1. Narrative / Simulation
Robin Burke
GAM 224

2. Outline
Quiz
Admin
Schedule change
Narrative
Simulation (?)

3. Quiz
30 minutes

4. Admin Starting "Culture" unit Topic for 11/9 now "The Game Industry"
on-line reading
"Death to the Game Industry: Long Live Games"

5. Narrative Play Narrative is a basic form of human experience
any event can be turned into a narrative
fundamental mental representation
Any game-playing experience can be turned into a story
emergent narrative
The game may also include crafted narrative elements
embedded narrative

6. Dramatic structure
Emergent narrative is a function of dramatic structure
how does the player experience change over time?
Fundamental idea
tension-release
Constant tension
exhausting
overwhelming

7. Dramatic structure in Asteroids
Start
assessment, slow-moving menace
Response
planful response
selective destruction
Mid-point
intensely reactive
chaotic
"pebble storm"
saucers
End-game
skillful and focused
chasing
more saucers
Pause before next wave
Cycle is short
several minutes at most

8. Dramatic structure in Wind Waker
Start
bucolic island scene
Complication
sister kidnapped
Preparation
travel
item acquisition
mission cut-scene
Intensification
navigating dungeon
Confrontation
boss encounter
Relaxation
mission completion
cut-scene
Back to "Preparation"
Cycle much longer
60 minutes+

9. Interactive storytelling
Early theorists thought of games as a new narrative form
"interactive storytelling"
According to this theory, the player
would become a character
would interact with the virtual world of the author
would generate a unique personal story
"ergodic literature"

10. The problem A story is a communicative act
authoring a story means having something to say
making form, content and structure work together to convey it
the more elaborate the form the more expressive potential
But the audience does not alter the form, content or structure
might alter details of performance
some experiments but none really successful

11. Games and stories To make a game story-like To make a story game-like
we have to prevent the player from changing its form, content or structure
guarantees the designed payoff
but gives the player nothing to do
To make a story game-like
we have to allow its content to be generated by the user's choices
which means the author is no longer free to tell his/her story
user might miss expensive game content

12. Various compromises Abstraction Story as normative action
no need for story
emotional impact is lacking
Story as normative action
player must learn correct sequence of actions to follow the correct story
constraining

13. The standard compromise
The "string of pearls" story
A segmented story
A main character (the player)
A number of pre-defined narrative events
A pre-determined conclusion
In between narrative "pearls"
game actions
ideally actions and narrative are coherent
In some cases
multiple possible conclusions
multiple characters to play

14. Why is this the standard?

15. Games ≠ Stories But most games will have a narrative component
What is this story?
What is the mechanism by which the story is told?
What is the relationship between the game's action and its narrative element?
How do the "pearls" relate to "string"?
Does the story work?

16. Benefits of game narrative
Adds drama to the player's actions
"If I don't get there in time, the world will be destroyed"
Lends weight to the player's choices
"I better decide carefully. I don't want the Vizier to kill the princess."
Provides a rationale behind the structure of the game world
"That's why the world is full of nasty aliens"
Helps the user understand what to do and how to do it
"Because I'm made of paper, I can turn into a paper airplane."

17. Maxims of game narrative
Being shown is better than being told
let the environment / setting tell the story
Doing is better than being shown
let the dynamics of the world reveal important facts

18. Utility of Cutscenes Surveillance Catapult Mood Consequences Rhythm
shows the player what is ahead
Catapult
thrusts the player into a new situation
Mood
establish the emotional or narrative significance of a location
Consequences
vivid depiction of outcomes
Rhythm
break in the action
Reward
a treat only available through success

19. Example
Kingdom Hearts

20. Narrative Systems Backstory Player's role Player's goals
what is the larger "world" and context?
Player's role
who is the player's character?
Player's goals
what are the player's goals?
how are those goal coherent?
Narrative space
what is the "physical" space in which the story unfolds?
Mechanics
how do the core mechanics of the game tie into the narrative?

21. Character Any game will have at least one character
the player
Sometimes the player will be represented on the screen
the avatar
Often there will be other characters as well
non-player characters
A multiplayer game will have avatars for other players

22. Character design Characters are very powerful
a good character is worth $$$
Bugs Bunny
Lara Croft
But the more simple the character
the more the player can bring to it
Many game characters have no personality
Mario
Master Chief
"Kid" (GTA III)

23. Character design 2 Character is a unity
appearance
voice
behavior
animations
actions
reactions of others
Generating believable characters is an art

24. Character design 3 Multiple characters
often a game needs many characters
How to distinguish between them?
How to distinguish between different classes of enemy?
If there are distinctions the user needs to make (friend vs foe)
the game must provide the information necessary to do so

25. Character customizability
Ability to give the avatar a custom appearance
Crucial for on-line multi-player
How important in other contexts?
Custom details can be symbols of game achievements

26. Plot Game plots are almost always very simple Common plot elements
rescue the princess
battle the monsters
save the universe from the evil mastermind
rule the world
Common plot elements
betrayal
approval of older mentor
magical aid
acquisition of magic and strength

