Have you ever had that one experience while watching a movie where a character did something really really stupid? Many times, characters because of either bad writing or character motivations do everything but the right thing to do, or so according to our omnipotent perspective from across the screen. They should have gone right instead of left, stand and fought instead of running away. If only there was a way where you, the player, could make these choices. You know better than these characters. Well with the miracle of branching narratives you can. Branching narratives is a method of storytelling where the person participating can have a tangible effect on the outcome of events within a story through their choices. Storytelling like this was first seen within things such as choose your own adventure books, where you would flip to predetermined pages to determine your outcome. In videogames however, it is a lot more streamlined and ideally suited for this interactive medium. Branching storylines are so good because not only does give more agency to the player but allow for a much more expansive story throughout multiple playthroughs.
Branching narratives are most predominantly found in genres such as RPG’s and adventure games, but not exclusively. Elements of choosing how the story plays out can show up in many genres, anywhere from first-person shooters, third-person action games, and even real-time strategy games. One of the most unique games I’ve ever come across to tackle the concept of player choice is that of a game known as Stanly Parable. The concept is simple: you are a single insignificant office worker who types on a computer as orders come through. That is until one day the orders stop. As you explore the facility trying to figure out what happened, a narrator is directing your choices throughout it. Yet the unique part of this game is that you can defy the narrator, ruining is the self-perceived perfect story by either obeying or directly defying him. Not only that, but the game in some instances remembers what choices you previously made, thus adding another layer to your decision making. This game’s sense of self-aware humor and numerous endings and scenarios creates the perfect game to express how wide and varied the power of player choice can create. These choices however are not all created equal.
Clik here to view.
There are many ways to affect a story through branching narrative, sometimes affecting how you play the game itself. One of the most common ways for players to affect the narrative is through the gameplay loop, specifically how they go about playing the game. Many games, especially in the Open World Genre, have a “play it your way” mantra where player freedom is put above all else in the game. Players usually have access to three to four different gameplay styles depending on the setting of the game. An example of the various options found in most open games includes hyper-lethal playstyle, nonlethal playstyle, sneaky playstyle, and the weird one. All of these styles reflect not only the preference of the player but can sometimes have tangible consequences to the story. Sometimes characters will react more hesitantly toward a murderous character or welcome you with open arms if you happen to space everyone you come across. One example of these choices affecting the gameplay loop is in the game Starcraft 2, where you must decide between saving colonists who are infected with a disease or allowing the Alien Protoss to glass the city lest the infection spread. I won’t spoil what happens when you pick either choice, but whichever one you go with not only has story consequences but gives you different gameplay benefits as well. Assisting the Protoss will have them give you access to their technology while stopping the glassing will allow you to develop your biological tech.
But the ability of player choice does not just stop at just altering the gameplay loop. This ability for interactive elements can affect the story itself. Some games allow players to alter minor or major events in the story, to either service the themes of the game or genre in which they inhabit. These major choices in games usually take the form of binary choices at specific points in the narrative. Said choices ideally take the form of the trolly problem, where both options have good and bad qualities between them, but no right or wrong decision. Or sometimes there are, and you just want to see what happens on the evil playthrough. From this decision, more branches follow thus creating a truly organic narrative within not only the game you’re playing now but for future games as well. Depending on the game you’re playing, like fantasy RPG’s, you could start as a paragon of justice playing the medieval equivalent of an underpowered superman. Or the next playthrough you could sneak around as a sly rouge lying and stealing your way to the top. Not only does this allow for video games to create a unique experience unlike anything found in movies or television shows, but it also reflects how you want to play the story.
The ways players can impact a narrative can be endless, but there are many common tropes found within branching narratives that you can identify if you look hard enough. One of the most prominent examples of these is the moral choice system. This tool of narrative design separates several decisions throughout a game into two categories: the good choices and the evil choices. This binary decision process creatives two distinct playthroughs, one where you are evil and one where you are not. Games that implement this system include Infamous and Dishonored, which change the narrative depending on how the player behaves. Another common is that of faction loyalty. This is usually found in open-world games where there are several factions present within a world. You can determine which one you support and win battles, determine which one wins in the end such as Dying Light 2 or Skyrim, the latter especially deep with its characters and repercussions for faction dominance.
Yet this does not mean every game should use these kinds of narratives. This also doesn’t mean that every game that attempts to execute branching narratives does so successfully. For one, creating a branching narrative, in turn, creates a lot more work for the writers of the game. You have to consider the consequences of each action, how each character would react, how the player’s character would react, how the world will change, how the story’s trajectory will change and so much more. Due to this large amount of work, sometimes games try to cheat the system by fooling the player into thinking their choices matter, when in reality no matter what choices you make the ending is always the same. An example of this is a game like (until dawn?) where despite its constant flaunting of the butterfly effect, some characters cannot be saved no matter what. On top of all the previously established issues, sometimes games have only one way to play. Doom Eternal is a great game. It is also a very simple game. You kill demons, as violently and as quickly as possible. The only choice you have is the method of killing demons and how you go about it. The story ranges from straightforward to nonexistent. The game is brutally simplistic and that’s what makes it so fun. Branching narratives can be fun too and in my opinion, take the most advantage of the interactive elements of the medium. When you immerse yourself in the world, realize your choices matter, that creates an experience, unlike any movie or television show.
-Brandon Peck, Blogger.
Brandon Peck – Asst Blog Editor, Prose Editor, and Layout Editor: Brandon is a Senior at Lewis University. He holds a great interest in painting miniatures and writing stories in his spare time. In addition, he enjoys many different kinds of media, ranging from movies to anime to video games, always keeping up to date with the latest trends of the time. Some of Brandon’s favorite pieces of writing include Devastation of Baal, Baneblade, Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse, and Fallout: New Vegas.