Storytelling

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Storytelling
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Storytelling

• In the early days of video games, storytelling
  was usually only done in the context of adventure
  games.
• Modern video games of all genres can have some
  story elements.
• It might be a key part of the game, or it might
  just be to provide a setting and motivation for
  the game.

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Why Put Stories in Games?

• Stories can add to the entertainment that a game
  offers to its players.
• Without a story, a game can reduce to just a
  contest exciting, but contrived and artificial.
• A story can provide more satisfaction.
• Stories can attract a wider audience.
• Many players benefit from a story to help
  motivate them to play.
• If the game offers only challenges and no story,
  they wont play.

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Why Put Stories in Games?
Screen shot of Soul Reaver 2 and video from the
original Soul Reaver. The compelling story in
the Legacy of Kain series can really motivate the
player to play just to see what happens next!
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Why Put Stories in Games?

• Stories help keep players interested in long
  games.
• Simple, quick games (like casual games) do not
  need a story, and might seem odd if one were
  tacked on.
• A compelling story provides variety and can give
  players a reason to keep going in a game that
  lasts for many hours or even days.

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Why Put Stories in Games?
Screen shot of Tetris Worlds. Many people think
that the story addedto this game was tacked on
and unnecessary.
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Why Put Stories in Games?
Screen shot from Okami. The story in Okami can
really keep peopleinvolved for a long time.
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Why Put Stories in Games?

• Stories help to sell the game.
• It can be difficult to show gameplay in static
  promotional materials, because gameplay is a very
  active process.
• If your game is story-rich, however, it is easy
  to promote the game through characters from the
  game or events that unfold in the story.

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Why Put Stories in Games?
Box art from God of War. The story elements from
the game are heavilyfeatured here, and help draw
potential players to the game.
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Parts of a Story

• There are three key parts to any story
• Plot, setting, and characters.
• Plot More about how the story unfolds rather
  than what the story is about.
• Setting The world that is being explored in the
  story, including its history, geography, mood,
  atmosphere, and so on.
• Characters The entities that are experiencing
  and taking part in the story.

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Traditional Structures

• There are many traditional structures or formulas
  to telling stories.
• Two of the more commonly referenced structures in
  gaming literature are
• The Three Act Structure
• The Monomyth (aka Heros Journey)
• We will look at both of these in more detail here.

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Traditional StructuresThe Three Act Structure

• Commonly touted by Hollywood screenwriters and
  parts of the game development literature.
• The premise here is that the basic structure of a
  story is really quite simple.
• A story must have a beginning, a middle, and an
  end.
• Each must be done properly for the story to be
  effective.

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Traditional StructuresThe Three Act Structure
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The Three Act StructureThe Beginning

• The most interesting stories begin by placing the
  player into the action or drama of the story.
• Backstory and background events are introduced
  later as they are needed.
• The goal is to capture the players attention and
  draw them into the story as quickly as possible.
• The beginning phase of the story also introduces
  the players problem, and should do so as quickly
  as possible.

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The Three Act StructureThe Beginning
Screen shot from the Legend of Zelda The
Ocarina of Time. It has a classic introduction
that involves the player right from the start.
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The Three Act StructureThe Beginning

• There is some division over the timing of the
  beginning of a story, however.
• One philosophy is that a game should start with
  the problem introduced immediately or already in
  motion at its beginning.
• Any required backstory or other background
  information can be required as needed later on.
• The other is that players need some time and
  backstory before the problem is introduced.
• This ensures that the player has a chance to
  become acquainted with and bond with their
  character.

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The Three Act StructureThe Middle

• The middle of the story presents a series of
  obstacles that stand in the way of the players
  character to overcome the problem introduced in
  the first act.
• The player must overcome these obstacles to bring
  the game to a successful conclusion.
• If additional backstory and background
  information still needs to be told, now is a good
  time to do so as well.

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The Three Act StructureThe Middle
Act 1
Act 3
Act 2
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The Three Act StructureThe Middle

• It is important to provide additional obstacles
  to the player throughout the middle of the story.
• Each time one is overcome, a new and harder one
  must be faced to reach the long-term goal of the
  story.
• The best obstacles also require the hero of the
  game, and the player in turn, to deal with some
  kind of inner conflicts and challenges. To
  overcome these, growth of some form is required.
• While gameplay can challenge a player mentally
  and physically, story-driven conflict can
  challenge the player on emotional and
  psychological levels.

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The Three Act StructureThe Middle
Screen shot from Shadow of the Colossus. This
game provides perhaps thebest inner conflict
ever faced in a video game. Incredibly well done.
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The Three Act StructureThe Middle

• In traditional storytelling, these obstacles are
  laid out in a linear fashion.
• In a game, this need not be the case.
• There is time for unrelated storylines, side
  adventures, twists and turns, and so on.
• There tends to also exist multiple paths through
  the game to reach the end.
• These elements can provide a measure of
  non-linearity, giving the player freedom and
  control over their experience.

