Writing Tutorials, or Press Start. . . to Start - Professional Techniques for Video Game Writing - page 128

acter was an established wizard, the players were not, and there was no allowance in
the franchise for the character to lose his powers. The solution was to use a sub-plot
from the topic that put Harry into the position of teacher. Putting the character
in the position of a tutor meant that when the protagonist “taught� other charac-
ters how to cast a spell, they also taught the player. This kept the character in line
with the existing franchise fiction, taught the player, and maintained the character as
knowledgeable.
12.7 Making a Tutorial
Contrary to expectation, tutorials are often tackled late in the game development
process, as they can be the most difficult part of the game to get right. They need
the team to balance difficulty curves, cope with the concept of players with different
levels of gaming experience, etc., which makes the tutorial a strange beast. This does
note mean that the writer can leave it until last. While the rest of the development
team can leave the tutorial until last, the writer will need to make crucial decisions
about the distribution of narrative information early in their process. This will still
give the writer a chance to make alterations later on, but chances are the cinematics
they planned will already have been made, and the later levels will be in place when
the writer comes to deal with the more detailed implementation of the tutorial.
12.8 Conclusion
Tutorials provide game writers with a number of challenges that go to the heart of
game writing. To create a successful tutorial that not only teaches different players
how to play the game but immerses them in the gameworld, the writer will need to
work closely with the game designer and pay constant attention to the game design.
The writer can make their job easier while both creating narrative drive and clearing
space for tutorial information by thinking very carefully about what information is
needed and the fastest way to introduce this information. Where possible, show don't
tell; let the imagery and action do the work. Come into the action as quick and as
late as possible and focus on an active way to establish the characters, their world,
and their situation. Succeed at this and you're away. There's only the rest of the game
to write, but that should be a breeze. . .
12.9 Exercises
1. Examine the tutorial section of a game you like to play and consider how it
would seem to the players from Section 12.1: Tommy, Kevin, Julianne, and
Bob.
2. Write a plausible narrative explanation for why an experienced firefighter would
need to go through the basics of how to use his equipment and move around.
Do not include amnesia!