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- A key aspect of storytelling in gaming is player agency, the concept that player choices can impact the game’s story. This leads to branching narratives, where the story can take different paths based on player decisions. Game writers must anticipate various scenarios and write multiple storylines, which can be a complex task.
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May 18, 2024 · Games began to tackle complex themes such as loss, redemption, and the human condition, providing narratives that could resonate deeply with players on a personal level. Source: Google Images
- An Introduction to Narrative
- Narrative in Games
- Exploring Modern Narrative Games
- The Future of Narrative Games
- Conclusion
- Bibliography
1.1. Defining Narrative
In a paper exploring the field of narrative and its prominence in video games, the logical first step would be to establish a baseline definition of what narrative is. During the past decade or more, many broader interpretations of the word have arisen, stretching the meaning to involve “belief, value, experience, interpretation, or simply content,” . For this essay, a much narrower definition is required, since narrative regarding games (and my approach the subject of narrative in this essay...
1.2. A History of Narrative
Since humans have been communicating, they have been using narrative to tell stories, and it is a topic that has been studied since the time of Aristotle, when he laid the foundation for narrative study in Western culture with his book Poetics. Aristotle theorised tragedy (which was in those days a term used to describe a form of theatre in which tragic events were experienced by the main character), and concluded that plot, or “the arrangement of the incidents” was the most important of the...
1.3. Narrative in Digital Media
The twentieth century brought about the beginning of the digital age, the age of computers, and television, film and video. Before this, there were significantly less devices through which to tell a story; The main media that conveyed narratives were conversation, books, and plays. But the introduction of film and cinema, which Marie-Laure Ryan describes as the “art of the twentieth century” , saw an evolution in how narrative can be told. In her article, Ryan describes how cinema gave new di...
2.1. A Brief History of Video Games
It is strange, perhaps even incredible to consider how quickly video games have developed from when they began in the 1960’s, as we move towards an ever increasingly technologically dependant world. In his book ‘The Singularity Is Near’ , Ray Kurzweil compares it to biological evolution, drawing conclusions that over time, advancements become more rapid, as we use tools from previous generations to progress to the next. This has allowed video games to advance at a very high rate. As we step i...
2.2. Narrative in Video Games
In this section, I will begin to explore the first part of the essay title, which is the evolution of narrative in games. I will begin by looking at the different styles of narrative that are usually found in games, and describing each of them in turn. Then, using specific examples, I will explore two games from the 1980s and 90s, and look at their stories and the way in which they show them. Then using the same method, I will investigate two more modern games from this decade. After these di...
2.3. The Evolution of Narrative
By comparing the games from 20-30 years ago, to the games from the current decade, we can look to draw conclusions about the evolution of narrative in video games. First, the structure of progression: we see that while both early games used a linear structure, the last two employ more branching narratives. Players are not able to interact with the story in early games; no matter how they play the game it will always be the same, because they are not given choices to make that will impact the...
This section of the paper aims to investigate the second part of the essay title: the role of narrative in modern games, by building upon what has already been covered in terms of narrative evolution. To begin, we will look at the latest trends in story-based games, and how interactivity impacts storytelling. Interactivity in games will be discusse...
4.1. What the future may hold
Throughout this paper, games narrative has been discussed thoroughly. We have looked at storytelling in early games, and in modern games, and now, we look forward. To think about the future of story-based games is an interesting topic. It is the same as looking at the future of any form of technology, in the sense that we can never really predict what may happen. The future may hold ideas and concepts that nobody has though of at this time, that may seem impossible now. Who, hundreds of years...
4.2. Future Technology and Narrative
On the topic of breaking down the screen and the interface, the future of narrative in games will certainly involve Virtual Reality (VR). VR, to give a simple definition, is a simulation of events that users can experience as if they were in the fictional world themselves, through headsets with two screens (one for each eye) and a stereo for sound. It is a very new medium, and is, like games were in the early stages, very restricted by technology. If a game or simulation in VR does not run at...
In this paper, we have sought to understand the evolution of games as a storytelling medium, as well as the role of narrative in modern games, and how it may change in the future. By looking at the narrative structures of old-school games from 20-30 years ago, and comparing them to the narratives of modern games, it can be recognized that games hav...
References
M. Ryan, "Defining Media from the Perspective of Narratology". H. Porter Abbott, The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative, 1st ed. Cambridge University Press, 2008. Aristotle (350 B.C.E) Poetics [Online]. Available: http://classics.mit.edu//Aristotle/poetics.html [March 29, 2017] H. Fulton, R. Huisman, J. Murphet and A. Dunn, Narrative and Media, 1st ed. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005. M. Ryan, "Beyond Myth and Metaphor", Game Studies, vol. 1, no. 1, 2001. R. Kurzweil, The Singular...
Games
Spacewar. [PDP-1]. Cambridge: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1962. Computer Space. [Arcade]. Nutting Associates, 1971. Pong. [Arcade]. Atari, 1972. Tennis. [Odyssey]. Magnavox, 1972. Ski. [Odyssey]. Magnavox, 1972. PacMan. [Arcade]. Namco, Atari, 1980. Doom. [MS-DOS]. GT Interactive, 1993. Pokémon. [Game Boy]. Nintendo, 1996. Minecraft.[Windows]. Mojang, 2009. Dark Souls. [PlayStation 3, Xbox 360]. Bandai Namco Entertainment, 2011. Donkey Kong.[Arcade]. Nintendo, 1981. Crash Bandicoot...
May 9, 2024 · A video game narrative is what immerses the player into the world and keeps them engaged throughout the experience. In this article, we will explore video games and storytelling, different techniques, and how this combination contributes to the overall experience.
Jan 31, 2024 · Video games have gone from text-based adventures to complex narratives using immersive virtual reality in just a few decades. This journey highlights the growing significance of storytelling in gaming, where stories are no longer just backdrops but integral to the experience.
Dec 14, 2020 · In short, video game narratives are complex. They offer variety of types and styles resulting in an overwhelming amount of variation, reflecting the incredible potential of the medium to flex and mould to a variety of different forms and formats.
Narrative structure in video games is a complex and multifaceted topic, encompassing a wide range of techniques and approaches. From linear to non-linear narratives, player choice to environmental storytelling, the way a game tells its story plays a crucial role in shaping the player's experience.
Jan 1, 2024 · Today, no generally accepted definition of video game narrative exists. The academic discourse has pointed out ontological and phenomenological differences to more traditional forms of narrative, and therefore, the relationship to established scholarship in narratology is complex.
