I Am Jesus Christ to release in December

The videogame I Am Jesus Christ now has a release date on Steam.

Originally announced in December 2019, the game is a first person title that sees players take control of Jesus through key events in the Bible.

Maksym Vysochanskiy is the CEO of developer SimulaM.

According to Mr Vysochanskiy, the initial idea for the game started off as a CGI film.

“Basically, over 20 years ago, I was so inspired by computer-animated movies like Shrek and Toy Story that I thought, ‘It would be great to make such a movie about Jesus Christ,’” he said.

The project evolved into a game over time.

The title’s gameplay departs somewhat from the gospel text, with players engaging in a battle with Satan that consists of deflecting fireballs, and keeping Jesus fed during his time in Jerusalem.

In an interview with Vice Italy, Mr Vysochanskiy said that he didn’t see why a Jesus Christ game could not be made, given that there were so many books and films made about the subject.

However, Vice writer Matteo Lupetti wrote that he couldn’t help but question whether or not a Christian game could really be made.

“I can’t help but wonder if there isn’t something profoundly incompatible between Christianity and gaming. It’s pretty clear that I Am Jesus Christ struggles to translate these episodes into the objective-challenge-reward system that makes up traditional gameplay,” he wrote.

“Something isn’t quite right.”

“The teachings of Jesus tell us that whoever has the lowest score in life, those who languish at the bottom of the ranking, those who have failed their mission either partly or completely, will be the first to receive a reward in the Kingdom of Heaven.”

“That’s not really compatible with many video games’ objectives – Jesus certainly wouldn’t want you to selfishly amass resources, kill your enemies or collect money from people to buy better weapons, for instance.”

The game has spawned numerous memes and reactions.

I am Jesus Christ is far from the first game to provide players with the chance to play out key biblical scenes, with Super Noah’s Ark using the Doom engine to take players through the Noah story in the early 90s. 

I am Jesus Christ will release on Steam in December 2022.