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Six words about stories in games
by Lewis Pulsipher on 01/14/12 05:29:00 pm Expert Blogs

28 comments

The following blog was, unless otherwise noted, independently written by a member of Gamasutra's game development community. The thoughts and opinions expressed here are not necessarily those of Gamasutra or its parent company.

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According to a recent tweetdeck, one of the trending:worldwide topics on twitter was 6 word stories. In the past few months I've asked people to say 6 words about game design, programming, wargames, and casual games.

This time the charge is this: say six words about stories in games (or stories and games, if you prefer).

Comments


Ian Davis	14 Jan 2012 at 8:38 pm PST

	The whole world circles around me.
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James Coote	15 Jan 2012 at 6:44 am PST

	silent movies, this time last century
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Altug Isigan	15 Jan 2012 at 12:02 pm PST

	Rules create fiction, says Roger Callois.
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Roderick Hossack	15 Jan 2012 at 8:11 pm PST

	Shut up! I want to play.
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Luis Guimaraes	15 Jan 2012 at 8:11 pm PST

	Far beyond writing.
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Erwin Goh	15 Jan 2012 at 8:24 pm PST

	Plots keep me and dualshock together.
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Timothee Garnaud	16 Jan 2012 at 12:37 am PST

	Don't listen, look!
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Altug Isigan	16 Jan 2012 at 2:14 am PST

	The princess is in another castle.
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Michael Joseph	16 Jan 2012 at 4:04 am PST

	Kill everything, save world, get girl. sigh "You must tell them true stories." http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Philip_Pullman [] as in ficticious but honest
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Nicholas Muise	16 Jan 2012 at 5:19 am PST

	Here are a few that cropped up this morning: Promotes illusion of player driven experiences Doesn't easily reinforce core gameplay experience Too easily excused if poorly executed
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Cary Chichester	16 Jan 2012 at 8:05 am PST

	Ask yourself, what would Hollywood do?
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Tynan Sylvester	16 Jan 2012 at 11:23 am PST

	Made me laugh.
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Luis Guimaraes	17 Jan 2012 at 8:38 am PST

	"Make a movie instead".
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Joshua Darlington	8 Mar 2012 at 11:21 am PST

	What would Shi Nai'An do?
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Chad Levesque	16 Jan 2012 at 10:18 am PST

	Flavoring formal systems with narrative context.
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Lewis Pulsipher	16 Jan 2012 at 10:23 am PST

How about:

Not the best medium for storytelling

Stories provide context for learning gameplay

Themes influence gameplay, atmosphere does not

Players should write their own stories

Story often an excuse for action

HiSTORY games can be learning tools

Gameplay must come first, story later

A game *story* idea? Worth nothing.

Game designers are rarely story tellers

Linear stories tend to stifle gameplay

Story in games? Write a novel.

Film envy will get you nowhere


Tynan Sylvester	16 Jan 2012 at 11:24 am PST

	Mechanics make stories, not you. Make my mind-pictures real. Punish me again. Oh, yes. (All right, I've been playing too much Dark Souls).
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Shawn Covington	16 Jan 2012 at 11:35 am PST

	Obvious plot, characters see it not. (myess!)
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James Youngman	16 Jan 2012 at 12:07 pm PST

	The designer dances with the player.
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Michael DeFazio	16 Jan 2012 at 7:40 pm PST

	don't talk at me, engage me.
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Sebastian Bombera	17 Jan 2012 at 1:11 am PST

	Player meets game, stories are created
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Søren Jønsson	17 Jan 2012 at 4:49 am PST

	Well integrated dialogue makes stories work
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Tora Teig	17 Jan 2012 at 5:10 am PST

	Don't. Make. Me. Read. Another. Word.
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Altug Isigan	17 Jan 2012 at 8:39 am PST

	Make me read a pictogram instead.
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Nick Harris	17 Jan 2012 at 6:33 am PST

	Kudos rewards Procedurally-Generated Role-Play.
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Chris Catalano	17 Jan 2012 at 8:36 am PST

	Dreams and passion lead to fun
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Mark Ludlow	19 Jan 2012 at 7:46 pm PST

	Hey Listen! Hey Listen! Hey Listen!
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Joshua Darlington	8 Mar 2012 at 11:12 am PST

	model playerstate intentionality, balance entertainment elements.
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