{
"post": {
"title": "What are games that make use of narrative game mechanics?",
"selftext": "Hello everyone! In a few weeks I will be working on my bachelor thesis and my focus will be on how games manage to draw a player into an experience using ludonarrative consistency. I am most interested in games that try to reframe the players actions within a game world, for example through a narrative twist. There are a couple of ways games approach this kind of connection between narrative and ludologic aspects and I would just like to collect as many interesting examples as I can. In my opinion and according to my research there are games that can use gameplay to support the narrative, then there are games who can construct a subjective narrative through gameplay and lastly (even when it's somehow conntected to the other variants) using gameplay as a metaphor. \n\n\nThere are a couple of games that (I think) did an especially good job at establishing these kinds of connections:\n\n\\- Spec Ops: The Line\n\n\\- Portal\n\n\\- Papers Please\n\n\\- This War of Mine\n\n\\- Journey\n\n\\- Left for Dead (2)\n\n\\- L.A. Noir (just a really good example of the connection, but I think not so well executed)\n\n\\- Ico\n\n\\- Shadow of the Colossus\n\n\\- Braid\n\n\\- Darkest Dungeon\n\n\\- The Last of Us \n\n\nThen there are games that mostly focus on narrative, but implement bits and pieces of gameplay really smart:\n\n\\- What Remains of Edith Finch\n\n\\- The Beginners Guide (this one is complicated)\n\n\\- The Stanley Parable\n\n\\- Gone Home\n\nI got to say that I am not a game designer, nor a programmer or anything comparable. I am mostly studying the way games or movies can be analysed on how they enhance experiences and construct potentials for the recipients. So pardon me if I misused any vocabulary, as english isn't even my native language. I would love if you could help me out finding more games that work simular like the examples I named, especially when things get reframed throughout the game.",
"url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedesign/comments/8uh7ry/what_are_games_that_make_use_of_narrative_game/"
},
"comments": [
{
"body": "Given your description, I can't believe Bioshock isn't on that list.",
"replies": [
{
"body": "I actually read a lot about how Bioshock also does this pretty well, but (shame on me) I never played it and wasn't sure on how well it fits. I didn't want to spoil me anything, but I might just play it right away",
"replies": [
{
"body": "If you have the time for it I'd recommend playing through all three just because by the third game they tie it all together in a (weird but semi effective) little bow. If not, then I'd at least say go through the first game as it has a fun little twist that's a sort of play on the dynamic of quest giving/following and how it relates to linear story telling."
}
]
}
]
},
{
"body": "I'd make a case for Dark Souls, mainly the original one over its sequels.\n\nI'll explain briefly but honestly I'll just be paroting a lot of this video from VaatiVidya: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lnq44iwiVM\n\n\nTo use your descriptions, it's both \n\n> are games that can use gameplay to support the narrative \n\nand \n\n> (even when it's somehow connected to the other variants) using gameplay as a metaphor.\n\n\nSouls is a known as an infuriatingly difficult series to the outside world. You will die. A lot.\n\nWithin its world, Undead who die too many times and lose the will to push on go hollow and lose their mind. Players who die too many times and lose the will to go on, give up. Your battle against the game's difficulty is the same struggle as that of your character and is shared by all the major NPCs who fight against constant deaths.\n\nDark Souls is an enlightening experience for so many to this day, over on its main subreddit there are so often stories of discovering the game and the adventures and strife they've endured as an individual.\n",
"replies": [
{
"body": "I was going to mention Dark Souls, and also add Majora's Mask."
},
{
"body": "I second this.\n\nIt's themes are paralleled by gameplay in many ways though, not only in it's difficulty. \n\nAnother title from the same studio does an incredible job with its themes as well: Bloodborne. \n\nI don't want to spoil anything, but a lot of that game is about learning and understanding things greater than human-kind. As you learn more through the game, it changes how many parts of the early game are interpreted. The knowledge gained by the player is paralleled by what the character is doing."
}
]
},
{
"body": "I think that Bastion is also a good example of a game where narration and narrator play a vital part in engaging a player in the game's world. ",
"replies": [
{
"body": "Bastion is great for this! I actually played it myself when it came out, but I did'nt think of it until now.\n\nAlso found a nice video explaining this very aspect of the game: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyhrKPLDCyY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyhrKPLDCyY)",
"replies": [
{
"body": "I was going to suggest not just Bastion, but Supergiant's other games: Pyre and Transistor.\n\nIn particular, I think Pyre does an amazing job of driving player investment through choices which have both a heavy narrative and gameplay impact. I don't really want to spoil the choices since it's an amazing game, and it only takes like ~10 hours to finish, (Maybe? I could be off on that. It should definitely take less than that to see the point I'm getting at though.) And you can just look up your own spoilers if you want."
