Continuing my exploration of how writers can build their literary skills by playing games, we come to the storytelling part of role-playing games. Especially with video games, it might not seem that there’s a narrative at all. The surface appearance is that players race around shooting or stabbing everything, grabbing loot or gear dropped by fallen opponents, and so forth.
However, in the really good games, there’s a lot of writing. It just takes a more hidden form.
The basis of the game will always be some kind of story that could come straight out of a novel. (Usually in a genre such as fantasy, horror or SF, but sometimes historical, spy or detective fiction.) This core conflict can be specific and personal, such as in Control, where a paranormal investigator searches for her missing brother. The scope can also be broad and epic, as in Dragon Age, where an army of darkspawn are about to descent on civilized lands.
The conflict can also be very dispersed and open to the player’s interpretation. For instance, in Skyrim, the character is falsely imprisoned and faces execution, until a dragon attacks the town and he or she escapes. In other games, such as Fallout, the player survives some sort of apocalypse and has the task of building a completely new life in the aftermath.
Based on the core conflict, the player moves into a plot of some sort. Some games are very tightly scripted, following a path that clearly shows the author(s)’ intentions and philosophy. In others, you have a world to explore and lots of options about where you go and what you do. You might only encounter bandits who want to kill you, or you might join a guild that gives missions. Players can also meet characters who tell you about their lives and become stalwart comrades. There frequently are romance options to reflect how close the friendship of player and companion becomes.
Although it might seem the player can make choices that change the outcome of the game, every bit of it still follows a script. In addition to the fun of playing the games, writers can learn a lot by observing how the game uses dialogue, setting and action to build this sense of connection and belonging to the game world. I personally have deep admiration for any writer who can create the detailed and complex dialog wheels of a great role-playing game.
Tabletop role-playing has a much different structure. I’ll get into that more on Saturday.
Have you read one of my books? Then it would be great for you to leave a review! Meanwhile, if you’d like to learn more about me and my work, check out my website, Facebook, Instagram and/or CounterSocial.
Wyrmflight 