Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
In each case, the goals of the main character and the goals of other
characters are at odds with each other; thus the
want/but
pattern (the
conflict) we see in everything we call a story, and in everything we call a
game.
Buts
are what stand behind the many obstacles the player faces. In turn,
the levels or missions of the game are the physical expressions of those
conflict-generated obstacles.
Without a
want/but
, there is no conflict. Without a conflict, there are no
obstacles. Without obstacles, there is neither a story nor a game. Conflict
is essential to both.
So fill 'er up!
Scope of Conlict
When determining what the main conflict for a story might be, the ques-
tion of scope almost immediately comes into play. What is at stake? How
big is this conflict going to be?
A common misconception among beginning storytellers is that the big-
ger the scope of conflict, the more dramatic the story will be. What you
end up with can be
overinflated stakes
: the whole country is at risk … or
maybe the whole world!
Seriously, how many stories have you experienced in which the fate of
the world was at stake? Too many, I would expect. And the stakes some-
times get even more super-sized than that! What about the galaxy? The
space-time continuum? The universe?
Bigger stakes do not equal more powerful stories. The conflict in your
story only needs to
feel
huge. It does not have to literally
be
huge.
What makes a conflict of any scope feel huge?
If it's important to a
character we care about
.
For better or worse, we as humans are better able to emotionally relate
to a single person than to a thousand or a million. Seeing a single person
in pain will evoke a stronger emotional response than watching a planet
full of people explode.
A number of video games have gotten great mileage out of relatively
small-scale stakes.
Grand Theft Auto III
is about the criminal career of a
single, obscure thug.
Sly Cooper
is about the family birthright of a thieving
raccoon.
Diner Dash
is about keeping one's job.
The Walking Dead:
