Thursday, October 1, 2015

Storytelling & How It's Woven Into Game Design

By Jennifer Marie Anderson


In this day and age, video games have become nothing short of exciting storytelling vehicles. It's a great way for creators to bring their ideas to life, through the art of interaction, and to say that game design holds popularity would be an understatement. With that said, though, I think that it's important to talk about how stories can be told through gaming. To better understand this unique topic, here are a few points that are worth discussing.

In order for stories to be told through way of game design, actions must be clear. Keep in mind that a particular game doesn't exactly have to be intricate in order to tell a strong story; it's just a matter of immersing the user to where they can believe what they're being shown. Even though "Thomas Was Alone" had a minimalistic design, it was an engrossing experience all the same. It's just a matter of how a developer works with what they have, which any Long Island advertising agency can attest to.

Does this necessarily mean that bigger budgets can be a detriment? I believe that it depends on what creators do with it. For example, "The Last of Us" is often regarded as one of the finest video games of all-time, especially from a storytelling standpoint. The plot of said game featured all kinds of twists and turns, and they were played out by some of the finest characters in this art form. As a result, a unique experience was created for anyone to get into.

It's also worth noting the emphasis on creativity over technological greatness. Yes, you may have all of the tools at your disposal to create the finest game imaginable, but this doesn't necessarily mean that the final product will be good. Game design graduates across various art colleges must account for the importance of storyboard writers and the like. It's due to the efforts of these individuals that the process of game design can be made that much more seamless.

If storytelling is left out of the equation of game design, it's likely that developers will not find the success they would desire. Video games have evolved so much over the past decade or so; as a result, players expect greater experiences for the money they put forth. Developers must work hard to create gripping experiences. What this means is that storytelling must play a role, and to say that this element matters would be an understatement.




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