Writing in Videogames

[Scavenger]

So, I'm currently writing my dissertation for my animation degree, and my chosen topic was the interaction of narrative and game mechanics in videogames, since that's a topic that resonates with me.

As part of this, I wanted to get people's opinions on writing within videogames. This forum is particularily good for this, as adventure games are often story-heavy. I am writing about the role of narrative within videogames, and how breaks within the gameplay world and the narrative world can severely negatively impact the experience as a whole. I have referred to Crimes Against Mimesis for some historical perspective in Interactive Fiction, and have contacted some game developers for an insider's perspective, but I need the end consumer's perspective, since if they don't want heavy plot, there is no need to try to integrate it as fervently as they could. No need to supply what you don't have any demand for.

I have a few questions to ask of you all, answer any or all of them if you like, and if you have your own developer's perspective on gameplay/narrative integration, I would love to hear your insight.

1) How important is narrative within a videogame to you?

2) If a game has a poor plot but good gameplay, is that preferable to a game with poor gameplay but a good narrative? Or are both equally important?

3) Have you ever stopped playing a videogame because the narrative was too poor? If so, what was it?

4) How do you feel about gameplay/story segregation? Examples: You dodge a trap in game, and later in a cutscene, the character falls for the same trap. And the inverse, a character suddenly being far more competent in a cutscene than his in-game actions would imply. Should a character be as competent in their actions as the player is?

5) Do you feel that with growing technical abilities in game engines, narratives in games have become more sophisticated as well, and have benefited from a more filmic feel?

6) Do you think that different gameplay styles affect how we view the same plot? For example, rescuing a fair maiden from a dragon's lair, presented in platformer, first person shooter, and point and click adventure game style, with the only differences in the presentation being how the game plays. Dialogue, pacing, and aesthetic remain identical.

I hope to hear from anyone who has any opinion at all, it's all important to me

[WHAM]

My two cents

1. In most games narrative is very important in creating immersion and interest. Only in the most simplistic, mindless games can there be no story.

2. Both are not equally important. The key is the balance. A very good story can cover up slightly bad gameplay, but not utterly broken gameplay and vice versa. There is no one true answer.

3. Project Sylpheed. The game was a very entertaining space shooter, but the storyline was all over the place, the villainess looked and acted ridiculously and most characters were just overall incredibly poorly written. I dropped the game out of sheer annoyance.

4. There is a lot of leeway to be had here, as situations in cutscenes might not be fully comparable to gameplay events, but in general a character should not change overtly between gameplay and cutscene. Some variation is okay, but if the difference is too jarring it breaks immersion.
Another good example of how not to do this is: during gameplay the player finds a document that plainly states that Character X is dead and buried. An hour later in the game the main character is told that character X might be dead. "No! That's impossible! X CAN'T BE DEAD!!!"

5. When moving from the 80's games to 90's games, there was vast improvement. When moving from the 90's to the more theatrical games of 2000's and later, I do not think narratives have gained too much from this. Instead games are being treated more and more like slightly interactive movies and less and less like "pick your path adventure" books. The potential is there, but the will and skill seem to be dwindling, especially in the mainstream gaming industry.

6. I do not think it matters. Gameplay mechanics CAN be used to emphasise story elements, but I see no reason the overall plot would need to be changed to better suit a different gameplay mechanic, save for, perhaps, some minor adjustments.
Wow, that was a really pointless answer... 

Hmm... Thinking up answers to these has got me thinking as well. Time for some self-searching!!!

[Ghost]

How important is narrative within a videogame to you?
I equally enjoy games that give me a lot of narrative and games that allow me to come up with my own background stories/explanations. I couldn't say if the latter isn't just a different form of narrative (by supplying "white spaces" intentionally). I must've spend more time reading up legends and history in Morrowind than fighting monsters, for examples, and I have at least three theories what Binding of Isaac's story could be. So a narrative should be there, in whatever form, otherwise it's just game rules, which doesn't work too well in adventure games.
Games that have (due to genre or intentional design) no narrative at all (many casual titles of the Match-3-genre, for example) don't suffer from this, but as soon as a game offers a bit of story, I check it against my expectations.

