Notes from The Ultimate Guide to Video Game Writing and Design

“Eleven Video Game Survival Commandments” (Dille, Zuur Platten, x-xi)
1. “We’re in the Entertainment Business, Not the Game Business”
2. “Build Your Design and Story to Break” – be ready to have things cut due to production, budget, and other realities.
3. “Somebody Always Knows Something You Don’t” Learn from it.
4. “Dialogue is the tip of the Dramatic Iceberg” Characters and situations are the real foundation of a story.
5. “You Are Only as Good as Your Relationship with Your Team”
6. “Be Willing to Kill Your Babies” Do not marry your ideas.
7. “Protect Your Vision” But don’t lose sight of what is meaningful for you.
8. “Make Your Deliverables”
9. “Don’t Shine a Spotlight on a Turd” Don’t highlight the game’s failings
10. “Choose Collaboration Over Compromise”
11. “Making Fun Should be Fun”

-Beginning with the PlayStation, we are now in the “Sophisticated Era” of Video Games (Dille, Zuur Platten, 11)

-Types of Narratives in Video Games:
-Limited Branching – “A series of ‘yes/no’ or ‘black/white’ objectives: (Dille, Zuur Platten, 20)
-Open-Ended – “The player may be faced with a multitude of storylines to follow in the game, and each of these may have multiple permeations” (Dille, Zuur Platten, 20)
-Funneling Narrative –Get’s the player back on the main quest of the game.
-Critical Paths – “One success path” with small deviations (Dille, Zuur Platten, 21).
-Nodal Storytelling – “Are either location and/or objective dependent” (Dille, Zuur Platten, 21).

-“Video game storytelling primarily exists to give meaning to game play” (Dille, Zuur Platten, 49). You are not writing a movie – the quicker the action the better. Structure your story with levels/quests and sub-levels/side quests.

-Create something that represents money and/or experience in your world. Example: Credits in “Mass Effect 2” and “Bottle caps” in Fallout 3.

-Avoid long cut-scenes – it’s a game not a movie. “Game logic is often more far-fetched than film logic because of the structure of the medium. The player always needs an objective or challenge, so in many cases reasoning behind areas of story are flimsy” (Dille, Zuur Platten, 50).

“World Questions”
-What is valuable?
-“What does the hero need to do to win?” (Dille, Zuur Platten, 62)
-Who is the villain? What are the obstacles in the way of the player’s victory?
-Can the protagonist fail? What happens then? What happens if they succeed?
-What are the borderlines keeping the player on track – are there any?
-Is time an issue?

Five Character Types:
-Player Character (PC/Hero) – “This is the character, that you, the player, control as you play the game” (Dille, Zuur Platten, 65). Example: Shepard in Mass Effect 2.
-NonPlayer Characters (NPCs) – “The other characters that populate the worlds of the game” (Dille, Zuur Platten, 66) Example: Butch from Fallout 3.
- Ally – “A character that either helps you or has to be helped by you” (Dille, Zuur Platten, 66). Example: Alistair from Dragon Age: Origins.
-Enemy – “An enemy is a foe that will actively attempt to thwart whatever you are trying to accomplish” (Dille, Zuur Platten, 66). Level Bosses – “Uber-enemies that the player will encounter throughought the game” (Dille, Zuur Platten 67). Example: Ogre, Broodmother, Branka in Dragon Age: Origins.

"The Ultimate History of Video Games" - Relevant Highlights

"The Birth of Electronic Arts"

-Founder: Trip Hawkins. Not only brilliant but stylish and handsome. A Harvard and Stanford Graduate where he researched "personal computing" (Kent, 261). Used this as "an excuse to call up every company in the business. [He] got to know all the pioneers in the business at the time ... guys like Steve Jobs... That's how [he] got in for [his] job at Apple" (Kent, 261-262).

-Became a multi-millionaire when Apple went public. Met Don Valentine and began creating is company. Gained interest by promoting designers, a new way of packaging games -"Album Covers" (263), and began changing the industry rules by offering retailers a lower discount for EA games.

