Gaming Mythology in Games

[pax et agape]

Alright, so I will admit that I previously posted this topic on [URL="http://forums.christian-gaming.com/showthread.php?t=8711"]another website[/URL] but there it got off topic almost immediately. I am hoping it goes better here. Sorry if it has been done before.

So recently started thinking about two of the best games I have played in recent memory--Persona 4 and Okami--and I realized that these games have one very big thing in common. They both incorporate mythology (in this case Shinto mythology) in brilliant and creative ways. Both of these games caused me to go and read up on Shinto mythology and that made me even more impressed with how the writers fit in these stories.

So I was wondering, what is your opinion of the use of real world mythology in games? What games have done it well and what games have not done so well?

[Drizzt Do'urden]

I'm a big fan of greek and roman mythology, though I wish I was more knowledgable on the subject. I'm sure I miss alot due to the fact that I don't know anything about other mythologies (well a big of nordic as well I suppose).

I like games with undertones of mythological things in them. Games like [B]God of War[/B] and [B]Age of Mythologies[/B] are all well in good, but they wear quickly. I'd rather play a game and have to find the "hidden meaning" the designer was going for.

[Ratatosk]

wow, me and Drizzt pretty have the exact same viewpoint on the subject ;)

on the flipside, I like to inject mythological methods into my creative works. I like the reaction I get from people when they go to look it up. The "ooooooh! I get it!" moments are priceless.

[Timber]

[COLOR=Green][SIZE=1]Most games I've played with real-world mythology have just used mythology (usually Norse) as theme naming. Although Sting used Norse mythology pretty well in Riviera and Yggdra Union, though.

Also, I haven't played any of the Persona games yet, but I've heard that one or more of them use tarot themes, and actually did the research to find out what cards usually mean what...
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[goldenboy]

yeah, i like it better when its subtley in there. sometimes the storyline is based on mythology, like rise of the argonauts (which i havent finished yet), and that can be fun, though i feel like i know what's going to happen.

[Magus]

[size=1][color=darkblue]Oh boy... mythology. I'm one of those that tries to get into some of those games that has a lot of mythology in it, but at the same time my conscience tends to get in the way :p. Take Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne for instance. I would love to finish playing this game one day, but teamming up with a demon name Lucifer just don't sit well with. (I'm a church guy but I am open to a lot of those games) I found out that the game has a lot of indian mythology in it and gets me thinking about a lot, and it tend to get pretty scary at times :D.

The only game I can really play that deals with mythology with a clear cut conscience is God of War. Anything dealing with that spartan type stuff never does much for me.

Now even though I'm like that don't mean I have something against mythology in games lol. I do still intend on getting and finishing the SMT games if my conscience will let me lol. But yeah, mythology in general, if handled well can be pretty good.[/size][/color]

[pax et agape]

[quote name='Magus'][SIZE=1][COLOR=darkblue]Oh boy... mythology. I'm one of those that tries to get into some of those games that has a lot of mythology in it, but at the same time my conscience tends to get in the way :p. Take Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne for instance. I would love to finish playing this game one day, but teamming up with a demon name Lucifer just don't sit well with. (I'm a church guy but I am open to a lot of those games) I found out that the game has a lot of indian mythology in it and gets me thinking about a lot, and it tend to get pretty scary at times :D.

[/COLOR][/SIZE][/quote]

Being a Christian guy myself I've run into a couple moments that have made me uneasy. I remember one moment playing SMT Persona 4. I randomly drew the card for the Persona Legion (a pretty ugly bulbous thing) and it had the awkward phrasing "You have welcomed Legion into your heart". I just kind of went, "ahhh!" and my friend joked that I needed to find a herd of pigs soon.

Typically, though, that stuff doesn't bother me (hence why I started this thread) and I still count Persona 4 as my favorite game.