The
classic narrative curve
It
is very popular to make episodic games, particularly from a indie
standpoint. There are smaller and easier to manage and develop for.
They also have the added benefit of making fans excited and discuss
the next installment. In this tutorial we are going to discuss the
use of the narrative curve as it applies to videogames, in particular
as it applies to episodic games. It is my hope that this thread will
be a sort of workshop where I post an installment at a time.
I
think that most people are familiar with the narrative curves as it
applies to movies and books. When it comes to episodic games and to
some extent television series the curve will follow the same basic
idea but will have a few more "repetitions".
The
narrative curve for theatre, but works for episodic games too!
While
episodic games have a single overarching story each individual
installment need a smaller "inner" curve of their own. To
illustrate this, I am going to compare two Telltale series that I
think uses the inner curve well (Tales of Monkey island) and one that
uses it not so well (Sam and Max season 2, although the other two
seasons used this very well). Please not that I will discuss these
games as well as others in the individual series freely, so there
will be spoilers. They will also be compared to a potential game
called Alex and Adva by Nooby Mcnooberson (ie me) to show how an idea
can grow into a story by use of the narrative curve.
Alex
and Adva
But
first, the overall storyline of the three series.
Tales
of Monkey Island:
While
trying to defeat his arch-enemy the zombie-pirate Lechuck Guybrush
accidentally makes him human again and releases his evil as a pox
that infects the Caribbean. To cure the infected people Guybrush must
find the fabled La Esponja Grande to suck all evil voodoo energy into
it. Lechuck steals the energy and becomes a pirate god but is
eventually defeated by Guybrush.
Sam
and Max season 2:
Sam
and Max investigate a couple of seemingly unrelated cases, eventually
tied together by a couple of time-travelling mariachis and a takeover
of Hell by bit-characters from the first season. Yeah...you could
probably tell from the description alone that this season does not
have a strong narrative. I actually struggled to try and keep the
overarching story sound better, but had to give up.
Alex
and Adva (my own story idea in its raw form)
Alex
and Adva want children but are unable to conceive. As a jackalope it
is Adva´s duty to guard the underworld and when Alex hears about a
magical plant that can bestow fertility Adva lets him into the
underworld so they can search for it together. Turns out the plant is
a root from the world tree Yggdrasil. Demons are trying to cut it
down and Alex and Adva must protect it.
Let
us take a look at the three series and how they begin their
respective set-ups.
The
launch of the Screaming Narwhal
This
episode begins in medias res with a Lechuck confrontation, supposedly
after an epic quest to create a sword that can banish the evil pirate
forever. Gubrush bungles the spell and is stranded on the island of
Flotsam. Here the main quest is introduced, finding La Esponja Grande
to banish the evil pox and get off Flotsam. The episode is
interesting because it has a climax, or at least something imitating
the form of a climax, at the very start. The episode also ends with
another confrontation being set up with pirate hunter Morgan le Flay,
but not taking place in the episode itself. When it comes to the
narrative curve the episode feels a little shaky, since the player
can solve the puzzles and challenges in any order.
Ice
Station Santa
The
episode begins with Sam and Max finding out that Santa sends a
murderous robot to their office. Deciding to investigate they find
Santa possessed by a demon, which they excorsice. Unlike the first
season this one seems to be cases unrelated to each other, which need
not be a bad thing. The episode, taken on its own, follows the
narrative curve well with a setup (collect items for a banishment
ritual), a point of no return (portals to other points in times are
opened) and a clear climax in the confrontation with Santa and even a
resolution that makes fun of sappy christmas specials.
Finally,
let us look at my own first attempt.
The
set-up, the search for the plant, needs to be introduced. My original
attempt stood on its own and concerned house-cleaning, introducing
the characters and the game-system. While it was cute, itwas also
really slow. My current first episode concerns Alex losing his book
of magic and has to find a new one in a hurry in order to impress his
employer. Breaking into the house of a magician he learns about the
plant. By making the initial quest about something unrelated I can
still present the world and its characters in a natural way. And so
the adventure begins...
This
is the first installment, please tell me if this was informative or
if there are any points I could improve on? Any specific points I
should focus on when making comparisions between the two game series.
Did it make sense for me to include my work on my own game in the
comparison?