-1984, Hawkins focused more on promoting games over designers. That same year, EA gains the rights to use Julius Irving's name and likeness in a basketball game.

"Nintendo Loses Square"
-During the late 90’s, “Nintendo lost an important third-party partner called Square Soft,” which specialized in RPG’s (Kent, 539).

-The most popular Square Soft game was “’Final Fantasy,’ created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, one of the world’s most respected game designers” (Kent, 540).

- Did not originally start out creating RPG’s but wanted to write something more exciting. “Since he planned to quit making games after the first RPG, Sakaguchi named his game ‘Final Fantasy’” (Kent, 540).
-“The basic concept was really a mythical concept of the whole earth, with fire and water representing everything on earth. I took that concept and represented those elements into a crystal, and that essentially became sort of the core theme for ‘Final Fantasy.’ I took a preexisting idea – the four or five basic elements of the world; sort of an orthodox and mythical concept – then molded it into an original fantasy story” (Sakaguchi quoted in Kent, 540).
-Became a huge success and introduced to the US. RPG’s were still more popular in Japan.
-Square Soft switches to Sony mostly due to more “artistic freedom” (Kent, 542).

The Ultimate History of Video Games -Timeline for Videogames as Relates to this Topic

*All from "The Ultimate History of Video Games" by Steven L. Kent pages xi -xvi

1889 - Fusajiro Yamauchi establishes the Marufuku company to manufacture and distribute Hanafuda, Japanese playing cards

1951 - Yamauchi changes the name of Marufuku Co. Ltd to Nintendo

1961 - MIT student Steve Russell creates "Space War," the first interactive computer game

1964 - Rosen Enterprises merges with Service Games to form Sega Enterprises

1966 - Sega releases "Periscope," Japan's first amusement game export.

1969 - Gulf & Western purchases Sega.

1970 - Nolan Bushnell begins work on an arcade version of "Spacewar" called "Computer Space"

1971 - Nutting Associates purchases "Computer Space," which becomes the first arcade video game machine.

1972 - Bushnell meets his partner Ted Dabney at a Magnavox demonstration and they create the Atari company. Atari engineer Al Alcorn creates "Pong." Magnavox releases "Odyssey."

1975 - Atari creates prototypical "Home Pong" unit and sells idea to Sears Roebuck. Midway Games imports a Taito game called "Gunfight," the first game to use a microprocessor.

1976 - Bushnell sell Atari for $28 million. Exidy Games releases "Death Race," a game in which players drive over stick figures. Protests about the game are feature on "60 Minutes."

1977 - Nintendo releases the first home video game in Japan.

1979 - Capcom is founded in Japan. Atari releases "Asteroids," the company's all-time best selling game. Atari game designer Warren Robinett introduces concept of "Easter Eggs" to video games. Mattel Electronics introduces the intellivision game console.

1980 - Atari releases "Space Invaders" for the Video Computer System. The Practice of selling home versions of arcade hits has begun. Activision is founded and is the first third-party game publisher. "Pac-Man" is released.

1981 - "Donkey Kong" and "Tempest" are released. "Electronic Games" becomes the first magazine about video games.

1982 - "Ms. Pac-Man" is released by Midway and becomes the biggest arcade game in American history.

1983 - Sega releases their first home console.

1985 - Tetris is designed.

1987 - "Legends of Zelda" is published.

1989 - NEC brings PC Engine to the United States and releases it as "TurboGrafx." Sega Genesis and Nintendo Gameboy are released.

1990 - "Super Mario 3" is released.

1991 - "Sonic the Hedgehog" is released.

1993 - "Myst" is published for Macs while "Doom" is published for PCs. Video game violence gains political attention.

1994 - The Interactive Digital Software Association is created. Sony releases PlayStation in Japan.

1995 - PlayStation is released in the US.

1996 - Atari Corporation is sold to ITS.

