FAENON'S PROFILE

Howdy. You have my level featured in this screenie, but not in the current game. I think yhat's coz I PM'd it to GRS (and Shortstar) instead of putting it on the main page. Please reinsert!

So, I guess I could have been more clear from the start. The game itself is not going to be a simple virtual Bible story. I'm making a regular game with them but using the process to teach Religious Education.

So this week we did the

Quest of game - the search for existential meaning/telos

bit and decided that the plot of the game is going to be about the kids in the class being transported to a magical setting (a bit like Narnia or The Philosopher's Stone (rpgmaker version not Potter)) where they have to overcome a villaiin to escape. Nice and simple, and it exploits the fact that many of them, though by no means all, have designed characters based on themselves.

I am most interested in exploring teaching parallels between the process of game creation and theological material, as listed above and hopefully made clearer.

author=BurningTyger
Hmm, Feanon, consider a frame story of newly-minted Christians attempting to survive persecution, and have each of the sub-sections be a tale told around the fire that then can be played through- like the Canterbury tales. That way you kind of get an enhanced perspective. Or for that matter an " Adventures from the Book of Virtues" like setup where the tales told reflect on the problems the characters are having.

I think that could actually make a pretty good game, maybe the first decent overtly Christian video game...

author=mellytan
And on that note, there is also an emphasis in games on getting more power, to the point of becoming god-like or invincible. I would suggest that you have there should be points where the player cannot rely on his/her strength of beefy stats alone--the player must call on His strength to progress, to overcome evil, etc.

Noted. Great idea, will read the article.

author=mellytan
this game is relevant to my interests, please make a game page

Ok, I'll make a page when it's done in a couple of months. May have to change names of characters though for data protection, I don't think the school would be very impressed if I distirbuted it on the internet with characters the kids have named after themselves.

author=saya
Are you going to have a system like that of Fable, good deeds/bad deeds?

No, but interestingly enough my own rpgmaker game, The Cerebral Symphony, uses this and has a multiple personality system.

author=saya
Which in turn, brings up the problem of gaming itself. Have you ever considered the possibility of the kids therefore becoming addicted to video games and spending more time with them instead of trying to find spiritual enrichment?

This is something I think about a lot. Video games and video game making is very addictive. I love it. As a result I have to limit the amount of time I spend doing it and watch that the habit doesn't get out of hand.

Funnily enough, part of my job involves teaching at Sunday School for my employer, with 10-12 year olds, and this semester we're looking at "cultural issues" and how they relate to faith. Last Sunday I taught on video games. I said I wasn't going to point the finger at them and say "Don't play video games!" but that I wanted them to make informed decisions about them based on the principles of their faith.

The biggest argument for choosing to spend my relaxation time with video games for me is that they are an art form. The best rpgmaker games I've played have been lovingly-crafted, immersive, compelling, moving works of art. Videogames are an art form, albeit not a very highly recognised one. In being artistic we are affirming our idenities as made in the image of God, since creativity is a divine quality, I believe. So that keeps me doing it, crafting characters, writing stories, designing experiences. As long as it doesn't become an obssessive idol I think that's ok.

Justified. Thank you. From now on I'll be posting screenies of said features.

Also I was thinking of releasing chapter 1 when it's done, and then maybe going chapter by chapter, or just waiting till they're all (7) done.

Hey all, sorry for the delay -I think I'm in a different timezone to all you guys, what with being in the UK.

author=BurningTyger
...I'm suggesting that Feanon change his goals. Perhaps teaching only Christianity is what the group he's with wants him to do, but it remains to be seen if that's truly the right thing to do- a question only Feanon can answer for himself.

So I should probably say that in this instance Christianity is what is on the syllabus and what it is my job to teach, that the parents know what is being taught, and that the kids are free to agree or diasgree with the theological content according to their own personal choice. Hope that clears things up.

author=BurningTyger
It's up to Feanon to decide whether for him love means to teach the children what he himself believes, or to teach them how to find their own path. Only he can say for sure.

I'm trying to do both!

author=WolfCoder
Though you still do kind of have a point, why RPG Maker 2003, why not GameMaker or something?

Yeah, cause as someone said rpgmaker is what I know. Also as I will try and make clear in a sec I think it's perfectly suited to the job.

author=WolfCoder

...like the OP is a complete dope and has no idea what content is in the book he teaches for his class.

Actually, this is a big problem among Christians where they haven't really read the bible that much. Or they teach a whitewashed version, or whatever. And when they do actually understand it in full they tend to become Atheists, or otherwise stray from their original stance from what they heard in sermon/whatever.

It's all a big internal struggle when it really comes down to it, I'm lucky to have a relatively stable system of beliefs (I'm not quite an atheist, actually). Most appear unsure of what to believe.

I'm not going to let you get away with this ;) I have a First Class BA in Theology from Oxford University, UK, and am hoping to return there to study for an MPhil next year after finishing this job. You are right insofar as that it is less common to find conservative believers studying their faith at an advanced tertiary level, but they do exist, and I know many. Also, I've read the whole Bible through once, and am halfway through doing it a second time. Granted many who call themselves Christians may not really have read the sacred text of their claimed belief system -but please don't count me in that.

Anyway, to avoid this turning into the token religious opinions topic, I should help out by giving some more info about what is being taught. Some replies have been really helpful, esp. Hoddmimir, thanks!

ORIGINAL CONTENT BEGINS HERE

Remember the kids are not coding the game -I will do that- but rather designing different elements alongside learning about a theological topic, which I will then incorporate in e.g. scanning in monsters they draw and converting them into the right format (for which the rpgmaker2000 DBS is perfect).

So far what I have is, where the left column is rpgmaker element and the right column is topic or theme:

LIST 1

Character creation - God's creation of us
Skill sets - God-given talents
Equipment - "the armour of God"
Quest of game - the Greatest Command
Setting of game - God's creation of the world
Supporting items - The Bible
Monster design - Evil
NPC design - the Body of Christ
The completed product - Salvation History

If you don't like the Christian elements or wanted to repeat the process looking at a different belief system you could "demythologise" the list as follows:

LIST 2

Character creation - our uniqueness and intrinsic value
Skill sets - stuff we're good at, developing our gifts
Equipment - tools and principles for getting along in life
Quest of game - the search for existential meaning/telos
Setting of game - ecosystems and care for the environment
Supporting items - the importance of symbols and sacred texts
Monster design - conflict, opposition and greed in the world
NPC design - the value and function of religious community
The completed product - metanarrative and selection of worldview

Any thoughts?

So what IS Talking Time?