something that lasts [emotional attachment] is important. Think about Don’t Starve or Hitman. When people see those characters, they know instantly what they’re in for and how it feels. People recognise and relate to characters. They become anchors for the whole project.” “For investors and publishers, the characters are a huge part of the potential value they’re investing in, when they invest in your game.”
character or story.” Anna C. Webster explains, “I think story is critical for a game, but I know there are others that disagree. There’s always going to be someone out there who says “meh, I was just in it for [mechanic]” – and that’s okay!” Remo expands on this, suggesting that it is less about the attachment between the player and the character, but the player and the game’s overall setting. “Given the nature of the player character is somewhat fuzzy, it is critical that the player find the environment and setting to be believable and that they are able to fully situate themselves within it. “To what extent is the protagonist an authored character that exists independently of the player, and to what extent are they an expression of the player’s agency?” “At least for single player games, people may play the mechanic - but afterwards, most will remember this as time they spent with the characters.” Fonnesbech thinks developers should be thinking about the impact an emotive connection can have on longevity: not only the longevity of a game, but the longevity of a series of games, and even the longevity of a studio, “If you want to make
LAYING THE FOUNDATIONS Creating characters with lives and personalities that feel real, that players can see themselves in, can be a key goal for any designer, developer, or audio engineer looking to take their audience on a journey. We spoke to the experts about how to start thinking about this emotional connection from the very beginning. Kanaris-Sotiriou reflects on his time with awardwinning adventure Röki, and the process the team used to create a story described as “absorbing” (The Guardian) and “cathartic” (The Indie Game Website). “The simple act of driving the player character’s actions (making them walk, run and respond to player input) goes a long way to initiate this connection but it is important to respect, grow and nurture that fragile bond if the player is to truly care about a game’s story. “Some of this is about leaving room for the player to project onto their player character, to encourage them to place themselves in their shoes. For us this connection is not elicited from a shared physical resemblance to the real-world player but a shared humanity.” Fonnesbech too agrees with this sense of ‘shared humanity’, “Having relatable emotions is about your character being up against things that are recognisable to people from their own lives. Of course you can have wizards and spaceships and Cthulhu monsters - but there should also be emotions in there that people recognise.” Webster also confirms this vital step of the process, “People often unconsciously look for “themselves” in a story somewhere. People need a sense of connection or relatability to others (whether in real life or fictitiously) as a way of making sense of the world around them. “Subsequently, for me, finding this relatability involves creating a character or plot which has a callout to a very human experience (such as a struggle with grief, a complex or nuanced relationship, or a conundrum about loyalty/obligation). Seeing a character grow and change is very satisfying, especially when this growth happens in a very human way.” LINEAR VS OPEN Story-led games, as we know, can be presented in a multitude of formats. Are there particular drawbacks or
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