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Monthly Musings: I, the Author photo

Each month's Musings theme provides readers and community bloggers with the opportunity to have their thoughts posted on the front page.

Thanks to Clint Hocking's blog, I've been thinking a lot about narrative and its place in videogames. Though a fair number of past Monthly Musing themes have revolved around the merits of linear, scripted game narratives, we haven't talked very much about the sorts of narratives that designers like Hocking consider infinitely superior to the pre-baked stuff we're all used to -- namely, the stories you create yourself

Boatmurdered. Alice & Kev. That One Time You Jumped a Car Off a Ramp in GTA3 and Totally Landed on a Grandma. These are stories that can only be told in the medium of videogames, and they arise entirely out of a mixture of player activity and exploitable mechanics. 

Do you have any stories like these to tell? What do you think about the merits of these unique, player-created narratives versus prewritten stuff like Metal Gear Solid? Which games provide the best toolset with which to create your own narratives? 

As per usual, make sure to tag your cblog with the Monthly Musings theme, and make sure your blog is titled, "I, the Author: blah blah blah." If you've got any questions, ask 'em below. Otherwise, get to the cblogs and start a-writin'.

 

 








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12 comments | showing # 1 to 12
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Havoc Fang's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 12:49
Havoc Fang
Oddly, one of the most recent examples I can think of for myself is in Metal Gear Solid 3.

I can see some crazy, amazing jam coming from this.
Excel-2011's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 12:57
Excel-2011
I don't think it's right to insert oneself into a story. I hate any ending or plot points that demand the writer to fill in the blanks. It's the author's story; they alone should tell it.
Excel-2011's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 12:58
Excel-2011
Writer → Player
Monodi's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 13:03
Monodi
Hmmm these sound way too introspective.

I can't think of much to exploit in anecdotes but I could try.
Tubatic's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 13:16
Tubatic
So, go play a round of X-Com and write about it, check.

Interesting one. Lets see who's been paying attention in their open worlds...
Andrew Kauz's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 13:28
Andrew Kauz
Balls! Now I wish I had waited to start my "Stories from the Past" series--it totally would have fit with this Monthly Musings theme.

But I've got an idea in my head.
Roager's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 14:38
Roager
Are videogames that aren't always/aren't originally (i.e. Axis and Allies) eligible?

If so, I do believe I have to write one of these here stories.
Roager's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 14:44
Roager
By which I mean aren't always/aren't originally videogames. My apologies.
Scientist tz's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 15:11
Scientist tz
I've skipped the past few months but I'll take a crack at this one.
Darren Nakamura's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/07/2009 16:18
Darren Nakamura
Dang, I already wrote something that would have fit this theme on Left 4 Dead last month.
Joanna Mueller's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/08/2009 22:23
Joanna Mueller
No ideas immediately spring to mind for this one, but I've got a whole month to come up with something.
ShadokatRegn's Avatar - Comment posted on 07/14/2009 21:39
ShadokatRegn
This one could be incredibly interesting - if one's up for the challenge. Let's see what my brain does.
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