Shift Gears, Blow Steam

So, I've been thinking. Colin has been rocking my game concept pretty hard and doing a really good job at it. Maybe I should take a step back and not tie myself to console gaming so much and go a different direction. I've done some research today while in a class that didn't require too much attention. Take a look at these resources I want to explore or keep in mind:

Comic Books

• Five Fists of Science
• Ironwolf (and Ironwolf in Weird Worlds back issues)
• Robotika

Video Games

• The Longest Journey/Dreamfall
• Final Fantasy series
• Legacy of Kain series

Board Games

• Mission: Red Planet

Books

• Anubis Gates
• Difference Engine

Movies

• Vidocq

Key themes I'm still thinking of exploring:

Sacrifice - What will you sacrifice as you make choices? No choice should be examined closely without some level of sacrifice on the player's or character's part.

War - Before, after, during. Why do we wage war? How does it affect us? How many generations of peace does it take to lose a war mentality, or can it even be lost?

Relationship with God - I've laughed at things like this ever since I learned in science that you have to divorce yourself from it for true discussions. Is this true? What power faith? Can the dissonance of faith and science be reconciled?

Power - What it is it like to hold power over someone? Why is being powerless such a frightening thing?