Writing for New IP - Professional Techniques for Video Game Writing - page 147

story arc, character profiles, casting notes, and concept art. It should also contain
information on the narrative side of the world. Conceivably, then they could include
elements such as the political make-up, gang structure or culture, pre-history, slang
used, relationship networks, companies, organizations, etc. It should be the go-to
guide for anyone seeking information on the story and narrative world, which will
frequently include you, the writer.
The Story Without and the Story Within
One aspect of game narrative that makes it unique among entertainment forms is that
it has the ability to allow players to tell the story, or at least part of it, to themselves.
This is done with clever use of design, environment, and narrative markers. It is also
something that any writer or story designer needs to be especially aware of when they
are shaping a new IP world, as any additions along these lines will greatly increase
the game's narrative strength.
Again, this works on the “show don't tell� principle. But because a player is
moving around inside and shaping this narrative world, what we're talking about
really is self-narration. Sometimes this can be spun out of a certain feeling elicited in
the players; for example, the feeling of isolation in Shadow of the Colossus , the feeling
of loss in Ico , or the feeling of vulnerability in Fatal Frame/Project Zero . Sometimes it
can be in the little details in the world: the burnt-out playgrounds and sad tic-tac-toe
games on the walls in Half-Life 2 , the macabre arrangement of corpses in the Fort
Frolic level of Bioshock ,orthe Deb of Night radio show in Vampire: Bloodlines .
What is really demanded of writers on new IP is to help create the world not just
with text and dialog but with vision and feel. It's a task far more akin to part director,
part set builder, part writer, part actor. Any game writer who truly loves the medium
should learn to be a skilled interactive story designer as well—bricks, mortar, and
walls, the whole shebang!
As I'm sure you are aware, game writing is a young enough writing discipline
that there are no hard-and-fast rules yet. There is merely good, solid advice born out
of success, failure, frustration, and elation. Part of the reason for this is that every
game is different, in demands, expectation, and time frame. So to invoke the “show
don't tell� principle, I'm going to help convey how to deal with world creation and
new character creation for a new IP by showing you how I tackled it in Overlord .
Okay, so technically, I'm showing you in words, but the game is available at all good
entertainment retailers should you wish to see it yourself. (End of blatant plug.)
14.4 Case Study: The World of Overlord
The Home of Evil Deeds
WhenIarrivedaboardthegoodship Overlord (published by Codemasters and devel-
oped by the Holland-based Triumph Studios), the game had already been in devel-