For today’s class, you read chapter 15 in Miller’s Digital Storytelling textbook. Write a summary memo about the reading and copy-and-paste it into a comment made to this blog entry. In your response, consider: what is the difference between narratology and ludology? What is a platform? What are some challenges of non-linear storytelling?
5 thoughts on “Beginning of Class Writing: Miller, Digital Storytelling, Video Games”
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TO: Professor Ellis
FROM: Samantha
DATE: 4/6
SUBJECT: CH15
Video games and gamification in chapter 15 talks about things like online multiplayer games and their place in the interactive entertainment industry. Similar to other forms of digital storytelling video games often have a narrative and a plot that’s followed as the user moves through the game, often depicted in levels. Games are sometimes adapted from other source material like books or movies and allows users to immerse themselves into their favorite story lines. The chapter encompasses many other techniques and ideas from the rest of the book like, navigation, storyline, characters, interface etc.
The chapter made me think of xbox and its widely popular online servers and games. The halo series was one of the most played games and multiplayer stories in the 2000s. Halo 3 on the xbox360 live server at one time hosted almost 1 million gamers in several channels or waves as they were referred to. You could play as a “lone wolf” a partner or in a group called a party. You then had the option of playing the games story mode to defeat various intruders or play online to rank up by winning matches. Multiplayer multimedia games are still crazy popular on other systems like PS4 with games like call of duty which is structured similar to Halo in allowing users to team up, pick characters and have a unique user name. All of which follow most of the interactive story guidelines from Millers book.
TO: Professor Ellis
FROM: Mariah Rajah
DATE: 4/6/2016
SUBJECT: Chapter 15 Summary
Millers chapter 15 was an interesting insight into the world of video games– the way in which they are composed. Before this reading this chapter I would have said that video games are made and in a way they are but they are more so composed. In recent years as Miller mentions video games have become a source for entertainment. They have become stories in which people can escape their daily lives, players can become powerful, players are offered a strong connection socially, and lastly players are challenged. All of these consideration have lead to video games taking on a digital story characteristic. They are meant to be more than a strategic application used to stimulate or simply just win. Now video games are a production that follows and encompasses participation from various players (MMORPGs) to have nonlinear storylines in which the user is able to chose how and what the outcome will be.Video games are no longer as simple as pong or snake they immerse us in a world filled with action, adventure, strategy or, role place. In each of these worlds however the player must be able to cultivate their own story within they must place themselves in the world and build from within. Video games have such a strong interactive component that it has expanded in taxonomy; games have been composed in such a way that they have taken on various different genres in order to keep up with the growing to keep up with the expanding need of various types of games. Also, without a doubt video games have a very large component of social networking which invites participation and interaction. Social components such as interactive gear has also made video games more immersive in the way they invite movement from the user. All in all, the composure of video games has now taken on a deeper meaning than just a target goal. Video games have stories, plot-twists, characters, and challenges. Video games are digital stories that enable us to manipulate the composure in the simple fact that we get to chose our path in the story.
To: Professor Ellis
Form: Pamela Drake
Subject: Digital Storytelling – Summary of Chapter 15
Video Games
Date: April 6, 2016
Chapter 15 of Digital Storytelling by Carolyn Handler Miller discusses the impact of video games on interactive entertainment. Many stories are made into video games and that allows the users to participate in another layer not afforded by the book or movie. Very often, game developers are often ask screenwriters to write the dialogue for the games.
Although video games often continue the story and often contain developed characters, plots, challenges that the characters must overcome and dramatic content, Miller says that it has become increasingly challenging to present the game in a nonlinear game environment. The user often has a part in developing the story and characters often grow and change as the game is played.
In addition, Miller explains, video games users are challenged to keep track of the position of the characters and what they are doing while interpreting and reaction with the movement in his hands and fingertips. This means that the user needs to learns eye-hand coordination and visual-spatial ability to successfully play the game. For example, while developing a city, an unexpected surprise like an enemy might emerge. This forces the player to be flexible and quickly change tactics.
TO: Professor Ellis
FROM: Jodieann J. Stephenson
DATE: 4/6/2016
SUBJECT: Chapter 15 Summary
In Miller’s Chapter 15, she introduces us to video games and offers insights to how there are made. Also, Miller recounts how the world of video games has changed and has contributed to it as entertainment. It provides users a chance to escape their realities and become people who are completely different from their everyday persona. In this unusual occurrence people have a chance to create an identity which most reflects their inner emotions.
TO: Professor Ellis
FROM: Jodieann J. Stephenson
DATE: 4/6/2016
SUBJECT: Chapter 15 Summary
In Miller’s Chapter 15, she introduces readers to video games and offers insights on how video games are made and gives a brief overview of the development of games. Also, Miller recounts how the world of video games has changed not only as entertainment but a way to be educated by these new technologies. Video games allow players and users to escape their universe for a moment and experience a alternate universe. This unique ability to give people a chance to become someone completely different from which they are in their everyday lives is very telling. It’s a way to escape the chaos of everyday life and experience a type of utopia. In this unusual occurrence, users have the ability to create and take on a new identity that can sometimes reflect their most inner emotions and “truths”. Further reading into the chapter, Miller discusses the narrative and reiterate the importance of narrative in storytelling. From the first introduction to video games as fun games to play that were somewhat simplistic, games have developed to have deeper meanings. Nowadays games are created for individuals to learn, play or even as a way to deal with depression. It is quite fascinating how there are various games with different intentions for the users. The new affordance of creating interactive games gives a more realistic interface to games. By doing so, this creates a urge and need for the participation element in games. Many users are encouraged to participate in games by inviting friends and family to join the game in which they can be rewarded. Not only is there a reward system but there is a built-in capability for users to share information from the game in different social media platforms that can continue and contribute to the sharing and participatory affordances of the new video games.
There are so many different unique choices that games allow their users/players to participate in. This gives users/players a chance to feel as if they are making choices on their own but the reality of it is that storytellers and game developers have already created a narrative that has a pre-determined outcome. This revelation makes me think about the different elements that I have to incorporate when I am creating my own video game narrative. As a writer/storyteller it is a hard task to create a story that already has a carefully thought-out outcome and trick users to think that all the choices they have they have made themselves. This can raise a ethical question for many writers.