Computer games and religion - part 2

Computer games are an emerging media, like cinema was back, one century ago. As the media is open to any interpretations, we might also consider its religoius useage, or its involvment in theist-atheist debates, which is somehow deeply woven into the issue. Lets see, how.

Computer games, as the name suggests, are mathematical - computed recreations of situations, series of events taken in the form of modeling. As the modeling is in this case, creation of a virtual environment, the inherent question comes all the time - who is the supreme being in the simulation. Or the being in charge of the simulation process, but outside of the simulation - as a player, controller.
Yes, we are already at a theological question.

There is an entire genre of computer games, which is called god-level simulation micromanagement game, in which the players are given omnipotent, god like powers to manipulate the events, take Civilization series and Populous series or the famous Black and White series as an example.



Who are in charge of simulation, who is the omnipresent supreme being in these simulations? What power a chess player posses? Not being the omnipresent creator of the game, as these is another one, the opponent, who the player has no power upon, what is the role of the player in general?

In most cases, the statement about religion, belief, non-belief are not added directly into the elements of the game, the player have to construct themselves these ones by playing and constantly reflective the moral - ethical - theological questions hiding in the game mechanics. Yet, most strategic level simulations game do have included religion into the mathematical language of the game mechanics. Gods, belief, is merely a question of numbers in these cases - which can be taken a pretty secular statement on the first glance.

But reinterpreting the hidden - at least from the player - mathematical strings, algorithms behind the events of the game as a religious message is not a hard job to do, especially if the mythological basis of these games are drown from familiar sources like the Greek mythology or the bible.
Games take a stance on one side, or another, in this case, take a closer look on the religious reinterpretation of the games storyline and mechanics - which is an inherent part of the game, since the "to do" is the surplus what a game offers compared to the "to watch" of the traditional cinema.

There are a large number of games featuring escatological storyline, which can be added up to a huge list, which I don't want to do here, right now. Instead, I am trying to run trough some of the aspects of these games, and point out a few interesting example.

The role-playing-strategy game Wizardry 8, the final installment of a highly successful series of games, questions the existence of gods in every possible notion, and doing it on a such subtle way, that even the avarage players are not fully aware of the process.
In a 100 hour playing time epic (in fact, it is similar to long soap operas rather then feature movies), full with lightening fast, breathtaking action, and interesting moral messages, some of the issues are really connected to religion, and our own notion of religion.
As with many other simulations - simulations of complex social systems - the idea of greater power is noticed. In the case of this game, the goal for the players to achieve is to find and use the 'cosmic forge', a sacral site used by the Cosmic Lords, to defeat the evil villain. Most of the players are not even aware of the theological, agnostic argument going on in the background of the game, take a small except from one of the websites detailing the game as an example:

Anselm and Carnap (Panrack spelled backwards) are both philosophers.

Anselm came up with the infamous proof of the existence of God argument, arguing that there is no being that can best God in terms of greatness, therefore no other being could be thought of to be greater. And since a God that exists is better than one that doesn't, then God must exist.

Carnap is famous for his insistence that only statements about life that can be true or false, not morally ambiguous or arguable like much of philosophy or metaphysics, are meaningful. Any statement that can be either true or false, therefore, should not be paid attention to, according to Carnap.

The characters are also on two sides of the philosophical fence... one praying and hoping for a miracle from the Cosmic Lords to save their besieged town, and the other using science, scouting and war as tools to protect themselves and defeat their enemies.

The notion of free will, and the absence or presence of god is a key element of a recent, 2007 game, Bioshock. A large number of articles try to explore the connection between on one of the main entrepreneur of the game, Andrew Ryan and Ayn Rand, the author of Atlas Shrugged, an Objectivist philosopher. Ryan, the objectivist leader of an dystopian society living in an underwater city, and creating a decentralized, liberal state by sharing technological innovations with the cities populace.
The game, which depicts the downfall and demise of this utopian society, refers to the relation of spiritual and earthly on many terms, and received hash critics from both sides.
An article on Objectivism in Bioshock.

Godly powers are merely becomes numbers, coefficients to influence some elements of the game, - the bolt of Zeus are compared to an atomic bomb, yet, the question remains, who are we, the controller, who governs the events or the game - and who is governed by the game itself.