Tuesday 23rd October- Game Analysis and Narrative Spaces

Tuesday 23^rd October

In practice in context we were told to develop our game ideas for our chosen game space, which has to be in the form of a presentation for the next lecture. 

Game Analysis

We were then given a new task which was too pick any game and analyse a specific issue within the game, such as race, gender, culture, space and place, historical setting or genre. 

We picked the game Red Dead Redemption and started to make notes on everything in the game: 

• It has an optional storyline so you can explore the environment and then go back to the main storyline where ever you'd like. However, it's still focused on the storyline as you have to complete some of the main missions in order to unlock side quests. 

• Generic Western- everything about the game is generic of a typical western film. For example the desert setting, the use of horses and wagons, the type of facilities: saloon, medicinal shop/chemist, traders. 

• Old fashioned art style 

• Set in the past 

• Sexist- apart from the main characters which are predominantly male the female characters are prostitutes. 

•  Historically accurate- the iconography, the settings, the events and characters all seem very typical for the time period in which it is set in 

• Male dominance- the main character and a majority of the other characters in the game are all male

• Likeable and realistic characters 

• Main character is an anti-hero 

Finally we were given a task to summarise each type of narrative space in our own words using the booklet which had been provided. 

Narrative can be told in various ways through the use of space in a game. The ways in which characters/players interact with the world determines how the narrative will unfold. 

Evoked Narratives- Improve our involvement in a world which we recognise

                               - Provides us with a new way of looking at an existing/popular story through             

                                 changing different aspects of it, like American McGee's Alice. 

Enacted Narratives- The narrative is dependent/revolves around how the character interacts with                          

                                   the game space.

                                - The features of an environment may push the plot forwards. 

Embedded Narratives- The players are able to piece together the story themselves through the

                                       clues/interactions in the game 

                                    - Usually the narrative has already occurred, leaving the player at the end of 

                                      a story, so the player must explore in order to find out how the narrative 

                                      unfolded up to that point. Almost like a loop, where you start at the end of 

                                      it and work your way back to find yourself in the same place you started 

                                      but this time having been on a journey and gained fresh knowledge/insight 

                                      along the way. 

Emergent Narratives- The story telling components are already there for the player, they have 

                                      the opportunity to decide in which direction it moves in.