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“Pixelated Prophets”

“Pixelated Prophets”

Last updated on: December 15, 2023 at 6:21 pm by Dan Peterson

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“Pixelated Prophets” 2023-12-15T18:21:17-07:00 Dan Peterson

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Arnold Friberg’s painting is wrong in a number of respects, but probably right in an essential way: It captures the spirit of the man. (LDS.org)

This new article went up earlier today in Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship: “Pixelated Prophets: A History and Analysis of Book-of-Mormon-Themed Video Games,” written by Geoffrey M. Draper and Aaron M. Curtis

Abstract: Video games represent an innovative medium for entertainment and artistic expression with potential for fostering deeper engagement with religious texts such as the Book of Mormon. Over the past three decades, developers have produced dozens of video games based on the Book of Mormon. This paper provides a comprehensive history of these video games. We examine how these games use different genres, styles, and levels of scriptural fidelity to creative immersive and interactive experiences based on ancient stories and teachings. We also discuss the challenges and opportunities for developing and distributing Book-of-Mormon–themed video games in a competitive and changing market and discuss the future potential of religious-themed video games in fostering unique spiritual experiences.

It was accompanied by “Interpreting Interpreter: Pixelated Prophets,” which was written by Kyler Rasmussen

This post is a summary of the article “Pixelated Prophets: A History and Analysis of Book-of-Mormon-Themed Video Games” by Geoffrey M. Draper and Aaron M. Curtis in Volume 59 of Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship. All of the Interpreting Interpreter articles may be seen at https://interpreterfoundation.org/category/summaries/. An introduction to the Interpreting Interpreter series is available at https://interpreterfoundation.org/interpreting-interpreter-on-abstracting-thought/.

The Takeaway: Draper and Curtis summarize 30 years of video-game adaptations of the Book of Mormon. These games usually perform poorly in the marketplace, perhaps due to a Latter-Day Saint aversion to paid content, inappropriate advertising, and depictions of violence. In spite of these factors, they remain hopeful that video games could serve as a useful medium for depicting Book of Mormon narratives.

The temple of Jerusalem as it appeared in 66 AD, about three and a half decades after the crucifixion of Jesus and just prior to the Roman destruction of temple and city during the First Jewish Revolt. This wonderful outdoor model of late Second Temple Jerusalem stands on the grounds of the Israel Museum.
(Wikimedia Commons public domain photograph)

I’ve been busy and distracted, I’m sorry to say, and I’m afraid that I’ve fallen behind on alerting you to new items from the Interpreter Foundation. So I will now attempt to catch up, calling your attention to the following items that have appeared over the past couple of days:

“The Temple: Ancient and Restored: Experiencing the Presence of the Lord: The Temple Program of Leviticus,” written by John W. Welch

Part of our book chapter reprint series, this article originally appeared in The Temple: Ancient and Restored, Proceedings of the Second Interpreter Matthew B. Brown Memorial Conference “The Temple on Mount Zion,” 25 October 2014 (2016), edited by Stephen D. Ricks and Donald W. Parry. For more information, go to https://interpreterfoundation.org/books/the-temple-ancient-and-restored/.

Conference Talks: Jesus’s First Visit to the Temple: 2018 Temple on Mount Zion Conference, presented by S. Kent Brown

The fourth “Temple on Mount Zion” Conference was held on Saturday, November 10, 2018 in the Tanner Building at Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah.

The presentations were filmed, and both video and audio recordings of each presentation are available. The videos are currently available both at and on the Interpreter Foundation YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/theinterpreterfoundation. A YouTube playlist is also available at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRMn4gyXMWLsWt34zVNC5FmTqBtFfcnxl. The audio recordings are available at https://interpreterfoundation.org/conferences/2018-temple-on-mount-zion-conference/2018-temple-on-mount-zion-conference-audio/.

“Interpreter Radio Show — November 26, 2023”

In the 26 November 2023 episode of the Interpreter Radio Show, the co-hosts were Steve Densley and Don Bradley, and their special guest was Nathan Arp. They discussed Nathan’s recent article in Interpreter, as well as the Strengthening Church Members Committee and Come, Follow Me New Testament lesson 5.

Those discussions have now been purified of commercial interruptions, archived, and made available for your delectation. So has the “New Testament in Context” portion of the show, for the Come, Follow Me New Testament lesson 52. It has been posted separately. (See immediately below.)

“The New Testament in Context Lesson 50: Christmas”

During the 26 November 2023 Come, Follow Me segment of the Interpreter Radio Show, Steve Densley and Don Bradley discuss New Testament lesson 52 about Christmas.

The Interpreter Radio Show can be heard each and every week, on Sunday evenings from 7 to 9 PM (MDT), on K-TALK, AM 1640. Or, if it seemeth wise unto you, you can listen live on the Internet at ktalkmedia.com.

“Come, Follow Me — New Testament Study and Teaching Helps: Lesson 52, December 18 — 24: Matthew 1:18–25; Luke 1:26–38; 2:1–20: “Christmas, “Good Tidings of Great Joy””:

Once again, Jonn Claybaugh kindly provides a concise set of notes for students and teachers of the “Come, Follow Me” curriculum. And this one is seasonally appropriate.

While I’m at it, too, I think that you’ll enjoy this, from BYU Studies Quarterly: ““Dumb” Puns in Alma 30: A Mesoamerican Twist on Korihor’s Talionic Punishment.” It’s by our friends Mark Alan Wright and Neal Rappleye.

At the end of July 2023, these women in eastern Kenya celebrate the delivery to their village of beehives that were provided by donors to the Giving Machines.

But now, in conclusion, I feel that we’re obliged to look in on a multifaceted horror, something of a cluster bomb, from the Christopher Hitchens Memorial “How Religion Poisons Everything” File™. It seems that these depraved and scandalous acts are being perpetrated all around the world:

“Watch 8 #LightTheWorld videos and 6 Giving Machines videos for 2023: Plus bonus videos from BYUtv highlight how to share light and use a Giving Machine”

You can easily see the connection of those appalling misdeeds with this grim tale: “Marie Osmond unveils a new Giving Machine in Texas—and her reaction is pure joy”

And with this: “If you haven’t tried Light the World’s adorable service shuffler, you are in for a treat”

And then there’s this one, too, which — you have been duly warned! — is absolutely guaranteed to curdle your blood: “Church and Save the Children Work Together to Help Babies Thrive: An $8 million donation from the Church of Jesus Christ to Save the Children will benefit tens of thousands of mother-baby pairs in seven countries”

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