Destiny as an Episodic Narrative

by Kermit , Raleigh, NC, Sunday, April 07, 2013, 10:13 (4036 days ago) @ Cody Miller
edited by Kermit, Sunday, April 07, 2013, 10:50

Glad to see so much evidence that they are really putting a lot of thought into this game and its sequels. Some of the best storytelling on the planet has been in serial TV the last 10 to 15 years.

Just because it works in television, doesn't mean it will work in a game.

No one said it would. I think it's a mistake, however, to assume that there is nothing to be learned from a different medium. Artists have always been inspired by art in different mediums. If Hitchcock can be inspired by Picasso, why can't Bungie draw some inspiration from The Wire? The thought of the latter thrills me, frankly.

I linked it in HBO, and I'll link it here. This is an extraordinary post that explains what's wrong with this sort of approach. Call me a contrarian again, but I'd be much more confident if Bungie was inspired in their storytelling by other games, rather than by other mediums.

http://criminalcrackdown.blogspot.com/2011/03/trouble-with-being-batman.html

OR we'll come to a point where we realize- BECAUSE we are slaves (as we should be) to interactivity, that we should chase after emotions and ideas and scenarios that are special and unique to interactivity, versus simply trying to replicate the emotions that other mediums already offer up so naturally and so successfully. Perhaps interactivity will NEVER be able to create the sort of emotional longing that one gets when they watch ET fly away from Elliot...but we CAN do tension, terror, competition, anxiety, the joy of team work, the joy of learning through experimentation,etc,etc,etc probably better than ANY other medium. And I say why run from this? Why not plant our flag in the rich and still fresh soil of the emotions and responses that our medium excels at NATURALLY? Why are we so desperate to bogart emotions from other mediums? Perhaps those that are should just- you know- go work in those other mediums and then they'd be a lot more satisfied.

Yeah, I get it. You, Jonathan Blow, and the author of this piece believe that interactivity is king, and the only narrative that matters is the ludonarrative--what happens during gameplay. I have sympathy for that point of view.

There's a Manichean quality to these arguments, though. The argument is often that game designers are cheating when they use cinematic techniques in games, that the resulting output is the gaming equivalent of genetically modified crops, and should be shunned. Taken further, it's often viewed as a sign of insecurity that game designers do rely on techniques borrowed from other mediums. I say it can be, but I'm not a purist about it. It can also be a sign of artists doing what they do best--stealing. Halo would not exist without the inspiration that came from George Lucas, Larry Niven, and Ridley Scott. I can want the feelings and emotions I get from a movie or book in addition to those I can get from only a game. I can appreciate how it's familiar and different at the same time.

I'm not going to swear off Destiny because it has cutscenes, nor will I accuse Bungie of being desperate or trying to "bogart emotions from other mediums." It can be a sign of insecurity to strictly define your medium as only this thing, and anything else included as a bastardization. It's still a new medium, though, so I understand the need to argue for its definition.

Kermit

EDIT: One more thing, I have reason to think that Bungie is also taking inspiration for their storytelling from other games (Journey and Dark Souls, to name two), so be encouraged. :)