}
]
}
]
},
{
"body": "Life is Strange is worth mentioning, you basically play and twist the narrative as gameplay.\n\nIt’s worth a play through as a design study for how interactive narrative can be more than “option a or option b”, even though the end result may still be binary. "
},
{
"body": "That's a good list! The only other one that comes to mind is the original Deus Ex. ",
"replies": [
{
"body": "oh yes, I already thought of Deus Ex, just forgot it on the list. Thank you! "
}
]
},
{
"body": "I did a seminar last week on How and Why games are and should be considered ART. Wanna hear about it, or just some games with good 'connections'?",
"replies": [
{
"body": "My studies are mostly about why most complex forms of media are considered to be art and I'm convinced games are the best at providing deep meaning through their hybridity. So for me there is no question whether they are considered art, but I would love to hear your opinion about it! \n\nI'm just most interested in these 'good connections' cause they are unique for videogames. At the moment I'm just struggling to find a very good example. For me it's about how such games can enhance player experience and - how we call it in my studies - have actual potentials and values that can be helpful outside of a games world, just to give a little more context.",
"replies": [
{
"body": "My opinion is that yes, they are art. They are a media like any other, expressing and spreading information (which can be translated to emotions). An example of how games can be helpful without ciiting educational games, is Pokemon Go. Seriously! I have two groups of friends, and they would never met if not by this game; there blogs that tell how the players lost weight because of walking everyday to catch'em all; even people that are no longer in depression or have less anxiety!\n\n\n\nSorry for the bad english, I hope I helped somehow."
},
{
"body": "Btw check this out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7T7mg6JZZzg"
}
]
}
]
},
{
"body": "Dark souls. The I tire multiplayer system is established as a thing in the narrative, even the fact that the player respawn six explained by him being undead. \n\nThe game has many standard game features but they are all explained with the narrative. "
},
{
"body": "I’m reading this super tired, so I’m not sure I got my head around your different kinds of ludonarrative connections in the right way, but just wanted to add my 2 cents.\n\nUndertale left a really strong impression on me precisely for how your gameplay choices affect the progression of the narrative in a very unexpected way. It really manages to make you think about a certain aspect of these top-down random-encounter based adventures in a way that players generally don’t. I mean, the developer generally subverts expectations in this game, but I was most impressed with the main narrative twist that expresses the central theme.\n\nI’d rather not spoil the game here, I think it’s really worth experiencing it for yourself, or it won’t have the same impact. Unless you really don’t have time for it, in which case I could DM you the gist of it",
"replies": [
{
"body": "Undertale is an amazing game for this. A lot of the game is about agency in games, choice in general, and has meta commentary about games. Along with the rest of the game being stellar as well."
}
]
},
{
"body": "A few others are Hand of Fate, Planescape: Torment (worth mentioning as you didn't include any RPGs and this is the strongest story-based one I've seen and the narrative guides what happens when the main character dies), Assassin's Creed (Not my favourite game but the Animus is basically a narrative reframing device allowing them to contextualize even 'game over' sequences) and the Telltale games."
},
{
"body": "If you're going solely for games that try to tell a story using gameplay, I don't think left for dead is a good example. The premise is basically that it's a world filled with zombies and there are 4 people alive who need to reach some location. It's clearly a systemic game that uses a narrative (or just a premise really) to support the gameplay, not a game that tries to tell a story using gameplay. Same goes for portal. There's a story, but it's just there to drive the puzzle mechanics. You can remove the story and still have a sequence of puzzles and the gameplay would be the same, though obviously less interesting. ",
"replies": [
{
"body": "I get where you are going with this. I think there are games, that build story around a core gameplay and games that try to build gameplay around a narrative or whether around a concept or an idea.\n\nBut nevertheless I think left for dead and portal still use their gameplay mechanics to tell a narrative, even though it might not be as well executed as in other games. In left for dead the story is about surviving a zombie apocalyse, helping out your companions and trying to reach a safe place and that's what all aspects of the gameplay revolve around. In portal on the other hand what the player is experiencing is basically a set of tests constructed by a narrative figure in the game world. Then later in the first game you only really realize to the end of the game that you are actually a test subject that was from the beginning on going to be killed. But the core gameplay is about portals, jumping, speed and puzzles which can't really be clearly interpreted in a narrative fassion.\n\nEven if you just look at super mario bros it's about traveling a distance and killing enemies to find the princess, so even in that game the whole design of the gameplay is about the narrative. There are just games that do it more purposeful or try to get a certain meaning out of the gameplay.\n\nEdit: I still have to agree with you that they are no good examples. Games that tell story using gameplay are more likely to be constructed around the story, rather than the gameplay. "
}
]
},
{
"body": "Puzzle Agent left a strong impression on me. I don't want to spoil it, but the way the mechanics enter the narrative build a kind of setting in themselves. It resembles certain edutainment games, as simple as the plots for the games on the back of cereal boxes, in the formula of \"Event A has occurred! Can you help Character X solve Puzzle B in order to resolve it?\"\n\nAn early tension point suddenly betrays that formula, twisting both the mechanics and the narrative in order to establish an antagonist as being otherworldly, surreptitious, and powerful in a way that leaves the player defenseless, both mechanically and psychologically.\n\nF*cking gnomes, man."
