Should you let your child play "Spore"?

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Spore is a new game created by Will Wright, legendary creator of The Sims, Sim City, and now - Spore. The game takes players on a spin through evolution, starting players as little single-celled organisms and letting them “evolve” all the way up to space travel and beyond. New players might make design choices based on trial and error. Your son or daughter might have evolve a creature with a little spike, but discover that his creatures get eaten. He or she tries again, this time making a creature with a bigger spike and discovers that his creatures survive to the next phase of the game.

God, however, is no where in the picture. There is no original sin, no fall, no salvation. The world in spore is entirely atheistic, with one exception - in the ‘Civilization’ stage of the game, players can have their creatures make up new religions and use them to take over other nations. After and before that, however, religion has no role. In a game about the Universe, God is completely ignored.

If you’d like to learn more about this game before making your vote, check out the Associated Press’ news article on the game titled, “Spore’ turns evolution into an adventure.”

ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hHXDptOf7YN3c6tLpBfbz3dXCFDAD933BMO80

My question to you is this: The game is rated “E” for Everyone by the ESRB, but would you let your child play this game in particular? Why or why not?
 
From Wikipedia:

*The goal in the civilization phase is to gain control of the entire planet, and it is left to the player to decide whether to conquer or unite. When entering the phase, the player’s tribal camp is now a city. Players now have two new editors: the building and vehicle editors. The game will attempt to detect what style of content the player prefers, downloading similar content created by other players and adding it to the buy menu. Players can construct a variety of land vehicles, aircraft, ships and submersibles. If the player elects to start at the Civilization phase, they are prompted to assign the new civilization a philosophy: militaristic, economic or religious.[43]

In constructing vehicles and buildings, as with most real-time strategy games, there is a capacity limit; building houses will increase the cap, and constructing various buildings adjacent to one another will provide a productivity bonus or deficit: for example, building an entertainment centre next to a house will provide happiness, but a factory will decrease happiness and increase production. Like Civilization III and IV, the player’s territory is marked with a colored border that increases as the player gains more power through militarism or influence.[43] The main unit of currency is “spice”, which gushes out of the earth in plumes, and must be mined by the player to support their economy.

Instead of military conquest, players with a Religious trait construct special missionary units that convert other cities via propaganda.[44] Likewise, Economic players communicate solely by trade and have no weapons. Players also have access to superweapons, each of which have devastating effects on other rival civilizations.[45] Players can also form alliances with a rival civilization, and when the entire world has been conquered by both factions, the rival faction will join the player’s.[45]

When the player becomes technologically advanced enough, the UFO editor appears. At this point players are allowed to view the planet from space. When the player elevates the camera past a certain point, the detailed features of the planet become more exaggerated. For example, the cities of the planet change from a properly-scaled view with all individual buildings visible to a more cartoon-like depiction.*

So obviously the game is trying to steer clear of imperialism, while also making a parody of religion, but not forcing players to go Religious, and also giving the option of making alliances. Sounds good to me.

As for the whole God is abscent thing, I see no problem. This is a video game, not religious belief selling. If you want a game with God in it, make your own game.
 
I would let them play this game. It is a game about evolution. The accepted Catholic way accepts this approach as we believe in evolution, which can be God-made as it came about after the Big Bang which science has not yet been able to go past.

This is a science learning game and the mention of God is not relevant to the overall purpose of learning about science.
 
If this game can turn somebody’s Catholic children into atheists then perhaps they didn’t do a very good job raising those children in the Catholic faith to begin with.

Besides, how does one incorporate an omnipotent, omniscient God into a game anyway? I cannot even conceive what that might look like.
 
it sounds like a terrible description of evolution. mutations are random, selection is not made with a future goal in mind.
 
Wirraway said:
it sounds like a terrible description of evolution. mutations are random, selection is not made with a future goal in mind.
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I don’t think it’s intended to be a scientific study of evolution. It’s intended to be a game. It’s just another take on the very common build-an-empire-from-scratch gaming theme.
 
VociMike said:
If this game can turn somebody’s Catholic children into atheists then perhaps they didn’t do a very good job raising those children in the Catholic faith to begin with.

Besides, how does one incorporate an omnipotent, omniscient God into a game anyway? I cannot even conceive what that might look like.
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Actually, there is a simulation game called Black & White (which also has a sequel) where the player plays as a god. I personally haven’t played it, but I do find it certainly odd that there hasn’t been controversy over either game.

