Digital Cowboys: Episode 122
Posted on : 19-09-2009 | By : Alex Shaw | In : Podcasts
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Story and Narrative in Games / Batman: Arkham Asylum
We welcome back Daniel Floyd to the show. YouTube legend and animated lecturer Mr Floyd makes for a fantastic conversational guest, bringing his insight and clarity to the show, which this week is about the way story, script and narrative have progressed in the thirty year history of video games. We reach some surprising conclusions about the nature of interactivity and how far we’ve come when held against movies and literature.
The competition segment in the middle explains how you listeners can get your mitts on a MAG beta download code (this immediately afterwards expanded into a full ten available codes so get cracking PS3 owners), with the winners to be announced next week. A Digital Cowboys MAG game night will be on the cards. This is all part of a massive 128 code giveaway brought to you by Platform Nation.
After that there’s a full dedicated 40-minute review of Batman: Arkham Asylum. We leave no stone in Batman’s grim and gothic world unturned exploring this surprisingly high quality comic-book license. There’s a spoiler section at the very end with full warning so those playing know when to spin on.
At the close there’s more music from Jonathan Coulton, a song which as it so happens was on one of the very first podcasts Alex ever took part in. (It wasn’t Digital Cowboys, it was Joinee Radio episode #21 – 22/04/2007 DC completists may like to check that one out and thus pay their respects to the man who taught me how to podcast; Mr Matt Fowler.)
Daniel Floyd can be found at his blog: Talking About These. And definitely check out his series of YouTube lectures, especially the one that tonight’s subject is based on: Video Games and Storytelling.
Jonathan Coulton’s site also features a comprehensive MP3 store. As always, we heartily recommend you take a listen to a few of his songs.
There is a bit of poor sound quality at Tony’s end for the first half, our apologies, and it does get better for the Batman section. We’ll try to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
Next week: The guys from Big Red Potion and we review Beatles Rock Band.
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Great episode, guys. I love the kind of deep-dive approach you take on a single game, rather than a laundry list of “whatcha been playin’.”
Looking forward to your Beatles Rock Band discussion.
goos show again,
I guess thats another game i have to start saving for. I can’t decide if thats good or bad.
Is there any news on a forum. I always want to dive into a discussion after having listened to your shows as you always seem to discuss something interesting.
I think that the story element that games need to focus on is setting as it is the thing that they can do better than any other medium. In a film the setting is always a background. You cannot stray from the plot to visit a bar you thought looked cool or spend more time with an interesting side character. If gaming distinguishes itself in what it can do better than anything else the fact that its narrative is not as strong won’t be as important. In the same way that film cannot have the same depth as a novel it instead became excellent at being emotive and in its presentation of action.
thats right goos show
Started listening last night, and finished the show off in the car this morning. Both aspects held my interest very well
On the subject of story telling, I think the point that the interactivity almost gets in the way of a good story is the one that resonated the most for me. Pacing can make the difference between a highly engrossing story and a mediocre one, and as soon as the player can interfere with that you are going to run into problems. Whilst I do my best when playing a game that uses in-game narrative sections where you could run off and start trying to smash up the scenery, the director in me is trying to work out where I should be looking to get a good shot for the scene, but I can well imagine others just not bothering, or simply just not caring. Perhaps in this way you have to take some responsibility for how well a story comes across in a game? The developers have given you the tools to experience it, but it comes down to you to make it work. All of this can come to waste if you hit a section of the game you just can’t do though. And if the story really is the driving force for a game, I don’t believe it should ever get too ‘gamey’ at least on the easiest, or even the default setting. Certainly your first playthrough should be just to get the story, replays on harder difficulties can play with the game aspects a little more as you already know what is going on then.
As for Batman, it;s top of my rental list now, so hopefully I will get to play it soon, then I can comment more on my thoughts
Hey guys, it’s great that you got Daniel Floyd back on again. One of my favorite story moments in a game is the beginning of Final Fantasy X. I love the fact that you and the main character have no clue what is going on. Oh, and I actually like the awkward laughing scene. Cheers.