27. Hero tales Hero tales are often Examples tales of heroism
simple in structure
involve magical aid
involve betrayal
lack detailed characterization
can be retold
Examples
Theseus and the Minotaur
Aladdin and the Lamp
The Goose-Girl

28. Psychology of the hero tale
Coming of age
The hero tale represents the transition from a youthful inward-focused perspective to a mature engagement with the world.
Recognition of evil
Mature engagement with the world requires the recognition of evil and the resolve to confront it.
Interdependence
The hero needs the help and (sometimes) the approval of others.
Archetypal characters
The characters are drawn from a standard set of archetypes.
"The Misfit"
The transition from being different/outcast to being part of society.

29. Psychology, cont'd
What is the psychological function of the hero myth?
Template for the issues of maturation
A way to externalize difficult emotional issues
tension between comfort/safety of home and excitement/danger of the world
tension between growing physical and intellectual capacities and practical powerlessness.

30. Consequences Hero tale plots Adults Also
have most intense appeal to adolescents and children
also, good fit with technological limitations
Adults
(theoretically) have tolerance for more complex plots
but complex plots difficult to create
Also
plot is only one component of the game
game needs to be engaging for other reasons

31. Simulation Games simulate real-world activities Central idea
sports games
racing games
Central idea
mapping between the game and the real-world activity

32. Simulation II Games also simulate fantasy and fictional activities
any RPG
most FPS
Central idea
mapping between the game and...

33. Mapping The mapping will be incomplete The mapping will be inexact
the game may leave out inconvenient or boring parts
the game may include improbable situations for gameplay reasons
The mapping will be inexact
the game may exaggerate the physics for effect or gameplay
the game may (will) abstract from physical reality for practical reasons

34. Basic fact All physics is simplification
complex multi-body physical simulations are too slow
reality is chaotic
limits to what can be rendered graphically

35. Example: Halo What happens when a grenade explodes?
do we simulate the ignition and rapid oxidation of explosives, pressure waves, metal shear and shrapnel trajectories?
do we simulate concussion injuries, soft tissue damage, and bone trauma?

36. Game physics Physics = the evolution of the game state
we want the player to feel as though there is a real world in the game
the game state must be complex
its evolution must seem natural
the player's control over it should seem natural

37. Natural? Games are profoundly unnatural As in fiction Game physics
Aliens? Psychic powers? Controlling a civilization over centuries?
As in fiction
"willing suspension of disbelief"
natural within the game world context
Game physics
may have nothing to do with Newton's physics

38. Scripting
When there is a fixed stereotyped response to an action in the game
we say it is "scripted"
As opposed to "simulated"

39. Example Designer decides what should happen when a grenade explodes
x amount of damage to all units within certain radius
x/2 damage within a larger radius
leaves a certain "stencil" on the floor or wall
Simplifying the actual physics

40. Example Locked door in Zelda Simplifications
If player ties to go through locked door with key in inventory, the door opens and key is used up
Simplifications
Doors are logical, not physical barriers
Cannot be battered down, blown up, removed from hinges
Locks cannot be picked

41. Advantages of scripting
Much, much faster
to apply a simple rule than to run a physical simulation
Easy to write, understand and modify

42. Disadvantages of scripting
Limits player creativity
Players will try things that "should" work
based on extensive physical intuition
Will be disappointed if they don't
Game will need many scripts
predicting their interactions can be difficult
complex debugging problem

43. Simulation Will still be a simplification
Represent the quantities of interest
represent the forces that act on them
create physical laws for the game world
evolve the game state according to these laws

44. Benefits of simulation
More player options
Designer doesn't have to anticipate every way to do something
Physical laws reusable
Do not have script every object
Can build (or buy) generic physics engine

45. Disadvantages of simulation
Speed
extensive simulation may make the game too slow
Memory
game state may become much larger
Testing
difficult to test all possibilities

46. Design decision How much to simulate?
Where player creativity is important
Where realism is important
Where a simple enough model can be built
What level of detail is required?
depends on the constraints of the game
always a computational cost

47. Example Script Simulation #1 Simulation #2 Simulation #3
when player enters room, guards converge and attack
Simulation #1
when player takes a step, sound is heard over certain radius
if guard is within radius and in room, guard will converge and attack
Simulation #2
when player takes a step, volume of sound is calculated based on level of stealth, floor material, etc.
sound is propagated through room and attenuated based on room contents
guards receive sound signal and if loud enough to reach attention, they will move in the apparent direction of sound
Simulation #3
same as #2, but in 3 dimensions, through floors, etc.

48. The role of simulation "Immersive fallacy" Counter-examples
the best game is one in which the player feels that they are totally immersed in a simulated world
emphasizes only a certain aspect of the game experience
Counter-examples
More detail is not necessarily better
Katamari Damacy
Need for ironic distance
GTA

49. Monday
Culture unit
Play paper due