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The Three Act StructureThe End

• The story ends when the players character
  overcomes the problem introduced in the first
  act.
• In doing so, the player achieves the long-term
  objective of the game.
• The last part of a game should bring together the
  themes and issues introduced throughout the game.

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The Three Act StructureThe End

• In the last part of the game, the player must
  overcome the ultimate villain, the source of the
  obstacles throughout the game.
• In the end, there must be something or someone
  that does not want the player to succeed.
• To face off with this ultimate villain at the end
  of the story, and emerge victorious is very
  satisfying.

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The Three Act StructureThe End
Screen shot from Mario 64. This is one of the
final scenes witha show down against the main
villain.
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The Three Act StructureThe End

• Just as non-linearity in a game can provide
  multiple paths through the middle act, it can
  also provide multiple endings to a game.
• Each ending should make sense to the player in
  light of their actions throughout the game.
• These endings can embody varying degrees of
  success and failure, depending on what the player
  did in playing the game.

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The Three Act StructureThe End
Screen shot from Maniac Mansion. Among other
things, this adventuregame with a sense of
humour was known for having multiple
endingsdepending on what the player did in the
game. Very interesting for its time.
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The Three Act StructureSummary

• The three act structure provides a fairly simple
  and easy to follow template for the story of a
  game.
• Remember this old writers maxim
• In the first act, you get your hero up a tree.
• In the second act, you throw rocks atyour hero.
• In the third act, you get the hero back down.

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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth

• In The Hero With a Thousand Faces, Joseph
  Campbell introduced the concept of a monomytha
  story pattern that legends and myths from all
  cultures share.
• Campbell referred to this monomyth as the
  heros journey.
• It has been applied to screenwriting by
  Christopher Vogler in The Writers Journey and
  can be seen in films such as Star Wars.
• This monomyth pattern can be easily applied to
  the stories told by games as well.

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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth
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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth

• Exposition
• This section introduces the main character in his
  or her ordinary surroundings before the adventure
  begins.
• Call
• The main character gets a call to adventure and
  must leave their ordinary world to go on a quest
  or journey. This leads them to another world
  that intersects with their own, but is somewhat
  foreign and unknown.

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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth
Screen shot from Oni. This game starts with the
heroine on a fairly routine call, which quickly
turns into something more sinister with a
groupknown as the Syndicate. She starts to
learn there might be more to her pastthan she
realizes
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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth

• Refusal
• The hero initially rejects the call, not wanting
  to leave the comfort and safety of their ordinary
  world. Typically, this comes with hesitation and
  doubt, leaving the potential for future conflict.
• Information
• While the hero has outwardly rejected the call,
  this decision is still questioned. A mentor
  figure provides the hero with advice and
  information relevant to the refused call.

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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth
Screen shot from Oni. Konoko rejects where
things appear to be goingwith her developing
powers, and tries to continue with her life.Only
after a meeting with her friend and mentor Kerr
does she fullyaccept things and press forward on
her adventure.
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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth

• Departure
• From the knowledge gained in the information
  stage, the hero makes a final decision.
• Usually this is a change of mind and a decision
  to embark on the journey and leave the ordinary
  world behind.

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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth
Screen shot from Oni. Konoko is now a full on
renegade on therun from her former friends an
comrades as she tries to piece togetherher past,
dole out some justice, and take down the
Syndicatein her own way.
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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth

• Testing
• During the journey, the hero faces a series of
  challenges, making up the main action of the
  story.
• The hero must solve problems, face fears, rescue
  others, defeat foes, and so on.
• Typically, this involves growth of some kind.
• Reward
• After completing the challenges, the hero is
  rewarded. This could mark the end of the story,
  but not always.

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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth
Screen shot from Oni. Konoko fights her way
through her ownforces, and eventually on to the
Syndicates main headquarters,where she has to
fight numerous battles and overcome
manyadversaries to reach their doomsday weapon.
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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth

• Ordeal
• Just when the hero appears to be in safety with
  the journey nearly over, the hero must face
  another ordeal.
• This is the big conflict, and a difficult one.
  Unlike the other conflicts, it is not clear
  whether the hero will ultimately succeed or fail.

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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth
Screen shot from Oni. Konoko faces a final
ordeal to overcome. Afinal battle with Muro,
her equally powerful brother, who is the headof
the Syndicate.
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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth

• Resurrection
• Just when it seemed like it is over and the hero
  overcame the final ordeal, the enemy resurfaces.
• It could be the same enemy, the enemy in a
  different form, or someone or something else
  revealed to be the true enemy.
• This is also the place where a trick ending can
  be introduced and something unexpected happens.

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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth
Screen shot from Oni. Having defeated Muro,
Konoko thought it wasfinally over. But, the
bitterness and evil in her brother causes his
powerto mutate him into a final ultimate form
which she must defeatto reach a bittersweet
ending.
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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth

• Return
• This marks the end of the story, and the hero
  returns to the ordinary world that was left
  behind at the beginning of the journey.
• The structure is circular, with the hero
  returning back to the beginning, likely a changed
  person.
• This circular structure leaves room for
  open-endedness, and a repeat of part or all of
  the monomyth structure.

