest in.In other words they don't want you to invest, like they don't, in companies that make games which deal with any of the above areas.
World of Warcraft is on the list. It has an overall score of a 9, which means it is half as offensive as Grand Theft Auto IV. According to the Timothy Plan, WoW is morally deficient in sex, violence, language, alcohol, and game addiction.
Some investors will take this advice, and that's their right to do so.
After the break we'll examine areas in which WoW is morally deficient, according to the Timothy Plan.
Area 1: Sex
"Suggestive Themes: Some suggestively dressed female characters and sexual allusions."
Yup. WoW has some pretty attractive females. Night Elves dancing on mailboxes, Dwarf Priests jumping around in their Tier 2 gear, and don't forget the mating of two sea-lions. /phew!
Area 2: Violence
"Blood, Violence: A reasonable amount of fighting interspersed between various missions. Many attacks can cause enemies to bleed."
I can agree with half of that. There is a reasonable amount of fighting. You have to kill monsters, bad thieves, and your enemy on the battle-field. But unlike the text which the Timothy Plan lives by, there are no descriptions of a man being strung up on a cross with a crown of thorns on.
The second part of the violence statement, that many attacks can cause enemies to bleed, is wrong. The bleed effect is only applyable by a few number of classes and their abilities, and only by a few weapons. By no means are "many attacks" able to do this.
Area 3: Language
"Mild Language: You may find a very occasional 'd*mn.'"
If you think that's language, you should hear what I yell at my computer when I wipe on a raid boss for the umpteenth time.
Area 4: Alcohol
"Use: Players have the opinion of purchasing and consuming alcohol, even the ability to get drunk."
Players also learn an important lesson, when you get drunk you can't walk straight and are extremely less effective in everything you do. In fact, you can't fight well at all while drunk. You might even say that WoW tries to impart the antithesis of what the Timothy Group is trying to say. WoW tells you getting drunk is bad.
Area 5: Game Addiction
"Addiction: Due to the nature of the game and its length, it is extremely addictive. Time limits need to be set when playing the game."
WoW is an addictive game. If you have an addictive personality, then you are at risk of becoming addicted to WoW or any other game. I don't want to get into the physiological responses of the body to addiction, but needless to say, addiction is real and there are physical as well as mental reasons for it.
However with that said, there are lots of other things you can become addicted to as well. Watching TV, drinking, risk taking, sex, or basically anything that releases endorphins into your brain to make you feel good.
While I'll leave it up for you to decide the general merits of this list.
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Odds and ends, Blizzard
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 15)
Kevin Jan 9th 2009 5:32PM
Adam, you may have been raised Catholic, but that does not give you some kind of shield that says your statements aren't pot shots against the Christian religion.
Yes, violence happened in the Bible. That's because the Bible is about real life and real life is violent. That on the other hand has nothing to do with whether or not there is violence in World of Warcraft.
World of Warcraft has violence in it. Many attacks cause the graphical effect of bleeding (not the game-mechanic effect as you suggested trying to make the list author appear stupid). These are true statements. Whether there is violence in the Bible has nothing to do with rather this is true or not.
And whether there is violence in a game is something parents want (or should want) to know.
You claim that you have no problem with people using the guide and then ridicule an entire religion on pretty petty grounds. I think you should examine why you feel so threatened by Christianity.
Adam Holisky Jan 9th 2009 5:37PM
@Kevin:
While I disagree that I was taking potshots at the religion as a whole, I do feel threatened, as we all should, be any religious extremists. Be they the kind that spout physical violence or mental control and fear.
Anytime someone tells me I'm going to hell or have bad moral because I enjoy a video game, I can do nothing but sit back and point out the hypocrisy of their ideas.
Parents should not fear their kids playing Warcraft, they should fear there kids not having good parental influence and nurture.
Xonate Jan 9th 2009 5:48PM
I don't think Adam was really trying to attack any religions with his statement, but I do think it was an extremely poor choice of words. I actually had to read the sentence several times trying to get what exactly he was trying to get across.
