Boardgames
Physical games good for families or board game enthusiasts.
Commissioned
This is a good cooperative game - meaning the players work together to try to win. Here they work together as the early Church Apostles to spread the church, grow faith, face persecution, and gather the books of the New Testament together. There are different scenarios placed in the first century and a half of the early church and it has 2 difficulty levels. The company closed in 2023 unfortunately as they had some good games, but hopefully you might still find a copy or.. come play me!
The Ark of the Covenant
This is one of a couple of games on this page that are biblical themed versions of popular board games. This one is based on Carcassonne, and includes for the theme such things as oasis, Prophet, and the Ark. It's a fun game if you like Carcassonne and gives you a fresh version of it to play.
The Settlers of Canaan
This is another biblically themed version of the game Settlers of Catan. This version has unique aspects such as building the Jerusalem wall (German version has Hero cards) and represents the era from Joshua to King David. Like in the case with the above game it's good for giving you a fresh version if you like the basic Catan game.
3 Seeds
Including a casual card game just because I think it was well themed. It was not highly rated but I think that is because the players rating like more in-depth games. This is a light interactive card game with just enough strategy to keep things interesting without becoming a brain burner. Theme-wise I thought it interesting that it could be a good idea in particular cases to spread your seed across multiple crops which is reminiscent of a scripture Eccl 11:1,2 and some life situations. The downside I could see is harvest cards have a wide range of value from 1 to 7 so one or a few players may get all or most higher cards leaving the others unable to catch up. But then the game is pretty short so easily time to to try another. Another problem is this is another game by the now closed Chara Games - but again there's my copy if anyone wants to play..
Peregrinatio
I don't believe this is published yet, but I wanted to show it as I thought it particularly interesting. I playtested it for someone on a boardgame site, and found it pretty good. It can have 3-5 players although made to especially work well for three which is rare. Peregrinatio - which refers to travels made by Celtic saints through northern England - is played on a main map with each player also having a 'trinity' board which displays a player's focus at a particular time - movement, prayer, or influence. The object is to influence the cities on the main map to 'win' them.
Kings of Israel - boardgame
I'm including this one both in this section and in the PC Games section as it is both a good board game and a good PC game but for different purposes. I think the boardgame is best as a cooperative game for multiple players. The players represent line of prophets that try to stem the tide of sin from taking hold in Israel. It plays similar to Pandemic or Flashpoint: Fire Rescue if you're familiar with those.
Soul of the Empire
I'm sorry - another game by now closed Chara games, but guess what, yes I do have a copy if anyone wants to play.. This one is another during the time of the early church. It's an asymmetric strategy game with the sides being Christians, Roman Empire, Jews, and a coalition of Parthians, Germanic tribes and Goths (so 2-4 players). Each side has it's own aims and advantages. I found it interesting as it represents where Christians "find their strength in weakness, victory in defeat, and purpose in the very people who persecute them mercilessly"
PC Games
Of various computer game genres - this is an area where Christian games have been on the weak side for a long time but recently improving. Most or all of these can be found on Steam.
That Dragon, Cancer
My review for this game stated it is the hardest game I've ever played, but it's more the hardest game story I've ever followed. Playing it is actually easy, just click at certain points to continue the story. But the story.. it's the game creator's story of dealing with the terminal stages of his young son's cancer.
The Lost Sheep
Also a narrative follow the story game, but gives a few more interesting things to figure out as you go. The story is told by a man who tries to follow God's calling but at the same time deals with recurring temptation (Note: the sin is porn addiction but nothing pornographic or racy is displayed in the game). The graphics are well done and it seems a well made game by a first time developer.
Five: Guardians of David
This is actually an older game but one that is actually a good biblically based PC game. It's an action RPG game with a good variety of quality combat action. It features five of David's mighty warriors we read about in Kings and Chronicles each with his own fighting style which you can switch between at any time. It has Abishai, Benaiah, Jashobeam, Eleazar, and Shammah, and includes fighting styles with bow, warhammer, spear, etc. The only thing some RPG fans may not like is that it's not open world but linear story. Update Note: It looks like a modern version is planned to come out soon although it's not available yet - called David's Mighty Warriors.
