The Pop Culture 180 experiment was a week devoted to giving up our most loved media activities (reading/playing video games) for less appreciated activities (social networking/reading). In our last chapter of the Pop Culture 180, Ben and I Rich commiserate and debate the experiment, touching on what we learned, the ways the experiment changed us, and things we love and hate about the mediums we devoted ourselves to for a week. (program note: please forgive Ben’s low volume and quality. We’ll have that fixed next week.)

Every week, Richard Clark and Ben Bartlett sit back and discuss the posts of the previous week on Christ and Pop Culture, acknowledge and respond to the big issues in popular culture, and give a sneak peak at the week ahead. We love feedback! If you’d like to respond you can comment on the website, send an email to christandpopculture@gmail.com, or go to our contact page. We would love to respond to feedback on the show, so do it now! Subscribe to us in iTunes by clicking here. While you’re at it, review us in iTunes! We’ll love you forever!

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3 Comments

  1. I believe that social networking will follow a similar evolution as the phone or e-mail or other previous developments in communication.

    They all start off as something new and confusing. The older generation usually dismisses these things as too complicated or not useful, but then a generation grows up using them and,in the process, they become an integral form of communication. I see no reason why the 95% of college kids who have facebook(I made that figure up, purely speculation) will give it up as they become adults.

    So yeah, great thoughts on that.

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  2. Amusingly, all my very best and most cherished memories regarding videogames are single-player affairs. Burning through Legend of Zelda before any of my friends or classmates. Exploring the heck out of the lost wilds in Betrayal at Krondor. Meandering through the story of Morrowind. Defending against wave after wave of mythological hordes in Age of Mythology. Creeping through ducts in the labs of Half-Life. Marveling at the quiet sadness and grandeur of those poor doomed colossi in Shadow of the Colossus. These were all hallmark gaming moments for me.

    Of course, my favoured genre of game has always been the one built on story and character development—and those naturally slough off any interference by social influences. Sure, I’d talk about my victories and experiences, but I wasn’t about to let my enjoyment be hampered by involving others in my actual gameplay.

    I do have fond memories involving actual people. Playing Guitar Heroes and Rock Bands with my wife. Shove quarters into Heavy Barrel and Ikari Warriors in the arcade. Trying to beat Solomon’s Key with a friend in juniour high. But those will always be secondary joys.

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