Tantra: A Buddhist MMORPG? Not Really.

Last week, we brought you news about a Christian MMORPG that seemed to bear little resemblance to Christianity – pointing out at the time that no other faith seemed to have its own MMORPG. Did we speak too soon?

Tantra is an online role-playing game from two companies in the Philippines, ABS-CBN Interactive & Hanbitsoft, Inc. It’s either new, or its been flying under the radar for awhile. Those who know something about Tibetan Buddhism probably recognize the word “Tantra” as referring to a form of sexual yoga. This is partially correct, at least in the “real” world. The MMO game, however, seems to have little to do with sex (except for some of the alluring and skimpy female costumes) and more to do with the usual elements: violence, battle, conflict, swordplay, vengeful gods, etc.

In fact, it has even less to do with Buddhism, as the three gods at the center of the game are Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu – Hindu deities, while the name of one of the guilds – Ashram – actually refers to a Hindu hermitage/spritual retreat. There are also four chakra points – another Hindu term – to choose from (granted, Buddhism started as a Hindu heresy, but that’s another story).

Religious confusion aside, players select one of eight heroes, and from there embark on any of a number of quests, or may engage in life-or-death battles with other guilds, or defends one of the three gods against followers of the other two.

In any event, this MMORPG came to our attention because the folks over at MMORPG.com are promoting this game with a Tantra 50 “Taney” Card Giveaway. You can enter the contest here, but will need to sign up for a free account to do so. Know more about Tantra by checking out the link below.

Last week, we brought you news about a Christian MMORPG that seemed to bear little resemblance to Christianity – pointing out at the time that no other faith seemed to have its own MMORPG. Did we speak too soon?

Tantra is an online role-playing game from two companies in the Philippines, ABS-CBN Interactive & Hanbitsoft, Inc. It’s either new, or its been flying under the radar for awhile. Those who know something about Tibetan Buddhism probably recognize the word “Tantra” as referring to a form of sexual yoga. This is partially correct, at least in the “real” world. The MMO game, however, seems to have little to do with sex (except for some of the alluring and skimpy female costumes) and more to do with the usual elements: violence, battle, conflict, swordplay, vengeful gods, etc.

In fact, it has even less to do with Buddhism, as the three gods at the center of the game are Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu – Hindu deities, while the name of one of the guilds – Ashram – actually refers to a Hindu hermitage/spritual retreat. There are also four chakra points – another Hindu term – to choose from (granted, Buddhism started as a Hindu heresy, but that’s another story).

Religious confusion aside, players select one of eight heroes, and from there embark on any of a number of quests, or may engage in life-or-death battles with other guilds, or defends one of the three gods against followers of the other two.

In any event, this MMORPG came to our attention because the folks over at MMORPG.com are promoting this game with a Tantra 50 “Taney” Card Giveaway. You can enter the contest here, but will need to sign up for a free account to do so. Know more about Tantra by checking out the link below.