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Religion In my humble opinion, religion is perhaps one of the most important influences on the process of technological change. There is one thing, however, which must be clarified before we continue. One of the largest mistakes that I find in God Games is the idea that people in the past were intrinsically more religious than those of today. Why, when one plays a game that spans a large amount of time, do religious buildings, institutions, and beliefs generally become obsolete as time goes on? Conversely, why are the lives of people in the past completely controlled, dictated, and manipulated by religion? There's no doubt in my mind that there were many people in the ancient world who could have cared less for religion and simply wanted to farm their fields or tend their cattle. My point is that religion plays an important role in today's society as it played an important role in societies of the past. Its importance, however, was (and is) balanced against many other variables that, when combined, made up a complete cultural whole. So, how does religion affect the process of technological change? Basically, it's a key variable on the microlevel in setting a given individuals' frame of mind regarding technological change. Religion acts in many ways to shape, influence, and focus technological change The first, and most general, way is to discourage technological change that challenges long held ideological beliefs. One of the most straightforward examples is the development of the telescope and astronomy. The telescope, a necessary tool for any serious astronomical observation, allowed any moderately trained individual to question the 17th tenet that the earth, and therefore humanity, was the center of creation. The Vatican was concerned enough with Galileo's astronomical observations (aided by his new powerful telescope) that they ordered him to immediately recant his statements and placed him under house arrest for the remainder of his life. Let's look at it in more modern terms. Recently, human cloning has become an increasingly hot topic in the public eye. Many people, either casually religious or devoted believers, consider that the creation and manipulation of life on such a profound scale is the role of some sort of deity. Who knows where the discussions about human cloning will lead us? What I can tell you is that there will surely be a religious component. A second way has to do with a societies' belief about their relation to nature. Because the act of invention is a game against nature, the willingness to adjust the ecology depends on the innovators' attitude towards the physical world. Most western religions have a very deep-rooted belief that nature was created specifically for them, and should be manipulated and enjoyed. This sort of attitude is definitely conducive to the sort of technological creativity that requires an often-irreparable alteration of the environment.
Religion is a predominant feature in all God Games. The effects that religion has on technology, however, are amazingly minimal. In Impressions Games' Pharaoh and Caesar III (and most likely Impressions Games upcoming title Zeus), religious institutions (such as temples and shrines) affect the happiness of the people as well as maintaining the areas of the civilization that the particular deity has domain over (i.e. Ptah is the is the god of craftspeople and therefore influences industrial production). Likewise, in the Civilization series, building temples and religious institutions increases population happiness. What does happiness have to do with technological innovation? Well, in an indirect way, happiness does have an affect on technology (an unhappy civilization would have problems, such as rioting, that would make the uninhibited development of technological innovations difficult). The first step that needs to be taken if one wishes to better incorporate religion into the fabric of God Games is to recognize that ideology has a profound influence on the process of technological innovation and development. On a practical level, designers need to define specific innovations which would either go against established religious doctrine of a players civilization or be encouraged by it. For example, if a player's civilization were at a level of development comparable to 15th Century Europe in which, as discussed above, the church asserted that the earth was the middle of creation, the development of astronomical observation and heliocentrism (the sun is the center of the solar system) would be difficult. If the player were to encourage such scientific thoughts, they would take much longer to develop than if they were being developed in a more favorable religious climate. In addition, the player would have to take into account the fact that the endeavor might fail as a result of constant attacks by the religious establishment. If astronomical observation and heliocentrism were able to develop, it would not only make possible the development of other astronomically based sciences (like cosmology, astrophysics, and space craft construction), but would also change the civilization's religious institutions (perhaps making other controversial developments possible and even paving the way for the development of other ideological beliefs). Values As far as collective influences on technological innovation are concerned, one of the most pervasive is the value placed on the creative process and those who create. Many different societies afford different activities with varying levels of prestige. The ancient Greeks, for example, valued artistic expression and athletic prowess, while the Romans valued military service and administrative ability. For the most part, historically speaking, children who received an education were kept away from activities that involved any serious degree of practicality. Whether they studied horsemanship, Latin, astronomy, or religious texts, matters commercial and industrial were rarely part of the curriculum. The act of invention was viewed as a dirty job unsuitable for the wealthy. Those who invented things were almost always the lower or middle class. There are examples of wealthy individuals involved in the process of invention. For the most part, however, the majority of Western societies held physical labor, commerce, and invention in contempt. This resulted in the creative process of invention and inventors themselves to be held in low regard. So, it stands to reason that societies that have nothing but contempt for inventors and the innovative process will be less technologically creative than those who think the opposite. It's unfortunate, but this variable is totally neglected in God Games. In order to include values in the mechanics of a game, designers would have to provide players with a way to change the fundamental perceptions held by individuals within a society. One way to do this would be to set an arbitrary level of social acceptance at the beginning of a game. A low level would reflect the general sentiment that technological innovators were at the bottom of the barrel (socially speaking). Conversely, a high rating would indicate that technological innovators were held in high esteem in a society. The level of social acceptance would increase as key developments that directly benefit the society were developed. These could include, but obviously not be limited to, medical techniques, vaccines, or agricultural advances. As the level of social acceptance increased, technological development would become easier. ________________________________________________________ |
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