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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth
Screen shot from Oni. Despite defeating Muro and
putting an endto the Syndicate, their weapon
still goes off. Humanity is notdestroyed but
changed forever but Konoko is still aliveto
deal with that in future adventures.
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Traditional StructuresThe Monomyth

• Keep in mind that it is possible to vary and tune
  the monomyth structure to provide interesting
  story possibilities.
• Some games focus on some elements of this pattern
  more than others.
• For example, the resurrection element is common
  in a wide variety of games, particularly in boss
  battles.
• In some cases, certain elements are omitted or
  down played, like the refusal.

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Traditional StructuresA Final Word

• While it is important to have these traditional
  structures to provide templates for stories,
  there are some caveats to consider.
• Rigidly following these structures could result
  in a tired, overused story. Some variations and
  twists might be in order.
• These structures might not lend themselves to
  multiplayer stories in which there are several
  main characters and not one.

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Plot

• As mentioned earlier, plot is more about how the
  story unfolds rather than what the story is
  about.
• It is more than mere facts and events, but also
  how these elements are connected, related, and
  flow into one another.
• No matter how a story is structured, each
  structural element contains plot elements that
  guide the story along.

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Plot

• Gameplay and plot are inherently interconnected
  within games that heavily depend upon story
  elements.
• Obstacles and challenges presented to the player
  are made interesting to the player by linking
  them to the plot of the story.
• The story is advanced through the completion of
  challenges, removal of obstacles, and by dealing
  with other gameplay elements in the game.

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PlotBalancing Conflict

• Dramatic tension in a story is greatest when the
  player teeters on the brink of disaster only to
  escape by the narrowest of margins.
• This often entails a careful balancing act in
  designing the story and gameplay, but can produce
  a very rewarding effect.
• This requires careful consideration in
  multiplayer games where there must be a good
  balance between players as well.

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PlotBalancing Conflict
Screen shot from Halo 2. The player is
constantly teetering nearannihilation, which
provides a good level of dramatic tension in the
game.
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PlotShifting Focus

• At many points in the story of a game, it might
  be important to shift the focus of the player.
• To give the player some freedom and choice to
  deviate from the main storyline.
• To bring the player back to the main storyline
  after such explorations.
• This can be done by adjusting the set of quests,
  missions, or tasks available to the player,
  introducing new characters or objects, and so on.
• The idea is to encourage the shift the focus of
  the players attention as necessary.

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PlotShifting Focus
Screen shot from Destroy all Humans. By adding
new objectives, openingnew areas, and
introducing new powers or weapons, this game can
shiftthe focus of the player back towards the
main storyline of the game.
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PlotForeshadowing Events

• Foreshadowing is a standard plot device that
  provides a hint to some event or change that will
  happen in the future.
• Foreshadowing can serve many purposes
• To set the tone or mood in the game.
• To provide a warning or lesson to the player
  about how to handle gameplay in the future.
• To build anticipation of what is to come.
• To help let the player feel smart.

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PlotForeshadowing Events
Screen shot from Prince of Persia The Sands of
Time. This game providedplenty of
foreshadowing. The visions experienced by the
prince gives vitalclues as to how to proceed
through certain areas of the game world.
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PlotSuspension of Disbelief

• Suspension of disbelief involves the players
  acceptance of the artificial reality that is
  created within the game.
• The player accepts the rules and experiences of
  the game even if they do not make sense in the
  real world.
• If you are immersed in the story of the game, you
  will disregard the real world while you are
  playing it and adopt the artificial world as
  yours while you are playing in it.

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PlotSuspension of Disbelief
Screen shot of Shadow of the Colossus. This game
perfectly allows for thesuspension of disbelief,
allowing the player to accept this world as their
own.
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PlotRealism and Consistency

• Realism can be used in games to mimic the real
  world as closely as possible.
• In other games, fantasy might play a stronger
  role, and realism less so.
• Either way, consistency is a must, with nothing
  seeming out of place to jar the player from the
  experience.
• Whether realistic or fantastic, the story must
  make sense and be believable froma consistency
  standpoint.

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PlotRealism and Consistency
Screen shot from Call of Duty 2. This game
attempts to create anauthentic and realistic war
experience which forms an integral partof the
game.
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PlotInteractivity

• Because of interactivity with the player, the
  storyteller of a game does not have sole control
  over the flow of the story.
• In effect, the player can be a co-storyteller, or
  even the only storyteller, depending on the game.
• While this can create interesting issues, a game
  that allows the player to take on a key story
  formation role can be very rewarding.

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PlotLinearity and Nonlinearity

• Linear stories follow a straight physical and
  temporal progression.
• They tend to require less content thannonlinear
  ones.
• The storytelling engine is simpler.
• They are less prone to bugs and absurdities (like
  continuity errors).
• They are capable of greater emotional power.
• But, they deny the player freedom, and this can
  be very important in games.