Kings of Israel - PC game
I'm including this one both in this section and in the Boardgames section as it is both a good board game and a good PC game but for different purposes. I think the PC game is best as a single-player game for solo play. The player represents lines of prophets that try to stem the tide of sin from taking hold in Israel. It plays similar to Pandemic or Flashpoint: Fire Rescue if you're familiar with those.
Sainthood
This game is specifically Catholic in theme, goals, etc, but has many elements any Christian or even any gamer can enjoy playing such as serving others, growing one's faith, etc. It's a casual game with elements of stories to discover, building, resource development and more. I've thought it has a good consistent fun factor. Its fans refer to it as 'cozy'.
In His Time
This is a visual novel with puzzles and mysteries to solve along the way. It includes themes of grief and overcoming. Note: it is a bit heavy on the addiction part of the overcoming theme. The graphics are of an innovative platformer style. It is known for its showing the Christian characters pretty realistically.
Adam's Venture Chronicles
This one is a bit older, but if you like a cross between Tombraider and Raiders of the Lost Ark, you might like this. It's very biblically themed - main characters are Adam and Evelyn, lol. The current product on Steam is the combined three parts together - originally separate games - so you get all three together. A note on puzzles in games - if you ever get stuck on one, a way to solve it or get past it in a game can usually be found online somewhere.
Related Wargames
These are mostly covering a biblical era or crusader era or such.
The Campaigns of King David
This incorporates the military, economic and diplomatic aspects of powers trying to dominate the area in and near Israel during King David's reign. The Moabites, Tyre, Philistines, and Aramaens are represented - there can 2-5 players that can team up in various ways. There are great variations in actions players can do on a turn. All this combines to give a fresh new game every play.
Crusader Rex
I also feature this game on my Follow my Warpath page and play it on the Rally the Troops website. It's Saracens vs Crusaders for control of the Crusader states. The Saracens start out with the advantage but if the Crusader forces from England, France and Germany arrive in time they may be able to stop them.
The Siege of Jerusalem
This covers the Roman siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD. This particular version was an update to previous ones that were good, but I think this one is much better. It has a system of continuous combat, and appropriately morale/panic mechanics. It's a good asymetric situation where the Romans have overwhelming force yet they are under time constraints so must break the stronghold defense quickly.
A Mighty Fortress
First of three games here on the Wars of the Reformation. This is the oldest but my favorite. All three are six sided games which really work best with 6 players - the sides represented are the Hapsburgs, England, France, Ottomans, Papacy, and Protestants. It's a very assymmetrical game with each side having unique goals and positions. In all three of these games, there are some areas only played by certain sides - ex. any religious struggles including debates, scripture translations, gaining or persecuting followers, etc are only done by the Papacy and Protestants; any ventures to the New World are only done by the Hapsburgs (Spanish part of their empire), England and France, etc.
Here I Stand
This is a remake of the above A Mighty Fortress but as a card driven wargame meaning cards representing historical events are drawn to determine play. This a good approach for a game like this, and most wargamers prefer this version over the older one. While I prefer the older one, I like this one as well and think it is more streamlined.
Reformation: Fire and Faith
This is based on the above Here I Stand, but made specifically for classroom use. It is made to play more simply and faster - so that students can pick up the rules quickly and be able to complete a game in a reasonable time while still gaining the historical lessons. I got to playtest this and can say it makes a great fast-playing version on the subject and has all or most of the features of the above games.
Judean Hammer
An interesting game on a little covered subject - the Maccabean revolt. It's an area movement game with Maccabees vs Seleucids representing guerilla warfare of the times, and is very short for a wargame but this may come at a cost of being a little too simple.
