We all need a bit of Religion – Even in Chain World Game

Religion has a message. It needs to be heard, shared and passed on. It likes to be practiced and followed in large numbers. There are dire consequences for not accepting its edicts and making them mantra for ones life. Otherwise, calamities may befall the sinner.

There is always reward at the end of the journey for the faithful and harsh punishments for those who go astray. There is charity to be distributed among the less fortunate and Holy Kings to conquer new continents in hope of spreading the message and converting even more converts to the new religion.

The game’s edicts sadly do none of these.

It resides within a closed world of a USB and is played only once by a player who may never share his experience with anyone. There are no weekly congregations (what no online Forums or Facebook following?) nor any regular prayers (no tweets either?). Oh and it is also missing the very concept of life after death (in the game, so to speak).

Everything seems to be secret, known only to those who play it. And of course you are chosen to play, you cannot choose yourself.

There does exist a community that is defined by this very principle. It is referred to as a secret society.

The game’s author, Jason Rohrer, has inadvertently built Chain World around a secret society and not a religion. Ponder that fascinating thought for a moment.

If the game were to be a religion, it would be distributed to known confidants and its principles shared. With each one told to share a copy with other confidants. Sort of spread like chainmail and fast. Sort of how the religions around the world spread.

Each player should always live twice. One, that dies in the game, the temporary life as in the religion. And the other that lives on forever. Of course, the afterlife should be based on the outcome of the life during the first play within the game. There should be a good life, where the gamer is rewarded for just playing it. And the Hell version, where the gamer has to jump through difficult levels to get out in search of heaven. But surely can never leave and never live for more than a few minutes.

The first gamer, Jia Ji was bestowed the honor to play it other than the author, at the gaming convention. He had fun with it and played it till he died. After his gamely death, he purportedly passed it on. Or did he? Jia Ji shares three different versions of the what happens to game after he has played it.

The first, where he destroys the game and with it the religion. The second where he passes it on to the next but we do not know the fate of it and last where still has it, around his neck as a necklace.

But that’s all smoke and mirrors of course. Something a secret society would do to hide its identity from prying eyes.

Perhaps the creator of Chain World simply wanted the rules be rewritten by the gamers themselves. Including rewriting part of the game itself. Maybe, he wanted it to be copied and spread as the players want it.

Maybe Jia Ji made three copies and all the three scenarios he presented are really true for each of those copies.

Maybe a few years down the road we will encounter Chain World like games which are just morphed copies of the original. Sort of Abrahamic religions have morphed into Judaism, Christianity and Islam. And each one of them have begotten even more copies we tend to recognize as sects. Perhaps that would be the true fate of Chain World.

Perhaps the real holy war of Chain Klans will begin then, not now as Wired story claims. The early years are just heresy with naysayers ranting on about nothing. We must wait for the real battle to follow in the near future.

Based on our real life historical experiences, we of course all know how that will turn out.

PS: If you have the game, pass it on to me, a true believer. I will play it to the best of my abilities. And upon death, will be passed on to another faithful follower. And i promise not to blog about the holy experience. Maybe not with my real name 🙂

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