I admit it – I am a gamer, and currently enjoying Painkiller and Escape from Butcher Bay. But the few Christian games I’ve seen so far sux0r3d. Catechumen, by N’Lightning, was so poor, it didn’t even get reviwed by most big-name gaming mags. The one standout was The Neverhood, still one of the most fun games I’ve ever played – it wasn’t overtly Christian, but the ending is obviously a crucifixion allusion.
However, there’s lots of hope for this nascent industry, as seen by the increasing media coverage. Check it out.
- Christian Video Games Developers Seek to Grow Market (Christianity Today)
It just represents the tiniest fraction of an $11-billion industry, but developers expect the market to grow with the popularity of faith-based movies and books such as Mel Gibson’s "The Passion of the Christ" and the "Left Behind" series of novels.
- What Would Jesus Play? (Wired)
- Christians Code Heavenly Games (Wired)
- Video Game Biz Converting to Christianity (PC Mag)
- Christians purge video game demons (BBC)
- Christian game makers rise to new heights (Gamespot)
- Gamers Get religion–Christian Devs Rally for Xbox 360, PS3 (Gamepro)
- Here Come the Christian Games (GamersGame)
You could also attend the Christian Game Developer’s Conference, or visit the Christian Game Developers Foundation, which rates games from a Xian perspective.
Islamic Games
Of course, you could always work on Islamic games like the one described here:
Ummah Defense I, in which "the world is ‘finally united under the Banner of Islam’ in 2114, until a revolt by disbelievers. The player’s goal is to seek out and destroy the disbelievers."
Militant Islam, of course, sadly, is perfectly suited to first person shooters – kill the unbelievers!