However, I do think it was sort of inappropriate. You could have easily said they were being a bit hypocritical because the Bible has lots of violence, rather than saying "But unlike the text which the Timothy Plan lives by, there are no descriptions of a man being strung up on a cross with a crown of thorns on." It's a bit insensitive to people who believe in that.
anonymoose Jan 9th 2009 5:52PM
I would likewise agree that mocking the religion was unnecessary--and I'm non-Christian, so this isn't about you stepping on my toesies. It's more that I think it's inappropriate to make fun of anyones religion, especially under the guise of a commentary. If you were raised Christian and somehow feel this gives you license to make such jabs, I'm here to tell you that's misguided, and also indicates you don't understand the difference between a more "personal" type of humor you might enjoy with good friends or a *very limited audience*; versus realizing that WoWInsider has a much larger and diverse readership base--and we aren't your guild mates or personal buddies.
I think listing WoW as half as bad as Grand Theft Auto is certainly overboard, especially when you have games like AoC where you can adjust your character's breast size, and a myriad of other games where graphic bleeding is incredibly common. One of the things I very much like about WoW is the relative absence of blood during most gameplay.
I do agree that I think the presence of alcohol in the game is inappropriate given the teen rating. I also think it would be great to have some sort of limitation on game play that recognizes MMOs are addictive.
While I understand your desire to critique the rating, you might do better to avoid the mockery, and stick with serious points--has the Christian fund also eliminated alcohol and cigarettes manufacturers from its investments? Do they avoid investing in companies that benefit from human slavery and environmental devestation, such as the gold and diamond mining industries?
jbodar Jan 9th 2009 6:09PM
@Kevin
Religious extremists do not want you to think for yourself. They want you to follow THEIR interpretation of religious texts (i.e., dogma) and let them do the thinking for you, while you fund their church (a.k.a, them). That is why it is a problem (for me, and other "free-thinkers") when someone declares that you will go to hell if you don't think that imaginary sexuality/violence is bad.
laina Jan 9th 2009 6:32PM
Regarding hypocrisy: so what? Just because someone is hypocritical doesn't mean they are wrong.
Regard the smoker who says "Don't smoke. It's bad for your health."
Is he being hypocritical? yes.
Is he wrong? No. smoking is indeed bad for your health.
Hypocrisy does not change the value of someone's statement in the slightest. It is simply a tool for someone who is immature to attack instead of the argument itself.
That said: there are hypocrites in every religion, including Atheism.
Hansbo Jan 9th 2009 6:33PM
The general opinion seems to be that you can make fun of anything, just not people's religions. I find that highly offensive.
If I would want an imaginary friend and then tell people why they are immoral in the eyes of that friend, I would certainly expect people to make fun of me.
mr.gerbz Jan 9th 2009 9:17PM
Why can't we make fun of religions? It's not like it's based on anything real anyway, so we insult no one with it, even if you think you're supposed to be insulted by it.
I will make fun of anyone, that believes in some kind of god. As I will of anyone with an imaginary friend. Insult them? Only if they're fundamentalists, because those deserve to be insulted, for trying to force their religion on others.
Shulkman Jan 9th 2009 5:07PM
Oh and to add on... I've always been very careful to not get addicted to WoW... I always balance my time playing with an equal amount of time snorting blow off a hooker's thigh...
Mallarme Jan 9th 2009 5:18PM
HA! I actually laughed out loud at work after reading this.
Drizzimus Jan 9th 2009 6:31PM
LMAO! Me too! TOTALLY caught unprepared for that one.
On another note, I can see both angles with this post. I understand he didn't mean to come out and have the audacity to say something that would really upset everyone so much, just to give a comparison to another work of fiction (because yes everyone, the Bible IS a work of fiction) and how violent it can be interpreted. On one hand though, I have met people who took the Bible and ascertained only the good things out of it and became better people, but others who have created this illusion in their minds that if you don't follow Him, then you should be burned at the stake, literally.
I am Wiccan, but I believe that people should follow what their hearts tell them to and not be prejudicial to others for it. And can you guys imagine an MMO based on the Bible? Being a follower of Christ running around doing holy quests for Him and avoiding cynical "heathens" and Romans, not to mention dodging flaming rain from the skies and occasionally picking up that sword to take part on a "Holy Crusade", off killing believers of another faith? Hmm... sounds like a hit!
Shmoopy Jan 9th 2009 5:08PM
That's O.k., Christianity is one of the top 5 offensive religions for just about the same list of reasons.
jbodar Jan 12th 2009 5:35PM
Scientology has to be at least Top 3.
Wes Jan 9th 2009 5:07PM
Something not mentioned in this article is that the list can also double as a list of the 30 best games on the market.
Wes Jan 9th 2009 5:16PM
Ok, without starting a huge religious debate i should say that despite all of the "educated" opinions about christians flying about, we arent all conservatives... theres a big difference. It's one of the biggest religions in the world, we don't all go in the same box.
oh and regarding my earlier comment where i mentioned "the list can also double as a list of the 30 best games on the market. " That is of course excluding hellgate london. That game was beyond awful.
Aaron A. Jan 9th 2009 5:37PM
"Ok, without starting a huge religious debate i should say that despite all of the "educated" opinions about christians flying about, we arent all conservatives... theres a big difference."
True, but the easiest way to get media exposure is to say that the world's going down the tubes, and it's all Modern Society's fault. Surely, they say, today's children are worse than any other generation in human history, and their immorality will lead to the downfall of all that we hold dear. Being reasonable and accepting people for who they are won't get you on the air.
I like the *concept* of ethical investing, of putting your money into businesses that you believe in and eschewing those you don't, but the rules these mutual funds apply are so arbitrary. Even if you manage your own investments, it's rather difficult to boil an entire company down to "naughty" or "nice." In the right context, anybody can be portrayed as evil. Banks encourage people to go into debt; shoe companies exploit third-world children; the leading brand of macaroni and cheese is made by a subsidiary of a cigarette company; and the always popular "[Company]'s [CEO/founder/major investor] donated money to [political candidate or cause]".
jellyman223 Jan 9th 2009 5:09PM
Aww seriously now! If you really think it's that bad you should try not letting your kids play it instead of making a fricken list of M games!
Mornhadine Jan 9th 2009 5:11PM
Wait, there's Sex in WoW? Oh, he must be talking about the female stripper dance (I forget what Alliance race it is at the moment).
Also, I can proudly say that I am a member of the WoW Addicts' Club. Raid on my fellow addicts!
Josh Jan 9th 2009 5:12PM
So, a game considered "addictive" is a bad thing? I'd be proud of myself for creating an addictive game.
WOW is less expensive than church. By the time you buy the right clothes, and drop something in the plate to not be judged as a total asshole. . . It's cheaper to stay home drinking digital alcohol watching my naked toons dance while summoning demons.
Ikarus Jan 9th 2009 5:47PM
The irony is killing me. While not in agreement with the "Timoty Plans" take on WoW, I have to say the anti-chirstian/religious aggro coming out of some of you amounts to the same thing practically. People are pissed or whatever that the Timothy Plan spoke badly/judged their favorite pass time. So most of you in turn cast the judgments right back.
The statements coming from a lot of you are tantamount to aracist categorizing an entire people group on the actions of a few. Are there christians/religious people who are total and complete hate mongers and hypocrites? absolutely. On the flip side, are there christians/religious people who have led amazing, generous lives that any of us would do well to model on at least some level? without a doubt in my mind.
I'm reminded of a conversation between to friends of mine:
Friend A " the church is full of hypocrites"
Friend B " you'll fit right in"
judge not lest you be judged indeed.
PS...I don't consider myself a very religious person for the record