},
{
"body": "Metal Gear Solid in general has many of these, but in particular MGS3 has a « boss battle » where in essence you have to wade through a river past the spirits of every guard you’ve killed in the game thus far. The way you killed them will be evident from clutching wounds, moaning words, etc. All the while, the « boss » speaks to you of the sorrow of people lost in conflicts. \n\nA player who has killed as little as possible will have a very easy time, but a player who has left behind many bodies will have a lot more obstacles to get through (the spirits will try and drag you down to drown you and you have to avoid/shake them off long enough to reach the end.\n\nInterestingly, the Sorrow’s (calling him by his name instead of « The Boss », as thats the actual name of another character) message isn’t actually that you should not kill enemies. He wants you to be aware of the consequences of your actions, even those that must be taken for a good cause, and to feel the sadness of the lives that you’ve ended. \n\nSide note - past the serious bit. Kojima went as far as to include a spirit for a guard who died, was picked at by carrion, then Snake hunted and ate the carrion, claiming that Snake ate him. The spirit is accompanied by the bird as well. ",
"replies": [
{
"body": "I was scrolling through the comments hoping to see MGS pop up. :')\nSnake Eater has probably the scenes that impacted me the most. Just like The Sorrow's moment, there's a lot of situations where the game wants you to feel the consequences behind Snake's actions.\n\nI don't know why but I usually prefer games where I have no choice/branching paths. Paradoxically I feel more engaged in those kind of stories, maybe due to this \"fate\" the creators chose for me. I gotta endure it, just like the characters. \n\nOther than that the torture scenes are a pretty neat regarding gameplay/narrative.\n\nEDIT : formatting.",
"replies": [
{
"body": "It’s such an impactful series. Speaking of torture scenes, after mashing the button inhumanly fast in MGS1 to resist torture, your support team « stimulated the nanomachines in your arm to provide relief, while IRL you hold the vibrating controller to your upper arm to get a little massage. \n\nJust another of such moments that I remember fondly and wanted to share.",
"replies": [
{
"body": "That's exactly what I was thinking about ! Each torture scene has its own twist. I may be overthinking it, but like in 4 everything becomes harder and harder while all your allies are having an all out war. And as everything is going down for each character, the button mash become more and more intense. \nOh well, enough fanboying for today haha. "
}
]
}
]
}
]
},
{
"body": "There's a few games in there that definitely make me rethink the way a game could be designed. Especially simple concepts like Journey (there's going to be a bit of SPOILERS for this game down here) that can express so much through very little mechanics. The player is the one twisting the core gameplay rather than unlocking abilities. It sets you up for some very unique experiences. Realizing your only way to communicate is either jump, move or make a sound forces you to build a language for the next three hours. \n\nI remember that at the very beginning my random partner and I were just trying to get further, and as we got to \"know\" each other we started to get habits like staying close so that we were charging our scarfs constantly, calling for help (broken stairs in the storm was quite a ride) or expressing joy through sounds and jumps etc.\n\nAnyway, I'd strongly recommend Nier : Automata. The game has a very unique way of telling its story and one of the best ending I've ever seen. I really want to explain why, as it's freaking awesome, but that's something you've got to experience yourself. Just know that there's indeed a lot of things that get reframed through the game. :) ",
"replies": [
{
"body": "Neir: Automata is one of the games I was gonna bring up also. \n\nI liked every part of the game, but the very end, the very very end, definitely bridges the gap between player and game. It also has a meta discussion about games in general."