1997 - "Golden Eye" is released. "Final Fantasy VII" is released for PlayStation.

1998 - "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" is released.

1999 - Atari is sold to Hasbro Interactive.

2000 - Playstation 2 is released in Japan and the US. Plans for Xbox revealed.

2001 - Xbox is released. Gameboy Advanced and Gamecube released.

Further facts not from "The Ultimate History of Video Games"

1974 - "Dungeons and Dragons" is published as a pen-and-paper RPG.

1985 - Bethesda Game studios is founded.

1995 - BioWare is founded.

1997 - "Fallout" is released for computers.

1998 - "Fallout 2" is released.

2004 - "Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic" is released.

2005 - Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 launched.

2007 - "Mass Effect" is released.

2008 - "Fallout 3" is released for PC, Xbox 360, and Playstation 3.

2009 - "Dragon Age: Origins" is released.

2010 - "Mass Effect 2" is released.

Mass Effect 2 - Summary

-It’s not surprising that Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age: Origins are similar in many ways since they are both made by Bioware. However, although their structures are alike, these games are two different animals especially when it comes to character and whether or not they will be a hero or a villain.

-I am basing this post off of my experience with the game where I created a new character and did not import one from Mass Effect. Right from the beginning there are options to set up your character in a darker manner. For example, there is the choice of having a “Ruthless” reputation – where the character is already known to take whatever measures necessary to get the job done.

-The “moral scale” in this game is based on Paragon and Renegade points. In the opening scene of the game, the Normandy is destroyed and Shepard is “spaced.” Cerberus, a pro-human organization, picks up Shepard’s body and through much surgery and genetic modification brings her/him pretty much back to life. One of the doctors working on the Lazarus project (the name of the project working on Shepard) betrays Cerberus and rigs the security mechs to attack the base. Shepard is woken up before his/her facial scars have completely healed. Later on, Shepard receives a message that depending on his/her actions the facial scars will worsen or disappear. Basically, the renegade options causes more scarring and the paragon option heals the scars. This gives a physical face to “good” and “evil.” However, if you wanted to play a vain villain there is an option to buy a medical bay for the ship that will cure your facial scars and your future actions will not affect them.

-I would argue that the game lends itself more to the player who chooses to try to be purely paragon or purely renegade since conversation choices open up to the player who has a high enough level in one of these options.

-Example: After gaining the Loyalty of both Tali and Legion they will fight and Shepard will lose one of their loyalties unless they have high enough renegade or paragon points.

-I found this pretty easy to get used to. Usually in RPG’s I try to act as if it was actually me in the situation, but because the main character is named and there is actually a voice actor for Shepard, I am less attached to that idea. Instead I focus more on what kind of Shepard I want to create. The game gives the player many opportunities to be either brutal or heroic, not only in the dialogue but also during cut scenes where the player can press the left or right trigger for paragon or renegade actions.

-Figuring out which conversation options will give Shepard paragon or renegade points can be tricky. Most of the time the dialogue on the upper side of the circle will give Shepard paragon points but that is a set rule. Also, some options that you know is either renegade or paragon might surprise you with how many points it costs.
-Example: At Afterlife on Omega, if you do not stop the kid from joining the mercs to take on Archangel it will give you 7 renegade points which is more points than if you electrocute the merc mechanic working on the gunship in the same quest (Only 5 renegade points).

-Any decision in Mass Effect 2 should not be taken lightly for it will not only affect the outcome of the game but also Mass Effect 3. I would argue that the consequences of Shepard’s actions are much more serious than the Hero of Ferelden’s.

-Mass Effect 2 is very heavily plot-based. It is extremely important to recruit all companions and gain their loyalty for the final mission. Otherwise there will be deaths and it is possible (although difficult) to fail all together. But just because it is more plot based does not mean it limits the option to create your own kind of Shepard.

