Any interest in a non-satanic game(s)?

[Tygre]

A large number of games are already exactly as you describe, they just don't explicitly call out the Christian figure of God so as to avoid the wrath of religious right nujobs. Half Life for example is fairly transparent in it's Christian allegory, but the general themes of Christianity are deeply interwoven with most Western media.

Of course Christianity does not have a monopoly on God, so broadening that out to include the other major religions of the world catches even more bases. Looking at the biggest games of last year, you'd have to have a very skewed perspective to consider Breath of the Wild, Horizon, Mario Odyssey or Destiny 2 as "Satanic". They are all broadly about the triumph of Good over Evil, in an at times very explicitly religious sense.

I mean, does Link have to be a Seraph fighting the great Serpent Lucifer in the name of Almighty God for it to count? He can't just be Link fighting Ganon in the name of the Goddess Hylia?

The number of games that could truly be described as Satanist is vanishingly small. You would have to have a very narrow view to consider games as generally Satanic.

 

[TissueBox]

I love Ultima IV because of how it flirts with the idea of quest-mongering at the expense of morality. Not exactly the same thing as angel-demon wars, but peripherally tied...

There is also Dragon Age: Inquisition, kinda.

To see this tackled more in AAA games -- and more literally -- would sure take a lot of finger crossing, as it's naturally averse to the general affinities of most audiences (and creators), in part due to how more fun and flexibility can be had with a character cultivated by a morbid but 'earnest' environment that allows a player to conduct traditional havoc/combat. In most cases, true moral implications are never taken into serious account, only symbolically.

 

[Soapbox Killer]

I think The Bible would make a very fine western RPG.

 

[Wulfram]

I think The Bible would make a very fine western RPG.

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Jesus is too OP

 

[Dogui]

The god of judeo-christian lore is like omnipotent / omniscient / omnipresent so fighting at his side is probably boring as hell as far as videogames go.

Satan is like the dude that was supposed to lose anyway, killing the actual God is a lot more appealing.

Also, as humans, it's a lot easier to relate with a demon than an angel.

 

[raterpillar]

Kid Icarus basically has you working for a goddess. Does that count? Or does it have to be Abrahamic (to be non-Satanic)?

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That's a weird one, because the popular depictions of Abrahamic-style angels are really derived from Greek religious mythology (see: Nike, Thanatos, Eros etc.).

 

[RumbleHumble]

Dante's Inferno kinda hits into this.

 

[808s & Villainy]

The god of judeo-christian lore is like omnipotent / omniscient / omnipresent so fighting at his side is probably boring as hell as far as videogames go.

Satan is like the dude that was supposed to lose anyway, killing the actual God is a lot more appealing.

Also, as humans, it's a lot easier to relate with a demon than an angel.

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Lol wut. And I think playing as the army of God could definitely be interesting. Just because God himself is basically unbeatable doesn't mean his army is. Also imagine playing as an angel during the period where Lucifer is defecting and having to fight your fellow brethren or come to grips with your own faith. Or playing a cat and mouse game against Lucifer to prevent Adam and Eve from being corrupted. There's lots of interesting things they could do

OP should look at music and think about it.

Christian rock exists, for example, but it's relatively unpopular.

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This is a terrible analogy lol

 

[lunarworks]

OP should look at music and think about it.

Christian rock exists, for example, but it's relatively unpopular.

 

[Deleted member 176]

Gods are generally bad

 

[JC Lately]

I think if they depicted angels as they're described in the Bible, they wouldn't even be recognised as such, as they're much closer to popular notions of demons than popular notions of angels:

(I just wanted to post those pictures)

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Huh. Who knew Bayonetta had the most accurate portrayal of angles?

 

[Dogui]

Lol wut

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Angels are described as pure, flawless and obedient creatures, while demons are pretty much driven by their desires. I mean, it should be pretty obvious i think.

 

[AudioEppa]

That's one aspect I really liked, And was caught off guard from tv show Supernatural. They started calling angels dick and having to kill some. Even looked at god, knowing he's real. As someone less at times because of bullshit that was going on under his watch.

I feel like there's a few developers who could tackle a narrative like that. Make the main character not a fan of either as the story develops. Of course I would like it to have a grounded atmosphere, not fantasy looking.

 

[808s & Villainy]

Angels are described as pure, flawless and obedient creatures, while demons are pretty much driven by their desires. I mean, it should be pretty obvious i think.

