Comments on: Gamer’s Choice http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/ Where the Christian Faith Meets March Madness Wed, 17 Mar 2010 19:33:34 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Dylan http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/#comment-38375 Dylan Mon, 04 May 2009 19:59:16 +0000 http://www.christandpopculture.com/?p=3295#comment-38375 Nice article! Some good points - you articulated some things I'd thought about before but never could really put into words. I think, when it comes to morality-based gameplay, a little ambiguity could go a long way. BTW, it's nice to see an intelligently-written Christian approach to gaming, one that doesn't condemn blindly :) Thanks! Nice article! Some good points – you articulated some things I’d thought about before but never could really put into words. I think, when it comes to morality-based gameplay, a little ambiguity could go a long way.

BTW, it’s nice to see an intelligently-written Christian approach to gaming, one that doesn’t condemn blindly :) Thanks!

]]> By: The Dane http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/#comment-38365 The Dane Mon, 04 May 2009 19:28:19 +0000 http://www.christandpopculture.com/?p=3295#comment-38365 @xian I think you only get pornographic cards in the European releases of the game. There weren't any such cards in my game. And opportunity to adulterate does not equal adultery (though I think you mean fornication); so far as I got, Geralt only pursues romance if you play him to do so. So, you can both play <i>The Witcher</i> <b>and</b> pass on adultery (and fornication), if you so choose. @xian
I think you only get pornographic cards in the European releases of the game. There weren’t any such cards in my game. And opportunity to adulterate does not equal adultery (though I think you mean fornication); so far as I got, Geralt only pursues romance if you play him to do so.

So, you can both play The Witcher and pass on adultery (and fornication), if you so choose.

]]> By: xian http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/#comment-38353 xian Mon, 04 May 2009 18:39:19 +0000 http://www.christandpopculture.com/?p=3295#comment-38353 The Witcher? Seriously? With the rampant adultery and the pornographic cards earned from each "conquest"? No thanks, I'll pass. The Witcher? Seriously? With the rampant adultery and the pornographic cards earned from each “conquest”? No thanks, I’ll pass.

]]> By: The Dane http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/#comment-38320 The Dane Mon, 04 May 2009 15:45:48 +0000 http://www.christandpopculture.com/?p=3295#comment-38320 I've got a pretty sweet rig myself and I can barely run the special edition version of the game I got off Steam. I’ve got a pretty sweet rig myself and I can barely run the special edition version of the game I got off Steam.

]]> By: Richard Clark http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/#comment-38150 Richard Clark Mon, 04 May 2009 02:17:48 +0000 http://www.christandpopculture.com/?p=3295#comment-38150 Yeah, I know. I just don't have any computers with enough power to run any real games. Such is life. :-/ Yeah, I know. I just don’t have any computers with enough power to run any real games. Such is life. :-/

]]> By: Merus http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/#comment-37967 Merus Sun, 03 May 2009 12:16:27 +0000 http://www.christandpopculture.com/?p=3295#comment-37967 Bit after the fact here, Richard, but the link you found has to do with the console port of The Witcher. The PC version has been around for a few years and has been well worth a look (although do patch it to the latest version because it was very ambitious on release, and therefore buggy). Bit after the fact here, Richard, but the link you found has to do with the console port of The Witcher. The PC version has been around for a few years and has been well worth a look (although do patch it to the latest version because it was very ambitious on release, and therefore buggy).

