How Halo 2 Critiques Religion

Подписаться 1,4 тыс.

Просмотров 21 тыс.

50% 1

Is Halo 2 Anti-Religious? Is it a political allegory? Is Halo 2 a metaphor for 9/11? Or do the religious symbols in Halo mean anything at all?
In this video essay, I attempt to answer those very questions and explain the brilliant storytelling strategies Bungie used to make Halo one of the greatest video game stories of all time!
Alt title: "Halo 2 and The Dangers of Religion"
Let me know what you think in the comments and what game/show/movie I should talk about next!
Check out my other work on insta @themeaninginbetween
REFERENCES:
www.bbc.com/culture/article/2...
www.britannica.com/biography/...
• Jordan Peterson - Ideo...
• What Ken Ham Misses Ab...
• The Conversion of Cons...
• HALO 2 ANNIVERSARY All...
/ know-the-rules-well-so...

Игры

Опубликовано:

20 апр 2024

Ссылка:

Скачать:

Готовим ссылку...

Добавить в:

Мой плейлист

Посмотреть позже

Комментарии : 350

@sab3re 18 дней назад

Sorry to break it to you media literacy bros but Halo 2 is actually about being the strongest super soldier in the whole universe and blowing shit up all while jamming out to Blow Me Away by Breaking Benjamin.

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

Haha yeah that would’ve been a much shorter video for sure 😂

@b2superbattledroid977 18 дней назад

Literally just stole this from twitter lol

@sab3re 17 дней назад

@@b2superbattledroid977 yea pretty much, but we're friends so it's ok.

@coleshannon8365 17 дней назад

@@sab3re whay ah you gae?

@sky0kast0 16 дней назад

Yeah blind faith is why the story happens but ... Not every choice breaks worlds so a little faith still leads any hero but also any villain . There's my 2 cents. Enjoy my pain

@crazyguy_1233 18 дней назад

I'm not sure how people got Halo as being anti religion. You put it so well. Its not about religion being bad its about people blindly following what they are told and using their religion to justify violence while ignoring the fact that what they are doing is wrong even when the being they consider gods are telling them they are wrong.

@witchkingangmar2731 16 дней назад

Fact but it’s ducking halo

@vinnyholiday9739 15 дней назад

Well most religious folks would take any criticism of their religion as an attack on their religion. So they would consider this anti-religous.

@witchkingangmar2731 15 дней назад

@@vinnyholiday9739 dude I’m Mormon LDS and I love halo

@commandobrando618 15 дней назад

@vinnyholiday9739 move into Apologetics (most Christians don't know why Christianity is true) once I delved into asking why I have learned a lot about the different authors of thr Bible

@vinnyholiday9739 15 дней назад

@witchkingangmar2731 ok and that doesn't prove anything.

@ryanfitchca 18 дней назад

This kind of production quality and analysis is comparable with large channels. You also speak with a clear voice which is underrated. Clearly this is a channel that has the ability to grow large in size and I'm excited to stumble upon it so early.

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

The great journey awaits us!

@Commander_Appo 17 дней назад

I didn’t realise until this comment that his channel only had 388 subs. I assumed it was a couple thousand.

@Moakmeister 18 дней назад

I thought it criticized theocracy, rather than belief in any religion. Edit: also, there have been atheist nations that also demand absolute fealty from their officials and citizens. China is a modern example, but there was also the USSR, Albania under Hoxha, Pot’s regime, and Cuba. Castro was even quoted as saying that he required elected officials to be atheists because he thought it would make them obey orders without questioning them.

@flazzorb 16 дней назад

Yes.

@lizardlegend42 16 дней назад

Like, kinda but not really? It's about blindly following religious leaders and tenants without question or doubt. That can be applicable to both theocracy and fundamentalism as a whole. The Arbiter's storyline depicts the dangers of religious figures with power. Be that state power, the prophet's control over the covenent, or power over individuals, the influence the prophets have over the Arbiter himself. Everything the prophets espoused was ultimately wrong, and billions died because so many believed so radiclly in that falsehood without question. The Arbiter had to reject that influence over his mind and try to find truth by himself (as opposed to the truth told to him by Truth), in order to lead his people to bring down that state power. Also like, I don't really see why you edited your comment to go on a whole rant about non-religious dictatorships? Like, those are bad nobody is disagreeing with you it's just not specifically the topic of Halo 2's themes 😅

@Moakmeister 16 дней назад

@@lizardlegend42 the edit was just because I thought it of later ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

@lizardlegend42 16 дней назад

@@Moakmeister but what was the relevance? 😅

@Iammanzaman 15 дней назад

If that’s true then Castro was a moron, after all who is more conditioned to accept blind obedience than the religious.

