Challenge is a very interesting and divisive feature of game design and criticism. As I’ve argued before in the last handful of months, I think that difficulty is a great way to make a player invested in the game’s events (“Challenge is Conflict: How Difficulty Makes Game Narratives Work.” Medium Difficulty. Nov 6 2012; “How Agnes Taught … Continue reading Further Thoughts on Challenge
[Originally posted on PopMatters] A former professor of mine once told me that for a story to be a story, it must consist of a character being changed by events. Stories may be layered and make use of a gamut of literary devices and tropes, but everything is built on the foundation of a character being … Continue reading Situation as Story: Games and Atmospheric Narrative
The video games I love most, I love for their stories. I studied Literature in university and I have worked at two different movie theaters. I’ve been an arts and entertainment journalist/critic for five years now and counting. I’ve previewed and reviewed novels, short story collections, poetry, albums, films, concerts, ballets, graphic novels, plays, concerts, … Continue reading The Case for Characters
[Originally posted on PopMatters] The Journey Down: Chapter One is the labour of love of Swedish indie developer Skygoblin. The whole project is drenched in indie style and direction, and in a perfect world, many of its best ideas hopefully will filter through to the mainstream market. At just over two hours of gameplay, it’s just … Continue reading Review: The Journey Down Chapter One
[Originally posted on PopMatters] At a certain point, video game developers and critics seem to have agreed that all video game storytelling must include the player. There’s a familiar chorus to this discussion: “games must unite the player and the protagonist,” “the player’s decisions must dictate the flow of the narrative,” and “the world must … Continue reading In the Third Person: Against Player Authority
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