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Everything is Possible - Storytelling in Games

Posted by Zonk on from the story-is-the-engine-of-the-game dept.

Gamespot has a thoughtful and interesting piece up entitled Everything is Possible, where they interview several game designers with a strong storytelling background. The interviewees include Chris Avellone (Planescape: Torment), Hideo Kojima (Metal Gear), Ken Levine (System Shock 2), Tim Schafer (Grim Fandango), and Ragnar Tørnquist (The Longest Journey). These gaming luminaries discuss the finer points of creating a plot in an interactive universe, and it makes for a fantastic read. From the article: "Ken Levine: I'll never forget the first story I wrote in gaming. It was for a (eventually canceled) Star Trek: Voyager game. I wrote the opening cutscene, which included this gem: THE CAMERA ZOOMS IN ON JANEWAY...WE SEE A LOOK OF TERROR IN HER EYES AS IT REFLECTS THE INCOMING MISSILE The lead programmer pretty much laughed in my face. First of all, our characters were low-resolution bitmaps, with one fixed expression on their face. Their eyes were maybe 4x4 pixels each. The camera zooming in on that wouldn't have shown a performance; they would have shown a scattered mess of random pixels."

12 of 46 comments (clear)

  1. Max Payne 2 - The Fall Of Max Payne by Proud+like+a+god · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I must say I've never played the original Max Payne, but the sequel was "A film noir love story" told via a brilliant combination of comic style screens and realtime sequences which added an extra depth to what is otherwise a shoot-em-up. Coupled with a great graphics and bullet-time engine it's one of my most rewarding games purchases to date.

    1. Re:Max Payne 2 - The Fall Of Max Payne by 88NoSoup4U88 · · Score: 2, Informative
      If you haven't got around to buying Max Payne 1, and you really enjoyed the storyline/athmosphere/setting in MP2, I truely recommend you to play MP1.

      It's a very daring plot (imo) and very well told, and gives you more insight into good ol' tortured Max.

  2. Video Games are the evolution of storytelling by ZephyrXero · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I see Video Games as potentially being the ultimate storytelling platform. It takes all previous forms of storytelling and rolls them into one, then lets you participate. This is the number one reason I am interested in creating video games. It really does have a little bit of everything, cinematic (movie) elements, music, reading, and speech. Not only do you get to see the universe, it's characters, and events... You get to be part of it! I could probably ramble on for hours like this, but I guess I'll cut myself off here.

    --
    "A truly wise man realizes he knows nothing."
    1. Re:Video Games are the evolution of storytelling by patternjuggler · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I see Video Games as potentially being the ultimate storytelling platform.

      I was just watching an episode of the IFC's 'A Decade Under The Influence', and a famous director from the '70s said something like "I'm not interested in stories. There are only 6 or 7 stories. I'm interested in behaviour." I think that's not saying that stories are unnecessary or can be sidelined, but that the interesting thing is behaviour- how characters act within a story. Games make that much more interesting than more rigid media because of the interactive element. (cue debate on story centric vs. sandbox style games, compromise on answer that that is synthesis of both...)

    2. Re:Video Games are the evolution of storytelling by geminidomino · · Score: 2, Interesting

      A few years ago I would have agreed with you. Video game stories evolved from the early software toys (no set "win" condition, just shoot for a high score) to "save the girl" (get through all the levels and see a "Congratulation! You're the Hero!" screen) all the way to the engrossing, coherent(Usually. *AHEM* SquareEnix, I'm talking to you!) "worldbuilding" projects that really show what the medium is capable of. Nosgoth, Hyrule, Lunar, &c... Worlds with their own histories and stories.

      Now, it looks like we've gone full circle. Back to software toys like "The Sims" and EASportsGame(Year), weak movie knockoffs (LOTR would have been a great series to base a game off of for years now, but they had to wait until a movie series watered down the storyline enough for the masses), etc... Even those who'd become pillars of the "story driven" game have been reduced to putting out dribbling tripe (FF X-2, anyone?)