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PlotLinearity and Nonlinearity

• Games do not have to follow a linear storyline
  their interactivity can give the freedom of
  choice to the player to set their own path
  through the game.
• This is a tight balancing act the nonlinear
  freedom given to a player, and the linearity
  needed to have a well-constructed story.

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PlotLinearity and Nonlinearity

• One approach to nonlinearity is thebranching
  story structure.
• At critical points in the game, the players
  actions determine the direction in which the plot
  unfolds.
• While conceptually simple, this approach is also
  expensive, as each branch path must have content,
  and each important decision entails a new branch
  point.
• Also, the player must play the game repeatedly to
  see all the content.

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PlotLinearity and Nonlinearity
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PlotLinearity and Nonlinearity

• Likely the best way to balance this is through a
  series of linearly connected open areas, each
  with multiple possible paths of plot points,
  folding back to a single inevitable event (a
  foldback story).
• Give the player freedom to meet challenges as
  they see fit, which can result to a variety of
  game experiences.
• These experiences are strung together in a linear
  fashion so that the storyteller still retains a
  good measure of control.

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PlotLinearity and Nonlinearity
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PlotLinearity and Nonlinearity
Screen shot from Halo. The player traverses
several open areas strung together in a linear
fashion. Very well done.
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PlotThe Fourth Wall

• The fourth wall is a theatrical reference to
  the fact that traditional theatre sets have three
  walls, the back and the sides.
• The audience views the play through the invisible
  fourth wall while actors perform as if it is as
  solid as the other three.
• Breaking the fourth wall removes the illusion
  that the characters in the story are unaware that
  they are being observed.

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PlotThe Fourth Wall

• In general, you should never break the fourth
  wall unless you really know what you are doing.
• Doing it improperly can break the immersion of
  the game as it is tantamount to the characters
  acknowledging they are in a game and not in some
  kind of alternate reality.
• In some cases, it can serve a purpose to make
  some form of commentary, but you must be careful
  with this.

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Plot Crisis, Climax, and Resolution

• Crisis, climax, resolution is a classic approach
  used in storytelling.
• Crisis is the point at which a challenge is
  introduced and tension begins to build.
• Climax is not the overcoming of the challenge,
  but is rather where the crisis is stretched to
  its limits the moment of confrontation,
  accusation, conflict, violence.
• Resolution is simply the outcome of the climax
  that is the result of the crisis.

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Plot Crisis, Climax, and Resolution

• Typically, the stakes are raised through each
  crisis-climax-resolution construct.
• This results in this kind of stairway
• There can also be variable amounts of time in the
  steps, and overlapping of multiple crises.

Resolution B
Climax B
Crisis B
Resolution A
Climax A
Crisis A
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Plot Crisis, Climax, and Resolution

• Minor story arcs are composed of a single crisis,
  climax, resolution sequence.
• Major story arcs can encompass multiple minor
  story arcs.

Major StoryArc
Resolution B
Minor StoryArcs
Climax B
Crisis B
Resolution A
Climax A
Crisis A
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Setting

• Setting is something usually done well in most
  modern video games.
• Graphics and sound technologies have advanced to
  the point where good settings can be easily
  created.
• Setting, however, is not just a physical
  location.
• It is the whole world created to tell your story.
• It includes time period, weather, and other
  elements such as mood and atmosphere.
• All of these elements combine together to create
  the world in which the game and its story is set.

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Setting

• Creating a good setting for a game requires
  careful thought and consideration.
• In creating the game world, you should invent
  only one what if? and everything else should
  flow from this.
• After this, everything should be as real as
  possible without any contradictions.
• Choose a setting that will engage the senses as
  much as possible.
• By keeping the setting vivid and consistent, you
  will more easily be able to immerse the player.

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Setting
Screen shot from Thief Deadly Shadows. This
level, the Cradle, has beendescribed as
probably the scariest level ever made and
really establishes thesetting, mood, and tone.
As its lead designer put it, I want my scares
toleave scars. Believe me, they do!
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Characters

• Characters can be the most fascinating and most
  integral part of a story.
• More often than not, characters can makeor break
  a game.
• Consequently, it is very important to make sure
  that characters are well thought out and well
  developed throughout the story of the game.

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Player and Non Player Characters

• Characters are either controlled by the player or
  by the game itself.
• Player Characters (PCs) are characters controlled
  by the player.
• If there is a single central character, it is
  commonly referred to as the players avatar.
• It is also possible for there to be multiple
  characters controlled by the player, however,
  depending on the game.

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Player and Non Player Characters

• There are two basic philosophies to creating a
  player character
• Avoid creating a strong central character only
  provide a bare outline, and allow the player to
  fill in the rest with themselves.
• Create a character with a well defined
  personality, attitude, and background.
• Success can be had either way.

