NARRITIVE IN LITERATURE, CINEMA, AND GAMES
1|P a g e James Wills
CONTENTS Literature Narrative ............... 3 Cinematic Narrative ............... 3 Game Narrative ..................... 3 Examples of Flawed Game Narrative................................ 4 Future of Gaming Narrative... 4 Conclusion ............................ 5
2|P a g e James Wills
LITERATURE NARRATIVE Literature narrative usually has one dimension: ideas over time. The writer uses descriptive and evocative language to create the story and characters for the reader, and set the flow of the story using structured sentences, paragraphs and chapters. In this way the writer can communicate ideas and themes as the reader progresses through the book at the writers pace.
CINEMATIC NARRATIVE Cinematic narrative adds a second dimension: Audio and Visual inputs. In literature the reader relies on the writer to describe the world they are reading about through descriptive and evocative language. In cinema, this is described to us through pictures and sound. We can see and hear the world that the writers have created, and ideas are communicated through dialogue and scenes. The flow of the story is also set in this way. Films can also use literature narrative to help tell the story, for example, the Star Wars films use a scrolling prologue describing events leading up to the film. The audience then has an idea of what the story is about and the film’s story is set up.
GAME NARRATIVE Game narrative adds a third dimension: Interactivity. In literature and cinema the audience cannot interact with the story. It’s important to make the distinction between video games and traditional games. Traditional games such as Chess and Monopoly have no set story. A player might recall with fondness how he outwitted his friend at chess and beat him soundly, this is a player story. Modern games, i.e. video games, have a story of their own to tell through the game, and players can supplement this experience with their own player story. In video games, players explore their environment, talk to characters and form emotional attachments to them. The player experiences the story first hand and can be motivated to play and progress. In some cases the player can even affect the story and follow multiple plot lines. Video games also incorporate literature and cinematic narrative. Cut scenes are used to progress the story and prepare the player for what is coming next, while a prologue might describe the story at the beginning of the game and include backstory placed in the game for the character to read at their own pace.
In summary the differences between these narratives are:
Literature narrative describes the story through words Cinematic narrative can use words, sound and pictures to portray a story Game narrative uses literature and cinematic narrative combined with interactivity to place the player in the story itself.
3|P a g e James Wills
EXAMPLES OF FLAWED GAME NARRATIVE Adding interactivity to a story poses its own problems, one that games rarely seem to get a handle on. Games almost always use cut scenes, these usually progress the story as the player reaches a pivotal point in the game. However, this can be over used and can distance the player from the interactivity as it will seem more like a movie than an actual game, whilst other games make more use of text to tell their stories. While the developers try and balance these different narratives, they do not always get it right. The game may have a fantastic story, but not everyone will appreciate the way it is told, so player experience is inconsistent. Some examples of flawed game narrative are: 1.
Metal Gear Solid. The MGS series has gained a reputation for having a large amount of cut scenes in its games. They also feature heavy amounts of conversation in-between events and often takes place after enemy encounters. This is can be distracting and boring, particularly if this happens after tense gameplay. While the MGS series has an exciting story, it can become a tedious marathon of watching cut scenes and not involving the player enough that gives it it’s flawed narrative.
2.
Mass Effect 3. Mass Effect is a series that is lauded for having an immersive and captivating story, with rich backgrounds for just about everything. However, when the player reaches the end of Mass Effect 3, there is very little follow up and explanation of the consequences of the player’s decision, resulting in a poor narrative for the ending of a much loved series. This sparked a rather angry and public backlash from fans, which led to the developers releasing DLC to try and correct this and involve the player’s decisions more into the final cut scenes of the game.
3.
Demon Souls/Dark Souls. The series of games from FromSoftware is widely known for its harsh learning curve, and utter lack of structured narrative. Players are given a fantastic intro movie to watch that briefly describes the game world before being thrust into the action with little clue or clue on what they’re supposed to be doing. This often leaves new players to the series confused and they quit the game before they’ve really started to explore it.
FUTURE OF GAMING NARRATIVE
Games are constantly evolving. New technologies enable developers to include more and more depth into their games, resulting in more expansive and interactive stories. A good example of evolving narrative is the increasing use of divergent plot lines – letting the player tell different stories through actions in the game. Examples of games that use this are:
Fallout series Mass Effect series Episodic series such as Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead
These games all feature interactive dialogue with characters and decision trees that let players decide their characters actions that shape the overall story. This is the most powerful tool so far that lets players immerse themselves directly into the story.
4|P a g e James Wills
There have been many attempts over the years to get players more physically involved in the games that they play, Nintendo’s Wii being one of these. The Wii console tracks the movement of the player’s controller to determine the players actions a game, making it feel like the player interacting with the game itself. An emerging technology that has huge potential for driving narrative is Virtual Reality, or ‘3D’, interaction. The Oculus Rift is probably the most wide known headset that lets the player experience their game in ‘3D’. Players can look around as if they were in the game themselves, paired with an Omni directional treadmill that ‘moves’ the character when the player walks, games could let players interact directly with characters and the environment as if they really were part of the game.
CONCLUSION While full integration into the mainstream market of Video Games is some time away, Virtual Reality technology is looking to be the next breakthrough of video games, combined with divergent plot lines, the narrative potential is huge. Stories can become more complex, players can make more choices simply by feeling more involved in the story. Each player story will become more rich and exciting every time they play.
5|P a g e James Wills