}
]
},
{
"body": "Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines does it to some extent. Great game, especially with wesp's patch."
},
{
"body": "[removed]",
"replies": [
{
"body": "that sounds like a great minimalistic example!"
}
]
},
{
"body": "It’s hard to analyze if you’re not a really good player, but the way the difficulty goes up and down around the last two bosses of **Furi**, and the placement of the credits, works pretty strongly into the story.\n\nThey basically give you a boss that, while not the easiest in the game, is probably close to that. After some of the ridiculously hard bosses you had just been fighting, it becomes a curb stomp battle - one that can likely leave a somewhat sour taste in your mouth. All of that is very much intended by the story. Afterwards are the credits, which can likely leave players a little empty and upset - but the final boss comes afterwards, and only if the player explores for a bit. This allows players to buckle down for the hardest fight in the game to make up for their actions."
},
{
"body": "KOTOR has one of the best twists of any game I've played, and that is one of the main big reasons that I think it did so incredibly well. "
},
{
"body": "Eternal Darkness for the GameCube used meta-gameplay as narrative, in that it would play tricks on the *player* when the *character's* sanity meter went too low. (e.g. displaying a TV-like volume meter being turned down and much more -- I won't spoil the more devious ones in case you do want to play it unspoiled)"
},
{
"body": "Prey (the newest version, I have never played the game it is a spiritual successor to), very amazing game with story elements tied heavily in, great world building, worth a playthrough at least if not many more. \n\nThe game didn't get enough publicity but deserves way more attention because the gameplay is great as well as the story. Bioshock used to be my favorite game until I played Prey. It really has a Bioshock feel, but does backtracking better, sets up a world with stuff you wouldn't even see the first time around that fits into the storyline.\n\nEdit: I really can't do it justice. There is a prey subreddit you should look at. The game also has tons of books and things lying around throughout the game so you can learn about the world's history. They even set up the DLC in the main game like you would not believe, mentions to it both in books and objects found in the world.",
"replies": [
{
"body": "A fellow student actually suggested Prey to me related to this topic. But it led to us arguing about whether for example the shooting mechanic or the glue gun had any narrative purpose. But if you are also so convinced that the game does this in a simular fashion to the games on my list, I might actually consider doing an analysis on Prey. Sadly I know how the game ends even though I didn't get the chance to play it and I think it established a beautiful methaphor of the gameplay at the end. But I still was stuggeling if all the other gameplay elements were significant in this sense. Thank you so much for your comment! Would you mind telling me a little more about your thoughts?\n",
"replies": [
{
"body": "Spoilers obviously, but nothing major\n\nAs far as the gun goes I see your point, but I think it's very similar to Bioshock in that aspect, you have guns available because combat can be fun, although in Bioshock it's not optional, in prey you could play without ever having picked up a gun. But weapons can also be very useful because as the story progresses there is a lot of backtracking, previous areas will become infested with even harder enemies to fit the storyline that the typon are spreading, it gets much harder to move around safely, especially with the new survival mode update with much more complex status effects such as a broken leg that won't heal automatically and can't be fixed by med kits. \n\nThe gloo Cannon is one of the inventions created in the labs specifically to slow the organisms. It can also be used to create platforms to climb, at a few points throughout the game there are hidden locations you can use the gloo gun to access. Even sometimes there are existing gloo trails in the world built by crew members who were supposed to be there before you, it helps contribute to the feeling that the typhon have really wiped out a lot of the people aboard the ship. Even little jokes such as a snowman made of gloo which also has items lodged in it and something written about it in email. These all really contribute to a sense that the space station is like a home for many people.\n\nExploration revels passwords for computers which have emails that talk a lot about what's happening on the station. Other passwords for rooms and things, there are audio recordings talking about what's happening on the ship. A lot of these are optional but exploration can help you find resources you need to finish an objective, sometimes exploring will unlock other optional quests as well.\n\nOther great gems I won't spoil that contribute to you growing attached to characters before you even meet them, possibly changing the way you play the game and changing the ending a bit. It really feels like nothing exists without purpose in the game, it is an immersive sim so even the stuff not directly related to the main plot line really helps in the games creation of a place that feels like it could actually exist.\n\nMajor spoiler warning for the ending\n\nSince you already know the ending, even before you realize it there are subtle hints that the typhon have already spread to earth. Such as a drawing from a kid on Earth who has never seen a typhon but somehow draws one, among other things.",
"replies": [
{
"body": "Thank you so much for the insightful input! I saw a few videos about the game and thought the mimics and the gameplay revolving around them was also quite fitting. It was basically about figuring out whether something is real or just acting like it's real, which is also a theme of the game and it's narrative from the very first scene on"