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Player and Non Player Characters
Dooms generic space marine
Duke Nukem
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Player and Non Player Characters

• Non Player Characters (NPCs) are characters that
  are not controlled by the player.
• Instead, these characters tend to be driven by an
  artificial intelligence of some kind within the
  game. (More on this later )
• Non player characters take on a variety of roles
  to deliver various elements of gameplay within
  the game.
• This includes combat, puzzle solving, etc.

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Player and Non Player Characters

• In addition to gameplay, non player characters
  fill other important roles in many video games.
• They can reveal emotions and reactions that the
  hero cannot show.
• They help establish mood and tone in very
  effective ways that are difficult to do
  otherwise.
• For example
• Your hero should face down the ultimate villain
  without any fear.
• By having non player characters cowering in the
  background at the same time, this emotion can
  still be instilled in the game player.

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Player and Non Player Characters
Screen shot from Golden Axe. The villagers
scream and flee at the villains assault. One is
being attacked to the rightbehind the dragon.
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Player and Non Player Characters
Screen shot from The Thing. Computer controlled
team mates experience and display fear earning
and keep their trustis an important aspect of
the game.
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Character Types

• There are five common character types that tend
  to be used in games.
• Animal
• These are characters derived from animals of some
  kind, and are often given human characteristics
  to allow for more identification between the
  player and the character.
• Common in games marketed towards families or
  children, but not always.

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Character Types
Sonic the Hedgehog is a classic animal based
video game character.
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Character Types
Screen shot from Conker Live and Reloaded. The
animal characters here are definitely not for
family consumption!
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Character Types

• Fantasy
• Characters that do not have counterparts in the
  real world and are created specifically for a
  game, without licensing from a pre-existing
  source.
• Historical
• Characters that have distinct counterparts from
  the real world, often from past history.
  Political and military games focusing on
  real-world events often contain these.

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Character Types
Mario, Lara Croft, and Gordon Freeman areall
examples of fantasy characters.
87
Character Types
Screen shot from Rome Total War. Games such as
this one featurea great number of historical
characters.
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Character Types

• Licensed
• A licensed character also exists in the real
  world but in a pre-existing medium. When
  licensing characters, developers do not need to
  start from scratch in creating visuals,
  personalities, or verbal nuances.
• Mythic
• These characters have counterparts in
  mythologies, legends, and fairy tales from
  different cultures.

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Character Types
Screen shot from From Russia With Love.
Characters like James Bondneed to be licensed to
appear in video games.
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Character Types
Screen shot from God of War. This game featured
many mythological characters, including this
minotaur. Don worry, Im sure its just fine
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Character Roles

• There are many possible roles that characters can
  take in games.
• While it is not good to pigeon-hole characters
  into certain models of behaviour, knowing some of
  the classic character types can be of great use
  incrafting a story for the first time.
• We will discuss some of the more common character
  roles here

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Character RolesHero

• The hero character role is more often than not
  filled by the player.
• The role of this character is to overcome the
  main problem faced in the story often at his or
  her own peril, requiring personal sacrifice along
  the way.
• In most stories, the hero performs most of the
  action and assumes the majority of risk and
  responsibility.

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Character RolesHero
Screen shot of the Legend of Zelda Ocarina of
Time. Link is definitely the hero in this story.
94
Character RolesShadow

• The shadow represents the opposite of the hero,
  often the ultimate evil character in a story.
• Typically it is the shadow that is responsible
  for the characters problem, but not always.
• Sometimes the true shadow remains hidden until
  the storys climax, which can help build the
  storys tension.
• Along the way, the player may have to deal with
  lesser shadows as well.

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Character RolesShadow
Screen shot of the Legend of Zelda Ocarina of
Time. Ganondorfis the shadow to counter Links
hero.
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Character RolesMentor

• The mentor is a character who often guides the
  hero towards some action.
• The mentor is often an older advisor character
  that can impart wisdom and lessons learned from
  experience.
• Mentors are typically on the heros side, but
  sometimes they might intentionally guide the hero
  in the wrong direction.

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Character RolesMentor
Screen shot from Mortal Kombat Shaolin Monks.
In this action-adventuregame in the Mortal
Kombat universe, Raiden served as the mentor
figureto Liu Kang and Kung Lao.
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Character RolesAllies

• Allies are characters that help the hero progress
  on their adventure and assist the hero with tasks
  that might be difficult or impossible to
  accomplish alone.
• Allies can take many forms
• Sidekicks, servants and pets, trainers,
  merchants, and so on.
• The form the allies take depends greatlyon the
  game.

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Character RolesAllies
Screen shot from Jak and Daxter. Daxter is a
sidekick for Jak,not to mention comic relief
100
Character RolesAllies
Screen shot from Resident Evil 4. While the
Merchant character is notexactly on your side,
his special kind of help can be quite valuable!
101
Character RolesGuardians

• A guardian typically blocks the progress of the
  hero by whatever means necessary until the hero
  has proven worthy.
• Guardians, simply put, test the player.
• Sometimes guardians are henchmen of the shadow,
  but not always.
• In some cases, a guardian can be a block in the
  heros mind (such as doubt, fear, and so on) that
  make the hero hesitate.

