How religion serves to build lore and narrative within video games.
When in God of War Kratos paid his revenge with the destruction of Olympus, we not only reviewed the gods from a twisted prism; we enter into the broken relationship between a Spartan and his divinities. In Dragon Age, on the other hand, we observe the coexistence of different beliefs and their derived conflicts. At a similar level we find Horizon Zero Dawn, in which rebuilt humanity has settled into different tribes that turn to new gods to find answers. Today in FreeGameTips we talk about how religion is a common narrative mechanism in video games, both to shape the lore and to elaborate the protagonist’s journey.
If we stick to the definition of the RAE, religion is the “set of beliefs or dogmas about divinity, of feelings of veneration and fear towards it, of moral norms for individual and social behavior and ritual practices, mainly the prayer and sacrifice to worship him ”. Thus, it is not surprising that when designing the setting of a game, the religion practiced by a society is taken into account and how it affects our protagonist. What is the main character’s relationship with the gods? How does their existence affect history?
NOTE: Due to the nature of this report, it contains spoilers for God of War, Final Fantasy X, Horizon Zero Dawn, Dragon Age, and BioShock Infinite.
Kratos and the relationship between mortals and gods
The tragedy of the Ghost of Sparta can be understood as the rebellion of one man against the gods. As in every Greek myth, the gods interfere in mortal affairs and, in this case, a fateful pact catalyzes a spiral of revenge that culminates in the destruction of the known world. Kratos surrenders to Ares in a desperate promise: “Defeat my enemies and my life is yours”, after which the god makes him his champion until the last consequences, that is, the massacre of his wife and daughter. Betrayed, the Spartan embarks on a crusade against his former lord and subsequently Olympus himself, even after being promoted as the new god of war. Thus, in Kratos we observe the revolt against the natural order of Hellenic cosmology: a human refuses to accept the designs of his divinities and rebels against them. Kratos’ path of revenge takes the lives of the gods and, with them, the elements that sustain the Earth: without Poseidon, the oceans are out of control; without Hades there is no control over the living and the dead.
Kratos vs. Zeus in God of War III
However, Kratos gets a second chance, in a land far away and ruled by another pantheon: the Norse gods. In the God of War universe we find the coexistence of different mythologies and cults, and even Christianity has a place. When Cory Barlog, director of the 2018 God of War, was asked via Twitter if Christianity existed in Kratos’ universe, he replied, “Yes, it is part of his world.” In God of War II we already find a reference to the Temple of the Fates, with a mural that represents three figures that follow a star in the sky, which is easy to relate to the Magi visiting the Child Jesus.
Yevon, discovery, devotion and disappointment
Final Fantasy X has faith and the institution around it as its main theme. Set in the world of Spira, the inhabitants fear for the next arrival of the monster Sihn, who will destroy humanity as punishment for their sins. The cult of Yevon is the one who provides hope to the population, assuring them that the threat of the continuing apocalypse will end when they follow his doctrine. With each reappearance of this evil creature, a summoner makes a sacrificial pilgrimage to put an end to the beast, but the subsequent peace is temporary. Thus, Spira is, as its name predicts, a spiral of pain, death and hope, and the church of Yevon knows very well how to take advantage of it to gain control of its faithful.
Wakka in Final Fantasy X, about Sihn: “If we follow Yevon’s doctrine, one day [Sihn] will disappear!”.
In Gametopia it is analyzed how, through the eyes of Tidus, we delve into the knowledge of Yevon’s religion and then become disillusioned with its hypocrisy: “Yevon is an indisputable part of the world of Final Fantasy X. Cities, cultures and different Races of the game are basically defined through the relationship they have with the creed. The albhed, technologists who believe in the power of forbidden machines, are rejected by a large majority of the population and their conflict is part of the subplot of the game. Tidus, stranded in Spira, is totally unaware of his culture, and as he discovers the cult of Yevon he ends up exposing its inconsistencies and injustices. The devout Wakka falls apart when he discovers the long-standing hoax of a church using banned technology for its own self-interest, and how his mystical hoax was the tool of population control.
Aloy and skepticism
In Horizon Zero Dawn, we find a rebuilt Earth after the apocalypse. The human being has gone from establishing himself as the owner of nature to placing himself in a horizontal position with respect to beasts and machines. With a lifestyle marked by danger and survival, the population has settled in scattered tribes, with their own culture and beliefs. Thus, the matriarchal Nora worship the Mother as a representation of nature itself, while the Carja worship the Sun. The purpose of religion in each of these civilizations, just as it has been for the rest of humanity in our analog world, has been providing answers to questions that humans cannot decipher. However, in Aloy and her curiosity about the world we see skepticism as an antagonistic force. Horizon Zero Dawn screenwriter John González explained in Venture Beat how he sought to explore the theme of reason against a world of primitive superstitions: “[Aloy] try to discover what is behind the mysticism and other people’s beliefs. In the course of your journey, you will discover a lot of secrets. When you finish the game, you will have a much better understanding of how this world came to an end, and why things are as they present themselves later. […] Aloy is a very resourceful young woman and is not only dedicated to hunting machines, but answers, which confronts her with larger issues ”.
