God game

A god game is an artificial life game that casts the player in the position of controlling the game on a large scale, as an entity with divine and supernatural powers, as a great leader, or with no specified character (as in Spore), and places them in charge of a game setting containing autonomous characters to guard and influence.

This is not to be confused with god mode, a state found in many video games (usually afforded the player through use of a cheat or granted as an unlockable in-game reward) wherein the player-character is granted invincibility, invulnerability, or both.

God games are a subgenre of artificial life game, where players use supernatural powers to indirectly influence a population of simulated worshippers. The genre is separate from strategy video games, because players are unable to tell specific units what to do. The genre is also separate from construction and management simulations, because gameplay revolves around growing and utilizing their supernatural powers to indirectly influence their worshippers, such as by placing a target marker or goal for the worshippers to conquer, or affect those of their opponents, such as by creating natural disasters. God games are typically single-player games played against a computerized opponent, but some involve competition between rival players.

God games allow players to take on the role of a god with limited powers, similar to the gods from the mythology of ancient Greece. The player's power comes from simulated worshippers, who are usually simple or tribal in nature. It is common for most people in god games to look alike. Early god games only featured models for full-grown men and women, while Black and White introduced children. Players must economize quantities of power or mana, which are derived from the size and prosperity of their population of worshippers. The player consumes this power by using godly powers to help their worshippers, such as blessing their crops or flattening hills to make better farmland. This results in a positive feedback loop, where more power allows the player to help their population grow which helps them gain more power. However, more powerful abilities typically require more power, and these usually take the form of natural disasters that can damage rival populations rather than improve life for the player's worshippers. Games typically utilize an aerial top-down perspective, similar to a real-time strategy game.

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