102
Character RolesGuardians
Screen shot from Quake II. The Tank character in
this screenis a guardian character used to block
the player. In this case, it isattempting to
prevent access to the computer terminal behind it.
103
Character RolesTrickster

• The trickster is a neutral character that tries
  to create mischief.
• Trickster characters can either cause damage or
  inconvenience through their actions, or they can
  simply be jesters who provide comic relief for
  the story.
• Tricksters can sometimes be the heros sidekicks
  or even a shadow character, depending on the game.

104
Character RolesTrickster
Screen shot from Golden Axe. The thief character
steals from youwhen you sleep a definite
inconvenience from this trickster.
105
Character RolesHerald

• The herald character facilitates change in the
  story and provides the hero with direction.
• The herald could be the character that first
  introduced a problem to the player, or could
  provide quests, missions, or other objectives
  during the game.

106
Character RolesHerald
Screen shot from Splinter Cell. Lambert provides
Sam Fisher withmission briefings and provides
direction throughout the game.
107
Character Roles

• In addition to these character roles, there are
  also classic character types that can be
  associated with any story.
• These are
• Protagonists
• Antagonists
• Co-protagonist
• Supporting characters

108
Character RolesProtagonists

• The protagonist is the main character of the
  game.
• In a single player game, the games story centers
  around this character.
• The protagonist drives the story forward.
• Acts instead of just reacts.
• Makes things happen instead of waiting for things
  to happen.

109
Character RolesProtagonists

• The protagonist is not always good, and is
  therefore not always a hero.
• In some cases, the protagonist could be some kind
  of anti-hero.
• In the context of the story, the character
  appears as a hero, but out of context could be
  seen as a criminal, an outlaw, or simply
  unlikable.
• Classic types of anti-heroes include the
  vigilante, the developing hero, the drifter, the
  failure, the flawed everyman, the villain (in
  rare cases), and the noble criminal.

110
Character RolesProtagonists
Screen shot from Batman Begins. Batman is a
classic vigilante character.
111
Character RolesProtagonists
Screen shot from God of War. Kratos is the
protagonist, but his heroic qualities are
somewhat questionable.
112
Character RolesAntagonists

• The antagonist opposes the protagonist.
• Just like the protagonist need not be good, the
  antagonist need not be evil.
• There are many types of antagonists, such as
• Exaggerated Larger than life, bizarre at times,
  and dominate the story sometimes more
  interesting than the protagonist.
• Realistic Mild mannered and fairly normal
  characters (which can have interesting effects).
• Mistaken It appears they are villains but turn
  out to be innocent.

113
Character RolesAntagonists
Screen shot from Grand Theft Auto Liberty City
Stories. The police arejust doing their job,
but considering the role of the protagonist in
thisstory, they turn out to be the antagonists.
114
Character RolesCo-Protagonists

• Co-protagonists join forces with the protagonist
  in the story.
• Could be other player or non player characters,
  depending on the game.
• Sometimes these characters start as antagonists,
  that unite with the protagonist against a
  greater, common foe.
• Sometimes these characters will cooperate with
  the protagonist, and sometimes they will compete
  instead (but not oppose them).

115
Character RolesCo-Protagonists
Mario and Luigi have been co-protagonists in many
games over the years.
116
Character RolesSupporting Characters

• The role of supporting characters is in essence
  to ensure the protagonist does not walk away from
  the problem faced in the story.
• That would put a premature and unwelcome end to
  the story!
• Supporting characters can lend support to either
  the protagonist or antagonist in the story.

117
Character RolesSupporting Characters
Screen shot from Trauma Center Under the Knife.
This innovative title for the Nintendo DS has a
variety of nursing and medical personnel as
support characters although this one yelling
isnt being helpful!
118
Character Development

• Creating a memorable character is hard, but the
  rewards can be great.
• Both artistically and commercially.
• Characters must be both properly designed
  initially and should experience some form of
  growth or development throughout the game.

119
Character DevelopmentDesign Goals

• The main goals of character design is to create
  characters that people
• Find appealing characters must be well
  constructed with their various elements working
  together appropriately.
• Believe in characters must be credible and act
  according to their personae.
• Identify with Player Characters must be
  characters that the player wants to play as.

120
Character DevelopmentBackgrounders

• Designer Steve Meretzky recommends the creation
  of a background paper, or backgrounder, for each
  major character.
• This should address the following
• Where was the character born?
• What was their family life like as a kid?
• What was their education?
• Where do they live now?
• Describe their job.

121
Character DevelopmentBackgrounders

• And also the following
• Describe their finances.
• Describe their taste in clothes, books, etc.
• What are their favourite foods?
• What are their favourite activities?
• What are their hobbies?
• Describe any particular personality traits and
  how they manifest themselves.
• Are they shy or outgoing? Greedy or giving?

