I. Introduction
Recently I encountered an article on Arstechnica by Peter Bright concerning the failure of storytelling in modern videogames. Peter Bright, The Failure of Bioshock: Writing Games Like Movies (June 14). The shortcoming of storytelling in modern videogames is a matter I have also given some consideration, and in doing so I came up with a rudimentary framework for thinking about game design and its implications for storytelling. In an effort to continue the discussion that Mr. Bright initiated with the publication of his article, I offer my framework as a tool (albeit, an imperfect one) to be used in this debate. The foundation of my framework rests on what I perceive as the three primary purposes of modern videogames. After a brief discussion of those purposes, I will turn to explaining my framework and providing several examples of where I believe games fall within it. Finally, I will conclude this article by considering the implications of the analysis and what should be considered by game designers early in the development process.II. General Purposes of Videogames
Speaking in very general terms, there are at least three primary purposes that a videogame can serve: (1) to entertain, (2) to tell a story, and (3) to allow the player to "live another life."[sup][1][/sup] The first purpose, to entertain, bears little additional discussion, because the purpose is fairly self-evident. Likewise, the second purpose is self-explanatory -- it comes as no surprise that videogames can be used to tell stories in the same way that literature and cinema can. The third purpose, however, requires additional discussion. I refer to it as "living another life," but what I am really referring to is an application of what Tolkien calls the creation of "Secondary Belief." See J.R.R. Tolkien, On Faerie-Stories, Tree and Leaf 37-46 (HarperCollins 2001). Videogames can be used to create another world that is entirely consistent within itself, a world that inspires "Secondary Belief" in the player and allows an escape thereto. The game designer is a "sub-creator" and the efficacy of his or her sub-creation is judged by the degree to which it inspires "Secondary Belief." In my view this is, perhaps, the noblest application to which videogames can be put. These purposes are not mutually exclusive, and, indeed, all videogames (arguably) serve the purpose of entertainment. In other words, the purposes of telling a story and allowing the player to live another life necessarily aim to entertain -- to tell a story is to entertain, after all. Similarly, a videogame that seeks to tell a story can also facilitate the player in living another life. As Tolkien recognized, the telling of many stories requires Secondary Belief by the reader in order to fully enjoy them. See id. While these purposes are largely compatible with one another, they can become incompatible under certain circumstances. In assessing whether purposes are incompatible in a particular game, I propose a framework whereby the degrees to which each purpose is pursued are weighed against one another. This exercise provides valuable insights into game design and the implications of promoting one purpose over another. For purposes of this analysis, I will exclude the purpose of entertainment, as it is presumed present in both storytelling and facilitating the player in living another life.III. The Framework
The framework I propose focuses on the use of two separate continuums, one for each purpose discussed above. For the storytelling purpose of videogames, the continuum represents the degree of player choice within the story. Alternately, the living another life continuum represents the degree of player freedom within the story or world. I will discuss each continuum in greater detail below, provide examples of where particular games fall along each continuum, and finally conclude by discussing the implications of where a game falls along each.A. The Storytelling Continuum: Degree of Player Choice
For present purposes, the degree to which player choice is permitted to impact a story is perhaps the single most important characteristic that distinguishes one game from another. As I alluded to, by player choice I mean the player's ability to act within the confines of the story, most notably by impacting or changing the outcome. This continuum represents a dichotomy with a complete lack of developer-defined story on one end and an entirely linear story on the other. In between these two extremes are games that (1) allow choices of consequence, including those that change the ultimate outcome, and finally (2) allow only inconsequential choice within the story. Below is a simple diagram illustrating the continuum:
B. The "Living Another Life" Continuum: Degree of Player Freedom
When a game's purpose is to facilitate the player in living another life, the most important characteristic is the amount of freedom the player is given. In this context, freedom primarily denotes the player's physical freedom -- the player's ability to explore and engage with the world on his or her own terms. As such, factors bearing heavily on a player's freedom are the extent to which the player can interact with the world (simply look at it vs. directly change it) and how much the player may explore the world ("on rails" vs. open world). Again, the continuum here represents a dichotomy, with games that do not permit the player to explore or interact with the world on one end, and completely open "sandbox" games on the other. However, it is more difficult to create categories between the two extremes on this continuum. The matter is further complicated by the fact that many games fall in different places along the continuum at different parts of the game. Regardless, there are at least two points along the continuum that we can tentatively place: (1) where the player can engage in nominal exploration or interaction with the world, and (2) where the player can meaningfully engage or interact with the world. Below is an illustration of this continuum:
