FIVE: Guardians of David - Interview @ PCGamesN

[HiddenX]

PCGamesN has interviewed Mike Madden, director of development at Kingdom Games:

Meet Kingdom Games, the Christian developer making an RPG that doesn't "Bible thump"

Five: Guardians of David is a game that tells a Biblical story of faith. Knowing that, it’s easy to assume that it will be the kind of thing you were allowed to play in junior school for education value. That image couldn’t be further from the truth. Instead, Five is an action RPG that’s got a hint of Diablo and Titan Quest about it. Developer Kingdom Games are determined to make a compelling action game that’s excitement and story first, and scripture only for those that want it.

Now two years old, Kingdom Games was set up with a very distinct purpose: approaching young people and teaching them about the morals and ethics of Christianity. “Rather than fighting to peel them away from a medium they adore - videogames - we decided to bring our vision to them in that format,” explains Mike Madden, director of development. Within two months a small studio was set up and development started. The team involves talent who have previously worked on the likes of Call of Duty: Black Ops, Darksiders, and The Old Republic.

Their first game is Five: Guardians of David, and it releases today. It’s the story of King David and his conquering of Israel, with players commanding a party made up of his five generals, swapping between each to make use of their unique combat skills.

Kingdom Games have struck an interesting balance when it comes to how Five presents its Biblical influences and message. The team don’t want to been seen as “Bible thumpers”, so much of the Christian elements are layered into the world like lore in an Elder Scrolls game. “It’s passive layers, you can get as much out of it as you want,” Madden explains. “It’s all there, down to Bible passages, but you can also walk right by it if you choose to.”

Instead, the faith-influenced messages come through in design choices. “Do we want to put in achievements like most games do for killing x amount of y enemies? No we don't, that's totally against what we want to do. Everyone here is looking at making sure we practice what we preach,” says Madden. [...]

More information.

 

[HiddenX]

Thanks Eye!

 

[Moorkh]

Let us side with the Zoroastrians and their tenets or it's still bible thumping...

 

[lackblogger]

At least they can relax if it all goes pear shaped on release as they can rest assured that it will become a global hit a few hundred years down the line.

 

[Hexprone]

Do we want to put in achievements like most games do for killing x amount of y enemies? No we don't, that's totally against what we want to do.

David took his men with him and went out and killed two hundred Philistines and brought back their foreskins. They counted out the full number to the king so that David might become the king's son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal in marriage.

This isn't intended as a cheap "gotcha". Myself, I don't see Christian ethics as bound to the narratives of the Deuteronomist writer. But if you're choosing those narratives as the vehicle for your presentation of Christian ideas, then it's odd to flinch from their bloodthirstiness.

Especially as the warlike story of David has obviously been chosen because its violence matches the tone of secular videogames. The game maker hasn't chosen to put the player in the shoes of Paul trying to unify the early churches through patient letter-writing, or of one of the disciples struggling to understand Christ's meek acceptance of death in the book of Matthew.

 

[Wisdom]

This isn't intended as a cheap "gotcha". Myself, I don't see Christian ethics as bound to the narratives of the Deuteronomist writer. But if you're choosing those narratives as the vehicle for your presentation of Christian ideas, then it's odd to flinch from their bloodthirstiness.

Especially as the warlike story of David has obviously been chosen because its violence matches the tone of secular videogames. The game maker hasn't chosen to put the player in the shoes of Paul trying to unify the early churches through patient letter-writing, or of one of the disciples struggling to understand Christ's meek acceptance of death in the book of Matthew.

Good post.

Christianity is the cool thing to bash at the moment. It surprises me that their forums and steam comments are as tame as they are.

 

[lackblogger]

Christianity is the cool thing to bash at the moment. It surprises me that their forums and steam comments are as tame as they are.

It is? You are?

And there was me thinking it was the Muslims everyone was bashing atm :shrug:

Corwin...? Do you feel bashed?

 

[Corwin]

I always feel bashed!! Remember, that this game is based on OT events which means it can't be really called Christian since that's NT. Jewish, or Hebrew would be much closer to the truth.

 

[lackblogger]

That's what I thought when the other thread was first put on the boards, I was busy trying to think of some good Jewish jokes, but I know so little about the Jewish religion I couldn't think of any.