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I don't think that's true. Ever heard of Morningstar aka Lucifer? Or the angels that defected with him when he went against God?

 

[Rembrandt]

Wouldn't be ok to hurt actual angels in most cases.

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Yes, it would, lol.

 

[Havok]

Aren't you like, half-angel in Diablo 3? literally fighting the hordes of hell and evil? I don't remember the story of that game very well haha

If you mean a game featuring things from Christian mythology specifically... no publishers want to deal with the blowback from religious fanatics. And the games probably wouldn't sell very well.

 

[Rotobit]

You're basically an angel in DQ9. There's lots of guardian angels and the like in that game.

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This is the first game that came to mind for me too. It's the Dragon Quest that makes the most sense to have distinct vignettes, too.

Another example I think sorta counts is Tales of Zestiria. The "angels" aren't too biblical but they're still invisible to most people and (generally) good. I know the game gets a lot of flack but I thought it was refreshing how the main characters are purely good; the narrative that only severely flawed "anti-hero" characters are interesting is nonsense and I hope it goes away soon.

Zelda: Skyward Sword is also this in a somewhat abstracted sense. Literally heading down to the demon-infested world below to bring light and salvation.

 

[TissueBox]

That's one aspect I really liked, And was caught off guard from tv show Supernatural. They started calling angels dick and having to kill some. Even looked at god, knowing he's real. As someone less at times because of bullshit that was going on under his watch.

I feel like there's a few developers who could tackle a narrative like that. Make the main character not a fan of either as the story develops. Of course I would like it have a grounded atmosphere, not fantasy looking.

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Mm if someone were to make a video game out of Vertigo's Preacher series you'd get something close to that. If it was handled creatively and well, with polish, it could be something special, but alas...

 

[Bjones]

We are always fighting demons. Isn't that in itself anti demonic?

 

[Dogui]

I don't think that's true. Ever heard of Morningstar aka Lucifer? Or the angels that defected with him when he went against God?

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I don't get where your point crosses mine? Demons are basically fallen angels, which means they choose to not be pure and obedient exactly because they have desires.

 

[Jader7777]

For similar reasons why blues/metal uses occult imagery and themes.

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It's a shallow aesthetic choice based around being edgy while having almost no bearing on actual themes and ideals they portray?

 

[Supervlieg]

God is dead

 

[Deleted member 10737]

god, heaven, etc are boring

 

[spman2099]

If it does nothing but glorify the Christian god then it is going to feel icky, boring, or both.

 

[808s & Villainy]

I don't get where your point crosses mine? Demons are basically fallen angels, which means they choose to not be pure and obedient exactly because they have desires.

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You said angels are always pure and obedient. I pointed to biblical examples of them not being so. They were angels before they were demons. They didn't just change their name and instantly become "evil". The implication is that they choose to be odedient and chose to leave, not unlike people who abide by the rules of society and criminals who deviate from that. The point is, I don't think we have more in common with one side or the other

Also the number of people in here who think a stories in the side of God and Heaven would be boring is baffling. I'm not even a practicing Christian and I still know there's huge potential

 

[GNEVERD]

For the record, I'm not referring to a game being religious. I'm just talking about the premise of God, angels, and Heaven. Games that have you playing as a demon like Devil May Cry (as well as countless others) have a pretty universal narrative in gaming. Essentially, you have to have evil in you in order to be effective. GoW is my favorite PS franchise by far, but Zeus is/was a dick...like father like son.

The writing has to be creative because it's such a touchy topic, and the game has to be good. I'm talking human NPC dialogue that addresses the eternal questions we have about life as we know it. Maybe spirit walking like in the Constantine movie. I feel like the subject matter and pov has never truly be explored. I think that you can get very creative (or at least I can).

I remember when shit hit the fan when Mortal Kombat came out, and when Populus got a lot of backlash. Religious groups will get over it. Quality will always trump controversy, imo.

 

[Aesnath]

Spitballing here, but I think it is a few things:

1. Portraying a Christian-God/Angels as a protagonists might open up a political bag of worms that is undesirable. On the one hand, consumers could turned off by something that could be viewed as evangelizing. In this way, it might be viewed as a largely Christian vehicle (similarly to how "Christian Music" has a very set audience). On the other hand, there is probably more potential piss off that group if you characterize their religion in a way they view as objectionable. Notably, while playing as demons or whatever is likely to be a turn-off for that same audience, they also probably didn't think it was for them anyway, avoiding the topic.

2. Demons, devils, etc. are sometimes proxies for rebellion, which is generally considered "cool" and/or masculine; things the industry is often chasing. Like it or not videogames, especially action games, still revel in some degree of "edge", and being the good guy, working for God doesn't really convey that. Moreover, such characters as the protagonist give you a lot of room for character development that being and staying a "good guy" doesn't necessarily (e.g. going from "I'm fighting for myself and 'cause you pissed me off" to "OK, I'm still fighting 'cause I'm pissed off, but I'm going to help someone else too").

3. Demons, devils, etc. actually have better crossover appeal to a lot of non-Christian cultures. Evil (or at least non-good) spirits or entities are found in a lot of cultures and religions, without necessarily needing to make a called shot about whose system of belief is correct. In particular, Japanese myths often have a different understanding of what a demon/devil would be compared to Christian norms.

4. Other stories and media don't often tell God/Angel stories. Videogames are a reflection of the culture that they come from, and I don't think U.S. culture tells too many stories like the one you are hoping for. If they do, they are usually from an explicitly religious perspective. For example, I can think of several demon/devil/satan as protagonist comics/movies/shows just off the top of my head. Actual, explicit, angel as the protagonist, is a bit harder. Like, there is that odd John Travolta movie and there is an X-man named Angel. The times where God is the protagonist, sort of, are often horror stories, where faith is used to save the human protagonist.

 

[Deleted member 29682]

Isn't that sort of Darksiders?

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You're kind of beating up Heaven and Hell in those games, though Heaven is somewhat more sympathetic.

 

[Elandyll]

Don't you spend literally all of Diablo games fighting Lucifer/ Baal, etc on behalf of Angels (Tyrael & co)?

 

[Razmos]

If it does nothing but glorify the Christian god then it is going to feel icky, boring, or both.

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This, it wouldn't work for various reasons and personally I wouldn't like games that glorify the Christian god because you just know that if it was attempted with any other religion it would be billed as terrorist propaganda or some rubbish.

There's enough references to Christianity in games already

 

[The Albatross]

This is a pretty good topic OP, thanks for posting it.

For something that is such a strong part of Western Civilization, that is the Abrahamic God of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, the theme or the concept is generally absent from videogames. I think a lot of it relates back, like another poster said, to the basis of many videogames being in Dungeons and Dragons, and while D&D is no satanic worship or something, it's just traditionally been held in the medium to be a more compelling, robust viewpoint. Not that the Abrahamic/Christian/etc 'hell' has ... Orcs and Demagorgons in it, but the character that generally appear in a D&D inspired videogame (nearly every fantasy game for the last 30 years) are heavily inspired by that demonic imagery.

Just insofar as it's nothing that's ever been really done or tried, I think it's an interesting concept. Obviously there are some narrative challenges, I mean, can the Archangel Michael really be challenged by a demon if he's got God on his side...? But, insofar as this has been a theme in art for, literally, thousands of years, I don't think that it's a stretch to say that some medium that's been around for 40 years couldn't realistically take a stab at it.

I think this could generally be expanded to religion in general, as there are almost no sympathetic or positive representations of mainstream religious people in videogames, at least, in the last 15 years. Any game that has any religious theme in it, whether it's Skyrim, Fallout, Witcher, Assassins Creed, etc., religious people are universally bad guys, and good guys are typically world weary outsiders, if they're religious then they're religious exiles -- victims of the evil religious overlord. If there are religious people, they're more or less accidentally religious, or they don't really believe, or their religion is more of a Abrahamic-tinged humanism. There is one mainstream exception to this, and it's Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare. There is a nun in this game who is not portrayed as an evil bad guy raising the dead, she's actually a good guy, she's actually a badass, and she's actually a Catholic nun. She's not some world-weary humanist who takes the habit just to stick it to the evil Catholic Church, the game doesn't wade into any of that. She's not a hapless fool thanking God for his do-goodery when it's actually you the protagonist doing good (as the Nun is portrayed in the mainline RDR story, basically another antagonistic swindler who doesn't give John Marston his due). She's honest to goodness, a religious nun, who is a hero. And I think it's the only portrayal in contemporary videogames of an honestly Catholic character who isn't an evil bad guy.

But back to the OP, I think people who are strongly against it "Sounds boring!" "Makes me feel icky!" or what have you, try challenging yourself creatively. This is a medium where our most famous games feature an Italian American plumber defeating a giant evil lizard to save a toadie princess, repeatedly, for 30+ years. If I said, "Why aren't there any games about plumbers?" you might say, "Eww, plumbers sound icky and boring, or both!" Challenge yourself.

