Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Is there really a demand for Christian Games?
It's an easy enough question you think would have a resounding YES! However, if there is such a demand for AAA Christian Games (throughout the world, not just in the west) why hasn't there been a competitive influx of alternative game titles to meet it? What might be causing the stoppage?
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ReplyDeleteSometimes I believe that "Christian games" suffer from the same fate as movie licensed games do:
ReplyDelete1. If the movie isn't viewed as a blockbuster, noone will generally play the game. Christianity is currently viewed with less-than-blockbuster type attitudes right now in most parts of the country. This equates to lackluster demand.
2. Games based off movies, suck. Call out the two or three exceptions if you want, but the truth is, studios will generally just throw money at a third-party developer to generate something quick and on the cheaper end of a budget. What is happening is that a publisher is not giving money to a developer for compelling gameplay or story, but to milk the profit of whatever is "hot." So far, I have seen the same thing happen with Christian games. Christian games aren't funded because of groundbreaking gameplay, they are funded because someone is taking something that already exists and molding it to Christianity. (I'm looking at you cleverly re-written T-Shirts with 90's company logos/taglines on them....oh yeah...and "Guitar Praise!").
Unfortunately, that is where the similarities end with Movies and Christian Games, but alas, on with the post.
3. Video Games are evil and a waste of time...in case you forgot. Video games are still in their infancy stage. As developers, we are STILL trying to ditch the stigma that video games lead to violent behavior and lazy citizens. Getting the Christian community behind something like a video game isn't an easy task.
4. Christian games tend to be more educational rather than entertainment. I would LOVE to play out some of the stories and eras written about in the Bible, but unless it's presented in an entertaining fashion and contains a compelling story, I more than likely will not be interested...which leads me to my next point...
5. Compelling Story. Because everyone has their own interpretation of the Bible and it's stories, it is very hard for us, as Christians, to get behind a story that may add characters or scenarios that go directly against what we believe. Christians may call foul on the artistic freedoms taken by the developer and then denounce the game entirely.
With all this being said, I would LOVE to see some AAA big budget titles come out that are labeled "Christian Games."