Aloy, in Horizon Zero Dawn, applies logic to unravel mystical beliefs.
Unlike other titles with invented beliefs, the gods of Horizon Zero Dawn do not exist as such. Aloy discovers that, in effect, the mysticism of each of the tribes is nothing more than a patch to understand the vestiges of an ancient world and its technology. In the young woman’s expedition we found the Zero Dawn project, of which its nod to classical mythology should be noted. The subordinate functions of their artificial intelligence were named after Greco-Roman gods, depending on the area they covered. Thus, Poseidon was in charge of detoxifying seas and oceans and Demeter of the regeneration of flora.
Dragon Age and religious diversity
Despite being set in a medieval fantasy universe, Dragon Age is a reflection of our current history and society, with added attractions such as magic, dragons and the romanticization of bygone eras. As a good grimdark deed, the important thing is not the global and supernatural threat that weighs on the known world, but the socio-political tensions between camps where there is no clear division between good and evil. At the core of these conflicts we find issues such as racism, the ethics of magic and, of course, the coexistence between different beliefs.
Elven Ruins in Dragon Age Inquisition
The vastness of Thedas includes different regions with their respective socio-cultural structures and, with it, their different beliefs, which are inspired by current religions. In the essay What the Dragon Age series can teach us about religion, each of the cults of the saga and its corresponding equivalent are analyzed. Thus, the polytheistic elves are the equivalent of the Greco-Romans, along with the splitting of their empire. “The elves have been fighting desperately to preserve their traditions. However, between the same clans there is a division that produces different versions of the same legend. The clashes with other cultural and religious factions in Thedas – such as the followers of the Chapel – have brought further confusion and schisms that has led to mixed feelings and cloudy accounts of the past. This has caused a significant number of elves, like polytheistic Greco-Romans, to reject their beliefs and convert to other religions.
In contrast, we have the Chapel, the majority and monotheistic religion that evokes Catholicism. With an ecclesiastical organization settled in political power, they worship Andraste, a prophetess whose tragic story resembles that of Jesus Christ and the martyrs. Likewise, they also have an evangelizing purpose that is not always well received. Mike Laidlaw, Creative Director of Dragon Age Inquisition, explained in Complex how he implemented the allegory between Christianity and the Chapel without making the similarity uncomfortable for the believers: “We try to be aware of the differences. For some, the Chapel is identical to Christianity, except that the latter is based on forgiveness. The Chapel, on the other hand, maintains in its dogma that humanity has done so much damage that the Maker has abandoned it forever and that we have to apologize. It is very different. The Chapel is a religion of contrition, of repentance for a fundamental sin that will never be forgiven ”.
Concept art for Dragon Age II, with an altar dedicated to Andraste.
In Tevinter they have their own spin-off from the Chapel, with a very different vision than magic. While the Chapel ensures the ethical control of magicians, the Empire glorifies sorcerers and they are part of the upper echelons of society. On the other hand, we have the Qunari, who more than a religion follow a philosophy called the Qun, which bears a great resemblance to Confucianism. The dwarves, who have no access to the Veil and reject all spirituality, venerate the Stone as a maternal entity.
Bioshock Infinite and fanaticism
The BioShock saga has always been a slap in the face against liberalism and, specifically, BioShock Infinite brings to the table the issue of class struggle through the conflict between the Founders and the Vox Populi. To all this is added a fierce criticism against religious extremism, represented by the cult of the figure of Zachary Hale Comstock and his daughter Elizabeth, nicknamed The Lamb of Columbia. Baptism, in turn, is the obligatory ritual when we enter the aerial city and, at the same time, the transformative agent from Booker to Comstock, as discussed in Kotaku: “One of the most integral parts in the story is the critical to symbolic baptism. And not only that. The story insists that it is ineffective at erasing all past guilt, but redirects negative energy to something much more terrifying. Without baptism, Booker is a mere drunkard. After him, it turns into a monster ”.
Booker DeWitt (BioShock Infinite) about to get baptized.
The allegory with Christianity bothered many believers that it caused some controversy even during its development. Ken Levine, creative director and main scriptwriter of BioShock Infinite, recounted in the Official PlayStation Magazine how a debate with one of his colleagues encouraged him to clarify certain aspects: “I had some very interesting conversations. One of the characters in the game suffered many alterations, after certain talks I had with people on the team who came from a very religious background and I could understand that something in particular had made them angry. What I told them was ‘I’m not going to change anything to get your approval but I think I understand what you’re saying and I think I can do something that will improve the story.’
Whether we are believers or not, religion can become an interesting mechanism when it comes to enriching the setting of a video game, as the examples cited in this report and many other titles not mentioned here demonstrate. Whether as a social criticism or an invitation to reflection, the implementation of old and current beliefs can generate very exciting and authentic stories.
