Sorry, this entry is only available in Español.
Category: Writing Workshop
Sorry, this entry is only available in Español.
Developers keep finding new ways to tell stories through games, and Supergiant Games comes up with a surprising idea which is, at the same time, a look back and a step forward.
Their next release Bastion includes the voice of a narrator.
It’s a look back on the origins of narration because it brings back the figure of the bard or storyteller. And I hope it is also a technical and creative step forward because, if they get it right, the voice will need to adjust appropriately to whatever is happening in the game. That in itself is not a technical challenge, because all elements in a game always have. Graphics, sounds, scores… they all respond to what the player is doing, so why not also the voice? The real challenge is to write texts that cover every situation while keeping the character’s voice (the narrator has a tone halfway between emotional and street-savvy), a reasonable length, etc.
The big problem comes when looking at the feature from a business point of view, as it renders the game very difficult to localize into other languages. As the narrator speaks during gameplay, subtitles wouldn’t work. And we’re talking about an enormous amount of audio, which would result in a very expensive dubbing.
Apart from that difficulty, the concept strikes me as very intriguing, and I think the voice gives the game a nice air of legend. What do you think?
John August spells out the keys to a romantic movie:
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Characters we give a shit about. They don’t need to be likable, necessarily, but they need to be compelling. We need to be curious about what they’re going to do next.
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A credible reason to keep them apart. This could be almost anything — war, prejudice, a sinking boat — but if we don’t buy it, you’re toast.
Actually, that’s basically translating to romance the basics of fiction: interesting characters and a conflict.
If you want to take it further, don’t miss out on the comments for additional ideas!
What Orwell applied to politics we can apply to fiction:
- Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
- Never use a long word where a short one will do.
- If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
- Never use the passive where you can use the active.
- Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
- Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.
Sorry, this entry is only available in Español.