Video Game Takes Shots at Scientology, Teaches Lessons About Zeitgeist

Image Source: Dead Space 2 via Ars Technica. Inset of Hubbard by Ars Technica.

Ars Technica is reporting that the survival horror video game Dead Space 2 (released 25 January 2011) is filled with actions that encourage the player to attack Scientology-based imagery and messages, including a figure named L. Ron Altman, who strongly resembles Scientology founder and sci fi writer L. Ron Hubbard.

Image Source: Dead Space 2 via Ars Technica.

From the Ars Technica report:

The mythology of Dead Space is centered on a religion called Unitology. The church actively recruits members, solicits money from its followers, and worships an alien artifact called "the Marker," with an aim to bring about the "convergence" or "unification." It's a large part of a Dead Space world, which spans DVDs, games, and books. It's also uncomfortably close to another, real-world religion. ... "We never really approach that discussion with the intention of poking fun at a particular religion, or sort of making a social statement about something that's going on right now," Wright Bagwell, the creative director of Dead Space 2, told MTV. "For us, Unitology's purpose in the story represents people's illogical thinking about things they don't understand. It was never really intended to be a jab at any particular religion." That particular religion is Scientology, and he claims most of us think there's a link because the "names are very similar." That's not exactly accurate; the latest game in the series presented a pointed, ongoing attack on Scientology and its leadership.

Image Source: Dead Space 2 via Ars Technica.

Speaking to MTV, the game's creative director, Wright Bagwell, lightly sidestepped the controversy his game is inspiring with the following comments about the impact of technology on people's credulity, citing a Carl Sagan story that could sum up the Zeitgeist in general:

"It was really just an observation about what can happen to anybody who is fanatical and illogical about their beliefs."

"What I find really interesting is a book by Carl Sagan called 'The Demon-Haunted World.' It's a great book and just a commentary on how there's this pattern of behavior over history where there used to be a lot of superstitious and illogical thinking. And then, as science took hold and modern thinking took hold, there was a lot less superstitious thinking. But now that people are not able to understand everything around them again, technology has gotten to the point where it's like magic to some people, and they're overwhelmed with the amount of knowledge and information that's out there. It's gotten people thinking illogically and superstitiously again."

"That's the commentary we're making [with Unitology]. In this complex, futuristic world, people are looking for ways to simplify their lives and put their faith in something that they don't have to think too much about."

Dead Space 2 Trailer. Video Source: Youtube.

Trailer Caption: Engineer Isaac Clarke returns in Dead Space 2 for another blood-curdling adventure in the sequel to the critically acclaimed Dead Space. After waking from a coma on a massive space city known as "The Sprawl", the lone survivor of a horrific alien infestation finds himself confronting a catastrophic new nightmare. Battling dementia, hunted by the government, and haunted by visions of his dead girlfriend, Isaac will do whatever it takes to save himself and dominate the gruesome onslaught. With an arsenal of tools to dismember Necromorphs and new determination, an engineer will bring the terror to space.

Dead Space 2 Lullaby Trailer. Video Source: Youtube.

Dead Space 2 Dementia Trailer. Video Source: Youtube.