Game Writing and Narrative in the Future - Professional Techniques for Video Game Writing - page 181

he is about what “happened,� it doesn't translate well when being retold to someone
who wasn't involved? As a direct participant in the adventure, he isn't noticing the
poor story structure or the uneven pacing; he's enraptured by the experience he had
because he was in it and collaborated on it. Whereas as a listener afterward, even
though the story may have many of the elements of a fine tale—intriguing characters,
imaginative locations, a devious villain, sharply defined conflict—you find that it's
not holding up as a linear, nonparticipatory story.
The difference between these two experiences can be likened to that of a prac-
ticed, well-executed musical performance versus a jam session.

Performance Jam session

tight loose

practiced, polished, vetted in-the-moment, fluid, improvised

entertaining involving

memorable most memorable

predictable and repeatable unpredictable and unique

best for audience best for participants

For a musician, the chance to see his idol play live is exciting. However, that excite-
ment would pale in comparison to his reaction at the opportunity to actually jam
with his idol. Conversely, an audience who paid good money to see a live perfor-
mance by their favorite band might be more than a little disappointed to be witness
to an improvised jam session.
In the future, the game player will be more and more of a participant and less
and less of a mere audience member. Writers who can't or don't want to adapt to this
shift may be left behind.

16.4 Embrace the Future

Today's video game writers struggle with the innate conflict between story structure
and player agency. You as the writer want to tell a story with specific beats, rising
action, a climax, and a resolution. But the player wants to grab control of your story
and feel like she's in charge of where it goes. It is the irreconcilable dead end that
confounds nearly every game writer, the unsolvable problem that is by now almost a
cliche.
Let's be honest. We writers are never going to win the tug of war between player
agency and author's intent. Gamers want to play, and increasingly they want control.
And if that's what the audience wants, then the market will continue to try to cater
to it. But if we're going to lose this contest, is there a way to do it that still serves
both sides?
Ironically, the answer may lie in that most ancient and decidedly non-narrative
game, chess.