Starting the Game - iPhone Game Blueprints - page 4

But try to avoid bad examples of the unexpected things: various forms of deus ex
machina . Each twist in the story should be natural and slightly predictable in vari-
ous premises in the plot. Look at the movies; directors always show a specific object
in advance before it is used in a corresponding scene. For example, in the Alfred
Hitchcock classic, North by Northwest (1959), the main character played by brilliant
Cary Grant first sees an airplane far afield, and then he almost forgets about it. Sud-
denly, the airplane begins to attack. So, the scheme is simple: drop a hint and only
after that initiate some action. It is very important to convince players that a game
world is solid, every tiny detail matters, and links between elements are well thought
out and designed. A good game is a complex organization of dozens of components
working together. They don't create a single event, but a sequence of well-connec-
ted situations letting players experience some specific emotions. This is an attempt
to create a model of life rather than a calculator with few binary triggers. As it is very
important to try to think globally while working with a script, there should be an evol-
ution of events and obvious logical connections between the stages of a story.
A vital issue is realism in games. There is a lot of debate about this by now, mainly
because power capacities of CPUs and video chips have increased, and as a res-
ult, many more variables and factors can be introduced in gameplay. The question is
not only about the graphics, rather about other components of virtual worlds. For in-
stance, 3D objects might have not only an external shell but some naturalistic struc-
ture inside; by breaking them into pieces, players might expose some new features
of internal materials.
Another example is NPCs, whose psychology and behavior can be more realistic or
a player's avatar which has all the features of a human body including weaknesses.
The truth is simple; a portion of realism is needed only if it helps to improve game-
play, if it can create some interesting situations, and add some specific experience.
In other cases, it may turn a game into a series of boring procedures and events
players run away from in real life. In casual and arcade games, an action should not
become more complex only because it would become more realistic (simulators are
another case).
Video games are more about entertainment than documentary. Since the degree
of realism is under the control of game designers, they decide what proportion to
choose for better playability. Such a characteristic is not unique for video games
only;mostoftheartsmanagerealityveryfreely.Painting,sculpture,music,literature,
and movies are not realistic, even if they pretend to be; it is always an interpretation
whose main objective is better expression of some authors' intents. Elements of real-