Many adventure-based video games, much like many works in other story-based art forms, take a typified, triumphant narrative arc.
The reason for this seems obvious. Video games are often used to get away from life’s harsh realities while embedding the player inside of a powerful avatar and presenting challenges to be solved with powers he or she possesses.
But, as with any medium of entertainment, the standards within video games have been challenged on a number of occasions.
One challenge specific to video games was recently pointed out in a column in the New York Times opinion section entitled “Games You Can’t Win.”
It focused on three games in particular: a recent release called “That Dragon, Cancer” and two older games, “Never Ending Nightmares” and “Dys4ia.”
All three focus on autobiographical subject matter and immerse players in the psyche and memories of the games’ developers.
“That Dragon, Cancer” deals with the challenges of raising a child with a terminal illness, based on the real experiences of the couple who created it.
“Never Ending Nightmares” is about a man’s experience with mental illness, and “Dys4ia” is about a transgender woman’s struggles with societal acceptance.
In none of these games is the player powerful enough to get through all the troubles with which he or she is confronted, and that’s exactly what distinguishes them from other video games.
The idea behind these games is not to allow the player to solve or win, but to move players to feel a particular way.
This is a valuable contribution to the development of video game design as a creative field.
It’s important for forays like this to take place, because this is how art and entertainment continue to evolve and grow.
What’s more, this area has yet to be tapped by a popular game franchise.
I also think one of the primary goals of any form of art.
In my opinion this includes video games, should be to create an emotion in the viewer, or in this case the player.
In popular video games, the exploration of potential emotional evocation has thus far been one-dimensional, centering on a victorious storyline with a strong protagonist at its core.
For this reason I think these games are very much a step in the right direction simply because they broaden the domain of subject matter in such a great way.
However, these games in particular are still autobiographical for the most part and tend to be very linear and constrained.
One could, of course, make the argument that this narrow storyline helps to make the games so emotional by making the player truly realize their helplessness.
While this is true, I still believe it’s be possible to develop games that explore heavier emotional dimensions and interact more heavily with the player.
By creating greater interactivity, preserving the emotional components of these games and venturing away from strict autobiographical content, developers could create an overall playing experience that isn’t so cinematic.
Instead, the player’s actions dictate events more strongly.
This way players will realize their own role in the plot’s development, making the experience all the more internalized and emotionally significant.
jcworrel@indiana.edu
