Narrative Design, the case of “Horizon Zero Dawn”

Narrative Design, the case of “Horizon Zero Dawn”Nelson Zagalo, Universidade de Aveiro

Aveiro, 29 novembro 2017

“Narrative Designer is a role in

contemporary videogame

development first seen in 2006 when

the video game publisher THQ began

hiring for the position.”Stephen Dinehart

1992 1993 1996 2000

“Poetics” devised the first principles for the art of

analyzing stories through their form instead of

content, thus creating the base for which appeared

in the 20th century as formalism, later as

structuralism in the form of a narratology, and now

is giving us this so called Narrative Design.

He defined Tragedy as made of “six parts”

plot (mythos)

character (ethos)

thought (dianoia)

diction (lexis)

melody (melos)

spectacle (opsis)

Narrative Design of StoryWorlds

Narrative Design of Alternate Realities

Narrative Design of Interactive Storytelling

Narrative Design of Virtual Worlds

Narrative Design of Videogames

It can have game parts involved, it can have educational purposes, it can have

artistic objectives, but for what concerns this discussion we care only about

processes using Narrative as the central information structure.

Narrative as an Information Structure

Layer 1: Gameplay

Layer 2: Narrative Goal

Layer 3: Narrative Background

Layer 4: Mental Modeling

A first proposal on the domain, by game developers, which is interesting, and can even serve for a

first discussion on the game design approach to narrative design.

However this proposition does not acknowledge all the complexities around the development of

the Storyworlds Experience, and leaves outside all the non-game experiences

One of the first narrative design models: “4-Layers”

by Thomas Grip and Adrian Chmielarz

Usability

The system must be functional, and understandable

Sensory

The artefact builds an experience, game based, artistic based

or cultural based.

Significance

The artefact has something to tell, expresses an idea.

What do we need to model StoryWorlds

A formalist view of StoryWorlds

Usability

Functional

Universal

Systemic

Efficient

Feedback

Clarity

Sensory

Emotional

Cultural

Flow

Visceral

Behavioural

Reflexive

Significance

Story

Moral

Conflict

World

Characters

Events

Content

Form

Narrative Design Approach to Storyworlds

Storyworld

Significance

Story

(Fabula)

Form

(Discourse)

Narrative Design

a. Message

Made of a Theme, surrounded by a Lore, moving towards a main Conflict.

b. World

The Context made of settings and objects. Connects all parts.

c. Characters

Personality, Presentation and Actions. Connects events and world.

d. Events

The narrative nodes that build the plot. Connects form and content.

If we were looking into usability

Defining the UI and the UX for the actions (fight, craft, mount, etc,.) to

be performed by the user

If we were looking into sensory

Defining the game design (mechanics, goals, rules, pace).

The Narrative Design of HZD

Producers goal:

“female protagonist fighting machines on a lush Earth far in

the future”

Narrative designer task:

“a) imagine an entire history for this strange new world”

“b) create a character who’d be compelling to play”

“c) give her a deeply personal reason to go questing across the

world”

“d) make sure her personal quest put her on a collision course with

the biggest mysteries of the world”

“e) pace out the (quite intricate) answers to those mysteries so each

revelation left players wanting more, driving them on to the end of

the game”

a. the Message

John Gonzalez

narrative designer of HZD

The Theme

Humans beaten by machines (Sci-fi)

The storyline

“In a lush, post-apocalyptic world where nature has

reclaimed the ruins of a forgotten civilization, pockets of

humanity live on in primitive hunter-gatherer tribes. Their

dominion over the new wilderness has been usurped by the

Machines – fearsome mechanical creatures of unknown

origin.”

Main conflict

Survive and find answers to solve the mystery behind

the world presented.

a. the Message

a. the Message

Horizon Zero Dawn | Aloy's Journey - E3 2016 Cinematic Trailerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JPXzcJh_oI

Who

Good humans, bad humans, and intelligent machines

Where

In a post-apocalyptic future, in our planet Earth.

When

In a time when humans have no knowledge of the technology surrounding them.

What happens

Bad men seem to know how to control machines and turn them against good humans,

our hero community.

Why?

Who are those machines? Why are they there? How has that happen? How does

machines get energy? Why humans can’t control the machines?

a. the Message

Settings serves to build the context for the

Conflict

Each space has specific architecture, specific

landscape, with atmospheric changes (sun, snow,

rain), day and night.

a. the World

Objects connect the character with the Conflict

The most relevant for the storyworld are the objects containing

ideas about the world, like books, text pages, mobile devices with

audio recordings or holograms, digital screens, but even old

collectibles like vessels or signage.

a. the World

a. the Characters

Personality

Builds a direct connection with the essence of Story, with

the player having opportunities to refine it. Defines her

communication verbal and non-verbal (Aloy is curious,

untameable but sensible).

a. the Characters

Presentation

Builds the bridge to the World. Defines how do

we get to know her, throughout the game.

a. the Characters

Actions

Defines the Events and consequently the Story. Again the

player can choose the skills to invest and define it.

a. the Events

Narrative Nodes

It works to realize the plot and

represent the story. The

events are interdependent

with Character’s actions and

Story message.

In HZD the plot is non-linear

and open. The nodes get

presented through three

different levels of relevance:

Global, Tribal and Individual.

a. the Events

A B

C1

C2 D2

D1

E

Global

Tribal

Individual

Quest map

How was it created

HZD was a PlayStation 4 exclusive

Cost

over €45 million, very cheap when compared to the €250

million of GTA V, or even the €80 million of another

European videogame “The Witcher 3”.

Workforce

At peak, 250 persons, plus 100 outsourced in China for

assets. Through the entire production duration: 20

persons

Duration

6 full years

Narrative Design

The complexity behind the building of these artefacts is only manageable

through teams of producers, which lead leaders in each area (programming,

technology, design, art, sound, narrative) responding to a greater

organization of people.

Narrative design is an highly difficult task in these AAA projects, because it

needs to maintain meaning meaningful throughout the entire categories of

assets, spaces and time, and more problematic through a web of power

hierarchies inside the command of organization.

However, narrative design relevance is major, because it is the main driving

force behind player motivation to go until the end. Videogames have a

natural problem with being able to deliver complete experiences to its

receptors.

Narrative Design, the case of “Horizon Zero Dawn”

Nelson Zagalo, Universidade de Aveiro

nzagalo@ua.pt

http://nelsonzagalo.googlepages.com

http://virtual-illusion.blogspot.com