122
Character DevelopmentBackgrounders

• And also the following
• Do they have any quirks? Unusual talents?
• Do they have superstitions? Phobias?
• What were their traumatic moments in life?
• What were their biggest triumphs?
• Describe their important past romances.
• Describe their current romantic involvement (or
  involvements).
• How do they treat friends? Others?

123
Character DevelopmentBackgrounders

• And also the following
• Describe their political beliefs, past and
  present.
• Describe their religious beliefs, past and
  present.
• What are their interesting or important
  possessions?
• Do they have any pets?
• Whats the best thing that could happen to them?
  Whats the worst thing?

124
Character DevelopmentDimensionality

• We can categorize characters according to their
  emotional sophistication and emotional response
  and change.
• This is referred to as their dimensionality.
• Zero-dimensional
• Characters exhibit one or more discrete emotional
  states, with no continuum between them.
• They are simple, without conflict or mixed
  feelings one a subject.

125
Character DevelopmentDimensionality

• One-dimensional
• Have only a single variable to characterize
  changing emotions or attitudes.
• Otherwise, their character is largely fixed.
• Two-dimensional
• Can be described by multiple variables that
  express their impulses, and these variables do
  not conflict (and so are orthogonal).
• As a result there is no emotional ambiguity.

126
Character DevelopmentDimensionality

• Three dimensional
• Have multiple emotional states that can produce
  conflicting impulses.
• This can cause distress and confusion, and can
  lead them to behave in inconsistent ways.
• These mixed feelings must be considered
  carefully in particular, how these mixed
  feelings manifest themselves to the player.

127
Character DevelopmentDimensionality
Antipathy
Neutrality
Sympathy
Hate
Fear
Hate
Love
Zero-dimensional
One-dimensional
Antipathy
Psychopathy
Hate
Dishonest
Honest
Neutrality
Sympathy
Love
Offensive
Polite
Three-dimensional
Two-dimensional
128
Character DevelopmentGrowth

• There are several questions to consider
• Which characters will grow?
• How will they grow?
• Physically, intellectually, emotionally, morally?
• How will this growth be implemented?
• Through changes to character attributes?
• Through granting additional abilities?
• Through changes to plot in the story?
• Does growth affect gameplay?
• How is this growth represented to the player?

129
Character DevelopmentGrowth

• Player Character growth in video games can be
  difficult to accomplish though.
• The simple physical or statistical growth
  common in games is not the same kind of growth
  found in traditional storytelling.
• The difficulty comes from the fact that the
  character is controlled by the player.
• Ultimately, the growth that occurs is at least in
  part determined by the experiences had by the
  player in playing the game.

130
Character DevelopmentGrowth

• Just because achieving this type of growth can be
  hard does not mean that character development is
  not an important part of the story of a game.
• There are many ways to think about this and
  accomplish this within a game.
• We will touch on a few of the common approaches
  here.

131
Character DevelopmentCharacter Arcs

• One process of character development is called
  the character arc.
• Based on the events in the story, the character
  will develop accordingly.
• Like a story arc, a character arc will span over
  crisis, climax, and resolution plot elements, but
  not necessarily in the sameform.

132
Character DevelopmentCharacter Arcs
Major CharacterArc
Minor CharacterArc
Resolution B
Climax B
Crisis B
Resolution A
Climax A
Crisis A
133
Character DevelopmentCharacter Arcs

• One can also look at character arcs in terms of
  the level of development that occurs within the
  character.

134
Character DevelopmentCharacter Arcs

• Intrapersonal Only concerned with own needs
  and thoughts.
• Interpersonal Bonds with another character in
  a one-on-one basis.
• Team Bonds with and belongs to a small group of
  characters with common goals and interests.
• Community The smaller team becomes part of a
  larger organized network.
• Humanity Concerned with the well being of
  everyone and everything.

135
Character DevelopmentCharacter Arcs

• Typically, characters start at the lower levels
  and work their way up throughout the game as
  their perspective broadens.
• Sometimes, characters start higher and move to
  lower levels.
• In the case of protagonists who are anti-heroes,
  this kind of development could be part of their
  fall from grace.

136
Character DevelopmentCharacter Triangles

• A character triangle is a powerful three way
  relationship between contrasting characters in a
  story.
• Usually the protagonist, antagonist and a
  supporting character.
• A story can contain multiple triangles, each
  representing its own sub-plot.
• Characters can take part in several triangles at
  once. For example, the protagonist can be in two
  triangles where they are competing with two
  different antagonists.

137
Character DevelopmentCharacter Triangles

• The most common triangle is the love triangle.
• There are many others, however. For example, a
  career triangle focusing on the competition for
  the same job.

138
Character DevelopmentVisual Development

• Have the visuals tied to the characters persona
  and role in the story.
• This includes
• Size, build, body type, and stature.
• Physical appearance and characteristics.
• Costume, including clothing, props, and so on.
• Animation and motion style.
• Idle behaviours and characteristics.
• And so on.

139
Character DevelopmentVerbal Development

• Through their monologues and dialogues,
  characters will have a chance to both expose
  their inner state and have an opportunity to
  develop.
• Be sure to take advantage of these opportunities
  when they are presented!
• If you find that characters involved in verbal
  discourse do not develop as a result, then this
  discourse might not really have been necessary.

