Narrative design drama you might have missed

While I’m off at comic-con, I thought I’d make sure you’re up to date on current trends in narrative design.  First off, if you haven’t, read Sande’s great feature on creating emotion and drama in games beyond writing: Towards More Meaningful Games: A Multidisciplinary Approach.  If you just can’t get enough, check out the other articles on narrative design that have hit a nerve over the past couple months.

Redefining Game Narrative: Ubisoft’s Patrick Redding On Far Cry 2
Brings back memories of Lee Sheldon’s game writing approaches as seen in his 2004 book Character Development and Storytelling in Games.  Modular, non-linear storytelling comes of age.  Who says it can’t be done?

GCG Op-Ed: Writing Off Game Writers
On a related and oddly well-timed note, check out Lee’s article on how games writers are unsung and ignored in game development.

The Problem Of The Cutscene
This article comes not to bury the cutscene, but to praise it.  This rather wordy article says cutscenes haven’t been cutting it because of inappropriate pacing, generic execution, and bad timing.  More surprising, check out the cutscene love-fest in the comments.

Innovations In Character: Personalizing RPGs, Retaining Players
Adults tend to like characters with distinct personalities and backgrounds.  Developing these characters may have an impact on the bottom line.  This article and a few of the comments highlight a few approaches to developing, or allowing your player to develop, these types of characters.

Is Gameplay As Narrative The Answer?
Yes.  Basic take-home with this article: Don’t straight-jacket your players with narrative.  Avoid having your players’ choices be irrelevant in the game story.  If you can, make your AI sophisticated enough to take into account player actions without making the game no fun.  Good example: City of Heroes.  After you save people, they sing your praises in the streets.

Sometimes narrative as narrative is the answer
A rebuttal to the above article, again saying — hey, maybe if you get good writers to collaborate with the designers, players won’t experience a disconnect between story and gameplay.

Ready to hire your game’s narrative designer?  Drop us an e-mail at anne (at) writerscabal.com!  Otherwise, comment on your biggest sticking points when it comes to designing narrative in a game.

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Written Well AND Delivered Well

As a colleague pointed out to me at a recent IGDA meeting, game dialog can be written well but not delivered well.  Even if the dialog is out-of-this-world, poor voice-acting, engine limitations, or mismatched animation can hamper the performance.  Many game developers do send the writer to the voiceover session, but how many think it’s important for the writer to interact with the programmers and artists?

Nowadays, game development is a collaborative process.  Large games need teams of specialized workers. As we discussed in our SXSW Interactive session, story design shouldn’t be separated from the other disciplines.  Story can go beyond ‘just the words.’  Instead, a dedicated narrative designer working with programmers, artists, and sound designers will know how to convey story in an interactive experience.  To do this well, a narrative designer should be considered part of a multidisciplinary team.

For more on this topic, please read the article on Gamasutra - “Towards More Meaningful Games: A Multidisciplinary Approach.”

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Where video games and animation meet

Anne will be speaking on a video game panel for Women in Animation tonight. We will highlight what video games can learn from those with a background in animation, and how animators can get involved. If you’re in LA, you’re in luck — you can see it in person. If not, you don’t have to miss out (see below).

Who:
Lance Powell, Electronic Arts
Tim Trzepacz, softegg.com
Bill Kroyer
Anne Toole, Writers Cabal, of course!

What:
Women in Animation

When:
Thursday, July 17, 2008, 7pm

Where:

DreamWorks campus

1000 Flower Street

Glendale, California

RSVP and for more info:
Women in Animation

Got any questions for the panel, but can’t make it? Drop your questions here. If you’re there, come say hello!

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Top 5 misconceptions about hiring a game writing team

So you want to hire a game writer.  Congrats!  Whether adding to your staff or outsourcing your game writing, you’re not alone.  Apparently, most companies that hire writers, just hire one.  But have you considered a team of writers?  Before making your decision, read on to see if you’re struggling with any of these misconceptions about hiring a game writing team.

