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The game narrative toolbox / Tobias Heussner, Toiya Kristen Finley, Jennifer Brandes Hepler, Ann Lemay.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York : Focal Press/Taylor & Francis Group, 2015Description: 248 pages : illustrations ; 24 cmISBN:
  • 9781138787087 (pbk.)
  • 1138787086 (pbk.)
Subject(s): DDC classification:
  • 794.8 HEU 23
Contents:
What is narrative design? : Jennifer Brandes Hepler: in-house lead writer ; Ann Lemay: in-house writer, narrative designer ; Toiya Kristen Finley: mobile, social, and indie narrative designer, game writer, and game designer ; Tobias Heussner: game content/narrative designer, producer ; What role does a narrative designer play on a game development team? ; A game narrative designer is the champion of an interactive story ; Combines the roles of a writer with that of a game designer ; And organizes and integrates the story ; How can you help your team?: On being a nexus of information ; A note on clarity and being succinct ; Narrative design in social, mobile, and indie games ; Stepping into the role of the narrative designer -- The concept : Play, don't tell ; The high concept, aka the one-liner ; Presenting your pitch ; Writing the pitch -- Worldbuilding : Macro- vs. micro-level worldbuilding: where to begin? ; Worldbuilding, research, and inspiration ; Building realistic and fantastical worlds for RPGs ; The worldbuilding "iceberg" ; How players can experience your world ; Working on a licensed IP ; Chris Avellone's (Obsidian Entertainment) interview -- Characters : Types of player-characters ; Writing interesting NPCs ; Bringing player-characters and NPCs to life ; Supporting the player's ego ; Writing your game characters ; Characterization and character development ; Creating diverse characters ; Tropes: when to use them, stereotypes: how to avoid them ; Interview with Rhianna Pratchett, freelance writer -- Story : Player agency ; So, what exactly is a game story? ; Linear narratives ; Branching narratives ; Open narratives ; Plot design: epic or relatable? ; Game story documentation ; Tom Jubert's (games writer and narrative designer) interview -- Implementation and production : Implementation ; Creation of a narrative space: on player attention span ; A narrative tool: graphical perspective ; Narrative types ; Environmental narrative ; Execution: from production to narrative ; Narrative design and team dependencies -- Dialogue : Types of dialogue ; Writing ambient dialogue ; Dialogue in action games ; Writing interactive dialogue ; Dialogues in MMOs ; Dialogue in social and mobile games ; General dialogue quality tips ; Dialogue and other departments ; Dialogue sample -- Cutscenes and cinematics : Is a cutscene necessary? ; Cutscenes vs. cinematics ; What makes a cutscene fun? ; Cutscenes in RPGs, and in higher-budget games in general ; Cutscenes in lower-budget games, social, and mobile games ; Cutscenes in MMOs ; Interview with Brian Kindregan (Blizzard Entertainment) -- Troubleshooting : Feedback ; Making revisions ; Working with QA ; Focus tests ; For freelancers ; Working on your own projects ; Conclusion ; Working with the imperfect ; Interview with Cori May (BioWare) -- Conclusion -- Glossary.
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number Status Date due Barcode
Standard Loan Clonmel Library Main Collection 794.8 HEU (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Available 39002100632638

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Learn how to create compelling game storylines.

Four experienced narrative designers from different genres of game development have banded together to create this all-inclusive guide on what it's like to work as a writer and narrative designer in the videogame industry. From concept to final testing, The Game Narrative Toolbox walks readers through what role a narrative designer plays on a development team and what the requirements are at every stage of development. Drawing on real experiences, authors Tobias Heussner, Toiya Finley, Ann Lemay, and Jennifer Hepler provide invaluable advice for writing compelling player-centered stories and effective dialogue trees in order to help readers make the switch from prose- or screen- writing to interactive. Accompanying every chapter are exercises that allow the reader to develop their own documentation, outlines, and game-dialogue samples for use in applying for industry jobs or developing independent projects.

This first installment of Focal Press's Game Design Workshops series is a must-have for individuals looking to create captivating storylines for games.

Includes bibliographical references (page 235) and index.

