WHAT vs HOW Mindset for Better Immersion in Interactive Storytelling
- Hall:
- Game Design Track
Interactive fiction is sprinkled all over the genres, there are pure IF games, visual novels, while dialogues and choices are staples of many RPGs and even strategy and tactic games. Writing choices can go wrong quickly. What seems a logical and exciting choice to a writer, may not work with the players. I'll showcase the crafting of choices for audio games which has a lot to teach on how to start writing immersive, gripping, relevant, and exciting choices, by switching from WHAT to HOW mindset in structure and crafting of the choices.
What the talk is about
Ranko Trifkovic uses audio games to show how to move from "WHAT" choices (go left or right) to "HOW" choices (how the character acts: like a thief, a barbarian or a wizard). HOW choices express the player's character, deepen immersion, avoid exploding branching, and let a story be built around the player's traits instead of endless forks. He lists what makes a choice good: informed, meaningful, with consequences on several levels, well worded, and matching the game's values. He also names the limits of the approach: it doesn't suit hubs and demands a clear authorial vision. Two of his own projects show how excess branches and 27 endings were cut back in favor of HOW choices. Useful for writers and narrative designers working on interactive fiction.