Christian Software Game Design Tips

I've been to the 7th level of Captain Bible and run the Unibot, ...and played most every other Christian Computer game that ever was. It's part of what I do... and have always done since I began teaching with software in 1990. Amazin Blazin? Bible Builders? Onesimus? Gil's Bible Jumble? Bongo Loves the Bible? Heavenword? Catechumen? Played them all.

More importantly, for over 18 years I've been next to the KIDS who were playing these games. Here are some of the important things I've learned and often share with Christian computer game developers:

1. Pay Attention to What Other Developers Have Made
This would seem to be obvious, but I run into developers all the time who have never seen ANY of our software, or played any of the more popular Christian computer game titles out there. They are just all fired up about THEIR concept. Do the research and talk to other developers. Most of us are very willing to share our experience and advice. Some of it may even be correct.

2. Teach to the mainstream. Don't teach your peculiar brand of Christianity.

There's a game out here about a new world order coming to power and trying to put down the Church. Seriously, you are welcome to such a belief, but it's not going to win you many converts or sales. And you DO want to make more software, right?

A corollary to this is "have a sense of humor." Quite a few Christian software games are a bit too serious, and quite a few 3d Christian games have such dark themes that you'd think "battling evil" was what 3d game engines were designed to do!

3. Keep it simple.
Overly complex games lose players, and more importantly, YOU lose the opportunity you wanted to share the Gospel through your game. Don't make your game overly long either. Most kids and youth are not hard-core gamers. I know from personal experience that it's hard to objectively evaluate the level of difficulty of a game you have spent MONTHS working on. Always put it before new testers who've never seen it before. Watch them play it. In every game we've ever made, we've had to make the navigation easier, and the gameplay more obvious. Many of the games we evaluate from other producers could have used these same adjustments.

4. Don't overspend on layout and graphics, and underspend on the presentation of Bible content.
I see this mistake all the time. Game developers spend too much time on creating cool levels, and the actual Bible content looks crappy, or like an afterthought.

In fact, don't overspend at all. Keep your projects small and on a really tight budget. The Christian software market is smaller than you think.

5. Avoid getting locked into ONE distributor.
I've lost track of the number of developers who have "distributor done me wrong" stories. Diversify. And as you develop your title, ask various distributors to preview it and offer suggestions. I've played many programs that I WISH we could have suggested changes to BEFORE they went out and made 5000 copies of it , ...and those changes would have made it appropriate for OUR catalog, and maybe a few others as well.

Bongo Loves the Bible CD is a great example of a Christian computer game designed to fill a much needed CONTENT and MARKET NICHE.

www.sundaysoftware.com/bongo

• Bongo Loves the Bible CD is FUN, and has a sense of humor.


• It's for both children and youth.


• Each of its four games can be 'won' in under 35 minutes.


• It covers basic Bible content, but also Books of the Bible, and "How the Bible Came to Be" ...all popular topics in many churches. Yet it is fun to play at home too.
  
• It's 3D games can run on slightly older computers (the kind many churches have)
  
• And it was done on modest budget.