There was once a man possessed by the devil himself, who sought to conquer the world. Using this power, he fought the strongest fighters in a worldwide tournament to make sure nobody would stop him, and claim enough influence to see through his plan. The same man, without the guidance of the unholy spirit, had different intentions though.
A New Challenger!
Another genre of games that I enjoy (aside from RPG’s) are fighting games. They are very competitive and require skill to win (and a little prayer won’t hurt). One of my favorites is Tekken. In the Tekken fighting game franchise, starting at Tekken 3 for the Playstation till the upcoming Tekken 7, Jin Kazama plays a major role as protagonist and hero. He’s a powerful character who uses his fists and legs to pummel his opponents. With his signature lightning and fire that erupts from every hit, he’s always been a solid choice when playing the series. Not only that, but if you can figure out the controls you can transform into his Devil Jin persona in mid-fight, but some of the games instead have Devil Jin as a playable character, not one you turn into. Both are power-houses and not to be taken lightly.
Jin Kazama wants to end the curse of his bloodline because of this Devil Gene that lives inside of him, and take revenge on the monster named Ogre that killed his mother. Having this evil intent craving destruction means that he cannot live a normal life, so he seeks any way possible to rid himself of it. His own father, Kazuya Mishima, also inherited the Devil Gene and can control it by his own will, yet he’s always been evil from the start so it only enhanced his hatred. This led Jin to want to live differently and not be like his father, who hates him anyway.
The Devil Gene that controls Jin is interesting to me, because it’s not just a typical story of a demon possessing a human and they cannot control themselves. Instead, you have the aspect of the person’s very own DNA being corrupted and manipulated by darkness. This is just like most people though, even the ones that refuse to believe that the supernatural realm, demons, angels, God or anything similar exists. When you go to a doctor, they will often ask what your “family history” is, which has to do with disease. I wondered about that and thought that it wasn’t fair that I would have a higher chance of catching a sickness just because of my family, yet that’s how our genetic makeup works. It’s even in the bible, where it mentions several times that children will pay for their father’s sins. Yet, if they walk in God’s righteous path, they will be spared.
Ezekiel 18:19-20
19 “‘What?’ you ask. ‘Doesn’t the child pay for the parent’s sins?’ No! For if the child does what is just and right and keeps my decrees, that child will surely live. 20 The person who sins is the one who will die. The child will not be punished for the parent’s sins, and the parent will not be punished for the child’s sins. Righteous people will be rewarded for their own righteous behavior, and wicked people will be punished for their own wickedness.
Looking at the verse above, it explains that the child will not be punished for the parent’s sins, nor the parent for the child if they do what is just (holy and acceptable in God’s eyes). What is holy and acceptable behavior? Jesus Christ simplified it in two commandments: love your neighbor and love God (Matthew 22:36-40). That means following His word, and loving others even when they aren’t lovable.
Personal Conflicts
Going back to the Devil Gene, it’s funny how Jin struggles to handle it just like we all do with our own sins. I deal with my own issues, whether it’s lust or wanting to get away with something. Even laziness can be a trap for me, as I would rather play a video game or watch anime than take care of my responsibilities. It’s a daily battle where I even have to create barriers around my own life, from not buying games littered with sexuality or reminding myself to stay humble even in situations where my ego wants to take over.
I’m not perfect, and I’ve sinned even as a born again, Holy Spirit filled believer. Everyone has some thorn in their flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7) that the enemy wants us to fall into.
Pornography? Lying? Gossip? Racism? Looking down on others like your better than them (your not by the way)?
Whatever we deal with, God is there to help us and give us an escape from it (1 Corinthians 10:13). Without asking Him for help, we rely on our own strength which is never enough. We need His power to overcome the will of the temptations of this world, which only lead us to more problems to deal with.
Let me know how you get through your own battles, and what has worked (and what has not!). I would really like to know, and I can share with you my victories and losses.
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I think gaming can provide us with new ways of looking at our individual struggles (what I like to call “personal demons”) and how to handle them, for better or worse.
One character I’ve always resonated with is Riku from Kingdom Hearts, particularly in regards to his battles against Ansem and the way in which Ansem literally preys on him. It’s reminiscent of the daily battles I find myself fighting throughout certain points of my life.
I wrote about that struggle here: http://geekdomhouse.com/sorry-sora/
Hey thanks for that Casey! Riku is a great character to write about. He definitely goes through trials of his own and its interesting to watch him make his decisions.
Will check out that article 🙂
Great article. Jin’s story was striking to me once I started reading into the Tekken canon. It always felt consistent with the biblical view of the nature of sin in man, so Jin felt very human to me.
Personally, one of my personal struggles is perfectionism (Even as I’m writing this, I’m trying to find the “perfect” words, lol). I grew up in a fairly insulated family that had a high emphasis on personal achievement in schooling. I am also the youngest, so I saw a lot of criticism thrown at my siblings. I didn’t want to experience any of criticism so I worked hard at school and got into college, then a good company, then grad school, looking towards the “right” script to find and follow.
Since coming to faith in Christ, I have learned that it is okay to be messy, but I still fight against my habits of perfectionism. Sometimes it is debilitating, other times I can shake it off. On a practical level, I find success in remembering that nothing I do will ever be perfect, and that it is just as good if I put my best effort into it. Even if my efforts end up being “trash”, at least it will be a learning experience. On a spiritual level, I learned that only God is perfect, and any thing I do in service of God will be made perfect through through the Holy Spirit for His glory.
In both cases, it helped me take pressure off of myself and others, since I’m less neurotic about things, and can take criticism better. However, it is a continuous battle, since I still get too hard on myself about certain issues and sometimes out of fear of criticism I do not open myself up to others.