If a game has a poor plot but good gameplay, is that preferable to a game with poor gameplay but a good narrative? Or are both equally important?
As WHAM said, balance is key. If the story's really good, I won't mind the occasional poorly-scripted bit. If a generic plot offers an occasional cool gadget or some fancy mechanics, that's okay too. I am usually more forgiving when the game in question is an AGS game (or similar freeware project).

Have you ever stopped playing a videogame because the narrative was too poor? If so, what was it?
Several, but I think the main adventure game offender was Phantasmagoria. I had not reached the point where I could enjoy So-Bad-It's-Good games, and I felt the whole game to be boring, generic, and tacky.

How do you feel about gameplay/story segregation? Examples: You dodge a trap in game, and later in a cutscene, the character falls for the same trap. And the inverse, a character suddenly being far more competent in a cutscene than his in-game actions would imply. Should a character be as competent in their actions as the player is?
I hate cutscene INcompetence but usually enjoy situations where my character shows suprising skill in a cutscene. This works best when these cutscenes are in-game, scripted sequences. I think I understand that some things just can't be done "by me", but as long as I feel I triggered the scene, it's okay. I seldom think I am the character; especially in adventures I feel more like an active watcher of events.

Do you feel that with growing technical abilities in game engines, narratives in games have become more sophisticated as well, and have benefited from a more filmic feel?
I think the best thing is that these days everything in a game can just look the same. It was always very jarring to trigger a cutscene and have your 2D-game interrupted by a rendered 3D-movie (that often looked worse!). It's great to have the ability to make a game look more "filmic", with different angles, close-ups and what have you: It fits almost any genre, and it makes it easy to communicate (for example) emotions in a subtle way.

Do you think that different gameplay styles affect how we view the same plot? For example, rescuing a fair maiden from a dragon's lair, presented in platformer, first person shooter, and point and click adventure game style, with the only differences in the presentation being how the game plays. Dialogue, pacing, and aesthetic remain identical.
Absolutely, it comes with the genre. Platformers and shooters are very different from point-and-click. I would expect an action game to put emphasis on coordination, speed and reflexes, while the adventure would emphasize the problem-solving (and at the same time being non-time-critical). So yes, the same story in three genres will result in three at least somewhat different experiences.

Pretty deep questions all around- best of luck with that dissertation!

[Radiant]

(1) depends heavily on the genre. For example, an adventure game does need a decent plot, whereas an action game can do without.

(2) poor plot and good gameplay is better than the inverse. If I want good plot and poor gameplay, I'll go watch a movie instead. For example, I will quickly abandon a game if the controls are poor.

(3) yes, but I can't think of any good examples right now. Mostly indie-made games that simply fail to do anything that catches my attention in the first 5 or 10 minutes; since they weren't catching, that also explains why I don't remember what they're named.

(4) the inconsistency annoying

(5) absolutely not. There are numerous old games with very good narratives, such as Chrono Trigger and Planescape Torment.

(6) yes; see question 1.

[ddq]

1. Very.
2. Mass Effect vs. Mass Effect 2, for good story and good gameplay respectively. You only need to experience a story once or twice to absorb or understand it, while fun gameplay can be enjoyed many times. This is why I consider the first ME to be a better game while I have played ME2 much more.
3. Many an amateur AGS game.
4. That is bullshit.
5. No, games have focused on showy explosions and "realistic" graphics instead of making the game believable, ignoring such key components of immersion such as facial animation. I still believe that HL2 and Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines remain the pinnacle of animated dialogs, not because of how closely the lips match the words, but how the characters move and feel like real people. What their bodies do is much more important than how their lips move, something LA Noire could never grasp.
6. Yeah.

[Eric]

At what level is your dissertation being written? I'm currently doing a Ph.D. and my dissertation also deals with narrative (digital revival of folkloric communities). My comps covered some articles that might be of interest to you, if you're interested in theory. I'd be glad to send you a bibliography if you think it'd be helpful....

[Stupot]

If you haven't already, Scav, you might wanna check out Steve Ince's Writing for Videogames.  I haven't read it myself, but it might be worth a look for your purposes.

