Dead Space was once praised not only for the atmosphere and gameplay, but also for the design of the environment through which the player was fed the story. One of these is located at the very beginning of the game, when the player arrives on the Ishimura spaceship. The player enters a dimly lit room covered in blood and the iconic phrase Cut off their limbs is written on the wall.
But what if the user does not know the language or has any difficulty in perceiving such information? Answer: narrative through the environment.
Let's look at the scene from Dead Space in more detail and in isolation from the rest of the game.
How would this scene be understood, for example, by a person with dyslexia? It may be difficult for him to read the phrase. And someone will not understand the meaning, because they do not know English. Someone simply does not understand what it is for and leaves, or does not pay attention at all. As a result, these players will lose an important part of the storytelling and gameplay learning.
Traditional methods of creating narratives (like pre-rendered cutscenes) are used all the time in the industry. But they either distract players from the gameplay or are not suitable for everyone (indie developers, for example). Of course, there is localization, but this is an additional development cost.
Making narratives equally accessible to different people is quite difficult.
But designers can use a powerful tool - the environment. Players are constantly interacting with virtual spaces, and this is the perfect opportunity to weave narrative elements.
Methods of storytelling through the environment
Let's take a look at four ways designers use environments to create a narrative:
- Scenery of the environment
- Visual Characters
- Research and location of objects
- Lighting and colors
1 God of War environments make players relive events from the past
Environment decorations can be used to communicate complex themes or narrative rhythms to the player.
Sinister face on the mountain
As you progress through the story campaign, the player will see a human face engraved on the mountainside, from the mouth of which black smoke comes.
The human face is arranged as a kind of "visual omen" or symbol of death. This warns travelers that the mountain is dangerous or cursed.
Corpse Tamura
The location with the dead stonemason Tamur in Midgard is rich in storytelling. Exploring the area, the player learns more about the life of the giant, its culture, and so on. Much of this information can be gleaned from a close examination of his body: tattoos, clothing, and jewelry. As players progress through the level, they can begin to form a clear picture of who Tamur was before he died. And all this without dialogues and cut-scenes.
2. The temples of Jotnar in God of War speak a thousand words
Visual symbolism can be used to convey events and the passage of time.
The Temples of Jotnar are triptychs (three carved wooden panels) that tell stories of giants. These shrines are scattered throughout the game and often reveal important events from the past or prophecies of the future.
Temple of the World Serpent
Temples can be seen as a kind of "picture book". Looking closely at the images, narrative passages begin to form, and the player can begin to ask questions.
Who is this woman? Is there a connection between the World Serpent and the Temple? Why is the World Serpent fighting Thor?
Triptychs are a very accessible format for storytelling. They use visual imagery and symbolism to share information that is not tied to language.
3. The Last of Us constantly forces players to wear a detective or explorer hat
Players piece together the narrative from objects located in the environment.
collapsed tunnel
The Last of Us creates an environment that makes players wonder what happened in the past. Take, for example, a location near the end of the game with a destroyed tunnel. The truck is blocking a section of the tunnel from a crowd of clickers. This simple detail adds questions and scope for imagination to the players.
How did it happen? Did they defend themselves? Did people survive?
And there are a lot of similar locations in The Last of Us. They often invite players to take an active part in interpreting past relics in order to determine cause and effect.
Settlement in the quarantine zone
Consider another example where the player passes through a quarantine zone and ends up in a small settlement. At first, the survivor behind the food counter appears to be cooking and selling regular meat.
But upon closer examination, the first impression is that the survivor is cooking rats, and not some kind of pork there. Such a small detail is imprinted in the player's head. Things like this in the environment give an idea of ββhow the game world functions, and what difficulties the survivors go through.
4. Inside lighting compositions fuel the desire of players to move
Lighting is a great tool for creating a specific mood or tone that the player needs to feel.
Lighting in Inside is not only a way to help players progress through levels, but also an important tool in conveying an abstract narrative.
Cold artificial light emitted by flashlights or electronics makes players stay in the shadows and causes a feeling of unease. This light composition feeds the player's primary reaction to the fear of the unknown.
Warm natural light creates a feeling of comfort. This motivates players to step out of the shadows and portends a positive event, whether it's solving a puzzle or escaping a threat.
Conclusion
Making a narrative accessible to everyone is very difficult. There is no one size fits all solution for telling stories that can be interpreted by different types of people. However, designers can use virtual worlds and environmental elements.
Environment narrative is powerful because designers can create narratives without being tied to jokes between two characters or a cutscene junkyard. Such storytelling goes beyond traditional forms of communication and language.
Source: habr.com