]]> By: The Dane http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/#comment-37417 The Dane Thu, 30 Apr 2009 16:50:11 +0000 http://www.christandpopculture.com/?p=3295#comment-37417 One thing I liked about the morality of <i>Shadow of the Colossus</i> was that the entire time, you feel pretty bad for climbing up and murdering these majestic creatures who were really just ambling about minding their own business. But you were doing it for love, so you could raise your sweetheart from the dead. And besides, the mysterious voices in your head told you that these were evil monsters. So you go about making this choice (to kill quote-unquote bad guys) and at the end, when you find out that you were the bad guy, that's a bombshell. But then when you reflect on all these gentle giants that you mercilessly slaughtered. Well, that right there is pretty heavy. Of course, in <i>Shadow of the Colossus</i> you really only have one choice: kill things, progress the story, and end/win the game <i>OR</i> ride around on your horse until you get bored and put in <i>Katamari Damacy</i>. So not really much of a choice, but for all its limits, the consideration of morality that the game engenders is definitely worth reflection. Now, let's see what other games I can talk about that you're completely unable to experience... One thing I liked about the morality of Shadow of the Colossus was that the entire time, you feel pretty bad for climbing up and murdering these majestic creatures who were really just ambling about minding their own business. But you were doing it for love, so you could raise your sweetheart from the dead. And besides, the mysterious voices in your head told you that these were evil monsters.

So you go about making this choice (to kill quote-unquote bad guys) and at the end, when you find out that you were the bad guy, that’s a bombshell. But then when you reflect on all these gentle giants that you mercilessly slaughtered. Well, that right there is pretty heavy.

Of course, in Shadow of the Colossus you really only have one choice: kill things, progress the story, and end/win the game OR ride around on your horse until you get bored and put in Katamari Damacy. So not really much of a choice, but for all its limits, the consideration of morality that the game engenders is definitely worth reflection.

Now, let’s see what other games I can talk about that you’re completely unable to experience…

]]> By: Richard Clark http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/#comment-37415 Richard Clark Thu, 30 Apr 2009 16:14:55 +0000 http://www.christandpopculture.com/?p=3295#comment-37415 The Dane, that sounds awesome. I've heard rumblings of this game before, but a quick search of my google reader yields some <a href="http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2009/04/production-on-the-witcher-console-port-officially-halted/" rel="nofollow">bad news.</a> I almost certainly would have snatched that game up when it became available. Oh well. Anyone know of any other games that do what I'm calling for here? The Dane, that sounds awesome. I’ve heard rumblings of this game before, but a quick search of my google reader yields some bad news.

I almost certainly would have snatched that game up when it became available. Oh well. Anyone know of any other games that do what I’m calling for here?

]]> By: The Dane http://www.christandpopculture.com/featured/gamers-choice/#comment-37414 The Dane Thu, 30 Apr 2009 16:07:50 +0000 http://www.christandpopculture.com/?p=3295#comment-37414 <i>The Witcher</i> pretty much already does what you want. There are game choices like let the angry mob rape and kill the herbalist-slash-witch or threaten the mob 'til they relent. In either case, the game doesn't judge your choice and in either case, the game's citizens <i>probably will</i>. At one point, I accidentally participated in one side of the gameworld's brewing civil war. Nothing immediately changed, but down the road it became clear that I had screwed up my relationship with a friend who was a supporter of the side I had accidentally helped thwart. One's moral choices in this particular game don't seem to make the game harder or easier to complete, but they do alter story-direction more or less significantly. Of course, your character's story takes place before the backdrop of a larger story, so many of the world-events are the same—it's only your involvement in the events (and sometimes their outcomes) that changes. In any case, there's no overt karma stat. The Witcher pretty much already does what you want. There are game choices like let the angry mob rape and kill the herbalist-slash-witch or threaten the mob ’til they relent. In either case, the game doesn’t judge your choice and in either case, the game’s citizens probably will.

At one point, I accidentally participated in one side of the gameworld’s brewing civil war. Nothing immediately changed, but down the road it became clear that I had screwed up my relationship with a friend who was a supporter of the side I had accidentally helped thwart.

One’s moral choices in this particular game don’t seem to make the game harder or easier to complete, but they do alter story-direction more or less significantly. Of course, your character’s story takes place before the backdrop of a larger story, so many of the world-events are the same—it’s only your involvement in the events (and sometimes their outcomes) that changes.

In any case, there’s no overt karma stat.

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