Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Jasmine's dog jumps into the alcove to join her and her son, just as the
fireball approaches. The three of them crouch in safety while the
flames—which we've seen expanding to fill the entire tunnel—conveniently
defy physics and roar past them.
It's been over fifteen years since I saw this in the theater, and I still re-
member rolling my eyes at this sequence, realizing I might be in for a long
and potentially painful moviegoing experience. I'm no physicist, but it was
instantly obvious to me that a fireball filling a tunnel would not selectively
avoid expanding into an open alcove along the tunnel's side.
Since I knew that this story was definitely taking place in the real world, I
concluded that the moviemakers thought that their audience either
wouldn't notice this tweaking of the laws of physics, or wouldn't care. In
my case at least, they were mistaken. I lost my suspension of disbelief, and
the filmmakers were on their way to losing me as an engaged audience
member.
This is not to say that every story world needs to be the real world. But
all story worlds are based on the one we know—sometimes almost ex-
actly, sometimes quite loosely—and all differences between our world and
the fictional one need to be clearly established. Set the rules of that world
with the audience, then abide by them. Consistently.
Character Consistency
As part of their unspoken contract to suspend their disbelief, audience
members agree to convince themselves that the characters in the story
are not constructs but real people. The storyteller's half of this bargain is to
create believable, engaging, and memorable characters that the audience
can connect with, root for, root against, love, hate … the entire range of
human emotions.
A big part of making a believable character is making a consistent char-
acter. By consistent I don't mean a character who always does the same
thing. I mean a character who, at all times, does what seems to make the
most sense for that character to do —not what is most convenient for the
writer or the story structure.
As noted video game writer, script doctor, and horror novelist Richard
Dansky said in a 2013 online interview:
I'll try to get to know [my characters] well enough that when the
plot throws me a twist, or when I've written myself into a corner, I
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