@ParaPsychic 18 дней назад

I didn't realize I was watching someone with 100 subs and less than 500 views until the very end. Really good work. I really hope this blows up super soon.

@proboanimations3767 15 дней назад

Did it just go up?

@KyleWhittington 19 дней назад

Well, if this wasn't the strangest intersection of my interests.

@just-a-guy-dat-loves-Adventure 20 дней назад

I'm just going to say that you're going to make it someday. This video was shot, written, and produced so perfectly. The fact you went to an actual Church and filmed inside of their for this he's insane. Keep up the amazing work

@themeaninginbetween 20 дней назад

Thanks man! Means a lot! I’m just enjoying the process so far!

@deshneg2327 18 дней назад

Bless the RU-vid algorithm for recommending me this masterpiece

@deitchj003 16 дней назад

By the rings

@redaug4212 16 дней назад

I think describing Halo's theme as "anti-fundamentalist" is a bit reductive. Of course it goes without saying that blind faith is central to Arbiter's character and the Covenant, but that is only part of the larger over-arching theme which is anti false prophecy. Bungie's Halo games are a somewhat direct allegory to the Book of Revelation, with the Prophets deceiving their alien subjects into rejecting God (or the Reclaimers in this case) and instead worshipping the rings which will bring about the end times, and also by incidentally releasing the flood in their defiance to God (or in this case by defying the Oracles when they try to tell them that Humans are Reclaimers as well as the true purpose of the Forerunner installations) which also brings about the end times. So it would be more apt to say that Halo 2 isn't really critiquing religion, but rather the rejection of true metaphysical religion by warning of false prophecy from a biblical context. By necessity this also requires critiquing fundamentalism since, after all, you would have to be blind in faith in order to literally defy God.

@Change685 16 дней назад

Very insightful 👍

@KingofAwesomness14 16 дней назад

damn! This is good! Really good! good work!

@endplanets 13 дней назад

If anything the vid is too subtle. Halo doesn't have time or room to be deep. And the Covenant Religion is too stupid to have any nuance. Its entirely based on mistranslated and lies. It really is just "we are good and they are bad because they believe nonsense and the smart aliens stop believing". "Dead guys with fancy toasters really wanted to activate the rings so let's activate the rings which send us to heaven. Oops, the humans are the dead guys so.... um, the good humans ascended and the bad humans were left behind so its OK to kill them. And let's ignore Guilty Spark" Not one element can be salved or has anything of value. Nobody smart tries to save any element of it, and the people who believe are savage monkeys. Literally. Every single element of the Covenant is wiped out. Even Warhammer's demon worshipers and tech cultists have more nuance and things worth preserving.

@LotusReal 12 дней назад

No, it critiques Religion, there is the naturalistic truth to the World, that there were the Forerunners that existed millennia ago (who were atheistic) that can be understood by the Atheistic Humans, but is misunderstood by the covenant because of their insistence on their religions. It is fault of the Prophets once they figure out from the Monitors that Humans are the inheritors of the Forerunners and continue to perpuate the lie for power, but is also the fault of the Believers such as Arbiter and Tartarus for not questioning and continuing to believe. You can see this in how Tartarus and the Arbiter are constrasted, the Arbiter upon receiving information from the Overmind changes his view and breaks from his religion to save his people from religious discrimination and slavery/genocide, whereas Tartarus, continuing to believe in spite of overwhelming evidence, dooms his people to die due to his inability to divert from Religious dogma. Further, the Humans and the covenant are constrasted more in how the Humans willingness to understand technology and be adaptable gives them an advantage over the religious Covenant who are restricted by religious dogma and binding codes. An example of this is how the Human are willing to work with the Elites despite their atrocities and hatred committed against each other, which leads to the destruction of the Covenant fleet by the Human-Elite taskforce on the Ark and the Flood on earth. Whereas, the Covenant is unwilling to work with the Humans, who would be able to assist the Covenant with their latent access to Forerunner technology, as under their religious doctrine they need to be eliminated. This is only further exemplified by the contrast of Miranda Keyes and Thel Vadami (The Arbiter). When Miranda disobeys orders from Lord Hood and goes through the portal using her own critical thinking, they not only stop the firing of the Rings, but also inform earth of the Flood and of the Ark Portal, and when she returns, she is understood for her action. Such action would never be undertaken with the Covenant, as strict religious doctrine would mean that Commanders taking the initiative would risk being branded as an Arbiter or executed for their treason. Thus the Atheistic Humans have the advantage of adaptability and understanding, whereas the Covenant, due to their religious inclination, do not. These are problems unique to Religion, but authoritarian power structures in general, the reason why religion is bad, is because it requires these power structures to function, as it needs faith, or allegiance, unfounded and completely or mostly devoted, to work. You can see this in Catholicism with the Pope, Prodestantism with the Bible and Fathers, and Islam with the Quran and their various prophets and leaders. And just to add on, factionalism is another issue, as because of religious doctrine, other though cannot be allowed, so instead of the covenant allowing dissenters and opposing groups within their powerstructure, they annihilate and reject them, which ultimately leads to infighting and the Banished, which are described as causing much havoc for the covenant. Similar thing would be less likely to happen under the UNSC, as their willingness to understand and democractic tendencies not only account for, but benefit from a marketplace of ideas.

@KingofAwesomness14 12 дней назад

@@LotusReal hmmm, this is quite thorough. Regardless of my stance on the alignment of topic i will commend your knowledge on the games and your construction of this essay. Well done!

@davidtimmons9900 19 дней назад

The fact that you don't have any views (currently) does not in any way reflect upon the quality of your content. I subbed to the channel 0:35 seconds into this video. Absolutely sick job, keep it up.

@jurassicarkjordanisgreat1778 15 дней назад

Halo is deeply religious in its themes, I mean even in the names of the things, like the ARK, the flood, the halos. It also kind of gives context to those events by saying that in human history the biblical tales where actually just the ancient humanity as forerunners dealing with the flood. Halo is so well done and its a shame people often misunderstand it or write it off as nothing. Halo deserves more love.

@SilverNStuff 20 дней назад

back at it again with these amazing essays also I love that you used halo 2 anniversary footage because that game's cutscenes are absolutely beautiful

@Definitely_Dave 18 дней назад

Came into this expecting to see the standard, Twitter-tier fare of an atheist using Halo 2 to bash religious people. I was pleasantly surprised. This video was very well done.

@buddy5196 19 дней назад

Severely underrated channel, here's to hoping you pop-off.

@Rabid-Bunny 18 дней назад

YOU ONLY HAVE 200 SUBS??? Bro I thought I Missread that. The quality of this is wild. Keep it up!!

@randomj_904 16 дней назад

2 days ago he had 200, now he has 500. This man is going places

@Killwhopperswithbricks 17 дней назад

“White man has been here.” “How can you tell?” “20-ish minute media literacy about old video games.”

@orang3k 15 дней назад

Kek

@russianoverkill3715 14 дней назад

😂

@GamblingDolphin 18 дней назад

This is a superbly made essay. The parallel from Paul to the Arbiter is an interesting one that I've never considered. I've been playing Halo 2 for nearly 20 years at this point and it's ideas like this that made it my favorite story in video games for so long. At least until I finally played Bioshock a few years ago. I bet you could do a killer video on the philosophies in that game!

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

I’ll have to work my way through that series too! I’ve always loved the premise, but haven’t played through all of them yet!

@GamblingDolphin 18 дней назад

@@themeaninginbetween The first one in particular is a hell of a story. It's more of a lack of religiosity and pure capitalism competing against anything socialist or religious. The voice acting is on another level with the audio diaries.

@deitchj003 16 дней назад

I’m Jewish. It comforts me that if my people weren’t enslaved by the Egyptians we wouldn’t have Halo. My favourite game of all time. Sorry to my ancestors but ur sacrifice was worth it.

@jean-luc2299 20 дней назад

Found your channel from the RvB video, just want to say these are some fantastic videos! You have a serious talent for writing and editing, excited to see what else you make!

@lightyknighty418 18 дней назад

I mean - wow that was unexpected! Such a high quilty video. Just brilliant, keep going!

@MystGang 18 дней назад

Just to further add on to the point at 5:38, Chief almost does die to save humanity. The gap between Halo 3 and 4 can be seen as the days where Jesus was in the tomb after crucifixion, but Chief doesn't actually die so it's another "almost" connection.

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

Yeah absolutely! That’s a great point

@N7_Bunny 9 дней назад

Not just that in the bible (also some part of the quran)it say there's going to be bunch of fake prophets and mesiah ( halo 1-3 ) and when jesus will comeback he will defeat them. There's alot of reference on chief being a "Messiah". Theres are other clues and references but I don't want to write about it cause it will become a block of text.

@thomasstarling1614 18 дней назад

I looked at the subscriber count and likes for this video and I was shocked at how few. This video is insanely good, well edited, interesting and engaging. Stellar job!

@suprememugwump1405 18 дней назад

Congrats on making my favorites Playlist. Well made and an often overlooked part of the halo universe and lore. Look forward to more content from you.

@tdotitan8855 18 дней назад

this video had really great production quality, i really enjoyed it. I liked also your story of becoming disillusioned with religion in college and then afterwards going to less fundamentalist interpretation of religion. I had a similar journey, except after i went back to religion i think went atheist and then i guess i would consider myself mostly atheist but like possibility of reincarantion, possibility of reincarnation as the same person and we do everything all over again etc, but not saying 100 percent on anything, i am accepting that i dont know and thats fine for me. But yeah you do you on that. And ironically Halo 2 was another part of what kinda showed this to me, this showed the impacts of religion, i was raised to be very "obedient" and to not think for myself and i had to learn to think for myself and realize many people in my life wanted different things for me then i did. I was very limited in what media i could watch or experience, and i had to look into media that the news or other places would not talk about that much, so i usually read books. But then halo came out and it was fun so me and my dad played it and then halo 2 came out and i saw the story as being so cool. Its interesting, how much media i find parents try to keep away from their children, but allowing children to experience media they do not enjoy or may have different beliefs then they do is important, as being incredibly sheltered can be very damaging to them.... I was a "Happy naive" child and i was bullied for not knowing things and how to act around "normal" kids. I learned eventually but i learned that a man should not be happy or show emotion and that if people see someone happy they will want to hurt them. I learned the only person in life i can rely on is myself. I am a lot more calm then i was then i was always stressed but now i have come to be able to accept the punches of life and flow better, to be more calm and even when things get crazy it works out.... its ironic even though i am an atheist one of my favorite things to think/feel was "this too shall pass". But yeah i really enjoy the story of halo 1-3 and reach, and the gameplay is cool but the story man was so cool and actually said something, instead of being all "look how righeous we are, the enemy is EVIL MONSTERS" when in reality it kinda seems that way at first but man so cool, like tartarus is such a cool character, man such an awesome series.

@4lvrz_ 16 дней назад

I am so incredibly lucky to have found this video. This has been a topic circling in my head for ages and you articulated everything so well.

@mendicantbias2707 18 дней назад

just by looking at those 30 seconds of intro I already know its gonna be a masterpiece

@rarestorm 18 дней назад

What an incredible video! So glad the algorithm showed this to me - keep up the great work!

@andyhbass 18 дней назад

Subbed, really enjoyed this. Hope this channel blows up for you, the amount of effort you’ve put in clearly deserves it!

@theamericancristero7390 18 дней назад

The common (there are variations) Constantine story is that he saw the Chi Rho and "In Hoc Signo Vinces." Chi Rho or XP is the abbreviation (via first two letters) of ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ, Greek for Christos with X being the Greek C hence Chi and P being the Greek R, ergo Rho. Ofcourse the Latin translates to "in this sign, conquer."

@alexb7039 18 дней назад

I once had a friend describe Halo 2 and The Covenant by asking me "You know what came between Halo and Halo 2? 9/11. And The Covenant are in a lot of ways like non religious religious extremists. Non religious because they aren't going by pure faith and their literal Prophets are flesh and blood telling them what to do directly."

@frogarchist 18 дней назад

Absolutely stellar video.

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

Thanks man! That means a lot coming from you! I’ve watched your videos for a while. Would love to collaborate sometime if you’d be down!

@frogarchist 18 дней назад

@@themeaninginbetween If you have ideas, then sure! Just let me know

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

Absolutely! Is there somewhere more private I can reach out haha? Reddit or something?

@frogarchist 18 дней назад

@themeaninginbetween that works. My username is just frogarchist. I only have 2 comments and 1 karma lol but that's me

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

Perfect! DM has been sent!

@PackHunter117 10 дней назад

This is why I love the Covenant so much. They essentially are space Byzantines, Latin Crusaders, Islamic Caliphates, and Ottoman Janissaries combined into one alien faction.

@LittleGreen_Dude 18 дней назад

Now that was some quality content! If you keep making videos like this you'll grow quickly. Keep it up and good luck.

@jfitz6517 11 дней назад

I imagine Halo 2 was strongly influenced by the fact that it (unlike Halo: CE) was made in the years immediately following 9/11 & the War on Terror.

@NoanHG_ 16 дней назад

Dude, this channel is a gem. I'm so glad I stumbled upon this, the quality of this video was just perfect! Looking forward to your next Content!

@Bossplayah21 18 дней назад

I’m so happy someone made this video. I did an entire project for this exact topic in college and it blew everyone out of the water. I got my professor hooked on Halo 🤯

@Klogeist 18 дней назад

You, dear sir, just got yourself your 222. Subscriber. Will watch your other videos soon and I'm stoked to see more!

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

Thanks man, I’m pumped to make more soon!

@TheLastArbiter 14 дней назад

I’ve always seen that warning about religious fanaticism. Something, unfortunately, still very relevant today. Can happen to any religion if people go to far. Also get a lesson of not blindly believing everything you hear, or the news. Do your own research before you devote yourself to a belief.

@Jackoooloop9456 16 дней назад

This is insane! I've been talking to people / trying to piece together all the archetypical stories and religious themes in Halo in depth -- this video is exactly what I've been looking for. Thank you!

@lanxturn6161 15 дней назад

This video is extremely well made, it surprises me how little views and traction it’s gotten, truly a gem in the rough. Here’s to making it big soon!🍻

@orangecampfire 18 дней назад

dang bro this is really well written, nice job!

@xionxiv750 18 дней назад

This video is amazing! I’m sure your channel will grow in size rapidly with how well these videos are

@giannizen3775 14 дней назад

This has the potential to be the best halo channel I’ve ever seen. Please post something about reach, I need more of your content

@garysanders7935 18 дней назад

The algorithm is going to bless you, my friend. Great video.

@user-lz6vt8dd2s 18 дней назад

Absolutely beautiful work!

@ahexadron 15 дней назад

Nice dude, very interesting citations and concepts explained. Well done! Halo 2 still my favorite Halo!

@AmbitiousCanine 18 дней назад

Easy sub from me. Amazing video quality! I hope your channel grows and we get to see more ✌️

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

Thanks so much! Definitely more coming soon! Trying to get out at least one every two weeks and hopefully soon, even more than that. I’m loving all the engagement from you guys! Glad to know there’s more nerds like me out there!

@MajesOnTheXbox 18 дней назад

How has this not blown up?

@firemaker1258 18 дней назад

Incredible video. This deserves way more views.

@MusicByAndrewHolmes 20 дней назад

Killing it. These are awesome.

@Yargulious 12 дней назад

Excellent video. I’m looking forward to whatever comes next. The Arbiter’s story was so good. Stripped of pride he begins to see through the lies. Then his closest brush with death brings him face to face with the truth. Gotta love it.

@veraxiana9993 2 дня назад

Oo this video topic is right up my alley. I made a video myself on the topic of halo 2 & religion a month or two ago actually lol, this is making me want to do a follow up because I have even more to say now after watching this! I always find people coming to different conclusions analyzing the same game super fascinating & engaging tbh

@osrspac2364 10 дней назад

Great video man keep it up

@DreAdedXiles 15 дней назад

Loved the video! You should make a Halo Reach themed video next (:

@themeaninginbetween 15 дней назад

Well I’m currently working on a Halo 3 video, but I’m definitely open to that in the near future! I was a reach kid, after all! That’s the first game I ever preordered and actually played when it launched. One of my favorites for sure!

