Religiosity and videogames

Abstract

The study of video games in the context of religious studies of popular culture is one of the fastest growing fields. Here the interests of researchers of games, media, modern religious processes, youth and many other fields of research intersect. In this article we will turn to how the “effects” paradigm manifests itself in the field of video games, an approach to the study of popular culture through the prism of its influence on a person or society as a whole. Here the tradition of phenomenological and structuralist research turns out to be important, and the main conclusion is the danger, some destructive potential of games. The strong influence of video games on the minds is noted not only by researchers, but also by representatives of religious organizations that specifically create computer games for educational, missionary and, generally speaking, entertainment purposes.An alternative to such a focus is being sought and found by researchers from the interdisciplinary field of studying video games and religion, which is already developing in the 21st century. There is a study of communities of gamers, the narratives they create, and research from the field of social psychology and even aesthetics. Video games are no longer perceived only as a carrier of an idea that is potentially dangerous and has a one-sided impact on the consumer, but rather as a space of co-creation, interaction and active participation of all involved - the players, their environment, those who create the games. This field can be a source for new research in the field of contemporary religious processes.