Interactive Storytelling for Video Games Chapter 3: The Hero

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Interactive Storytelling for Video GamesChapter
3 The Heros Journey and the Structure of Game
Stories

• Josiah Lebowitz
• Chris Klug

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Writing a Game Story

• Story writing involves many different elements
  including creating an interesting setting,
  developing believable characters, planning a
  satisfying ending, and just having the discipline
  to sit down and write it all out.
• Every writer has different opinions on which
  parts of the process are the most challenging.
• When working in games, writers are often given an
  outline created by a designer or creative lead
  and tasked with expanding it.

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Types of Stories Best Suited for Games

• Some types of stories that are common in books
  and films such as romance and sitcoms arent
  often seen in games.
• Games encourage a high degree of interactivity.
  Without interaction, a game isnt a game.
• External conflicts such as fighting and strategy,
  exploration, and puzzle solving are much easier
  to portray in games than internal conflicts (such
  as emotional trauma or deep thought). Therefore
  a proper game story needs to support a large
  amount of one or more of those elements.
• Games are easier to make and play if they focus
  on a single main character or group of
  characters, rather then frequently changing
  perspectives.

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Using Non-Ideal Stories

• Stories without large amounts of external
  conflict and/or with large casts of characters
  can be used in games, though it requires careful
  planning to design and appropriate and enjoyable
  form of gameplay.
• Japanese dating sims such as Love Plus and more
  artistic abstract titles such as Flower
  demonstrate how non-ideal story types can be
  turned into enjoyable games.

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The Heros Journey

• The heros journey is the story structure around
  which many famous stories are based. Joseph
  Campbell was the first to formally define the
  journey.
• A number of ancient myths such as Gilgamesh,
  Beowulf, and The Iliad and Odyssey use the heros
  journey structure as do more modern works like
  Star Wars and Harry Potter.
• It works especially well for stories about heroic
  quests, epic adventures, and journeys of
  enlightenment.
• The heros journey is so prevalent that many
  writers with no formal knowledge of the structure
  still use it in their stories.
• The heros journey is just a framework and isnt
  mean to be followed verbatim. Its meant to be
  used, modified, and even ignored as needed. Its
  also by no means the only story structure out
  there.

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The Structure of the Journey

• The journey can be broken into three acts the
  departure, the initiation, and the return.
• These acts then be further broken down into
  anywhere between 10 and 17 stages.
• Its important to note that some stages are
  optional and can be skipped and/or re-ordered as
  needed.

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Stage 1 The Ordinary World

• The story begins with the hero living out his
  ordinary life. Note that its ordinary in
  relation to the hero, not necessarily to the
  players.
• This is a chance to introduce the hero and show a
  bit about him and the world where he lives.
• This section shouldnt be too long or it can get
  boring.
• In Game Arts Lunar Silver Star Harmony, the game
  opens with Alex living a peaceful life in a small
  town with his friends.

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Stage 2 The Call to Adventure

• Something needs to make the hero leave his
  ordinary life behind.
• Sometimes hell be requested or even forced to
  leave. Other times he may just become tired with
  his life and long to do something different.
• The call often sets up the start of the main
  plot, such as an attack by the main villain, but
  at times the hero leaves for unimportant reasons
  and doesnt get pulled into the main plot until
  later on.
• How the hero responds to the call says a lot
  about him.
• In Lunar, Alex and his friends encounter the
  dragon Quark. He senses that Alex has potential
  and urges him to leave home and begin a quest to
  become the new Dragonmaster.

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Stage 3 Refusing the Call

• While some heroes are eager to begin their
  journey, others have reservations. They might be
  worried about the danger or unwilling to leave
  their home and loved ones behind. Some are just
  lazy.
• If the hero refuses the call, something has to
  happen in order to change his mind.
• At times the heros initial refusal is a good
  thing but most often it results in a tragedy
  which forces him on his path.
• In Lunar, while Alex is eager to follow Quarks
  advice, his childhood friend Luna is afraid to
  leave the only home shes ever known. But Alex
  refuses to leave without her and manages to
  change her mind.

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Stage 4 The Mentor

• Many heroes initially lack the skills and
  knowledge needed to succeed in their quest.
• A more experienced mentor can help prepare him
  for what lies ahead.
• A cliché mentor is old, wise, and sure to die
  heroically before the heros training is
  complete, but not all mentors fit that mold.
• In Lunar, Alex and his friends run into trouble
  early on and are saved by the swordsman Laike,
  who goes on to give Alex aid and advice
  throughout his adventure.

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Stage 5 The First Threshold

• To finish out the first act, the hero must
  complete his first big challenge and pass the
  point of no return.
• It can be a physical challenge or a mental one.
• This reaffirms the heros resolve and sets him
  firmly on the path of adventure.
• In Lunar, Luna tries to back out as the group
  prepares to leave their home island behind, but
  Alex convinces her to come with them.

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Stage 6 The Journey

• This stage makes up the vast majority of the
  story.
• In it, the hero travels the world, makes friends
  and enemies, grows more skilled and confident,
  and determines his final goal.
• In Lunar, the journey begins when Alex leaves his
  home island behind and ends when he and his new
  friends prepare to assault Ghaleons fortress and
  rescue Luna.

