With the first of 2024’s Halloween gaming events (Call of Duty’s “the Haunting”) due to start in just a few hours, I am reminded that somehow, Halloween has grown from a single day late in October to an entire month of spooky celebration, and while some people are thrilled about it, others are convinced hell is about to be unleashed upon the earth because of it.
This dichotomy extends to the gaming community, where some feel that having an entire month dedicated to spooky shenanigans and Halloween-themed in-game events is a great palate cleanser before we jump full throttle into Christmas, while others view every pumpkin and black cat as a harbinger of the apocalypse and a prelude to demonic possession.
Like most things, the balance is found somewhere in the middle.
While much of what people associate with the horror genre, and by extension, Spooktober, is harmless fun, some parts are a real danger to the spiritual, emotional and mental health of those who partake in it, and where exactly to draw that line has never been more contentious for hundreds of millions of people.
With that In mind, we dive deep and discover the truth within fiction.
Humanity has been aware of evil on an intrinsic level for millennia.
The nature of good and evil and the consequences of our betrayal and fall from grace have been with us since our earliest ancestors.
From the moment the snake whispered of secret arcane knowledge and power, humanity has suffered the consequences of that fall. While different cultures speak of evil differently, over 70% of all people groups have a central evil figure (or figures).
Humans are, by nature, creative beings.
While much of that creativity has been harnessed and used for destruction, there is part of us that yearns to be the divine beings, the children of God we were meant to be.
This urge often manifests creatively in the form of artists, poets, writers, and actors. Humanity’s love of being creative is found in all cultures and eras.
So, it is no surprise that evil and its nature have been told and retold through fiction for thousands of years, with some of the earliest surviving “horror” stories being close to 2500 years old.
Even in more modern history, the genre has been used to tell of mankind’s struggle with evil.
Works such as “The Werewolf” by Clemence Housman and “Dracula” by Bram Stoker were created by Christians to relay important truths about mankind’s struggle with evil and the necessity of a saviour.
And yet, despite much of the modern fantasy and horror genre being rooted in Christianity theology and morality thanks to writers such as Stoker, Housman, Tolkien, and CS Lewis, modern-day conservative Christians decry both genres as being the work of Satan, forgetting that the act of pointing out that evil exists in itself is not evil and that making people aware of it is ultimately a good thing.
Now, before we proceed, you must understand where I am coming from; there are elements of both genres that I wouldn’t touch with a ten-foot pole, and just because some parts of both genres are entirely harmless and even a good thing doesn’t mean there is no danger in engaging with both genres and their real-world counterparts.
Horror icon Christopher Lee, who starred in over 60 horror films, had this to say about becoming absorbed in dark materials.
Something that few people want to acknowledge on either side of the “Halloween debate” is that the evil we face in this world is far more serious and horrific than a caped Transylvanian count; this truth is so ugly that it is locked away in the basement of humanities consciousness, as confronting it somehow makes it more real, like the serial killer calling from within your house, this truth is something that should chill the blood of anyone with half an ounce of sense.
That the devil is real, evil is real, and the horrific creatures and monsters seen in movies, books and games are bust a weak imitation of the true horror that preys on mankind; even as I write this, I do so with the knowledge that the lives of billions of people, including hundreds of millions of “self-confessed” Christians are firmly in the grasp of true evil.
While Christians are complaining about pumpkins and bedsheet ghosts, their friends, families, and yes, many, even themselves, are on a one-way ticket to eternal damnation; saying you are a Christian doesn’t make you one, claiming to be a good person, or even just trying to be one isn’t enough.
Without a Savior, life is one big boss fight with a predetermined ending, which should terrify you.
Anyone who has played a video game that has a final boss encounter “too early” in the game knows it will not go well and that their character will get their butt handed to them on a platter and may even leave the fight weaker than how they started it, with the player being forced to relearn powers and abilities from the previous game due to the beating they took facing off against the games “big bad boss”.
That is how real life works, with one major difference: unlike video games, where you can eventually become powerful enough to defeat the enemy who brought you low, in real life, it is a constant cycle of being brought low by the shadow that stalks mankind.
Nothing you can do in your might can stop it, and only by admitting that you cannot do it alone and that you need a saviour can you overcome evil at its core.
I must preface this by saying that having curiosity about how it feels to play as the “baddies” doesn’t make you a bad person.
However, if you constantly want to play evil characters or games which glorify darkness, then I am sorry to say it, but you are spiritually unwell.
Now, I am sure some people reading this won’t like to hear it, but people don’t like to hear that they have six weeks to live either; sometimes, a truthful diagnosis is an unhappy one; thankfully, this spiritual illness does not need to be eternally fatal (although it can be in the worst of ways).
Like every problem we face and every struggle that is too big for us to handle, the answer is Jesus Christ.
While you may not think you have a problem, I ask you to consider why you enjoy playing games glorifying evil or playing as characters representing evil and why you find such acts enjoyable.
Even horror movies traditionally encourage the viewer to root for heroes or victims. Moviegoers cringe, wince, and occasionally close their eyes in dread, but they want the good guy to come out on top, to escape, live, and be free.
To want to see evil win is not a small thing; it is the sign of a dark and twisted heart, a heart that only God, through Jesus Christ, can heal.
The only way to escape the horror of our fallen existence is Jesus Christ, and it was for that reason that God the Father was willing to send his Son to die on our behalf.
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world through Him.
Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. - John 3:16-18
You may dismiss this and are free to ignore it, but I hope you never forget this simple truth: no matter who you are or where you come from, you need Jesus.
Sooner or later, you will need a saviour, and I sincerely hope you come to see that before it is too late to do anything about it.
While most of us are lucky enough to never run into someone like Leather Face, our world is full of sick and dangerous people. Honestly, I would never put my eternal destiny in the hands of a drunken driver, serial killer or just plain bad luck when the way out (Jesus Christ) was right there in front of me.
I am not telling you what to play or not to play; what may not be a temptation to me could be a huge stumbling block to you.
If something makes you uneasy or stirs a deeper curiosity about dark materials, then it’s best to avoid it at all costs.
There are elements of the horror genre that are best left untouched, things that will lead you down a path that you shouldn’t follow.
However, there are also amazing opportunities to discover and rediscover the eternal truth that good triumphs over evil, which, for me, is a constant reminder of Jesus Christ’s victory over darkness.
Wherever you fill Spooktober with Resident Evil, Dark Souls, and Alan Wake or avoid the season entirely, as the nights grow darker and colder, I encourage everyone to dwell on Jesus Christ, the light who came into the darkness, so that all who would follow him would no longer walk in darkness but could walk in the light.
