Jesse Aldridge
07-28-2005, 04:35 AM
The lead story on Gamasutra is currently about story in games. I thought it was interesting and typed out a summary for the designer of my next project. I figured I might as well post the summary here too. Note that of course, the summary consists of what I thought was important, and that I gave a few minor interpretations here and there when I thought it was needed.
Here's a link to the full article (http://gamasutra.com/features/20050727/sutherland_02.shtml).
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Story will help games sell because it is a universal human experience.
A problem with game stories is: games aren't movies. Games vs. Movies is similar to an older problem of Movies vs. Plays.
It took people a while to figure out movies particular strengths and weaknesses.
Two basic misunderstanding about game stories: 1. Story is dialog 2. Story doesn't matter.
Main element of story is CONFLICT.
Classical story structure - it's simple & it works.
# First there's a *hero*.
# World thrown out of order by an *inciting incident*.
# A *gap* opens up between the hero and an orderly life.
# The hero tries the normal, conservative action to overcome the gap. It fails.
# The hero then has to take a risk to overcome the obstacles that are pushing back.
# Reversal - Something happens, a second gap has opened up.
# The hero has to take a greater risk to overcome the second gap.
# After overcoming the second gap, there is another reversal, opening a third gap.
# The hero has to take the greatest risk of all to overcome this gap and get to that object of desire, which is usually an orderly life.
Characterization is defined by the choices a character makes.
*Principle of antagonism* - forces pressure the hero into making choices that bring out character.
Games should force the player to make choices, thus bringing out character.
Reversals are important, but make them good, the audience can smell "cheating."
Games & movies are mainly visual, and both are mainly about external conflict - player vs world.
Games differ because player is protaganist. This solves the empathy problem.
But designers must find new ways to provide complex webs of choice while limiting to a linear or branching path.
Pacing is longer in games.
E.g. WWII soldier in foxhole with bullets flying overhead - boring in a moive after 3 minutes. Same scene could drag on in a game - it's the player's ass in there, it's life or death.
Dialog tends to shrink, with the exception of when it works as a game mechanic (as in RPGs).
Halo is provided as an example of a game story that works:
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Once upon a time, there was a genetically enhanced super-soldier…
Act I: Halo is a computer that the Covenant want to use as a weapon, so the humans, led by you, the Master Chief, have to get there first and activate its defense functions. There's a clear conflict: You versus the Covenant. And it's spurred by an inciting incident: The Covenant have attacked your ship, and you've had to take off in the equivalent of a minivan before the ship explodes. You have no idea what happened to Captain Keyes.
Act II: As you fight the Covenant along side the Marines, you walk into a room wher e a freaked-out Marine shoots you, and you have to kill him. That's a great moment of choice, even in a linear plot.
You also see Covenant corpses that you didn't kill.
The Flood presents an interesting reversal in Halo and again in Halo 2.
Then you meet The Flood, which try to eat both you and the Covenant. Reversal: The conflict isn't as clear as you thought. It has expanded, and caused your world to change. Some of your friends are now your enemies, and there are new enemies.
Act III: You are "assisted" by a hovering machine Librarian in turning on Halo's defense system, so you can use it against the Flood.
Then you find out from Cortana that you've been tricked: Halo is a machine that wanted to kill the Flood, yes, but also all othe r life forms. Now you have to destroy Halo itself. Reversal: The conflict has expanded again.
-----------------------
Do->Show->Tell
Get the player to do things whenever possible, fall back on showing them things, avoid telling them things when you can.
The principle of antagonism in planned by the writer, created by the designer, and implemented by the programmers.
Here's a link to the full article (http://gamasutra.com/features/20050727/sutherland_02.shtml).
-------------------
Story will help games sell because it is a universal human experience.
A problem with game stories is: games aren't movies. Games vs. Movies is similar to an older problem of Movies vs. Plays.
It took people a while to figure out movies particular strengths and weaknesses.
Two basic misunderstanding about game stories: 1. Story is dialog 2. Story doesn't matter.
Main element of story is CONFLICT.
Classical story structure - it's simple & it works.
# First there's a *hero*.
# World thrown out of order by an *inciting incident*.
# A *gap* opens up between the hero and an orderly life.
# The hero tries the normal, conservative action to overcome the gap. It fails.
# The hero then has to take a risk to overcome the obstacles that are pushing back.
# Reversal - Something happens, a second gap has opened up.
# The hero has to take a greater risk to overcome the second gap.
# After overcoming the second gap, there is another reversal, opening a third gap.
# The hero has to take the greatest risk of all to overcome this gap and get to that object of desire, which is usually an orderly life.
Characterization is defined by the choices a character makes.
*Principle of antagonism* - forces pressure the hero into making choices that bring out character.
Games should force the player to make choices, thus bringing out character.
Reversals are important, but make them good, the audience can smell "cheating."
Games & movies are mainly visual, and both are mainly about external conflict - player vs world.
Games differ because player is protaganist. This solves the empathy problem.
But designers must find new ways to provide complex webs of choice while limiting to a linear or branching path.
Pacing is longer in games.
E.g. WWII soldier in foxhole with bullets flying overhead - boring in a moive after 3 minutes. Same scene could drag on in a game - it's the player's ass in there, it's life or death.
Dialog tends to shrink, with the exception of when it works as a game mechanic (as in RPGs).
Halo is provided as an example of a game story that works:
--------------------
Once upon a time, there was a genetically enhanced super-soldier…
Act I: Halo is a computer that the Covenant want to use as a weapon, so the humans, led by you, the Master Chief, have to get there first and activate its defense functions. There's a clear conflict: You versus the Covenant. And it's spurred by an inciting incident: The Covenant have attacked your ship, and you've had to take off in the equivalent of a minivan before the ship explodes. You have no idea what happened to Captain Keyes.
Act II: As you fight the Covenant along side the Marines, you walk into a room wher e a freaked-out Marine shoots you, and you have to kill him. That's a great moment of choice, even in a linear plot.
You also see Covenant corpses that you didn't kill.
The Flood presents an interesting reversal in Halo and again in Halo 2.
Then you meet The Flood, which try to eat both you and the Covenant. Reversal: The conflict isn't as clear as you thought. It has expanded, and caused your world to change. Some of your friends are now your enemies, and there are new enemies.
Act III: You are "assisted" by a hovering machine Librarian in turning on Halo's defense system, so you can use it against the Flood.
Then you find out from Cortana that you've been tricked: Halo is a machine that wanted to kill the Flood, yes, but also all othe r life forms. Now you have to destroy Halo itself. Reversal: The conflict has expanded again.
-----------------------
Do->Show->Tell
Get the player to do things whenever possible, fall back on showing them things, avoid telling them things when you can.
The principle of antagonism in planned by the writer, created by the designer, and implemented by the programmers.