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Stage 7 The Final Dungeon

• This stage doesnt need to actually contain a
  dungeon, though in video games it often does.
• Stage 7 is comprised of the heros plans and
  actions leading up to (but not including) the
  final confrontation.
• Its a time to wrap up loose plot threads and set
  everything up for the heros greatest challenge
  (the final boss, hardest puzzle, etc).
• In Lunar, after their first failure to save Luna
  from Ghaleons clutches, Laike helps Alex and his
  friends regroup. They then press on and
  successfully fight their way to Ghaleons inner
  sanctum.

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Stage 8The Great Ordeal

• This is the moment everything has been building
  towards as the hero confronts his greatest enemy,
  undertakes the ultimate test of his skills, or
  the like. Its also the end of the second act.
• In a game, this stage usually takes the form of a
  final boss battle or puzzle.
• Often the hero has to overcome not only the
  external challenge but his own inner demons as
  well in order to triumph.
• In Lunar, Alex and his friends face off against
  Ghaleon, who is using Luna to reawaken the
  goddess Althena so he can take her power and
  become a god himself. They manage to defeat him
  after a long and difficult battle.

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Stage 9 The Prize

• Heroes rarely undertake dangerous journeys just
  for fun. Theyre out to rescue the girl, claim
  the treasure, save the world, or the like. This
  stage is where they finally achieve their
  ultimate goal.
• Depending on the heros personality and the
  nature of the prize, the hero may react with joy,
  introspection, or disappointment.
• In Lunar, once Ghaleon is defeated the world is
  safe and Alex and Luna are finally reunited

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Stage 10 The Road Home

• With the prize in hand (literally or
  metaphorically) its time for the hero to return
  home to the ordinary world (or occasionally a new
  home discovered during the journey).
• Things dont always go as planned and this is the
  time to throw in any last minutes twists or
  challenges (such as the real final villain
  appearing or the villains fortress collapsing).
• In Lunar, Alex discovers that hes too late and
  Luna is gone, replaced by the reborn Althena.
  However, he manages to reawaken her memories.

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The Return 11

• Now that any last threats have been dealt with
  (at least until the sequel) its time for the
  hero to return home and bring the story to and
  end.
• An ending thats too short can leave players
  unsatisfied while one thats too long can become
  boring.
• Writing good endings is often a writers greatest
  challenge.
• In Lunar, Alex and Luna reunite and return home
  to their peaceful life.

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Common Themes and Clichés in Game Storytelling

• Clichés can be good or bad depending on how
  theyre used.
• Games have a large set of common themes and
  clichés, some of which are gameplay based
  (exploding barrels) and others which are story
  based (amnesia).
• Clichés start because they were used in popular
  stories and worked well. They also make it
  easier for players to identify with the story.
• Even though theyre predictable, they can still
  work well.
• If overused, theyll make a story feel generic
  and corny.

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A Few Common Clichés

• The Amnesiac Hero Provides a good excuse for the
  hero to learn basic things that he should know
  but the player doesnt. It can also set up for a
  big reveal later on when the hero gets his
  memories back.
• The Evil Vizier Getting betrayed by someone in a
  position of power is shocking and makes things
  far more challenging for the hero.
  Unfortunately, evil viziers (or ministers,
  friends, etc) tend to be extremely easy for the
  player to spot, making him wonder why the heroes
  take so long to figure it out.
• No One Noticing the Evil Vizier Despite the fact
  that evil viziers typically sport an evil haircut
  and lots of highly suspicious dialogue, no one
  ever seems to question their loyalty.

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A Few Common Clichés

• The Last of His Race If the hero or one of his
  friends is the last of his race (or village,
  family, etc) it provides an easy excuse for him
  to go after the villain (who probably killed all
  the others) and to gain special powers that no
  one else has.
• I am You Father Ever since The Empire Strikes
  Back, its quite common for the heros father,
  brother, or the like to be either the main
  villain, one of the main villains closest
  followers, or a legendary hero who isnt as dead
  as everyone thinks he is.
• A Party of Clichés Most heroes groups of allies
  include at least a few of the following a
  beautiful mysterious girl, a rebellious princess,
  a tough warrior girl, a grizzled veteran soldier,
  an unemotional or emo character, and a cute (but
  generally useless) creature of some sort.

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A Few Common Clichés

• Saving the World From Evil No matter what the
  heros original goal was, hes almost certain to
  end up saving the world, often from some ancient
  evil who was recently revived or just likes to
  stop in for a visit every so many years.
• The Ancient Civilization A highly advanced
  civilization used to exist a long time ago but
  was mysteriously wiped out, leaving an enormous
  amount of ruins and artifacts behind. They were
  probably destroyed by the ancient evil and have
  some connection to the hero or one of his friends.

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When to Use and Avoid Clichés

• Limit the number of clichés you use in a single
  game.
• Twist clichés around to make them feel different
  and new while catching players off guard.
• Use clichés to mislead the player. For example,
  use a seemingly evil (but actually good) vizier
  to draw attention away from the real enemy agent.
• Dont use clichés for the sake of using clichés,
  unless youre trying to make fun of them in a
  comedy based story.

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Things to Consider

• When writing a story, what parts do you have the
  easiest time with? What parts are the most
  difficult?
• List some video games youve played which used
  non-ideal story types. Did the writers and
  designers succeed in turning the stories into
  enjoyable games? Why or why not?
• Take a look at the story from one of your
  favorite games, break it into stages, and see how
  well it fits within the Heros Journey structure.
• Choose a game youve played recently and make a
  list of all its clichés.
• Think of a game that used a cliché in a very
  different and unexpected way. How did the writer
  change the cliché to accomplish this?