Fallout 3 - Summary

-In many ways Fallout 3 gives the player more ways to be a villain through their actions than in Dragon Age. This is mostly because the player does not have to follow a strict storyline. As soon as the character escapes from the vault, the player can go anywhere at anytime. There are no cut scenes, enemies can and do attack without warning, and music is optional (example: Galaxy Radio).

-The game increases in difficulty with each level up. So it is possible to beat the game very easily early on and then continue to wander afterwards. On the other hand, if the player chooses to wander and discover the entire world first before completing the main quest, the final mission will be very challenging. I chose an approach kind of between these two extremes by doing a main quest, then a couple of side quests and wandering around before doing another main quest.

-The character’s “moral scale” in Fallout 3 is based on “Karma Points.” The choices are very obvious. Unlike Mass Effect 2 and sometimes Dragon Age, I was not surprised whenever I gained or lost Karma points. If I stole from people (Items are in red) then I lost karma, if I killed a slave trader or saved a city from a nuclear bomb I gained karma points. Karma points affect how people see you. Most of the time, the Non-playable characters will say they have a “feeling” about you. Physically there is no change. Your karma points also affect places you can go and if you can recruit certain people to join you on your quests.

-Example 1: To enter Paradise Falls, a slave trading center basically, you need to have low karma or bring people to be slaves to achieve low enough karma.

-Example 2: In Megaton, I tried to recruit Jericho to wander with me but I had too high of karma for him to want to join me.

-It’s very easy to play the game either way. It doesn’t seem to affect the overall story too much if you have low or high karma but it greatly affects the character’s interactions with NPCs.

-In addition to karma points, Fallout 3 has “perks” that can affect the kind of character the player wishes to portray as well as combat, intelligence, and speech skills. For example, with the Black Widow perk, the female character receives extra damage points if fighting a male enemy. If I was trying to create a sort of “Poison Ivy” of the wasteland, this would be a perk for me.

-These perks enables the player to create their own storytelling within the game. And since Fallout 3 is not as constrained by the main quest, it makes it easy for the player to create their own story if they wish to do so.

-Unlike Dragon Age: Origins, Fallout 3 does not rely heavily on what the character’s companions think of him/her. It depends mostly on the karma points of when the character recruits them. The game is mostly combat with brief nice, relaxing periods of socializing with NPC when the character reaches settlements, vaults, or cities.

-I would definitely say that Fallout 3 is more violet and darker than both Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age: Origins. Especially with some of the options of low karma.

-Example: In Rivet City, you can convince two of the children to leave the safety of the ship by taunting them. This causes them to go underground where all sorts of creatures could kill them. This is just a mild example. In Dragon Age, the player is usually affecting a small number of people and is more personal, but in Fallout 3 the character makes decisions that will affect thousands. Later on in the game there is even the option of ethnic cleansing and genocide (kill all of the ghouls and Super mutants, etc or not).

-I must say, though, I did find myself wanting more personal contact with NPC. Unlike Bioware Games, where each companion and even many of the NPCs that the players just comes across, it didn’t seem like any of the Fallout 3 characters had a unique and thought through personality beyond the father. It’s the situations and terrifying places that really make this game.

