Hello, Khabro residents!

Developing a script for a video game is an interesting business. But game writers have to constantly learn and challenge limitations.

This is due to the fact that the game industry is developing and becoming more and more mature. There is also the rapid improvement of technology that we see year after year and the growing expectations of players.

Writing a text is not an easy job, especially when it comes to a game script. The need to deliver the desired quality without breaking the deadline makes the task even more difficult. Help will never be superfluous.

Here is a book that contains 201 easy-to-learn tips from a legendary game designer.

Work your characters well

No matter what medium you write for, good dialogue can only come out if the characters and their relationships are well developed. Then their conversations will sound much more natural.

Character development is needed not only for dialogue, but also to show their character, which in turn helps the narrative. If you don’t think of your characters as human (this applies even to non-humanoids), they’ll just look like one-dimensional, one-dimensional goofballs.

One of the main (and very effective) methods of processing is to give everyone appropriate names (even the smallest NPCs). For example, if you call two guards standing at the door of a hotel room “Guard1” and “Guard2”, it will not say anything about them. But if you call them “Alan” and “Sven”, it immediately becomes clear that they have different backgrounds and personal qualities.

Of course, we don’t have to follow stereotypes, and working against the player’s expectations is always a good way to give a character depth. But the name provides a hook on which you can then hang the details.

Study your characters

Creating great characters is great, but beyond that you need to learn them thoroughly. It is important to clearly know the place of each of them in the game world and what contribution they make (or do not make) to the story.

This is important for two reasons. I have already mentioned the first one – it is much easier to write dialogues, because the characters come to life in your imagination. The second is about the script and how it changes during development.

The script and game design usually evolve through iterations, and sometimes some characters have to be used differently than originally intended. The total number of characters in the game is limited, so it is important to understand which of them will be suitable for new roles.

It happens that none of the existing characters fit into the new realities. Then you have to sacrifice someone. Knowing your heroes well, you will quickly decide which of them should go. For example, you can replace someone whose absence will be the least noticeable in the plot.

Determine their origin

All characters should have a backstory, even if it’s just one line of text, as is the case with minor NPCs. Each of us has a past, even if it is not full of adventures.

No doubt it’s part of character development. Their past has a strong influence on who they have become. But there is another good reason to know where they are from.

When it comes to voicing dialogue, it’s helpful to give the actors a backstory on the character so they can choose the right voice for the character. If you say something like, “She was born in Moscow but lived in Bradford from the age of five,” that will give the actor a good starting point.

Knowing the characters’ origins or their brief history will make you feel like they belong in the world you’re building and have a special place for them in it.

Character arc

Most NPCs don’t have an arc, but for the main characters you need to think about one, especially if you want the characters to change due to the vicissitudes of the plot and the actions of the player.

Some characters do not need an arc and are even contraindicated. At the end of the story, they remain as they were at the beginning. In addition, it is difficult to create an arc of a licensed character, because the result may not be what the owner of the intellectual property would like him to be.

Decide if character arcs are needed in your project. What if the game becomes successful and players wait for a sequel? A character arc that precludes a continuation of the hero’s story would go against the studio’s best interests.

Character arcs are important, but should be approached with caution.

Character motivation

To understand your characters, find out what drives them, both in their daily lives and in terms of the plot (if they have such motivations at all). The motives are simple: for example, the character needs to provide for his family or beg for money for a sandwich. And if he wants to steal the Mona Lisa, his motives are much more complicated.

Motives are usually needs or wants, even if the underlying reason is unexpected. For example, an NPC with Asperger syndrome has a hard time communicating – he wants your character to stop talking to him, and if you insist, he will run away regardless of your intentions.

The motivation of the antagonist must be convincing. A simple desire for “world domination” is not enough. What drives them? Greed, desire for power or conviction that only he is capable of leading the world to a brighter future?

The motive of the game character should motivate him to investigate a case or carry out dangerous missions. In order for the player to complete the game, his motivation must largely match the motivation of his character. This is another reason why story and gameplay should work together.

Suppression of distrust

Basically, all works of art are lies. And in order to enjoy them, we must reject any desire to question these lies. We must suppress our disbelief.

Some stories are close to reality and require considerably less suspension of disbelief than others. It is much easier to believe in the story of the end of the world due to climate change than it was fifty years ago.

But for a story in which blue fairies fight purple goblins for the right to own a mythical artifact, we will need a much more convincing justification.

Regardless of the plot, the key to maintaining belief in the proposed circumstances is consistency and internal plausibility within the game world. Anything that doesn’t fit or doesn’t make sense within the story will throw the player out of the game context with a bang.

For example, if an experienced police officer suddenly starts acting like a rookie, doubting everything he needs to know, it will be hard to believe in his credibility.

Sometimes such a violation is not your fault. This could be an inconsistency in gameplay or a graphics bug, and it remains to be hoped that these bugs will be discovered and fixed before release.

Your task is to ensure that the internal consistency of the plot, characters and dialogues is maintained throughout the game.

Immersion in the narrative

Suppression of disbelief and immersion in the narrative are closely related. Truth be told, we can’t really immerse ourselves in the game unless we fully believe in what’s happening.

Immersion is a rich experience based on belief in the proposed circumstances, and it arises due to high-quality world building, a good plot, development of characters and good dialogues (ideally – all at once). Of course, in combination with other elements of the game.

Getting the reader, viewer, or player immersed in the narrative is a difficult task for any author. I have repeatedly abandoned books or TV shows halfway through because I got bored. There are usually no problems with suppressing disbelief, but the authors failed to awaken my interest in what would happen next.

Immersion is based on feeling for the characters and wanting to know how the story will end. You have to be serious about the characters and the story so that the players feel it too. If you approach the matter formally, it will become obvious in the long run.

Always immerse yourself in your own script if you want the same from others.

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