There was once a time when young gamers played with highly pixelated characters on small screens – without any immersive experience. Years passed, and the gameplay developed. Technology took the front seat, and now the storytelling in game development makes a gaming experience more relatable, sticky, and appealing.
As long the storyline is soothing for a gamer’s curious mind, they’re going nowhere. They will come back, make a routine, and stick to the game that you develop. So, it gives you a new high to know that someone is getting hooked onto the gameplay you conceptualised.
If this blog copy is already in your line of thought when it comes to storytelling in game designing, read the entire post below.
Then, you can decide if you’re ready to join an institute like Frameboxx 2.0 where you can build a portfolio, learn new skills, and get extensive hands-on experience with different tools and software for designing the best gameplay ever.
Different types of storytelling in video games
You will find multiple types of storytelling narratives in a video game. Some have a layered narrative, while other games are simpler to understand, allowing you to pass the time. Read these types below for better knowledge:
This is the most accessible type of storytelling. A gamer gets introduced to the character along with the tutorial at the start to know the ultimate mission of the game.
The main character might progress, develop, and evolve through such a storyline where each chapter will have animated versions of gameplay and tutorials.
So, the gamer will have limited options to take or opt for a different course of action. This type of storytelling is best for new gamers who are just getting involved in the world of gaming.
These types of storytelling narratives are often easy to explain, animate, and create. Such games do not have high retention scores.
Thus, these games have different versions for the old gamers to return. They feel nostalgic while playing the same game with a new chapter or version.
In the branched storytelling, a player’s decision can impact the storyline and the character’s graph ahead. The story will have the potential to branch out into multiple scenarios or outcomes.
These outcomes will be predefined, giving the player time to explore the game world. A game developer or artist can develop multiple storylines for a single game.
It means there is immense pressure on the developers to think ahead of the gamer and give them a delightful experience for every chapter, level, or outcome to be laid out in the game.
These narratives symbolise the sandbox-style gaming. This allows the gamer to create their own story. The entire gameplay or storytelling is flexible, agile, and adjustable. Each action by the player in the game will have numerous and uncountable outcomes.
It is more fluid than the branched storytelling. It gives gameplay developers the option to focus on the character, its abilities, skills, actions, and interactions with the world inside the game.
These games are mostly in the MMORPG category, where players can interact, create their own storyline, and spend as much time they like on the game without having to worry about it ending because it never does.
Using Cutscenes in Storytelling
You can give an explosion of the narrative in between while developing the storyline for the gamer to enjoy the gameplay. That is through the cutscenes in between to advance the gameplay and introduce new chapters, areas, skill sets, or quests to go onto.
These cutscenes can be full in motion or sequentially animated to give an appealing experience to the viewer. This technique helps hook the gamer further and excite them enough to stick around and prepare for the game's next set of thrilling experiences.
However, you should be careful while designing and stitching cutscenes in the middle of the game. It will disrupt the flow and focus of a serious gamer. So, the best way to introduce cutscenes is between new chapters, quizzes, or level-ups.
Developing a player’s agency like a pro in the storytelling
When creating and conceptualising flexible, non-linear, or even branched-out storytelling, ensure you consider a player’s agency. It means you allow the character to take hold of the game's narrative to a certain extent.
This is even more fluid when you’re creating open-ended storytelling.
However, you get the ultimate test of storytelling in game development when you have to create player’s abilities, skill sets, and actions to hold them accountable for certain scenarios and outcomes.
It might make the gamer think that they’re in complete control of the character. That’s the part of the experience you will create for them to imbibe.
However, you should be careful while creating a player-conscious world. As a storyteller and game developer, you have to be the ultimate controller of the arc of the character.
You need to test multiple outcomes in the virtual engine and stimulator. This gives you the final knowledge on what type of agency you should develop for the player.
A player with a high-end agency can find themselves confused. They might know what to do with the character and where to go about it. This will bore the person playing the game, and they will eventually leave it.
You don’t want such an outcome as a gamer. So, even when you are giving a fluid character, ensure that you provide a walkthrough, tutorial, or some sort of guide to the player.
This will bridge the gap to understanding the gameplay and the arc that the player can develop using their gaming skills.
Conclusion
We talked about different types of storytelling narratives, cutscenes, and player’s agency in this blog post. You can let us know if you found this information useful while you’re on a journey to decide how to create your unique storytelling in game development.
Otherwise, you can start enrolling for a more extensive course at Frameboxx 2.0 to dive deeper into the concept of game development.