What is narrative design? : Jennifer Brandes Hepler: in-house lead writer ; Ann Lemay: in-house writer, narrative designer ; Toiya Kristen Finley: mobile, social, and indie narrative designer, game writer, and game designer ; Tobias Heussner: game content/narrative designer, producer ; What role does a narrative designer play on a game development team? ; A game narrative designer is the champion of an interactive story ; Combines the roles of a writer with that of a game designer ; And organizes and integrates the story ; How can you help your team?: On being a nexus of information ; A note on clarity and being succinct ; Narrative design in social, mobile, and indie games ; Stepping into the role of the narrative designer -- The concept : Play, don't tell ; The high concept, aka the one-liner ; Presenting your pitch ; Writing the pitch -- Worldbuilding : Macro- vs. micro-level worldbuilding: where to begin? ; Worldbuilding, research, and inspiration ; Building realistic and fantastical worlds for RPGs ; The worldbuilding "iceberg" ; How players can experience your world ; Working on a licensed IP ; Chris Avellone's (Obsidian Entertainment) interview -- Characters : Types of player-characters ; Writing interesting NPCs ; Bringing player-characters and NPCs to life ; Supporting the player's ego ; Writing your game characters ; Characterization and character development ; Creating diverse characters ; Tropes: when to use them, stereotypes: how to avoid them ; Interview with Rhianna Pratchett, freelance writer -- Story : Player agency ; So, what exactly is a game story? ; Linear narratives ; Branching narratives ; Open narratives ; Plot design: epic or relatable? ; Game story documentation ; Tom Jubert's (games writer and narrative designer) interview -- Implementation and production : Implementation ; Creation of a narrative space: on player attention span ; A narrative tool: graphical perspective ; Narrative types ; Environmental narrative ; Execution: from production to narrative ; Narrative design and team dependencies -- Dialogue : Types of dialogue ; Writing ambient dialogue ; Dialogue in action games ; Writing interactive dialogue ; Dialogues in MMOs ; Dialogue in social and mobile games ; General dialogue quality tips ; Dialogue and other departments ; Dialogue sample -- Cutscenes and cinematics : Is a cutscene necessary? ; Cutscenes vs. cinematics ; What makes a cutscene fun? ; Cutscenes in RPGs, and in higher-budget games in general ; Cutscenes in lower-budget games, social, and mobile games ; Cutscenes in MMOs ; Interview with Brian Kindregan (Blizzard Entertainment) -- Troubleshooting : Feedback ; Making revisions ; Working with QA ; Focus tests ; For freelancers ; Working on your own projects ; Conclusion ; Working with the imperfect ; Interview with Cori May (BioWare) -- Conclusion -- Glossary.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

  • Introduction
  • Chapter 1 What is Narrative Design?
  • Chapter 2 The Concept
  • Chapter 3 Worldbuilding
  • Chapter 4 Characters
  • Chapter 5 Story
  • Chapter 6 Implementation & Production
  • Chapter 7 Dialogue
  • Chapter 8 Cutscenes
  • Chapter 9 Troubleshooting
  • Conclusion
  • Glossary
  • Resources

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Tobias Heussner is an experienced Game Content / Narrative Designer who started developing games in high school. He has worked on more than 18 published titles ranging from AAA PC games to handheld console games and Free2Play browser games. His areas of expertise include Game Content Design, Game Narrative Design/Writing, Game System Design and Game Production.

Toiya Kristen Finley has 20 years of experience as a writer and editor in several media. In games, she has worked as a game designer, narrative designer, and game writer (or some combination of the three) on several indie, social, and mobile games for children and general audiences, including Academagia: The Making of Mages and Fat Chicken . With Tobias Heussner, she co-founded the Game Writing Tutorial at GDC Online and served as an instructor.

Jennifer Brandes Hepler got her start in tabletop game development, working for well-known properties such as Shadowrun and Paranoia before detouring to Hollywood to work on CBS Television's The Agency. She then spent eight years as a senior writer and narrative designer at Bioware, on the Dragon Age franchise and Star Wars: The Old Republic . She is now lead writer on Game of Thrones: Ascent.

Ann Lemay joined the video-game industry in 1997. Over the years she's worked as a game designer, narrative designer, and writer on a wide range of projects. In 2010 she joined BioWare Montréal, where she wrote for Mass Effect 3 and Mass Effect 3: Omega , contributed to Dragon Age: Inquisition , and is now working full-time on the next Mass Effect title.

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