It's been a while & future projects
Catching up post was in order. I have been absent from the blogosphere because real life has been demanding more attention of me for quite some time: I moved to the UK, started my last year of English Literature, began working on my dissertation. Which, by the way, is related to this blog and to what you will soon see being published here: interactive literature, narrative structures of hypertext fiction and video games.
My intention is to replay an assorted list of modern and old RPGs and analyse their narrative elements, picking up the different ways in which the stories are constructed, paying special attention to the tools. In traditional literature, the basic and ultimate tool through which the world is constructed is the word, with all its nuances. In video games, developers are given multimedia tools of various sorts which would facilitate the creation of a very complex experience, but which are often mis- and underused. Even our basic societal tool, the language, is often underemployed in our medium, leading to the conception of video games as a lower art, if at all.
I would like to explore, in my dissertation and the ensuing, previewing posts, the ways in which narrative is construed in games, and how a better understanding of traditional media might help consolidate games - and also what traditional media could learn from modern interactive narratives.
My list of games is ever-growing. So far, I intend to discuss: Planescape: Torment, Mass Effect (not sure if all or just one of them), Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II, Knights of the Old Republic 1 and 2, Neverwinter Nights 2 (probably 1 as well), Chrono Trigger (fantastic SNES game that plays with the concept of time), TES: Morrowind or Oblivion, Bastion, To the Moon, Dear Esther, World of Warcraft... Sadly, I don't have all the time in the world, or I would play and re-play these and many more. But, by all means, if you have any suggestions or know of a title that might be fertile for discussion, feel free to comment. For instance, I am not that well-acquainted with indie titles that would challenge the way in which video games are usually constructed, and would welcome any ideas in that department.
On another note, what I am currently playing: Mainly Mists of Pandaria, but in my usual unconventional way: I have avoided the abrasive LFD scene so far and I only do some dailies while taking my breakfast, when I am not yet person enough to be capable of mindful interaction with my environment. Thankfully I play on a PVE server. I am one of these people that Doone considers that play a sandbox in spite of the game rules. Quote: "The truth is that RPers bring something from outside of Azeroth *into* Azeroth. They bring their community with them. No I don’t mean they round up 100s of RPers and collectively subscribe to the game. I mean they have an idea of how to play the game despite the activities available. In this sense, the virtual environment is more of a canvas for them than an already painted landscape to navigate. There are other unique groups of players in WoW who behave similarly to this, so it’s important to emphasize the point here: these exceptional players aren’t operating under the rigid rules of Azeroth, but despite them." WoW, or rather Warcraft, is the medium of my own narrative and that of other players, and a world we inhabit in spite of all the changes. I can still enjoy Netherstorm, the Burning Crusade, within a new context that I bring to the game. I already went to Pandaria as a player, a plunderer; in the future, I will visit it with the spirit of a true adventurer.
Last note, on a more personal level. I feel like sharing with you, even though I had always strived to keep my personal life away from my blogging persona. But then I recalled how I love hearing other blogger's real life anecdotes and their personal experiences, because that somehow makes them closer to me. I think I could spare some personal thoughts from time to time, so here we go:
This being the last year of my degree, I began thinking about the future. Will I study a masters? What do I want to work as? I undertook English Literature for pleasure, and thinking at the time that translation would be an industrious endeavour, but I am no longer certain. It is a creative job, but very constricting as well. You would be arranging words always within the limits of another's creation. I want to make my own words. I would publish that novel that I've been working on for quite some time, but that is no job, not unless you get lucky. Teaching? Perhaps, to win the bread, for a time. I might even like it if I tried. But as with sushi, I tried plenty of times and I still detest it. But it looks so round and spongy... Well, where am I getting to? I thought I would try to work in the video games industry as one of those guys/gals that works on the game script, quests, plot. My boyfriend might start a degree in Video Games Development next year, in a very reputable university, and I would go with him, elbow my way into some company, indie or mainstream. Perhaps found our own. It's risky, but less than stepping into a classroom full of boisterous little rascals. It is the road less traveled by, And I must follow, if I can, / Pursuing it with eager feet, / Until it joins some larger way / Where many paths and errands meet. / And whither then? I cannot say. [The Road Goes Ever On]
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I absolutely look forward to reading more about your work. I enjoy your writing and will undoubtedly enjoy reading your analysis.