1.  Won’t two people cost more than one?

Quantity of work and the time you need it done in set the price for game writing more than the number of people doing it.  You could pay one person for two months to get a project done, or a team of two one month to get it done.  Either way, the costs are the same.   

2.  Can’t one person deliver the same as a writing team?

The above example assumes that all else is equal.  But not all things are equal.  You also pay your game writer(s) for quality, which as we all well know varies greatly in the game industry.  With an extra person looking over the writing before submitting it, you get higher quality work from a game writing team than a solo game writer.  You’re getting greater value by hiring a team.

3.  Won’t two writers just disagree a lot?

Yes, thank goodness!  It’s in these disagreements that the writing actually gets better.  Sande and I have worked together long enough that we can discuss an issue until we reach consensus.  This week we were working on a game pitch, and, based on our assessment of what the client wants, we decided to go with the classic 3-act structure.  We spent quite a few minutes discussing “midpoints,” of all things.  In the end, our conversation yielded a stronger, more organic story than if we’d just agreed to get along.  On the other hand, some clients — and maybe you’d be one of them — want a plurality of options before they decide to move forward, so our different perspectives come in handy.  

4.  A writing team can’t work individually.

I confess I don’t quite understand this misconception in game writing, but I’ll dispell it anyway.  While Sande and I collaborate on just about everything, with large projects we often split the work.  In the event that one of us is ill or occupied, the other one steps up and works alone.   

5.  I need my writer to come into the office, and it would be too hard to bring in a team.

Good for you!  It’s always a brilliant idea to bring your writer in to work, see the builds, and eat lunch ;)  That said, we have had cases where the client only had one of us come to the office at a time.  Since Sande and I are accustomed to virtual collaboration, we can easily communicate any information we learn to each other. 

So, let me have it.  What else is nagging you about hiring a writing team?  Send me an e-mail at anne (at) writerscabal.com, or drop a comment to this post!

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Top 3 ways to choose your game writer

Earlier this week we explored how to find your next game writer (aside from hiring us, of course). Now that you know how you’re going to seek and destroy — er — discover writers, how do you go about choosing the best one? Here are the top three ways to go about it.

1. Go on reputation

In the last post, I warned about going on a writer’s reputation only. Sure, Sally may have a writing credit on 2008’s bestselling game, but did she actually write anything that ended up in-game? If you’re approaching Joe, the television writer, the stakes are even higher, because he might not even “get” interactive storytelling.

I worked on one project where another game writer was brought on without having to submit any writing samples. The writer had a bumpy start, largely because it turned out the writer didn’t really understand the game genre. You’re better off if you can get an idea of his/her strengths and weaknesses before hiring. If you have approached a writer based on reputation, make sure to try one of the other approaches below.

Benefits:

• You’ll get experienced writers with a long track record
• Less search effort

2. Ask for writing samples

Our preferred way of applying for writing jobs. Tell your writers the rating, game genre, and the storytelling genre of your project (such as a rated teen fantasy FPS) and allow them to submit their best samples. We don’t mind signing an NDA first so we can learn more about the project. If you’re open-minded about other types of writing samples, such as screenplay excerpts or prose, let your applicants know. Sande, who does all types of writing, once submitted poetry and landed a game writing gig.

Benefits:

• You find experienced writers who have done writing similar to what you need
• You may find new talent if you’re open to other types of writing samples.

3. Ask for a writing test

You may decide you need a writing test to identify which writers “get” your game project. To help your prospective writers out, try to explain to them as much as possible what you’re looking for. When I was looking for writers, the only instruction I gave was “write a quest.” I ended up getting 30 and even 50-page epics, complete with world backstories. While the length a writer defaults to can be informative, you don’t want to be reading 30-page anythings. Give a page limit and you’ll thank yourself later.

