Emergent Narrative: What We Can Learn From Dungeons & Dragons
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Presented at FITC Toronto 2016 See details at www.fitc.ca Interactive narrative hasn’t changed much in forty years – it’s still ruled by limited options and predestined outcomes. While digital RPG gameplay has become more sophisticated, the stories remain rather basic (albeit better disguised). Remarkably, we still haven’t matched the tabletop role-playing experience. We need to approach interactive story from a different angle, one that’s natively digital and that takes full advantage of the new content platform paradigm. It won’t be easy, it’ll take a lot of time… but WE’RE WIZARDS, right?! Objective To explore the potential of a truly emergent narrative, and explain how playing tabletop role-playing games can get us there. Target Audience Storytellers, creators, writers, game developers, and gamers. Five Things Audience Members Will Learn An abbreviated history of interactive storytelling Different approaches to interactive narrative; their pros and cons Sneaky tricks good Game Masters use to get players invested in a game How to convert player agency into dramatic agency (also great for GMs) That they want to play a tabletop RPG (if they haven’t already).
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Emergent Narrative: What We Can Learn From Dungeons & Dragons
- 1. EMERGENT NARRATIVEWhat We Can Learn From Dungeons & Dragons @stefangrambart
- 2. Noots I’ve always been a storyteller at heart. D&D, Improv, etc.
- 3. Earliest examples of storytelling date back to prehistory. Serra da Capivara cave painting
- 4. Oral storytelling traditions are found in the roots of every culture. David Geister
- 5. SO… WHY STORY?Why do we listen / read / watch / play them?
- 6. To experience emotion in safety. Stories transplant us into situations without danger.
- 7. To gain some insight about life. To learn about people, places, things, and events.
- 8. To experience excitement. Action, adventure, and/or adrenaline.
- 9. AUDIENCE NEEDS In roughly equal doses Em otion Exposition Action STORY
- 10. NARRATIVE MODELSUnderstanding how stories are told.
- 11. LINEAR NARRATIVE Story unfolds without input from the audience ‣ Authorial techniques create drama and elicit emotions. ‣ Author has total control over the direction and outcome of the plot.
- 12. BOOKS George R. R. Martin
- 14. TELEVISION MTV
- 16. By definition, games are inherently interactive.
- 17. But… NOT ALL GAMES TELL STORIES
- 18. Games can rely on gameplay mechanics to drive interaction.
- 20. Naughty Dog “It has a very specific ending that’s very definitive to the franchise.” - Neil Druckmann Creative Director, Naughty Dog
- 21. In order to keep the story moving forward, failure is not an option.
- 22. DRAGON AGEAction Role-Playing Game BioWare
- 23. BRANCHING NARRATIVE The audience chooses from pre-authored storylines ‣ Audience can make decisions about how the story progresses. ‣ Every choice creates a new storyline.
- 24. Complex branching narratives will experience EXPONENTIAL GROWTH
- 26. 244Story-based quests Michal Kus 8%Form the main story
- 27. TANGENTIAL NARRATIVE The audience can explore optional story content ‣ Essentially a linear narrative with optional supporting story branches. ‣ Branches are self-contained, and have limited effect on the main plot.
- 28. Michal Kus What Skyrim does is create a believable world the audience can explore.
- 29. WALKING DEAD“Every choice matters” Telltale Games
- 30. Every decision in Telltale Games’ WALKING DEAD: SEASON 1 Narrative where the branching paths never deviate too far or too long from the main storyline.
- 31. ELASTIC NARRATIVE Branching storylines integrate back into the plot ‣ Decisions create new branches that invariably fold back into the main storyline. ‣ Consequences don’t deviate too far from the main plot.
- 32. Telltale Games Telltale’s Walking Dead is about making hard choices. Consequences are real and meaningful, but the author has a very specific and engaging story to tell.
- 33. Telltale Games “choices should feel meaningful, permanent, and tailored to your story” - Joshua Rubin Writer, Telltale Games
- 35. In all of these models, the storyline suffers from PREDESTINED OUTCOMES
- 36. Is there a narrative model wherein exists spontaneous, collaborative storytelling?
- 37. Larry Elmore
- 38. Zero Charisma Tabletop Role-Playing Games have provided fantastic story experiences since the late seventies.
- 39. CreditCredit A variety of RPG rulesets, spanning countless genres and settings.
- 40. The rules, setting, and mechanics become a framework for building narrative.
- 41. EMERGENT NARRATIVE Spontaneously created storylines ‣ Infinite options collapse into a single storyline as decisions are made. ‣ True collaboration between author and audience.
- 42. Canadian Improv Games RPGs are a lot like a seated version of Improv Theatre
- 43. Canadian Improv Games IMPROV MISCONCEPTION When and improv troupe asks the audience for suggestions, there’s interaction, but the emergent narrative is actually created between the players onstage. If an improv troupe could collaboratively improvise a scene, bringing a story to life - but without suggestions, the audience would never believe it wasn’t rehearsed. Meanwhile, any improvised scene is created by the players, in character, without the ability to plan or discuss its direction or ultimate outcome.
- 44. Drachenfest Add fantasy back into improv, and it’s essentially LARPing!
- 45. Collaborative storytelling allows for DYNAMIC OUTCOMES
- 46. Wizards of the CoastTSR Modules give the Dungeon Master a pre-made story to follow,
- 47. Dice Shaming but things don’t always as planned. The players and the dice are unpredictable.
- 48. Dungeon Master Tip #1 ASK QUESTIONS, USE ANSWERS Wizards of the Coast
- 49. Steve Wang THE FOUNDING OF SHITSBURG We were starting a new campaign and the player characters began in a run down city. I described its lack of comforts, how the buildings were run-down and neglected and the townsfolk were downtrodden. I then asked “What’s it called?” One player replied “Shitsburg!” Following groans and protests from the other players we decided on a more story appropriate name.
- 50. CNN
- 51. Steve Wang Over the course of a few adventures, I continued to get the players to fill in details about the town: • The name of their favourite Inn, details about the owner and his staff. • The nature of an annual festival that seems to be the only joy this place and its people ever see. • A vast criminal empire lurking just out of reach of the meagre law enforcement. • Various rivals for the player characters, and some allies as well.
- 52. PLAYER AGENCYPlayers’ interactions have a meaningful impact.
- 53. Dungeon Master Tip #2 EVERYTHING HAS DETAIL Wizards of the Coast (or does it?)
- 54. ArenaNet THE ADVERSARY As a novice DM, I would spend hours creating characters beforehand; creating a history, interesting quirks and cool abilities. In one case I created a villain I planned on using to harass the PCs time and again, leading up to a final confrontation. But I had grossly underestimated the players’ ingenuity, and they managed to kill him off in short order. All that work for nothing. To make matters worse, later in the session a set of bad rolls nearly wiped out the PCs in a random encounter with a troll. Everyone forgets the Adversary, but remembers the troll, whom the players named…
- 55. Marshmallows For Breakfast ALPHONSE THE TROLL OF INDETERMINATE BACKSTORY Suck it!
- 56. I spent so much time building out a single character, I couldn’t pivot to the needs of the story.
- 57. Now, I Write Characteristics, Not Characters Applying them as needed
- 58. When the players APPROACHa story element, I start to ascribe it characteristics from my lists. The element grows more detailed the more it is approached.
- 59. Dungeon Master Tip #3 USE WHAT MATTERS MOST Wizards of the Coast
- 60. Steve Wang Back in Shitsburg, I needed an inciting event that would get the PCs to leave town and head for a larger city…
- 61. Marshmallows For Breakfast Suck it! WITH FIRE Luckily Alphonse was still around, so I decided he’d raze the town in a fit of vengeful wrath.
- 62. Mathieu Latour-Duhaime To my surprise, destroying the town the players had helped build created a strong emotional reaction.
- 63. THE ACT IV DISASTERThe audience needs to genuinely care about what is lost. Mathieu Latour-Duhaime
- 64. Games often make the mistake of forcing empathic connection. Bethesda
- 65. Leveraging past decisions at key plot points creates agency conversion.
- 66. DRAMATIC AGENCYNarrative outcomes create emotional responses.
- 67. HOW CAN THIS WORK DIGITALLY?Sure it works at a tabletop, but what about on a desktop?
- 68. FIVE ACT STRUCTUREIt was good enough for Shakespeare…
- 69. Act I: Setup Introduce the character, their desire, and their world. Create the familiar. Act II: Setting Out Send the character on a journey (not necessarily physical) Create the unfamiliar. Act III: Set Piece This is where you give the audience what you promised them. The movie poster. Act IV: Setback Disaster! The Character’s karma is all wrong. Act V: Settling The Score Karma is paid off.
- 70. The 36 Dramatic SituationsBy Georges Polti Mela Muter
- 71. Rivalry of Kin The Object Of Rivalry chooses the Preferred Kinsman over the Rejected Kinsman. Georges Polti
- 72. LEFT 4 DEADThe Director Valve Corporation
- 73. Valve Corporation The Director follows how you play the game and creates tension and moments of action when you’re in a lull.
- 74. SHADOW OF MORDORThe Nemesis Engine Monolith Productions
- 75. Monolith Productions The Nemesis Engine creates enemies that behave naturalistically; holding grudges, suffering long-term injuries, falling to cowardice, and taunting the player character with insults.
- 76. WHY NOW?What drives the need for a new narrative model?
- 77. Storytellers knew their audience and tailored story to suit them. David Geister
- 78. Audiences became consumers instead of collaborators. Eidos InteractiveMTV New Line CinemaGeorge R.R. Martin
- 79. New platforms empower the next generation as Makers Manus VRNetflix GoogleMojang
- 80. The Rules •The DM will describe a situation and asK: What Do You Do? •Someone answers, using suggestions on screen, or making up their own. •Be respectful! Let’s keep this PG-13. •Don’t yell! Yelling is loud. And hurts my ears. •Have fun! I like fun.
- 82. Attributes Newly tattooed Dressed in rags One-eyed Hairy Scaly Gleaming smile Scarred Hooded Bearded Hooked hand
- 83. Iron Pot for cooking Ancient relic once lost Magnificent sword Cursed wand Delicious cupcake Bag of nails Arcane book Polished skull Ten foot pole Harp (out of tune) Glass slippers A few coins Things
- 84. Busy tavern Ominous tower Shifty bridge Dangerous cave Helpful store Enchanted forest Haunted manor Deserted island Shitsburg Forlorn ruins Comfy campsite Lonely mountain Darkest dungeon Places
- 85. Boating incident Childhood trauma Unexpected weather Parade Stop, Thief! Book Dog Umbrella Wheel Unicorn Events
- 86. Marshmallows For Breakfast I ain’t got time fo’ dat!
- 87. Marshmallows For Breakfast You can’t beat me! lolz
- 88. Marshmallows For Breakfast I Win! Suck It!
- 89. Marshmallows For Breakfast Oh noes! I ham dead!