140
Storytelling Techniques

• In a video game, there are really two ways that
  storytelling can take place.
• Through the actions of the characters.
• Through verbal commentary.
• If something is to be part of the story, it must
  show up in one of those two forms.

141
Storytelling TechniquesCut Scenes

• Cut scenes are essentially out-of-game miniature
  movies.
• If you do not deliver professional-quality work,
  the game will suffer for it.
• Each cut scene should have specific goals.
• Develop characters.
• Introduce a new environment.
• Advance the plot.
• Establish mission goals.
• For best results, it is a good idea to
  collaborate with professionals to do this.

142
Storytelling TechniquesCut Scenes
Screen shots from the original Wing Commander
(left) and Wing Commander IV (right). Both are
from cut scenes. The original game used cut
scenes between game sequences, while the fourth
entry in the series used them as a main
storytelling element.
143
Storytelling TechniquesCut Scenes

• Game technologies have advanced to the point
  where the same assets can be used for both cut
  scenes and the game itself.
• This allows for a higher level of immersion
  because there is a consistent presentation and no
  change in artistic style to present cut scenes.
• The player still loses control during cut scenes
  though, which can still have a jarring effect.
• If the story can be told within the game with the
  player still in control, that could be better
  than using cut scenes. In that case, however,
  the author loses control and the story might not
  unfold as desired.

144
Storytelling TechniquesScripted Events

• Scripted events are brief sequences within levels
  that are usually triggered by some player
  activity.
• They can be pieces of dialogue or small bits of
  action.
• They can provide back story, build character, or
  direct the player towards new goals.
• Be careful, however, that your scripted events do
  not break the players immersion!

145
Storytelling TechniquesScripted Events
Screen shot from Oni. This is of a scripted
event where theheroine Konoko triggers a guard
to come through a previously locked door in
another part of the level. Removing the
guard, passage would then be free.
146
Storytelling TechniquesVerbal Commentary

• Verbal commentary serves many purposes within a
  game
• Revealing character
• Revealing emotion
• Conveying backstory
• Advancing the plot
• Revealing conflict
• Establishing relationships
• Commenting on action
• This can take many forms ...

147
Storytelling TechniquesVerbal Commentary

• Narration Commentary made by a non player
  character or special narrator character whose
  role is to provide backstory or unbiased comments
  on events transpiring.
• Monologue Commentary given by one of the
  characters in a game for the purpose of
  illustrating the characters mental, emotional,
  or psychological state, or to reveal their inner
  thoughts.
• Dialogue Verbal interaction between two or more
  characters in the game. Can serve any of the
  purposes discussed on the previous slide.

148
Storytelling TechniquesVerbal Commentary

• Good verbal commentary sounds nothing like
  regular speech.
• We stumble, pause, and repeat ourselves. Verbal
  commentary must be crisp, to the point, and
  without a word wasted.
• When it comes time to crafting verbal commentary,
  it is likely best to bring in professional
  writers to make sure the job is done properly.

149
Storytelling TechniquesVerbal Commentary

• A few tips on verbal commentary
• The characters are part of the story and should
  therefore not talk about the story itself.
  (Otherwise they break the fourth wall, as
  discussed earlier.)
• Never have a character say something in dialogue
  that the player already knows.
• Keep dialogue realistic, and consistent with the
  mood, setting, and characters in the dialogue.
• There should be a purpose behind the commentary
  without a point, it can be annoying and
  frustrating.
• When writing dialogue, less is more. Keep it
  short.Let the player get back into the game
  quickly!

150
Storytelling TechniquesVerbal Commentary
Screen shot of the Legend of Zelda Ocarina of
Time. Dialogue is a critical point in advancing
the story, even if it is done in text form.
151
Storytelling TechniquesVerbal Commentary
Screen shot from Phantom Crash. The gameplay
itself is quite good, but theseemingly endless
and pointless dialogue between the action can be
extremely annoying and frustrating to the player.
152
Storytelling TechniquesGameplay Itself

• Each challenge faced by the player in the game
  should somehow advance the story.
• If a challenge does not do this, the player will
  wonder what the point was in overcoming it.
• This includes puzzles, obstacles, enemies, and
  essentially every other gameplay element.
• Again the challenge should be consistent with the
  story and the players role in how it unfolds.
• It must be reasonable for the challenge to exist
  and for the player to have to overcome it in
  order to complete their long-term objectives.

153
Storytelling TechniquesGameplay Itself
Screen shot from Zork I. By finding a way into
the house, we advance the story and the player is
allowed to proceed further.
154
Storytelling TechniquesGameplay Itself

• Most writings on game stories agree that the
  ideal is to put as much storytelling into game
  moments as possible.
• Doing this, however, is not as easy as it sounds,
  as this is breaking new ground in storytelling.
• However, this is likely a worthy goal for game
  developers to strive for.