I''m happy to see that there are people concerned with gamewriting
Maybe I think I could give interesting insight about this subject, just concerning my actual position as ''adventure game scenographer''.For years I''ve been dealing with scripts for short movies, comics - and still -, and since I''m in the game industry, slowly moved from ''cinematic scriptwriting'' to ''game scriptwriting''.
So per saying, the Devil in disguise
Actually we are facing a big fat huge question. On the left side we have a script that describes the game ''story'', with its characters, plots and main puzzles. And on the other hand the team that actually produces the game.
In between we have what we call the ''scenography'' that fleshes out the player''s actions within the different time and locations.
So we absolutly need a comprehensive scripting form (''readable'' by everyone) of our game & level design, that clearly describes the circulation between places, the subplots and subpuzzles, the interaction with people, etc. So set modelers wishes to read about the set, animators about the characters, and programmers about game logic.
Hmmm. How did the Ancients call it already ? Babel Tower, isn''t it ?
The problem is not that much about the ''content'' of the gamescript (that comes with the game genre) or story development (techniques exists since centuries), but more packing it all together.
Actually, our design docs still evolves with time, but we manage this problem actually in three steps.
First, is written a ''continuity'' on a per location / per level basis [A level actually last about 5 hours of game time]. So I could describe puzzles, events and interactivity that populate the place, for the different ''parts'' of the level.
Second, I use an internal scripting tool (based on python and similar to ye olde SCUMM) to prototype the main gamelogic. It''s quick, handy, and could point out ''condition leaks'' before they are commited
- saves big time during final coding.Third, we provide READERS to the game script ! Before we actually start to work on a level (that represents approx. 5 hours of game time), we have a meeting with all the team, and, like the sorcerer in the cave calling the spirits in front of the hand-drawned mammoth, we sit around the blackboard filled with art sheets, and start to talk about the game. So everyone could react and take time to make the game ''his/her''.
Similar to what animators do while storyboarding, in a way.
Anyway, even with the help of Chris Crawford of Richard Rouse
scripting the ''storyplay'' looks like - well - a real game challenge !