@Cimzon 14 дней назад

This Man’s dedication and quality in videos is amazing investing with a Sub and I will be watching your videos are amazing keep it up, Maybe cover Bioshock series or Borderlands

@fireclaw9602 12 дней назад

lmao and people say that videogames were never political or deep.

@aki9438 19 дней назад

Very interesting video nice job! Cant wait for H3 next

@creedonnewell1443 18 дней назад

That’s one of the most well done videos I’ve ever watched

@RichardKulessa 19 дней назад

Root beer

@TheSketchof9000 18 дней назад

Cant believe you only have a couple hundred subs - you should easily be up there with the big dogs. Subbed!

@Zap0saur 15 дней назад

For a newly made channel. This is an amazingly well done video. It was very interesting to see the perspective of a religious person and as a athiest previously christian. I must agree with your statement. I'm so used to seeing religious people and athiest call halo anti religion and either immediately hating it or loving it just because it criticizes blind worship that this video is such a breath of fresh air. I hope you get more success and make more bangers like these in the future. If I get into debate whether halo 2 is anti religious. I'll just send them this ;)

@InfoAddict26 16 дней назад

Out of curiosity, was Mike Jones from InspiringPhilosophy a part in your reconstruction? Personally he helped me a lot in doing what he does best which is filtering academic topics into lay mans ears such as myself. Growing up I had Bible Belt fundamentalism shoved down my throat, (sounds like you can relate) and now I’m a theistic evolutionist. Btw if you have no idea who I’m talking about you’d love his yt channel.

@Brennanrr 13 дней назад

While I’ve only played halo reach and odst. You have completely drawn me into the halo franchise. Your videos are amazing! Cheers!

@themeaninginbetween 13 дней назад

Oh man, yeah I love reach and odst but Halo 2 is by far my favorite of the series!

@GlitchyGamers18 15 дней назад

I cannot wait for h3. You’ve earned a sub from one vid. Also could you look at reach and odst as well?

@d27shgu 17 дней назад

holy crap what a good video, keep it up, also if you have Discord I wouldn't mind having a discussion with you about this

@gracewhite8755 18 дней назад

I haven’t grown up with halo, but I really like hearing about how it connects with philosophy and religion. Amazing work, keep it up!

@optimistic_atlas 18 дней назад

This is so cool omg I didn’t grow up religious so a lot of the themes were pretty lost on me when I first played it but I going back through to really enjoy the story I LOVE having this perspective on it. Great work man your analysis is spot on 👍👍

@sctv2127 18 дней назад

Cap

@optimistic_atlas 17 дней назад

@@sctv2127 lmao what?

@sctv2127 17 дней назад

@@optimistic_atlas are you that stupid or trolling?

@swampede0366 14 дней назад

Damn, I was literally thinking about this subject a couple days ago. Crazy that something this recent just dropped in my algorithm!

@Andre232323232332323 18 дней назад

What a great video! You’ve earned a sub

@HeckaZecka 18 дней назад

Woah was not expecting this channel to only have 100 subs

@unicornia7494 14 дней назад

Really enjoyed this video, always been fascinated with how religion was depicted in Halo

@TimeTravel-0 18 дней назад

Superb Analysis. You'll go far if you apply this degree of passion and research to all your work. I'll be watching your career with great interest.

@goatgamingftw1337 15 дней назад

what the fuck 570 subs and the production quality goes incredibly hard

@Zeta4 12 дней назад

Great video, this has always been my favorite aspect of the Halo games. I wish the TV show delved more into this part of Halo. The pitfalls of religion as a means to gain power is so integral to the whole universe but it’s something the new main Halo stories don’t really cover. Maybe that’s for the best, maybe it really only works as a one-time thing in the OG trilogy, but I can’t help but get slightly annoyed when the new games and TV use religious words (like the Harbinger doing that “Reformation” thing in Infinite), but the actual religious significance/connections are as deep as a puddle. Just word references to things from religions because “ooh religious stuff so cool and mysterious😮”

@fontcaicoya5686 13 дней назад

I know religion can be a touchy subject for many - as evidenced by the astounding number of dislikes - but this was one of the most refreshing, well thought-out, and poignant videos on the subject of Halo I've seen in years. Thank you. Subscribed and looking forward to more.