}
]
}
]
}
]
},
{
"body": "You play Night in the Woods? It does a couple expressive variants on the basic game, plus custom minigames.\n\nDo you have any thoughts on narrative branching? It's something I think is interesting with game narrative but your examples don't seem to emphasize it.",
"replies": [
{
"body": "I actually own the game, but I haven't played it much yet. I think narrative branching can work really well with narrative mechanics, especially when your moral actions follow you throughout a games narrative. But influences on a games narrative are really hard to manage by narrative designers, beause you basically can get exponential complexity within a narrative when branching moves on and on if different branches don't lead to one ending. I think The Stanley Parable explored this very well.\n\nBut in the end I think narrative branching is not essential to narrative game mechanics, it's just another way of enhancing a players unique experience\n\n"
}
]
},
{
"body": "Many of my recommendations have been brought up, but I've one more for you: Brothers, A Tale of Two Sons.\n\nThe entirety of the game I'd pretty much based around how two brothers work together to overcome incredible obstacles. You control both brothers simultatiously, which gives a great sense of their bond to the player. There is one specific part, where gameplay and narrative are combined perfectly. Out of every other game I've ever played, many already mentioned in this thread, this single moment has the single greatest example of gameplay and narration melded together. ",
"replies": [
{
"body": "Just got to tell you that I chose this game for my analysis. I played it and I think it fits perfecly into my thesis",
"replies": [
{
"body": "Oh, that's awesome. I really think that one scene is the single greatest combination of gameplay and narration, and I think that's one of the great things about this medium, so I'm glad that you ended up using it. I'd also be interested in how your thesis turns out, good luck!"
}
]
}
]
},
{
"body": "Many of my recommendations have been brought up, but I've one more for you: Brothers, A Tale of Two Sons.\n\nThe entirety of the game I'd pretty much based around how two brothers work together to overcome incredible obstacles. You control both brothers simultatiously, which gives a great sense of their bond to the player. There is one specific part, where gameplay and narrative are combined perfectly. Out of every other game I've ever played, many already mentioned in this thread, this single moment has the single greatest example of gameplay and narration melded together. "
},
{
"body": "Life is Strange anyone? The rewind mechanic works so well in that game and ties the narrative along with the actual gameplay. "
},
{
"body": "I love to think about the connections between narrative and mechanics in games, particularly because I would argue the connections in most contemporary games are so weak or even non-existent. I hope I can impart some perspectives on things to look for.\n\nFirst of all, distinguish games with good narratives from games whose narratives are well-supported by gameplay. For example, few would disagree that the narrative of BioShock is broadly compelling, but many would argue that the gameplay not only fails to support but actually contradicts the narrative. That particular is of course up for discussion.\n\nSecondly, distinguish mechanics from the narrative depiction of those mechanics. Remember that mechanics in themselves aren’t about killing zombies or placing portals, the mechanics are simply ways in which the player may alter the game-state. So some mechanics with very different narrative depictions can actually be very similar, and vice versa. For example, imagine an RPG where you could either touch an enemy with a magic spell to kill them, using up Mana Points, or hit them with your sword, using Stamina Points. In fact, these mechanics are theoretically identical - use a limited resource to deal damage to enemies; even if they are portrayed differently. It’s most important to note this since it means you cannot then say that a mechanic supports the narrative based on its narrative depiction - that’s just saying the narrative supports the narrative; showing perhaps that the narrative is strongly constructed but not that the connections between it and the mechanics are strong. E.g. suggesting that BioShock’s mechanics support the narrative because the choice to kill Little Sisters for instant rewards is portrayed as evil. The portrayal of the mechanic is not the mechanic.\n\nThirdly, think about it both ways and as a whole. Don’t just consider how the mechanics support the narrative or how the narrative supports the mechanics, but think about both, considering the work as one whole. Because if all a narrative-game is is a narrative juxtaposed with a game, then it has failed (though the parts may succeed separately). Bear in mind that this may mean that the nature of the game and the nature of the story change fundamentally from their pure forms, just as neither music nor poetry is the same when made into song.\n\n\nIf you were looking for a commendable success, I would be hard-pressed... there are many great examples of failures to learn from, like BioShock, Dear Esther, Life is Strange, Endless Space, the Telltale games, the Banner Saga, Half-Life 2... but if I had to point to a more successful hybrid of game and story, I might hesitantly point to The Long Dark, whose sense of isolation, hardship and the stress of survival expressed by the narrative in tandem with the slow pace, hard choices and declining availability of resources over time that is presented by the gameplay. Of course, there are still major detriments to this game, both in the narrative and gameplay and their co-operation, but this is still one of the best examples I’ve seen."
