Filling in Game lore part1

I took a break from the WOGRALD project for a number of reasons, that are more embaresing to admit than not being able to program in C. (something I did learn)

First of all, I wanted a way to fill out the game lore for the project. I had something all written up, but it just did not seem compelling enough. I wanted to really draw people into the game, make them feel immersed in the world before I even began to work on the project. I came up with the idea several years ago of the nine stupidites, basically things people do that are considered to be stupid, not as in retarded stupid, but as in lacking in the common sense department, as in the dress sense of your average programmer. Programmers tend to wear clothing until it gets big gaping holes, then they even continue to wear them, oblivious to the fact that the pants are now indecent and the shirt looks like a rag. Even if it is pointed out to them, the self confident coder geek will tell you how wonderful that torn up shirt and pants are, and how they will never part with them. Its not really about the outfit though, I don't really know why people do that. I'm not trying to say this to get after programmers and make them suddenly dress like sleezy wall-street suits, but I did think that if I dressed up like a programmer, then I would learn to code. I don't know if this really works though. I don't think you have to wear the holy shirts to get top quality code done.

Then I spent some time studying the occult. I came to realize that all the major games that I really liked that did well, the authors had spent an awful lot of time pouring through grimores and religious mythology. They studied all the demon names, angel names, spirit names, ancient magic sigils, etc. They knew how to use a pentagram and what way it should be pointing to get the results one wants in a ritual. Draw the demon sigil out in blood, make a pact, etc etc.

At first that all sounds irrelavant, because why would you need to know all this real lore to make your imaginary world, but mythology is what builds a world, it is what makes it compelling. And that is why religious fundimentalists will never create the best video games.