In other cases, you may decide that the best way to know for sure if this writer is for you is to ask them to work on a small part of the actual game. This is what we did for THE WITCHER.

Keep in mind, even with a NDA, you don’t want to let too many people know about your game-in-progress. You may have to pay for this type of writing test, but by this time, most likely, you are only choosing between a few writers.

Benefits:

• Good for larger projects
• Good for unique projects where existing samples won’t work

3.5 Get a writing test and ask for revisions

How well writers write the first time out can hint at how talented they are, but how well they write the second time shows you how good they are to work with. Game production means iteration, iteration, iteration. If your writer can’t take and incorporate feedback, you’ll be kicking yourself. This process also helps the writers figure out if they want to work with you, so play nice!

• Good for projects with lots of iteration
• Good for sussing out your own pipeline

Keep in mind Hollywood doesn’t use writing tests, due to legal and creative concerns. You don’t want to be in a situation where the writer sues you for going with an idea similar to the one s/he submitted! The game industry gets around the legal concerns by making the writer sign away rights to the test. With no guarantee of getting the gig, however, your ideal writer may pass up your writing test offer if it means s/he has to sign over their ideas to you.

Television shows like LOST also don’t read sample scripts of their own show, largely because no one on the outside can quite capture the voices like someone who has lived and breathed the show on the inside. At STARGATE WORLDS, we had many instances of otherwise good writers tripped up by not knowing the TV series well enough to capture the voices.

What is the most unexpected writing sample you have read — short stories, screenplays, personal diaries? Drop a comment or an e-mail!

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5 ways to find your next game writer

You’ve got the money; you’ve got the resources. You’re ready to make a game. But how do you find the perfect game writer for your project? This week we’ll explore how to find the game writer who can make or break your project.

1. Referrals
One of the best ways to find a writer. Talk to people you already know who have worked with writers. Who do they recommend? Who should you avoid? When I was hiring game writers, I e-mailed literally everyone I knew in the game industry, describing my ideal writer. I found several writers I wouldn’t have found any other way and even hired one. Find out if your contacts have actually worked with the writer before.

Benefit: You will already know the strengths and weaknesses of the writer
Drawback: Limited to your network

2. Agencies
Contacting the major Hollywood agencies will yield you quite a list of writers. Many game companies are going that route, though many others are put off by the whole Hollywood scene. As far as I know, agencies primarily provide writers on contract. Whether you hire a writer through them or not, you won’t have to pay them a cent.

Benefit: Established writers in games, Hollywood, or both.
Drawback: Established writers in games, Hollywood, or both.

3. Recruiters
Game industry recruiters make a good resource for game writers, content designers, and narrative designers. I found my staff job as head writer through a game recruiter, so they definitely have their benefits. You have to pay them if you hire one of their candidates.

Benefit: Pre-selected candidates with game industry experience
Drawback: Not good for small games. Recruitment fee. May be redundant if you have a human resources department

4. Advertisement
I have seen quite a few game writer jobs listed on places like Craigslist and other game industry boards.

Benefit: Some are free to post, and depending on where you post, will gather a variety of people.
Drawback: You may find less qualified writers and you also have to devote your time to sorting through the huge volume of irrelevant responses.

5. Research
Which writers wrote your favorite games? Which wrote games in your genre? Equipped with names, you may contact your next writer directly. Watch out for hiring the hot action writer for your action game. It might just turn out like his or her last game. Think outside the genre. The showrunner of HEROES had to apologize for second season — he apparently found so many good Sci Fi writers, that the season plodded through poorly constructed love stories. Conversely, the LOST television series made sure to find “good” writers, even if they didn’t have a Sci Fi background.

Be wary of hiring based on reputation. At ION, we had one lunch partner say “Oh, I thought there were only 5 game writers.” Don’t go with a writer just because they have good PR! A writer may have gotten credit for a popular project, while having had all work thrown out by the producer. Do your research before going with any one writer.