      Hopefully we have another turnaround when the 5th-gen consoles come out, as I've pretty much decided against any of the up-and-coming systems 4th gens.

    3. Re:Video Games are the evolution of storytelling by fondue · · Score: 2, Interesting

      "This is the number one reason I am interested in creating video games."

      Then please save everyone a lot of trouble and go and make films instead.

      --

      Preferences > Homepage > Customize stories on homepage > Authors > Zonk > Uncheck

  3. Plot sells games. by Red+Moose · · Score: 4, Interesting
    I suppose I'll just mention that Final Fantasy VII had an amazing story and is probably why it was so well loved, made all the more unique with the big heads. I miss that game.

    Knights of the Old Republic was the probably the most recent game with an excellent story.

    My personal opinion is that the story and plot makes a bigger difference on whether I buy a game or not - and it's part of the reason why I don't find FPS games that great as the depth is lacking (yes, *even* *in* *Halflife* ). Likewise, Deus Ex was hailed as revolutionary as a modern FPS style game but with lots of depth and for once a story that wasn't original but was well told. The sequel was dumbed down bullshit as usual.

    The demise of the adventure game has also paralleled the rise of stupidity-sells games like the EA games and so on. Perhaps the "creativity" and "originality" we all moan about from yesteryear is not that we are just old fogey's bitching - maybe it's the the story and effort to create plot (think back to Loom, Monkey Island) is forgotten these days.

    --

    Acting stupid isn't much fun when there's someone around who knows better

    1. Re:Plot sells games. by xgamer04 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I suppose I'll just mention that Final Fantasy VII had an amazing story and is probably why it was so well loved,

      Stop, just STOP. The reason FF VII was/is "so well loved" is because it was one of those games where a new influx of console-owning sheep finds a halfway decent representation of a genre and proceeds to put it on a throne. Just look at Halo. I know people who love this game. When I complained about not being able to use a mouse/keyboard (in the Xbox version), they were like "WTF keyboards suck! That would be so dumb!".

      Sure, it may be "well loved", but look at how many Deer Hunter games there are.

      --
      When you look at the state of the world, how can you not become a radical, liberal anarchist?
  4. Games are a young art form by Master_T · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Games are a particularly young art form. The beginning of cinema was similar. There wasn't much meat to what they did. It was based in the amusement of seeing a moving picture.

    It is the same with games. Only now are we starting to truly see games that seek to work as artistic and storytelling devices. Even now, much of them are weak and not strong in an artistic sense or in a sense of narrative. We have begun to see narrative gems like Xenosaga, FFVII, KOTOR, HL2 and others. Soon perhaps we'll see games develop a sense of aesthetic too(the way a sense of beauty is evoked. there are many different ones, they stem from a philosphy of creation) .

    I personally believe that at some point games will become an artistic genre like unto cinema or even opera. With art-direction, carefully written plots, and quality music. Perhaps the way a game plays will eventually reinforce the message or story it puts forth. Won' that be interesting.

  5. The most undersung game with a story is... by Quarters · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Mafia. It's unfortunate that the game got mis-branded as "GTA in 1930's Chicago". Yes it has a free-roaming mode and cars, but the similarities end there. The story is engaging, the characters are believable, and the backdrop to the entire thing is just drop-dead gorgeous.

  6. Re:Time to fire the "lead" programmer by ZephyrXero · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Actually many many people believe using the same in game model graphics helps the game feel like one solid piece instead of a two completely different experiences. Sure a couple seconds of prerendered eye candy can be nice, but it reminds you subconciously that this is a movie and you are no longer playing the game...

    --
    "A truly wise man realizes he knows nothing."
  7. Re:Time to fire the "lead" programmer by 91degrees · · Score: 2

    So, mipmap it. Create a high detailed version and blend smoothly between them. Or find a way to cut smoothly between the cutscene and the pre-rendered sequence.

    As a programmer, I try to avoid declaring things can't be done. I try to ask how things can be done instead. Sometimes this is still not practical given time limitations, but shouldn't be dismissed outright.