Religion in games. What games are worth playing?

[Norrdicus]

But there is Morrowind - it's not perect textbook on religion but it does a decent job, at least. There are two religions operating in the land - the Tribunal temple of people who worship the three literal gods of Morrowind (you even go and talk to them) and the Imperial cult who are...the Imperial cult. Your character can even join these and progress through the quests and up the hierarchy. If new to Morrowind, I'd suggest going with the IC first - the first quest for the Tribunal, while really atmospheric (don't think that's the correct word, but should give you an idea) is also quite long and takes a very long while to complete, thus delaying the progress of the other quests in the Tribunal.

The Tribunal Temple religion had some amazing background literature. Some of it was so god damn weird that you didn't know where metaphors ended and literal interpretation began!

Anyone fancy adding anything else to it?

Yes!

Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer
This expansion pretty much revolves around god-worship, afterlife and the rituals of a universe with a proven, ever-changing pantheon

 

[Baron von Blitztank]

Probably been said a few times, but Asura's Wrath is definitely worth checking out for a relgion-based game.

Also found this little article about some of the Buddhist symbolism in the game:

http://art-eater.com/2012/01/a-buddhists-guide-to-asuras-wrath/

 

[PoolCleaningRobot]

Honest Hearts. That's it. Thread over.

FUCK YOU. I spent 10 minutes typing that!

Well you did it better, and that's what matters.

I guess your right. Feels good man (imagine the frog, I'm too lazy to post it)

 

[bafrali]

Bastion has a religious undertone that is hard to caught at first. I guess I catch it in my third playthrough. Needless to say it was very well done if you know how to read between lines.

 

[Signa]

The Hammerites in Thief would make a good study. You get to read a lot of their scripture too.

 

[AT God]

Bioshock mentions the idea of religion, isn't really about it. Hitman is the only other game with religious undertones, and I don't just mean that part with the nuns in Absolution, Hitman 2 had lots of religious stuff in it.

 

[SecondPrize]

I'll second Xenosaga as mentioned above. You could also join some Amarr RPers in EVE like CVA.

 

[DoPo]

Soul Reaver, 2 & Legacy of Kain

There aren't really that many religious undertones there. There certainly is religion but it's hardly mentioned - only the last game (Defiance) actually references any religion more directly. The games are still good, though, and there is an entity called The Elder God but it's also never actually referenced as such in-game (until Defiance, where he's mockingly called a god) aside from the credits. Still, he...it acts like a god or something, certainly a very powerful entity possessing vast knowledge bordering on omniscience and vast, very vast powers.

They are still good games - my favourite series, in fact, I'm just not sure if they'd be useful for a religion research. If you do want to see a maybe god doing maybe god stuff, then go right ahead. Also, if you want to cut down on time (you do have a sizeable list there), you can the cutscenes only (you can find them on YouTube) - the story is told through them and there is very little during the actual gameplay. The cutscenes are about a movie length for each game. Alternatively, there is this plot guide [http://www.gamefaqs.com/ps2/914777-legacy-of-kain-defiance/faqs/25247] which is top notch in quality and does tell the story straight. Also, there is Nosgoth.net [http://www.nosgoth.net/] which has transcripts of the dialogue of each game (so it's more or less the cutscenes in text form).

Heroes of Might and Magic 5

I'd suggest 6 for something more directly related to religion. And it actually has a better story. Heroes 5 was rather simplistic - demons would invade and blah di blah. Nothing really original or relevant - I think the most you'd see of gods is their names being invoked a few times.

And if you are going to play Heroes 6, it might be easier to download a trainer for it and cheat your way through the campaign - it's otherwise too long and may require you to restart the map if you make some mistake.

 

[amuasyeas]

Dominions 3. Nothing says you're like a god when you raise a second sun in the sky or cause everyone in the world to age extremely fast.

 

[Chindar]

Tales of Symphonia has a fairly integrated religion co-opted for the narrative. I would highly suggest taking a detailed playthrough of Tales of the Abyss with a religious/philosophical perspective on the individual characters more than the game world and political machinations.