Benefit: You cut out the middle man and find qualified writers
Drawback: Those writers may be overbooked or overpriced.

Have you had better results with one or the other? Now that you have a few candidates, next we’ll explore how to vet your game writers. See you soon…

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Create your own time to penis quest!

My friend Paul was driving some conservative out-of-town visitors around Los Angeles one sunny afternoon.  Paul was explaining that the city was actually quite normal, despite what the news media suggests.  Just then, a giant inflatable penis bounced across the road.  Turns out, that is quite normal. 

The Spore creature creation tools have caused quite a humorous conversation on other blogs and the women developer list because of TTP.  TTP or TTC describes how long it takes user generated content (UGC) to yield a penis, hence ”time to penis.”  At ION, we talked about how UGC can connect the player to the game story as well as the player’s story.  If we handed quest creation tools to players in MMOs, what do you think would be the TTP?  Let’s find out!

Create an in-game MMO quest that clearly invokes what TTP is all about.  Let’s assume that the designers have coded restrictions on profanity and the use of certain terms, like penis.  Even with this restriction, you can still write some blue content.  A line from an old MUD stated proudly: “(playername) strokes his long black rod.”   Come up with a short quest or quest premise, and post it in the comments if you’re bold or e-mail me if you’re shy at anne (at) writerscabal.com.  I’ll come up with one myself by next week and we will see whose TTP is faster!

Need inspiration?  You can set your quest in any MMO, but if you want to narrow it down quickly, set it in WoW.  Extra points if you can tie your UGC into the game story that already exists.  Have fun! 

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Whither D&D? Episodic gaming and MMOs

This Saturday I volunteered to teach foster kids about video game design. One of my students came out with something that surprised me. He liked “series games” — those that come out with sequel after sequel. I like ‘em too, but that’s because I consider them episodes, which conveniently ties in with my last post on D&D 4th edition. Last week I wrote about how D&D approaches player types and tone. Today I’ll take another look at how D&D’s 4th edition can come in handy with game design beyond the stand-alone game.

The DM Guide illustrates different types of games:

Campaign Games
According to the guide, campaign games mean what you do matters next time — allegedly. However, if the DM burns out, the story never finishes. I’d have to disagree with point one — sometimes in a campaign game, what you do in one session doesn’t always matter down the road. From a video game perspective, having one DM — or one writer — on a project can often lead to a weakness in one or more areas of the story, because there’s no one to bounce ideas off of. Therein lies one of the reasons for the Writers Cabal!

Episodic Games
The DM Guide indicates that episodic games don’t fit into a larger story, leading to a sense of purposelessness (fun word!). I have to disagree, and my TV roots will start to show. Episodic stories can take place in a campaign world and/or with the same characters. In these cases, the stories will be satisfying, because each adventure will (hopefully) lead to a satisfying conclusion, and they can all eventually lead into a larger campaign. Stephen King, for example, wrote many disconnected stories. Now — decades later — he realizes he can tie them all together with a big good vs. evil storyline. Furthermore, if your campaign story ends up having a lame or fizzled ending, you will at least be able to say, “Oh, and this one time, I did this!” The best stories are made up of a bunch of smaller ones.

Ongoing/One-shot Games
Ongoing games can either be episodic or campaign oriented. Ongoing games with the same group of people can encourage cooperation, while one-shot games encourage exposure to different types of player types. These concerns tie in more directly with multiplayer games, so…

D&D 4th edition demonstrates influence from certain MMOs. One commenter on the Gamasutra article noted that the “Healing surges” mechanic of 4th edition seemed similar to the rate of recovery popular in MMOs. In general, 4th edition definitely wants to take advantage of the online space as much as possible, even making it easier to run D&D games online. Do you think this trend will be good or bad for D&D?  Personally, if I’m going to play a game online, I might as well do so with my gaming group in an MMO. That said, maybe I could run a D&D game online that I wouldn’t want to do in person. Who’d be interested in that?

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