@edorasmarauder5761 12 дней назад

How many dislikes does he have? I don’t see it.

@fontcaicoya5686 12 дней назад

@@edorasmarauder5761 As of this comment, 246 dislikes to 1.7k likes. More than an 1/8th dislikes. Also you can get a browser app to show youtube dislikes.

@voryndagothDL 16 дней назад

Great stuff

@randomj_904 16 дней назад

Fucking amazing video, can't wait to see your future content

@leifparon1561 16 дней назад

dont know how this ended up in my recomendations, but i will give youtube this one. this was a banger video. im going to continue my campaign aginst the covenant... + the didact in h4

@rex3457 14 дней назад

the issues that halo 2s development led to the cliffhanger ending which received a very different conclusion than intended in halo 3. The original ending revealing that the prophet of truth wasn't just another fanatic, but someone who knew how to manipulate the faith of others to benefit himself. Unfortunately the ending we got never gave a clear explanation for his actions, which I believe plays a big part in people misunderstanding what halo is criticising about religion

@frankiewestmoreland2965 15 дней назад

So glad to see many people come upon this, myself included. I wondered if you were a Christian given your Switchfoot hoodie in the Halo CE video, but it's just cool and refreshing to see someone talk so openly about their faith whilst talking about a secular video game that deals with religion, and drawing parallels with both. It's something I often wonder about - for example I'm a big Star Wars fan, and it's so fascinating to me to hear people talk about the Force, Jedi and Sith like it's a religion, yet never say what they actually believe. They keep their fandoms and personal beliefs separate, while Star Wars is encouraging someone to "find their bliss" as Campbell would say, which requires them to question life and go find something bigger than themselves/purpose, and usually you change your ideology or religion in the process. Speaking of recommendations, Star Wars is cool! Really happy with what you've done in this video. It's been a long time since I've played Halo 2 but I never really thought about the Arbiter's character arc the way you put it - very cool. Also never thought about Halo and what's in a name... I subscribed after seeing your Halo CE video but I'm just happy to see such an unexpected crossover of ideas blow up on RU-vid. Goodness I could give a ton of recommendations, but I'll leave you with True Detective Season 1. That is honestly the best TV anything I have ever seen. Wish you the best for the future of your channel!!

@captainmatthew661 15 дней назад

i disagree with how much importance and good you place on religion and how inherently peaceful it is but this was a well-thought-out video. i enjoyed it. i dont think i look at halo 2 the same again

@kailyn2299 16 дней назад

This is part of the reason that Halo has been so addicting to me. I find it similar to Star Wars in the sense of how deep and vast the lore actually goes into real life topics and ideas. I only really got into Halo when I married my husband, but ever since then I haven’t been able to stop researching and contemplating about the lore.

@frostycarp4 15 дней назад

People will always see the story through their own lens. That’s one thing I love about halo. It was meant to cater to everyone no matter who they are. I see the arbiter’s story not as anti religion but one of a crisis of faith. Which resonates with me, because I’m not religious after leaving Mormonism. But for others it may affirm their faith. And I think that’s just fine. That’s what good stories do.

@amantesfahun1295 18 дней назад

I really appreciate the amount of effort you put into this video essay, and the comparisons made between Christianity and the halo universe. I just can’t tell you how much I loved the way you highlighted the dangers of religious extremism by using the covenant and the prophets, I’m subscribing to your channel and I’ll share your video with my friends and the halo communities that I’m in!

@themeaninginbetween 18 дней назад

Much appreciated, my friend! More to come soon!

@gordonfreemen1920 18 дней назад

Dude Doesn't even have 300 subs yet. Your career will be watched with great interest

@devinbrady4433 13 дней назад

The original halo trilogy was truly something special

@matthewrogersmusic 4 дня назад

Would love to hear more about your deconstruction and reconstruction story

@themeaninginbetween День назад

I’ve actually been considering starting a podcast on another channel for longer topics like that if people would be interested!