BTW, here’s a great blog if you want to learn the fundamentals and origins of how RPGs developed: http://crpgaddict.blogspot.com/ It’s a true RPG addict playing through all RPGs for the PC, in order. Great reading and insight, and takes a fraction of the time actually playing yourself. :)
Brian ‘Psychochild’ Green recently posted..The anniversary of my birth
Lovely page, I will certainly make good use of it, thanks for the suggestion and for your support :)
You may want to look at the Assassin’s Creed series of games. It has a very interesting story and narrative structure.
For some reason, Assassin’s Creed did not click for me. Well, “for some reason” is a very unmindful way of describing one’s reaction. I guess I could relate it to the fact that I dislike how they twisted historical facts to turn them into a conspiracist story. I don’t dislike the concept of manipulating history to link it to the present in a more interesting way, but AC did it quite heavy-handedly, that was my feeling. Well, nobody said I should like every game that I would analyse, so after all it’s not a bad idea at all :)
I’ll eagerly await your work, as this is a topic of personal interest. Additionally, with regards to the Elder Scrolls, I’d like to cast a vote for Morrowind; Oblivion always struck me as just so incredibly meh in comparison (though the Shivering Isles did score it a few points).
Morrowind is my all-time favourite in the series too. I mentioned Oblivion because I played it more, and more recently, but I could dust off its predecessor just the same. Morrowind was wreathed in magic in a way that the sequels were not able to duplicate. Its land was a tantalizing tableau of ancient history, as you wandered into ruins of lost civilizations and stepped into cities upon the waters, ruled by Gods. There was so much of spatial narrative in there. No artificial codices blabbering on facts and figures, but mythical stories and legends recorded in books and on the landscape.
Now, let’s hope I can put up with its hellish interface.
Hey busy lady :) Thanks for catching up. It’s nice to know you’re doing well and working hard on something you want.
Also those are good questions to ask yourself since you’re about to step out into your own career. I would just say pick something you’re in love with and run with it. But definitely pick *something* to have your first career success with. It doesn’t matter if you change it in 10 years. It matters that you start somewhere. I hope it’s something you’re passionate about and don’t let any doom/nay-saying stop you.
As for the games …Brian beat me to linking the CRPG blog! It’s been a really really cool read and you can at least glean some different perspective on those games if you play any of them.
I think for studying narrative in video games ….you’re probably fine going with the list you have. Like you said, there’s soooo many games out there. You’ll probably be playing some pretty fun games either way you choose!
Also, don’t forget you can download emulators for free online for any of the super old 80s-90s games.
Doone recently posted..Torchlight 2 Review I: Scratching the Surface
I’m not sure if the game fits into your planned definition of RPG, but since you mention Dear Esther and other more indie works, I’d suggest the browser based Echo Bazaar or Fallen London as it is known now.
It has an interesting take on narrative, by presenting small handcrafted narrative (“storylets”) in a semi-random fashion based on user choice.
The atmosphere of their world fairly drips from their use of words and browser background. Pictures of bizarre and intriguing named items add to the narrative flavor.
The most interesting is their intentional use of gaps, things never elucidated, so that the user can fill in the blanks with their imagination and tell their own stories, similar to say, how comics leave a gap in between their picture panels. Player character pictures are silhouettes, and what happens in between the storylets is left as an exercise for the user to fill in for themselves.
Where the narrative tends to fail, imo, is when the game falls into the traditional RPG exponential curve to level up, one then endures repeating the same storylet hoping to increment the number high enough to get to the next one.