Actually, if you look at game development, this isn't all that bad. $12M for a game development is not a huge figure by industry standards. The game has gotten a massive amount of free press and they are marketing to the Christian community though churches and such which will be a lot less expensive than a bunch of TV commercials or game magazine ads. Given the lack of competition in the Christian gaming space and the popularity of the Left Behind license, they are likely to make a lot of sales... with many people in that segment buying the game simply to support the market.

So, take their total costs up to $20M with marketing and everything... they probably will wind up making a lot of money.

The books have sold over 65 Million copies and the Children's books alone have sold over 10 Million copies. As of early 2005, their web site attracted 60,000 hits per day!

http://www.rapidnet.com/~jbeard/bdm/BookReviews/left.htm

There are estimates that the total Christian gaming market could exceed $6 Billion ... if any game is going to tap that market, it will be Left Behind.

http://www.marketingprofs.com/ea/qst_question.asp?qstID=13085

A powerful license, low marketing costs, lots of free publicity... yes, there is some risk, but in stock market terms, not too much.

If this game doesn't succeed, it may break the Christian gaming market, however.

As for the game distribution itself, pitching it to congregations isn't the same as selling it. Games are a little different from books and movies in that they still aren't something that everyone is familiar with. The price tag is higher, too.

I agree that, as far as stocks go, this may not be as big a risk as, say, a Scientology Drug Lab. But there are a lot of unanswered questions about how new capital will be raised.

Releasing the demo so far ahead of the final product may prove to be a mistake, too, since it really isn't that good. Curious parishioners who are familiar with gaming - the most likely sales - will have already tried the game and been let down. If you live by word of mouth, you risk dying by word of mouth.

(Plus, the game is a poor ministry tool from what I've seen of it.)

From what I've seen and heard about this game I would have a hard time classifying it as a "Christian" game. I really hope it fails miserably. There are other far cooler looking games comming based on the Bible.

Of course I never liked the idea of the books [basicly fictionalizing Revelation] so I'm probably not the one to comment.

This statement is posted from an employee of Left Behind Games on behalf of Troy Lyndon, our Chief Executive Officer.

There has been in incredible amount of MISINFORMATION published in the media and in online blogs here and elsewhere.

Pacifist Christians and other groups are taking the game material out of context to support their own causes. There is NO “killing in the name of God” and NO “convert or die”. There are NO “negative portrayals of Muslims” and there are NO “points for killing”.

Please play the game demo for yourself (to at least level 5 of 40) to get an accurate perspective, or listen to what CREDIBLE unbiased experts are saying after reviewing the game at www.leftbehindgames.com/pages/controversy.com

Then, we’d love to hear your feedback as an informed player.

The reality is that we’re receiving reports everyday of how this game is positively affecting lives by all who play it.

Thank you for taking the time to be a responsible blogger.

I am a Christian and a Pacifist. The LB Games “spam” insinuates that there’s something wrong with this. This is the same thinking that led to the crusades and the inquisition. Doubtless, this is where these people want to lead us again. Through this game they've shown their hand. They are leading us to the Christian equivalent of jihad.

Jesus Christ was the ultimate "Christian Pacifist" - He laid down His life. I'm disturbed that SJR thinks that this is somehow a bad thing.

The hard right has shown its hand. Maybe a Christian jihad is not so far away if a game like this can gain so much traction.