Overall Game Design - Video Game: Storytelling - page 135

story —predeined by the developers to be the same for every player who
experiences it. And there is the player story —the narrative unique to each
player based on choices she's made or things that just happened to occur
via the various interactions of game systems with each other and the play-
er's actions.
This topic largely concerns the creation of game stories, but with the
understanding that they almost always are accompanied by player stories.
The proportion of game story to player story can vary wildly from title to
title. There are games at both extremes of the spectrum, but most are po-
sitioned more toward the middle. And, simple puzzle games aside, it is a
rare game indeed that doesn't have at least a little game story or player
story.
I believe when it comes to game story vs. player story, most games with
any game story content at all will fall into one of four categories.
Game Story Dominant
This is a game that emphasizes rich, linear story material, potentially at the
expense of player freedom.
Hallmarks
▪ Same linear game story for all players
▪ Few if any side missions or optional quests
▪ Limited or no choice or customization of player character
▪ Opportunities for player choice and self-expression only in
moment-to-moment gameplay sequences
▪ Moderate opportunities for expression of individual play style
▪ Interactions with computer-controlled characters provide potential
for small-scale emergent stories
Examples
▪ Uncharted series
▪ Spider-Man (2000)