[Ali]

1) How important is narrative within a videogame to you?
   If narrative includes theme, tone and character then it's very important. Plot is also important, but in a different way to cinema and literature. Particularly with adventure games, working out how to proceed is part of the fun. That means simpler, or more predictable plots are more enjoyable in adventure games than they would be in other media. Perhaps that's why the more narratively sophisticated games, like Riven or Planescape would be trash literature.

2) If a game has a poor plot but good gameplay, is that preferable to a game with poor gameplay but a good narrative? Or are both equally important?
   Because plot is a part of both narrative and gameplay, at least in the games I play, I don't think it's possible to separate them. However I think good gameplay probably makes up for a lot of bad characterisation and cheesy premises.

3) Have you ever stopped playing a videogame because the narrative was too poor? If so, what was it?
  Normally it is bad plot (not knowing what to do next) which infuriates me (Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Sherlock and the Silver Earring). I have stopped playing two games because I thought the plot was objectionably stupid, but since they were both amateur games I won't name them.

4) How do you feel about gameplay/story segregation? Examples: You dodge a trap in game, and later in a cutscene, the character falls for the same trap. And the inverse, a character suddenly being far more competent in a cutscene than his in-game actions would imply. Should a character be as competent in their actions as the player is?
  Particularly annoying for me is when the character is presented as an erudite genius, but the player has to negotiate their way through stupid or irrational puzzles. Art of Murder: FBI Confidential was particularly bad for this. The FBI agent, who we are told graduated at the top of her class, handles evidence without gloves, which destroys fingerprint evidence. This is more infuriating because the game won't let you take forensic gloves until after her blunder, even though they're clearly available. So it forces you to be as much of an idiot as she is.

5) Do you feel that with growing technical abilities in game engines, narratives in games have become more sophisticated as well, and have benefited from a more filmic feel?
  Games are more filmic in visual terms. But in both visual and narrative terms they are still quoting from a narrow range of movies. A bit of Godfather, a bit of Reservoir Dogs, a bit of Apocalypse Now and so on. Where's the influence of Stalker, Last Year in Marienbad, Swankmajer's Alice (all of which would make great adventure games)?

Or even books, as Graham Linehan (Father Ted, The IT Crowd) suggests here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKf2N256BvU

6) Do you think that different gameplay styles affect how we view the same plot? For example, rescuing a fair maiden from a dragon's lair, presented in platformer, first person shooter, and point and click adventure game style, with the only differences in the presentation being how the game plays. Dialogue, pacing, and aesthetic remain identical.

Yes, particularly in terms of violence. As a child I was happy to drive around running people over in the original GTA demo. That's because the characters were little more than colourful dots, and abstract violence has a comic absurdity which I enjoy. These days the GTA pedestrians look like real people and those games don't hold much appeal for me.

[Eggie]

1) How important is narrative within a videogame to you?
I love my 'wordthoughts' games as Bluke4x4 calls them. Games like Mario Kart are great if you have your friends around you and you're all getting involved but if I'm on my own I need that extra element to keep me engaged (and in fact, seek it out). Soooo very. I need it. I do not feel compelled to play a game further by numbers increasing in the corner of the screen, but by what I'm going to see, hear and experience when I progress. It doesn't have to be epic, it just has to be something I can latch my imagination on to.

) If a game has a poor plot but good gameplay, is that preferable to a game with poor gameplay but a good narrative? Or are both equally important?
I think good gameplay lends itself to good narratives, even if it's just one the player's imposing on the game. For instance; the Resident Evil games nuke braincells with every cutscene but they're subservient to the gameplay and the gameplay is FUN so you still FEEL like you're in a good story. I think level and game mechanic design ends up having a lot in common with telling good stories; creating those moments of suspense and gratification. So Resident Evil is a good game with a dumb story, but now it's a story I love. Duke Nukem has almost no story, but now I loveGrim Fandango has a great story, but I'm never going to stop getting a bad taste in my mouth when I think about that ship puzzle. Mass Effect has a great story, but I'm always going to weep for the wasted hours of my life spent driving around boring planets looking for minerals.

