{"id":25174,"date":"2025-12-12T12:57:16","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T12:57:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/?p=25174"},"modified":"2025-12-12T12:57:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T12:57:16","slug":"adventist-developed-crown-of-life-game-aims-to-bring-bible-stories-to-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/adventist-developed-crown-of-life-game-aims-to-bring-bible-stories-to-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Adventist-Developed \u201cCrown of Life\u201d Game Aims to Bring Bible Stories to Life"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>12 December | St Albans, UK [Joe Philpott]<\/p>\n<p>A new mobile game released in 2025 by a young Adventist developer in Spain is offering children and teens across the Trans-European Division (TED) a familiar, digital way to learn about the Bible stories and strengthen their faith.<\/p>\n<p>Launched in September 2025, <em>Crown of Life<\/em> introduces players to biblical narratives and Pathfinder-themed environments through interactive challenges designed for mobile devices. Early presentations of the game across northern Spain have drawn interest from young people both inside and outside the Adventist Church, with many expressing curiosity about Pathfinders for the first time.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25190\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25190\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-25190 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3_Crown-of-Life.jpg\" alt=\"Young people try the Crown of Life mobile game during a public event at the Palace of Congress in Pamplona, Spain, on 14\u201315 November. The two-day event drew both non-Adventist visitors and local Pathfinders, many of whom expressed interest in the game\" width=\"630\" height=\"354\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3_Crown-of-Life.jpg 630w, https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3_Crown-of-Life-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3_Crown-of-Life-500x280.jpg 500w, https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3_Crown-of-Life-350x197.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25190\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Young people try the Crown of Life mobile game during a public event at the Palace of Congress in Pamplona, Spain, on 14\u201315 November. The two-day event drew both non-Adventist visitors and local Pathfinders, many of whom expressed interest in the game<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The developer, Erik Hook, said he was inspired by his own experience in the Pathfinder Club and wanted to share its values with wider audiences. \u201cIt was my desire to express how I felt about being part of this big international club, and to share it with people from all around the world,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Hook added that the project grew from a long-standing belief that the Church should be present in every form of media accessed by young people. \u201cWhen I was a kid, I would have loved to share a video game about Bible stories with my friends. Video games are the biggest media in the world right now, and I felt we needed to be there too,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25178\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25178\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25178\" src=\"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/2_Crown-of-Life.jpg\" alt=\"Kevin Johns plays the Crown of Life mobile game\" width=\"630\" height=\"354\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/2_Crown-of-Life.jpg 630w, https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/2_Crown-of-Life-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/2_Crown-of-Life-500x280.jpg 500w, https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/2_Crown-of-Life-350x197.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25178\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kevin Johns plays the Crown of Life mobile game. As Associate Youth Director for the Trans-European Division, he has welcomed the game as a new tool for engaging children and teens<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Leaders across TED have welcomed the initiative as part of a broader conversation about how to meet young people in the digital spaces they inhabit daily. Kevin Johns, \u00a0TED Associate Youth director with responsibilities for Club and Teens Ministries, said, \u201cMany of our children and teens are already spending time gaming each day, so a project that brings faith into that world is a welcome development. <em>Crown of Life<\/em> gives leaders and parents another way to connect with our young people, encouraging them to think about the Bible in a setting that feels natural to them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hook explained that the game is designed to support both evangelism and faith development. \u201cIf we give our youth a tool they can share with their friends, we can reach a lot of people,\u201d he said. He added that the game helps Adventist young people learn about lesser-known biblical characters and books, providing space to tell stories that rarely appear in children\u2019s resources.<\/p>\n<p>He believes gaming can contribute meaningfully to discipleship when used wisely. \u201cThere is always some level of risk with any tool, so it must be used safely and with prayer,\u201d he said. \u201cBut video games can create community. They unite people from different languages and places around shared stories and goals, and that can be really beneficial.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of the most encouraging responses so far has come from secular young people in Spain, where religious engagement is often low. Hook said he initially feared negative reactions but experienced the opposite. \u201cPeople who didn\u2019t know the Pathfinders wanted to learn more. Many had never heard these Bible stories before, and now they have them on their phones. It has broken stereotypes for some and opened conversations about the Church here in my city,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_25191\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-25191\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-25191 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/4_Crown-of-Life.jpg\" alt=\"Adventist children, teenagers and parents gather for a group photo at the Palace of Congress in Pamplona, Spain\" width=\"630\" height=\"354\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/4_Crown-of-Life.jpg 630w, https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/4_Crown-of-Life-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/4_Crown-of-Life-500x280.jpg 500w, https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/4_Crown-of-Life-350x197.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-25191\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Adventist children, teenagers and parents gather for a group photo at the Palace of Congress in Pamplona, Spain<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Parents have also noted the value of having a safe, faith-centred alternative to mainstream games. One parent said, \u201cMy child really enjoys gaming and, if I\u2019m honest, sometimes he probably spends too much time doing it. So I\u2019m really glad to see my child enjoying playing this game. It\u2019s planting seeds of faith and being a good source of encouragement to him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As the game expands beyond Spain, Hook hopes the sense of curiosity and community it has created will continue across Europe and further afield. \u201cWe want people to feel that they can be part of something big. The Pathfinder Club is already large, but it can always keep growing. We are adapting the content for different cultures and praying it reaches more young people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>He encouraged youth leaders to see the game as a shared ministry resource. \u201cThis is not just my game or my club\u2019s game. This is everyone\u2019s game,\u201d he said. \u201cI would tell leaders not to be afraid to share it with the young people they work with. They really enjoy it, and we are open to suggestions that help it serve different countries and ministries better.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The developer continues to receive requests to present the game at events and in public spaces. He hopes that each introduction will lead to more young people encountering Bible stories, discovering the Pathfinder Club and engaging positively with the Church.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em>[Photos: Erik Hook &amp; Joe Philpott]<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Crown of Life is available for download in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. For enquiries, Erik Hook can be contacted at <a href=\"mailto:games@hook-digital.com\">games@hook-digital.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The mobile game brings biblical themes into everyday digital spaces<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":25189,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1569,1570,7,1588],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25174","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-communication-media-technology","category-discipleship-spiritual-growth","category-news","category-united-kingdom-ireland"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25174","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25174"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25174\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25193,"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25174\/revisions\/25193"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25189"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25174"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25174"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ted.adventist.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25174"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}