All in all, there’s nothing wrong with Spore. It’s not really about lambasting Creationism- it’s just a game.
 
I haven’t seen much of spore, but in a lot of strategy games like this it is the player himself who is like a ‘god’, since he directs the actions of all the creatures and in some games can even decide when they are born and die. I’ve been playing age of empires et al for ages yet never had any delusions of being a god in real life.
 
Probably not at any age under say 16 or so. I think there are better games out there than spore. From my experience with my kids playing D & D before it was ever computerized, they can really get into it to the extent that the game starts to determine how they live real life away from the game. My wifes solution was to kick their little buns outdoors and tell them to take a hike or play baseball or something requiring physical activity. We did not ban games, but closely controled the time “wasted” on them. Some folks say that such games are addictive like posting on CAF.👍
 
I see nothing wrong with it. However, I have to add that it sounds very boring.
 
I let my kid play it. I think it focuses quite nicely on intelligent design–their creatures evolve with a purpose, and they direct it. Yeah, it kind of puts them in the “god” role, but I think it emphasizes the need for a Creator.
 
Nix on all video games. I will assert, though I cannot quote any studies supporting this, that video games, like many forms of electronic entertainment, help cause ADD and ADHD. Human minds become conditioned for instant gratification and lose the ability to concentrate or meditate after becoming used to constant (name removed by moderator)ut.

(I better put my bullet-proof vest on under my fireproof suit.)
 
rpp said:
Nix on all video games. I will assert, though I cannot quote any studies supporting this, that video games, like many forms of electronic entertainment, help cause ADD and ADHD. Human minds become conditioned for instant gratification and lose the ability to concentrate or meditate after becoming used to constant (name removed by moderator)ut.

(I better put my bullet-proof vest on under my fireproof suit.)
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Today’s finest microsurgeons honed their fine muscle dexterity on video game controllers.

My boys all play video games…none are murderers, deliquents, or have ADD or ADHD. They are all honor students. It is a stress reliever and something to do on their down time. (and one is interested in medicine, so who knows! He might be fine microsurgeon someday!!)
 
rpp said:
Nix on all video games. I will assert, though I cannot quote any studies supporting this, that video games, like many forms of electronic entertainment, help cause ADD and ADHD. Human minds become conditioned for instant gratification and lose the ability to concentrate or meditate after becoming used to constant (name removed by moderator)ut.

(I better put my bullet-proof vest on under my fireproof suit.)
Click to expand...
Bullet proof, fire proof… hmm, I guess I should just squash you with a giant boulder then?
 
Catholic90 said:
Today’s finest microsurgeons honed their fine muscle dexterity on video game controllers.

My boys all play video games…none are murderers, deliquents, or have ADD or ADHD. They are all honor students. It is a stress reliever and something to do on their down time. (and one is interested in medicine, so who knows! He might be fine microsurgeon someday!!)
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Like all diseases and disorders, not everyone who is exposed contracts it.

But it is undeniable that ADD and ADHD, unheard of a generation and a half ago, is so rampant today.
 
rpp said:
Like all diseases and disorders, not everyone who is exposed contracts it.

But it is undeniable that ADD and ADHD, unheard of a generation and a half ago, is so rampant today.
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Well, I imagine that video games aren’t the only potential source of ADD…
 
CTA1967 said:
Well, I imagine that video games aren’t the only potential source of ADD…
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Quite true, which is what I said when I postulated it in my earlier post. It is the whole TIVO, 400 channel cable TV, Internet, Google search, iPod, stop-rewind-play, etc. It is the instant gratification in so many different areas that conditions people, especially children, to simply not develop the virtue of patience.

Ask yourselves these questions. When was the last time you looked up an answer in a book and not the Internet? Do you really record your favorite TV show so you can watch it at your convenience?

We, as a society, are quickly losing our ability to develop patience due to the endless stream of “convenience” items, whether they be a washing machine, a video game or a Google search to find a quote from St. Thomas Aquinas in 20 seconds or less.

Those who develop ADD or ADHD are like the people in our society who gain weight because of a sedentary lifestyle that all this conveniece brings. Sure not everybody is fat, but very few of us engage in the same physical activity that our ancenstors 200 year ago did. Like ADD and ADHD, obesity was rather uncommon in 1808 when people walked or drove a hose-buggy to get anywhere.

Sure people live longer now because we have better medicine and better education. But are we really better off as individual people? There is a downside to progress.
 
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