3) Have you ever stopped playing a videogame because the narrative was too poor? If so, what was it?
I never play gameplay for gameplay's sake games for very long because I don't find them rewarding enough. In terms of explicitly narrative genres though I've probably put down a fair amount of RPGs that just felt like they weren't trying.

4) How do you feel about gameplay/story segregation? Examples: You dodge a trap in game, and later in a cutscene, the character falls for the same trap. And the inverse, a character suddenly being far more competent in a cutscene than his in-game actions would imply. Should a character be as competent in their actions as the player is?
It's a toughie, the more a character acts as an independent agent the more inconsistencies like this are going to arise. It almost feels like setting out to tell your story in game form is kind of a selfish move because you're taking opportunity away from the player to feel like they're creating their own.
I'd have to say; the better the story is; the more I'll forgive moments of not feeling like I'm driving it.

5) Do you feel that with growing technical abilities in game engines, narratives in games have become more sophisticated as well, and have benefited from a more filmic feel?
Mostly no, really. Quicktime events and frequent in-game cinematicss might tell a good story but  honestly it feels like it's wasting the potential of the interactive medium for it to ALWAYS feel like a movie ALL the time.

6) Do you think that different gameplay styles affect how we view the same plot? For example, rescuing a fair maiden from a dragon's lair, presented in platformer, first person shooter, and point and click adventure game style, with the only differences in the presentation being how the game plays. Dialogue, pacing, and aesthetic remain identical.
Dude! A princess rescuing, dragon slaying FPS would seem so thrillingly novel to me that I would BUY it! Does that answer your question?

One last thing: Don't spend so long on this thing you forget to work on your film, Jamie. It's only a tiny bit of your grade. REMEMBER THIS!

[Evan Smith]

1) How important is narrative within a videogame to you?
It depends upon the genre of game I suppose. You have different expectations for different types of games. Arcade games can get by with barely any story and still be fun to play if it has a quirky, addictive, gameplay that keeps the player going (perhaps Angry Birds as an example).

FPS type games can certainly have good story telling, but the emphasis in these types of games have been historically action and setting based (and in multiplayer FPS the story can be as simple as “defeat the other side” and it might still be fun as it’s the dynamics of being a part of a team that motivates in that case).

Point and click adventure games rely heavily on good story telling and it is the main element that motivates the player to keep playing the game. Advancing the story and continuing the characters journey through the game world acts as the main reward for overcoming the puzzles and challenges presented to the player. If the narrative isn’t very good then it won’t act as much of a reward to motivate the player to advance it.

2)If a game has a poor plot but good gameplay, is that preferable to a game with poor gameplay but a good narrative? Or are both equally important?
Both are important, but if I had to choose one I would say gameplay is more important. If the gameplay is poor and makes playing the game difficult/frustrating then I probably won’t get a chance to experience how good the narrative is before I quit playing.

3)Have you ever stopped playing a videogame because the narrative was too poor? If so, what was it?
Probably, I can’t think of any good examples at the moment, they were just that unmemorable I guess…

4)How do you feel about gameplay/story segregation? Examples: You dodge a trap in game, and later in a cutscene, the character falls for the same trap. And the inverse, a character suddenly being far more competent in a cutscene than his in-game actions would imply. Should a character be as competent in their actions as the player is?
It should be kept as consistent as possible, but it falls under that suspension of disbelief thing. The players knows they are playing a game and the brain is trained to overlook such inconsistencies as long as the actions being performed in the cutscene are appropriate to the character they are playing.

5)Do you feel that with growing technical abilities in game engines, narratives in games have become more sophisticated as well, and have benefited from a more filmic feel?
The existence and use of game engines allows for more time to be spent on things like art and story which provides opportunity for more elaborate results.

6)Do you think that different gameplay styles affect how we view the same plot? For example, rescuing a fair maiden from a dragon's lair, presented in platformer, first person shooter, and point and click adventure game style, with the only differences in the presentation being how the game plays. Dialogue, pacing, and aesthetic remain identical
Definitely, although I would think it would be extremely difficult to apply the same dialogue, pacing, and aesthetic to all three of those gameplay styles. Each style has different strengths that you would want to emphasize in how the scene plays out.