Dragon Age: Origins - Summary

-Choose Origin:
-Race:
-Human
-Elf
-Dwarf
-Class
-Warrior
-Mage
-Rogue
-Your race and class will majorly affect not only how you play the game, particularly in combat, but also how other characters treat you.
-Example: If you play an elf (Be it Dalish, mage, or city elf) many humans will treat you or mistaken you as a servant. New conversation options surrounding the tension between humans and elves are available.
-These different options allow the player to really create a personality for their character. They can choose to be a proud Dalish elf and reject all human ways or try to make a compromise or completely give up their heritage.
-The “moral” scale of good and evil for Dragon Age: Origins is how your companions see you and only if they are present with you during the decision. No matter what your choices you will always be the “Hero of Fereldon”
-So how can you be a “villain” in DA:O then?
-Although you will be called a “hero” your decisions will affect every place you go for better or worse.
-Some choices are obviously good and some are obviously more on the evil (Killing a prisoner who is just asking for food is one of those options). But some are more complex and you only really find out at the end of the game the repercussions of your actions.
-Example: I thought that promoting religious freedom in Orzammar was a good, heroic thing to do. However, in the epilogue we found out that Brother Burkel is killed and the Chantry is considering an exalted march against Orzammar
- By having your “morality” judged by your companions is interesting since each of the companions have different views on certain decisions, and because only the present companions judge a decision it is easy to manipulate your “moral scale.”
- Example: First play through I recruited Shale – this upset Alistair and gave me -8 disapproval. The next time I played I left Alistair back at the party camp, recruited Shale, and lost no approval points.
-Note: this changes in the Awakenings expansion pack – even if not present the player will receive approval or disapproval points.
-On the whole, most of the major repercussions of the player’s decisions come in the epilogue – giving them more freedom to be bad during the game without immediate consequences. This is very different from both Mass Effect 2 and to an extent Fallout 3.
-If you wish to play a straight no nonsense-killing villain not only in action but in name as well then I would recommend playing the DLC the Darkspawn Chronicles where you play the final battle of DA:O as a darkspawn. It’s more combat than story telling but then again, you aren’t the archdemon, just a member of the horde.
-When I played, my first two times I played as if I was actually the character – what I think I would do in that situation. This is what I felt most comfortable with, despite being a villainy major. I liked my companions and wanted them to like me too. But after playing through the game a couple of times I began to venture out and create characters that weren’t “my personality.”
-Examples: Casanova-like Rogue Human Noble and a ruthless Dalish Elf

Notes from The Pleasures of Immersion and Interaction: Schemas, Scripts, and the Fifth Business by J. Yellowlees Douglas and Andrew Hargadon

Questions to tackle when writing a first person video game
“How much freedom do users want when it comes to plotting strategy or getting acquainted with characters?”
“Is a cut-scene that signifies closure a reward for working your way through a videogame’s myriad of firefights, kung fu contests, and puzzles? Or do cut-scenes nullify the openness of both narrative and plot seemingly promised by the entire concept of interactivity?” (Yellowless Douglas and Hargadon, 193)
Fallout 3 – no cut-scenes
Dragon Age and Mass Effect 2 – some cut scenes
Final Fantasy – More cut scenes than game play in the first few hours of the game
Heavy Rain – Interactive cut-scene
What are Schemas and why are they important?
“Schemas enable us to perceive objects and occurrences around us and to make sense of them efficiently by consulting our ready-made store of similar occurrences and understandings, which we gain from reading, personal experience, and even advice we receive from others” (Yellowlees Douglas and Hargadon, 194)
“Schemas are, moreover, such vital perceptual tools that, when objects or works violate long-held conventions, we become frustrated and fail to understand them” (Yellowlees Douglas and Hargadon, 195)
“When aesthetic objects invite us to rely on certain schemas, they are not, however, necessarily guaranteeing us an entirely predictable experience” (Yellowlees Douglas and Hargadon, 195)
“Whether by accident or design, early game developers had hit digital paydirt by founding their first ventures on the bedrock of two essentials: a recipe for interaction that all but guaranteed a deeply immersive experience and strong, normative schemas borrowed from already familiar forms of entertainment” (Yellowlees Douglas and Hargadon, 197)
By creating a game around rules or storylines that users would already be familiar with, they are easier to grasp and get into
Interactions beyond the Shoot Out – the Hunt-Quest
“Before we so much as glimpse the title screens of your typical hunt-quest, we already know we need to listen intently, collect everything we can lay our mitts on, and put together our tools and clues to solve the local challenges that confront us, which, in turn, will enable us to solve the interactive’s grand challenge – usually something on the order of liberating a prisoner, altering the course of history, or saving the planet” (Yellowless Douglas and Hargadon, 198)
Dragon Age: Origins, Mass Effect 2, Fallout 3 all follow these guidelines