The Digital Lineage of Narrative: Analyzing Interactive Fiction to Further Understand Game Narrative

Abstract

AbstractChoices within game narrative encourage players to feel that they have exercised their agency in a story world. This feature is an established design choice in video games but is also prevalent in the earlier game media form of interactive fiction. By engaging in a reflective analysis of the historic use of choices within digital game narrative, there is potential that new insights and deeper understanding of game narrative can be achieved. Utilizing the practice of close-reading and drawing upon narrative and literary theory concepts the use of choice can be seen within interactive fiction and the lineage it has passed on to video game narrative. In particular, applying the Russian formalists theory of fabula and syuzhet, developed by Vladimir Propp and Viktor Shklovsky, and the structuralist and post-structuralist work of Roland Barthes has proved beneficial in attempting to understand game narratives. These theories which can contribute to the understanding of narratives that employ choices and the emerging concept of narrative game mechanics, how the mechanics of a game can contribute to the narrative, are key theories to consider in developing an understanding of interactive narratives.KeywordsInteractive fictionNarrative game mechanicsVideo gamesGame narrativeNarrative choices