interactive storytelling in games: next steps

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Interactive Storytelling in Games: Next Steps Gail Carmichael www.gailcarmichael.com

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What is a story? What is interactivity? Why are the two so hard to put together? This talk takes a journey into some of the most interesting recent developments in interactive storytelling in games, and looks at my most recent thesis work on coherent emergent stories.

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Page 1: Interactive Storytelling in Games: Next Steps

Interactive Storytelling in Games: Next Steps

Gail Carmichael

www.gailcarmichael.com

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What is a Story?

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ACTORS perform actions

THE WORLD changes

EVENTS relate to each other

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About people, not things STORIES:

conflict

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Interactivity

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Two or more agents

Understand each other

Respond properly

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Game + Story: Why is it Hard?

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STORIES: Linear

GAMES: Non-Linear

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“Divergence from a story's path is likely to make for a less satisfying

story; restricting a player's freedom of action is likely to make

for a less satisfying game.”

Greg Costikyan

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What should we do?

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…puzzle➭story➭puzzle➭story…

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMzmnwWK0dY

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POjkfLiyWd8

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Creativity

> Technology

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Playable Game Stories

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Sullivan, Anne. The Grail Framework: Making stories playable on three levels in CRPGS. PhD Thesis, 2012.

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Playable Story

Meaningful, Interesting Choices

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Player

Quest

Game

World

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Player

Quest

Game

World

Social Mechanics

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zc5QEcWGh1U

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Player

Quest

Game

World

Goal-based Quests

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Player

Quest

Game

World

Dynamically Arrange Plot

Points

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Player

Quest

Game

World

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Coherent Emergent Stories

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Complete freedom? No freedom?

Somewhere in the middle.

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1 2 3 4 5

6

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1 2 3 4 5

6 Example:

Player chosen as hero to stop threat of a nearby

enemy

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1 2 3 4 5

6

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1 2 3 4 5

6

Example: Learn that nobody has dared face this enemy

before

Example: Hero previously acquired his

weapon and is too scared to use it

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Available based on player action. Allow player to choose consumption.

Dynamically modified to fit story.

Satellite Scenes

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Quantifiable story elements

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Desire value of element

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Quantifiable story elements

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Relevance of element

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Scene state: used to tag scene with info about how it functions in the

story

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Rules to determine availability of scene

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Collection of quantifiable story elements used to

calculate scores for scene nodes

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Max of all scores for quantifiable story elements in a category (e.g. max

theme relevance), multiplied by desire value

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Result:

A strong core story with additional flexible but relevant nodes that react to gameplay.

In other words, a coherent emergent story.

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Want to know more?

Foundations of Digital Games (April 2014)

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Gail Carmichael www.gailcarmichael.com

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Books - Andrew Glassner’s Interactive Storytelling: Techniques for the 21st Century - Chris Crawford’s Chris Crawford on Interactive Storytelling - Josiah Lebowitz and Chris Klug’s Interactive Storytelling for Games - Mieke Bal’s Narratology: Introduction to the Theory of Narrative

Other

- Greg Costikyan’s Games, Storytelling, and Breaking the String -Pohjola M. 2004. “Autonomous Identities: Immersion as a Tool for Exploring, Empowering and Emancipating Identities” in Montola M. and Stenros J. (eds.). Beyond Role and Play: tools, toys and theory for harnessing the imagination. Ropecon ry, Helsinki, 81-96. -Anne M. Sullivan, THE GRAIL FRAMEWORK: MAKING STORIES PLAYABLE ON THREE LEVELS IN CRPGS. (PhD thesis)