If it does nothing but glorify the Christian god then it is going to feel icky, boring, or both.

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You're right, nothing creative that glorifies the Christian god feels anything but icky, boring, or both.

 

[Darksol]

Because pious things are boring as shit.

 

[Nauren]

You're kind of beating up Heaven and Hell in those games, though Heaven is somewhat more sympathetic.

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I mean, depending on your flavor of Christianity, that sort of fits.

 

[Se_7_eN]

The reason you don't see GOD in games is because anytime someone depicts or even talks about him they get in trouble and their is instant outrage on social media or news broadcasts about it...

Its kind of a hard subject to touch without offending someone... As to where Satan, no one really cares about what you do with him or his images, so he is free game.

 

[Ahasverus]

Look the thing is that appropriating the name of "God" for a Videogame is more or less sacrilege while doing so for the devil is not.

 

[Deleted member 4541]

GOTY

 

[ADee]

In Might and Magic VII you get to choose if you want to join Heaven or Hell. I usually joined Hell because of how annoying the spell reflect was if you fought your way thrhough the underworld.

 

[spman2099]

You're right, nothing creative that glorifies the Christian god feels anything but icky, boring, or both.

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I didn't say that. Also, this isn't a topic about paintings. You are pretty quick to throw stones, friend.

 

[808s & Villainy]

The reason you don't see GOD in games is because anytime someone depicts or even talks about him they get in trouble and their is instant outrage on social media or news broadcasts about it...

Its kind of a hard subject to touch without offending someone... As to where Satan, no one really cares about what you do with him or his images, so he is free game.

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And yet the Shin Megami Tensei games get away with it, and they depict tons of different deities

I didn't say that. This isn't a topic about paintings either. You are pretty quick to throw stones, friend.

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It's a topic about artistic interpretations of Abrahamic religions so a painting would fall under that. I think their point was that it doesn't have to be boring and saying it would shows an ignorance of the stories, art and various interpretations that have been created throughout history. Seldom are depictions ever just simple "God, Heaven and angels are good and righteous and pure and perfect"

 

[Remo Williams]

Messiah was cool, but buggy.

Also, this.

 

[Deleted member 10737]

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cool god fanart. source?

 

[Chocobo Blade]

I see even gaming isn't free from the Christian persecution complex.

 

[The Albatross]

cool god fanart. source?

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some deviant art act... shut down tho because the artist has some kinks

 

[SmarmySmurf]

Demons aren't "satanic".

 

[Anthony Hopkins]

There are not that many satanic games, and you can be good in lots of games.

 

[Deleted member 1413]

Yes, it would, lol.

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I don't like it personally.

 

[Deleted member 10737]

This, it wouldn't work for various reasons and personally I wouldn't like games that glorify the Christian god because you just know that if it was attempted with any other religion it would be billed as terrorist propaganda or some rubbish.

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the abrahamic god of judaism, christianity and islam is a dick and not that different between those religions, but you're probably right. a lot of people will probably lose their shit at a game with allah.

 

[RROCKMAN]

I definitely see what you're coming from OP. Basically any franchise that so much as touches conventional religion they almost always demonizes God. Some tend to be out there and some make it obscure but its usually always present.

Castilevania series, Xenoblade 2 (definitely not the other entries in that series) and Guilty Gear (thru Ky Kiske) are some of only series I know that potray religion in a positive light.

 

[cervanky]

Demons are often construed as an active, violent force, whereas angels and God work in mysterious ways behind the scenes and are more currently defined by acts of love and grace, inspiring people to do good, and probably not slash things up in a character action game. I know there are exceptions (Book of Revelation), but I can see why in general games feature demonic elements more than angelic ones given that the gaming medium itself skews towards violence.

It'd be interesting to see games tackle faith but I don't think it should necessarily be in the form of an action game. I'm an atheist myself but it's still a facet of the human experience that I think is missing from gaming, especially given that it's something featured so much in every other medium.

 

[Fifstar]

From a narrative point of view, playing as an angel is kinda boring or at least it's hard to frame in an exciting way.. You're just the ultimate good guy, not really much you can do with that. When you play as a demon, it's interesting because those are shown as bad guys that turned good. Can't pull that trick with angels because then you end up with demons again. Of course you could go angel -> fallen angel -> turns back to angel again. But that's circular storytelling.