Narrative Coherence in Games: An analysis of narrative interactive emergence in videogames

Borkowski, Nicholas Anton

4. term

Medialogy, Master

2013

2013-05-24

45

Dette speciale bruger handlings-/eventyrspillet Cantrip, som forfatteren delvist har været med til at skabe, som case til at forklare, hvordan fortælling og spillerinteraktion fungerer i spil. Det udvikler begrebet narrativ sammenhæng—hvor godt historien hænger sammen under spillet—og forklarer relaterede begreber: ikke-diegetisk fortælling (information som skærmtekst, brugergrænseflade eller musik, der ligger uden for spillets verden), interaktive handlemuligheder (hvad spillet gør muligt eller inviterer spilleren til at gøre) og fortællingens forståelighed (hvor let historien er at forstå). For at undersøge disse ideer blev der gennemført en test med et Emotiv Epoc EEG-headset, som registrerer hjerneaktivitet, mens man spiller. Målet var at observere reaktioner på ikke-diegetisk fortælling og at se, hvordan de tilgængelige handlinger påvirkede historiens klarhed. Testen havde flere begrænsninger, og resultaterne er ikke entydige. Alligevel peger arbejdet på, at EEG-baseret biometrisk observation er en anvendelig måde at indsamle data på, som kan forbedre forståelsen af spilleroplevelser. I selve spillet analyseres den narrative sammenhæng gennem vigtige vendepunkter i historien, sammen med en vurdering af spillerens valgmuligheder. På baggrund af analysen foreslår specialet elementer til en metode til at evaluere brugeroplevelsen i videospil. Yderligere tests er nødvendige, før en sådan metode kan betragtes som pålideligt nyttig for spiludviklere.

This thesis uses the action-adventure game Cantrip, which the author helped create, as a case study to explain how storytelling and player interaction work in games. It develops the idea of narrative coherence—how well the story holds together during play—and clarifies related concepts: non-diegetic narration (information like on-screen text, UI, or music that sits outside the game world), interactive affordances (what the game makes possible or invites the player to do), and narrative intelligibility (how easy the story is to understand). To explore these ideas, the study ran a test using an Emotiv Epoc EEG headset to record brain activity while people played. The aim was to observe reactions to non-diegetic narration and to examine how the available actions influenced the clarity of the story. The test had several limitations, and the results are inconclusive. Even so, the work indicates that EEG-based biometric observation is a viable way to gather data that can improve understanding of player experience. Within the game, narrative coherence is examined through pivotal story events alongside an assessment of the player’s options. Based on this analysis, the thesis proposes elements for a methodology to evaluate video game user experience. Further testing is needed before such a method can be considered reliably useful to developers.

[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]

games ; narrative ; interaction

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Borkowski, Nicholas Anton:

• N400 elicitation in semantically incongruent interaction using detailed narrative virtual worlds (2014)