Storytelling flow in videogames – DAG pod 23

In this podcast Daniele Giardini and Pietro Polsinelli (myself) discuss story flow in games – and how game endings are told. We roam from The Witcher to Sunless Sea, crossing game genres. Hear us here:

At the end of the podcast we read and discuss a quote from If Games Were Like Game Stories…

My favourite moment from Papers, Please was when someone gave me a banner for a sports team named the Arstotzka Arskickers. I had a choice of whether to put it up on my wall, or not.

Compared to all the other decisions… taking bribes, separating families, conspiring to take down the Arstotzkan government… this was a small and silly decision. I put it up on my wall, of course.

But the reason this is so memorable to me, is because the game actively acknowledged this small act! A few people commented on the banner, some remarking it’s tacky, some cheering “Go Arskickers!” And then, of course, this decision bites me in the ass when the inspector comes by and tells me the decoration is against protocol, and fines me.

Games and books quoted:

The Witcher 2 Witcher 2 cover.jpg
The Witcher 3 Witcher 3 cover art.jpg
Thinking Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman Thinking, Fast and Slow.jpg
Bioshock Infinite Official cover art for Bioshock Infinite.jpg
Bioshock (one) BioShock cover.jpg
Lord of the Rings Movies Ringstrilogyposter.jpg
Dark Souls Dark Souls Cover Art.jpg
80 Days http://a3.mzstatic.com/us/r30/Purple3/v4/dc/f6/80/dcf6809a-a0bf-a620-4f03-4d36907a29a3/screen1136x1136.jpeg
Shadowrun Shadowrun4A.jpg
Kardashian Hollywood
Sunless Sea http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/304650/header.jpg?t=1424434198
Flick Kick Football Legends http://pikpok.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/en_ss_497x280_02.jpg
Alessandro Baricco https://www.penguin.com.au/jpg-large/9781921145483.jpg
Papers, Please http://screenshots.en.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/69660000/69660821/papers-please-08-535x535.png
Football Drama Football Drama

 

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