@uraloser5553 13 дней назад

For those that are confused, he's most likely referring to organized Religion, and the blind adherence to it.

@permabanned 17 дней назад

Twitter users: "Halo doesn't have any religious undertones." Buddy the name of the game itself has religious undertones... It's called Halo

@3mpt7 16 дней назад

Halo 4, 5, Spartan Ops, Spartan Assault, Spartan Strike, Infinite, and Halo Wars 2 basically excised the religion from Halo. The last reference I remember to any sort of religion was in Halo 4, with the Storm Covenant being 'more fanatical' and the Didact basically ignoring them entirely. Even Halo Reach neglected to mention it, aside from naming an enemy the 'zealot'. Only Halo CE, 2, 3, Wars, and ODST, and five of the initial Halo books explored it, which is a shame.

@jurassicarkjordanisgreat1778 15 дней назад

More proof that they never actually cared about pre bungie halo and only came in on the newer titles and just write off anything from the past

@leisurelyrabbit8662 15 дней назад

Don't forget that Master Chief is "John 117" and his most notable trait, in Cortana's eyes, is luck. Although the humans in the series are naturalistic and science oriented, the symbolism still clearly shows that Master Chief is like a messiah chosen to save humanity. Another detail I think is worth noting is that the forerunners were always intended to be ancient humans of a bygone era. That's why humans could interact with forerunner architecture. Halo 3 kinda fubbed that up (not 4), but it makes the idea that the Covenant was unintentionally worshipping the very race they were hunting to extinction greatly ironic. They were truly blinded by their religion to the point they didn't realize they were slaughtering their own gods. "You are the child of my makers. You ARE Forerunner."

@nr-dx4zz 11 дней назад

I would argue John did "die" and come back in terms of being stolen as a child and replaced with a doomed clone. Here his old life was sacrificed for him to become humanity's savior although I don't think this lore was a thing when h2 came out

@DallasCrane 18 дней назад

6:20 whenever any actual criticism gets levied against the belief system most deserving of it, safety officers suggest otherwise. How sad. Couldn’t expect them to be adults who can be criticized without turning violent can we. Je suis Charlie

@sirmanmcdude508 17 дней назад

Before Halo 4 there was also a theory that the Forrunners weren't aliens, but were just ancient humans. If it were true, the Covenant would have been committing a genocide against those they worshipped.

@mikayelalikhanyan1587 12 дней назад

the religion has taken steps to ensure no more fantasisms are avoided

@medleysa 11 дней назад

Since your on a Halo series, how about Bungie’s Marathon trilogy next? All three games are available for free through the Aleph One project

@General_Grievous_collection 18 дней назад

Just here before this channel blows up

@ziggythegreat 14 дней назад

Bioshock Infinite doesn't get much love these days and has a wealth of interesting stuff to talk about. Solar halos are cool but moon halos are freaking epic. Most of the time its just a glowing ring, but if the ice in the sky is perfect then moon turns to a massive glowing cross flanked by brilliant rainbows that are almost as bright as the center. It looks strait up divine.

@WHALEBOY777 18 дней назад

Great video, a lot of solid info compressed into a quick watch, I'd rather watch a video like this over a bloated 3 hour video essay.

@terrathelunatic 16 дней назад

I read the title and immediately clicked. Halo 2 was the anvil on the camels back of my journey into losing my religion. I will never forget the somberness and silent rage that the Arbiter builds into his speech. “Tartarus, the Prophets have betrayed us.”

@israelhammans7329 14 дней назад

O LORD, my strength and my fortress, my refuge in the day of distress, the nations will come to You from the ends of the earth, and they will say, “Our fathers inherited nothing but lies, worthless idols of no benefit at all

@bigmackstar1 12 дней назад

A video game about aliens made you give up religion?

@terrathelunatic 11 дней назад

@@israelhammans7329 I am my own Fortress thank you very much

@cyber_person 16 дней назад

Please, refrain from using Peterson. It’s a great video but that guy detracts from the professional tone you’re setting.

@lizardlegend42 16 дней назад

Yeah I was really enjoying until that bit, like surely surely he could've found anyone else saying a similar message rather than pretending JP is remotely some kind of authority on philosophy 😅