},
{
"body": "Metal gear solid 3"
},
{
"body": "Panzer Dragoon Saga. During the game, there are rumors of a Divine Visitor that will save us all, and the little info you have tends to point to Edge's Dragon. Big spoiler.\n\n>!It's not, it's you, the player. In the end, the dragon confesses he was only there to guide the divine visitor, and the player himself is the one who will save everyone, by resetting the world. You are the one who revived Edge from death in the beginning of the game. The dragon calls you by the name you entered way at the start of the game, and asks you to push the button. Edge turns to the screen, looking at the player and realizes that you, \"the one from another world\" was the one who helped him along the way. Then the screen winks out.!<\n\nSaga in general is an absolutely amazing RPG, but that was a neat twist that predated a lot of fourth wall mechanics modern games used."
},
{
"body": "Dragon Quest V,\n\nIn the game you start off adventuring with your father, he is about level 30, you are around level 2/3. Your father is infinitely more powerful than you, and crushes his foes almost instantly.\n\nLater in the game, you have a child, unless you've excessively grinded, you'll be between level 25-30 when they can adventure with you, neatly mirroring the original dynamic. \n\nIt's a very minor bit of tinkering, but one I really love.\n\nFinal Fantasy IV plays with this sort of thing too.\n\nTellah, an old man, looses physical related stat points on level up.\n\nTellah dies when he casts the ultimate spell meteor, which costs 5 more MP than his max.\n\nRydia doesn't learn fire until she overcomes her fear of fire.\n\nCecil's Darkness attack literally hurts him to use, much like the life of the black knight if draining his own life. \n\nIt's a real shame FF kind of gave up doing this sort of thing as soon as they started. "
},
{
"body": "Visual novels do this a lot. Ask around on r/visualnovels. I don't know many myself but the most prominent one I can think of is Kimi to kanojo to kanojo no koi. You'll have to look up spoilers to find out what the game does though."
},
{
"body": "Can you give examples of what doesn’t constitute a narrative driven by gameplay? This seems like a broad enough descriptor to include basically anything if I’m interpreting it correctly",
"replies": [
{
"body": "I actually found a thread in r/gamedesign where someone talked about what I think you mean by that ([Link](https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedesign/comments/1mhxxy/rgamedesign_what_are_examples_of_mechanic_as/cc9ekoa)). Most games try fitting a narrative into a game to work along with the gameplay. It's as simple as having little objectives completed by player interaction which drive the narrative forward. Most games use established mechanics to make their games work. What I am thinking about is when game mechanics are worked out based on a narrative idea. I've read a paper by Teun Dubbelman that explored this kind of thinking quite good ([Link](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/309365249_Narrative_Game_Mechanics)). He basically talks about narrative game mechanics as a way of game designers to express a narrative through gameplay. There is another paper where he talks about how game design patterns can be used in a simular fashion ([Link](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321043118_Repetition_Reward_and_Mastery_The_Value_of_Game_Design_Patterns_for_the_Analysis_of_Narrative_Game_Mechanics)).\n\nIf you look at the different perspectives of the digital game studies you will find that there has been a fight between narratology and ludology. It's basically looking at videogames as either a new form of telling storys or as a new form of playing. Many games are just about having fun in the way you are playing the game. For example League of Legend or Overwatch are strongly gameplay oriented and barely try so tell stories through the gameplay. Other games focus on narrative and use a lot of cutscenes, dialogue or have a narrator. What I am interested in are games that try telling a narrative through the gameplay. If you look at most of the games that have been discussed in this thread you will find that every game has a special way of using its gameplay to tell a story, even though some do it more than others.\n\nEdit: sorry for bad english"
}
]
},
{
"body": "Have a look at Telltale \"The walking dead\"\n\nEvery time I hear a talk about narrative and games, I can't believe that Telltale is not mentioned. It is a one-of-a-kind masterpiece game and is basically all about narrative.\n\nNot saying it is the best game ever, but certainly the most advanced story-centered game."
}
]
}