Christian Games

I think it isn't too hard to make good Christian games. It depends on what is the message the game is trying to convey to the gamers. If it is about everything Christian and only that, then it can be boring.

But if it is about doing the right thing and be blessed, it can be fun. Take Baldur's Gate for example, it has the good versus evil theme. You can also go to churches to pray and if you have been evil, the authorities will keep coming after you, your party members will leave you. Be good and people will remember you.

A similar game can be created with more emphasis on being good, no?

Cabal said:

Because as every good Christian knows, the power of Christ's got nothing on a BOOMSTICK

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Well then you got the complete SNES ripoff where Noah goes around the Ark knocking out the animals on the Ark.

Not even joking. iD even gave the company the complete wad files from the original Wolfenstein and let them have at it out of spite from Nintendo forcing them to remove the Rottweilers and Nazi insignia from the SNES port. At least that's what I read.

But yeah, in general, every Christian video game has been awful. I remember the Left Behind PC game being billed as a RTS, but it was just as bad.

And the sad part is that there are Christians with the creative juices to make such a game that wouldn't be bad and wouldn't even be pigeonholed to the Christian market. However, Christian publishers wouldn't pick them up because it wouldn't be preachy enough, and secular publishers wouldn't pick them up because it's too preachy or Christian gaming isn't a market they want to delve into.

I think indie Christian devs should just band together and start a grassroots title, and build it up. If it's good, people will play it. If people realize it's a good game, maybe Steam will pick it up for digital distribution and some headway will be made.

I find the lego games fairly harmless and fun

games that are less harmless and fun!!!!!

I don't know, Spiritual Warfare was kind of fun, but I couldn't figure out what to do once I got to the city. Plus the concept of warding off thug by throwing literal "fruit of the spirit" at them was bizzare, as was being punished by an angel for merely entering a bar. Also, the random Bible trivia felt really out of place.

In the end, the only reason I played it as long as I did was that it seemed like it might actually be a fun game. The vague Christian themes didn't seem like they made all that much of a difference (outside of the novelty of playing a Wisdom Tree game.)

Has anyone played this PC game Heaven?
I just learned of it, the graphics are truly breath taking.

Heaven PC Game -- Enter Site -- New Awesome PC Game about Heaven !

Spirit_Star said:

Has anyone played this PC game Heaven?
I just learned of it, the graphics are truly breath taking.

Heaven PC Game -- Enter Site -- New Awesome PC Game about Heaven !

Click to expand...

Graphics are alright... I do find it amusing that the main character is a large breasted female dressed what most Christians would consider provocative. But I suppose that is what the artist considers Heaven to be like.

Gameplay wise, it looks incredibly boring. Tedious puzzle after tedious puzzle.

I clicked on the site, and granted, the map graphics do look very nice. The main female character's looks really annoyed me though. Mostly her face and hair...especially the fat pouty lips and the thick eye makeup. Her clothes didn't bother me as much as I thought they would...probably because she's pretty much covered up, but with thigh-high socks and such. Very convenient. The characters don't look like they'd moved very smoothly in the environment, but the screen shots may have just been taken at weird moments.
That's my grip with most games in general though...the character models...movements...lip-syncing...hair...etc.

Anyways, back to the OP. Someone mentioned making something that could be picked up by Steam, and I think that's a great idea. Steam seems big on taking decent indie games and making them available to the general public. I think Xbox is doing that on some level as well with their Arcade, but I'd pick Steam over Xbox most days of the week. =P
It doesn't seem like there's necessarily a lack of ideas for good christian games (both PC and console) but it seems that there's a lack of people who process the technical skills to flesh out those ideas, who want to put the time and effort even into a christian game. I also agree that there's an underlying (possibly childish, but genuine) fear that one cannot win when trying to make a christian game. You would either get flack from the general christian community for some aspect of the game (whether theological, content, visual, etc.) or you would get flack from the general gaming community, hardcore or casual, for some aspect of the game. So why put all that time and effort unless you know for sure that you can please most of the people you want to?

This was a really interesting thread to read. A lot of very good thoughts and ideas. Keep praying for the gaming industry and encouraging those that want to be christians who make awesome games!

That Heaven game does seem to look great graphicly but also like another adventure puzzle game that is about as exciting as watching paint dry.

Hi:

I got the Heaven game about 2 months ago, I just finished it.
One thing for sure, It's preety Biblically sound - they got that right. (refreshing)
As for others things, Yes, the graphics are pretty amazing. Suprisingly, the charcater animation and lip sync is some of the best I've seen of in game play. - quite good actually.

The main character - Axis - she's not too bad.( I liked her boots - but I'm into boots - Ha!)
I definately recommend it.
Any one recommend any other Christian PC games - no console.

Thanks for the answer.

I would love to see a game based on the Frank E Perretti novel "Piercing the Darkness". Lot's of potential there for a video game I think and having a Christian Message.

If you are looking for a cool Christian RPG, then Soterion dot com is one that is being built by Christian game programmers where your game changes as you make moral decisions. Looks like like a winner to me.

Interesting concept...perhaps like a christian version of WoW in some aspects.

Unfortunately, other than the map, I didn't see a whole lot else as far as concept art, characters, gameplay, etc. That being said, I don't have much of an opinion one way or the other right now on it.

Hopefully it's onto something with it's plotline and character ideas, but it doesn't look like the average person will be seeing any of it before they get an investor. I really do hope it works well for them.

That website mentioned talking with someone from N'Lightning. Are they any good as far as video games go? I take it they've only done PC games, but the website guy said he saw 2 of them. Is N'Lightning a game development company we should watch for?

i totally agree with you...i thing they should me moulded more and more in order to be well prepared so that they can be in best form and shape