 

[SonOfCapiz]

Bashing Muslims?

I may be watching very different media platforms and sources but all I see are politicians and media stumbling over themselves to declare that "Islam is a religion of peace" and everyone who says otherwise is a bigoted, hateful, racist (go figure), Islamophobe.

Terrorist leaders have PhDs in Islamic studies and quote extensively from the Quran and hadiths? Obviously not real Muslims. Anders Breivik making a passing mention about Christianity being a useful CULTURAL tool? He's a Christian terrorist.

In almost every tv show I watch, I can count on it taking a jab at religion and not once have I seen that religion being Islam and guess who the culprit usually is. Remember the bake a cake for gay marriage thing? Muslim bakeshops were refusing to do the same things Christian bakeshops were but I cant recall ever seeing mainstream media discuss it.

Any country not taking in "Syrian refugees"? If you're a non-Islamic country, you're a bigoted, hateful, racist (go figure), Islamophobe. Never mind that the richest Gulf countries aren't taking in any either AND citing fear of terrorism as a reason.

Let's bash all religions equally shall we?

ON TOPIC:
I've seen reviews that complain about limited character development, i.e. you cant really choose your "build" apart from item choices. That, more than any aversion to "bible thumping" is what will hurt sales imho and, personally, what makes me disinterested in getting it. Same reason I passed on Vran and it seems even worse here.

 

[lackblogger]

Bashing Muslims?... all I see are... "Syrian refugees"

Yes, that would be it I think...

 

[SonOfCapiz]

excellent example of context. Work in media or politics by any chance?

 

[lackblogger]

Ever read a definition of "Bashing"?

 

[SonOfCapiz]

pray tell enlighten me on how you used it when you said that "it was the Muslims everyone was bashing atm"

 

[lackblogger]

Well I dunno, I guess you got me now, I can't think of any religiously motivated groups that are currently having heavy weaponry leveled against them. I guess you win.

 

[SonOfCapiz]

I see where I got confused sorry. After a quick google search (since English isn't my first language) it showed me 2 definitions of bashing:

1) violent physical assault.
2) severe criticism.

Since Wisdom used it in the second sense, and your objection was on that and since your question to Corwin seemed to me to also be in that sense, I thought the second sense was how you used it. I hadn't realized you meant it as a "violent physical assault" so I guess my comment was unresponsive to your point.

Btw, those groups who are "currently having heavy weaponry leveled against them"? Those are the same groups I said media and politicians were claiming weren't "religiously motivated", having nothing to do with Islam, and not being true Muslims. So yes, while there are groups who are being "bashed" in the first sense, the current PC rhetoric declares that the bashing has nothing to do with their being Islamic since "Islam is a religion of peace" and they're not true Muslims. If so, hardly seems like Muslim bashing then, does it?

 

[lackblogger]

I'm not touching "what is a real [insert religious group here]" with a bargepole my friend. That would be for the Politics and religion board.

As for "severe criticism", it's my understanding that everyone on the planet endures "severe criticism" on a daily basis and that one of my relatives, who's a Christian Church Warden does not meet with 'fierce criticism' on a daily basis and neither is his life restricted because of his beliefs. I do believe that his 'fiercest critic' would be his wife...

 

[SonOfCapiz]

See, I'd agree with you on that. But it was you who said Muslims, not Christians were being bashed. I just pointed out that everyone mainstream seems eager to do just the opposite.

EDIT: or more accurately, eager NOT to do that.

 

[lackblogger]

Well, in my country it used to be illegal to not attend church. Since they abolished that law many years ago it's not surprising that competing forces have emerged, but I would hardly describe the day-to-day flux of self-interest as specifically 'Christian bashing', more a case of "sorry mate, you're not the boss anymore, you'll have to debate from a position of minority like everyone else". If a law gets passed in a democracy that goes directly against scripture, that's not 'bashing', that's normal politics, no different to how my society 'bashes' pot smokers or nudists.

 

[SonOfCapiz]

As I pointed out, no one in mainstream media or politics seems to be doing that for Islam. The popular thing to do is defend it and criticize anyone criticizing it. I'm not arguing for any special favors for Christianity. Heck, I personal think it could benefit from a little more bashing, specially in the west. But, as I said at the last part of my initial comment, let there be equality even in the bashing