i was thinking this morning at breakfast that achievement points are very similar to 'works' in the christian faith. that is, most non-catholic christians believe God has saved them (and all of us) by dying for us, and there is nothing, not one single thing, we are able to do to earn this gift. there is no 'work' (feeding the homeless, going to church every sunday, etc...) we can do to earn God's grace.
and this is where the xbox 360's achievement point system is very similar to the christian faith. some gamers out there earn the achievments for bragging rights. same thing for some christians...they do a lot of 'good things' in order to show everyone how great they are, how spiritual they are. they do good deeds for the bragging rights. or they think they're a 'better gamer' for having the mst points. just like some christians. some gamers don't care about achievements. they simply want to enjoy the game. same for some christians. they don't make an effort to help those who need it. they are good people, who love, but they don't 'do' a whole lot to help those around them. they just enjoy life (the game) simply for what it is. and then there are some gamers who go for achievements in some games, but not others. the games they really love, are truly interested in are the games that drive them to get all the achievements. not for bragging rights, not because they are supposed to...but just because it's what they want to do. (for me, this was the orange box.) and same thing for some christians. they love Jesus so much, they go out and help people. they have so much love, they want to share it. they want other people to know how awesome Jesus and God are. they have a genuine love and interest in these things, and this naturally leads them to do 'good deeds' in order to express that love. not because they are supposed to, not for bragging rights, but simply because it's what they want to do.
ultimately achievement points are pointless. there is no reason to keep score as to who plays video games the best. points are no way to judge who had the most fun. when you see someone with a ton of points, you probably think they either have too much time on their hands, they are far too serious about video games, or they are just really into getting points for the hell of it. but ultimately, those points don't matter. they don't really tell you anything about that person. not really. and i think that's how God views christians. we are trying to earn points. to show Him how awesome we are at playing the game, being christians. but God doesn't care about those points. he cares about the reason behind the points. if two people both go for points because they truly have a love for doing so, He doesn't care who has more. if someone doesn't go for points, but just enjoys knowing Him on a personal level, He still loves them. if someone goes for points for bragging rights, He still loves them, as misguided as they are.
achievements points themselves are meaningless...what's meaningful, what says something about you is WHY you get them. or don't get them. regardless...we all end up with SOME points. some meaningless points. and if everyone has something that's meaningless, then everyone is equal. and I think that's how God see all of us.
(quick note....i'm well aware my past two journal entries have been about being drunk, or not drunk enough. let me just say that as a christian, i'm not perfect. i screw up and make mistakes. and i also have a small problem with drinking too much. it's one of many problems i have. it's also something i've been working on and getting better at. and God is right there, helping em out the whole way. no doubt.)
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Fine then. Give up your Gamertag. Go get a new one.
/waits...
You'll notice that I don't have King Kong on my list of achievements. For people that DO care about achievements, as I do in some small (and I'm aware that they are meaningless) way, they serve as a decent totem of your accomplishments. Same with Boy Scouts badges, same with bowling trophies. They're a totem of your accomplishments. If you don't embrace them, you have nothing.
In that same way you equate achievement points, I think someone who garners achievement points for the sake of getting them will have a King Kong or Madden '06 on their gamerscore. Where someone who embraces the achievements as something that's a set of achieved goals in their games, you'll see what they played and that they are proud of what they earned.
That said, I'm ashamed of my purchasing Ridge Racer 6 and Viva Pinata. There's no excusing those two.
Interesting read, but may I just say PUNCTUATION AND GRAMMARS
I wouldn't say doing things to help people is "pointless" or just "for bragging rights." Sure there are self-righteous douches, but sometimes people help out hospitals and charities because it's a nice thing to do for others. Plus, you meet a lot of cool people when volunteering, so if nothing else there's the social aspect.
could we not just sum it up by saying achievement whores are essentially cultists?
@WDot: He did state that some do it for genuine reasons.
I enjoyed this read, you made a lot of valid points.
@dvddesign....you're right, they are a totem. and i guess there are two different types of people who enjoy them for that reason, those who want as many as possible, and to be the best and those who simply enjoy looking at their personal accomplishments. i'm not sure how that second group fits into the analogy, but it definitely has me thinking. thank you for pointing that out.
@thelordrandom...yeah, i'm bad about that. i write as fast as possible to keep up with my brain. i tried to go back and edit, but apparently there's no 'edit post' button. or not one i was able to find at least. i'd like to rearrange some of this as well...make it slightly more readable...but can't figure out how to go back and change it. my apologies.
@wdot...like ltnk said, i did state there's a group that do it for genuine reasons. because they feel love, and they want to share that...and that's exactly what volunteering is; an act of love. and those are the ones who 'go for points', not because they think the points are important, but because they have such a genuine interest and excitement and love for helping other people.
the bottom line is, many christians think in temrs of spiritual achievement points. and it's b.s. they're something we made up. just like microsoft made them up. and they truly carry no meaning, or merit. just like achievement points on the 360...it's just some numbers. and while they may mean something to some people, in the end, they have absolutely no value. there's nothing you can do with them. making everyone equal.
@phoenix_sinistre...i did say that the number of achievement points doesn't really say anything about that person. if someone has 25765 points...i don't know why they have so many. maybe they are an achievement whore, maybe they're just really good at gaming, maybe they were bored one day and decided to challenge themselves to getting all the points in the game...as something constructive. not all achievement whores have the same reasons for their actions. my point was that simply, those doing it for bragging rights, are simply bragging about something completely meaningless in the overall scheme of things. that's all.
Go to manage posts, there you will have the opportunity to edit
@dronkmunk...much appreciated.
This formatting is too failure to even read... lern 2 capitalize, otherwise everything just runs together.
*Headache Throbs* after reading Wall O' TXT.
I read your first sentence and stopped reading.
@wedge...i'll learn to capitalize when you learn to spell and stop using using numbers in place of words. fair enough?
@bs3owner...sorry, just trying to type as rapidly as i think. otherwise i won't get the info down. maybe i'll go back and edit it all. maybe not.
@clockwork...sorry to hear that. i'll assume it's because you weren't interested and not because you thought it was a poor comparison without giving it a fair chance.
Well, if you’re trying to go for a stream-of-consciousness style, this works. Otherwise, it’s very hard to decipher.
I’m not a religious guy, and I have a PS3, so I’ve never experienced Achievements. But you make some valid points — your Gamerscore is pretty much an e-cock, if you think about it, except you don’t have to whip it out to measure it against others. In that way, I kinda like the PS3 and its lack of any sort of accomplishment score. I can play games at my own pace, and you can play them at yours...and there’s no number that will show the difference between us.
@bronxbombr21...appreciate the technical feedback. not presenting this in a readable format doesn't do justice to the readers, and i'll keep that in mind next time. and i agree that not having achievements isn't a bad idea. i think microsoft was trying to incorporate some new ideas which is good, and some gamers are really into it. and if you aren't, then no worries. but it's still there.
i enjoy that something can be used as a spiritual metaphor as well as being an anlogy for an e-cock. thanks for your input.