1. LAMP GROWINGWORLDS joe velikovsky 2008 NGC 281The Pacman Nebula

2. * The Art of Writing for Non-Linear - A General Theory of Un-Linearity Case Study-LOONEY TUNES: Acme Arsenal * Developing Game Scripts:Before, During and After Production* Promoting yourself as a Game Writer...* Industry Overview:The Australian Game Development scene 3. Arthas to move us.Designdoes not. (Unless its a good design for a bus.)- David Hockney WILL GAMES EVER BE SERIOUS LITERATURE?Some games alreadyareserious literature just as much as novels - or films or comics. In fact, theyre sometimes technically more complex to write than a novel or film... Metal Gear Solids themes and polemic on morality is up there with `Crime & Punishment `Spiderman is the Hamlet of our times... Even back in the 80s, there was a `civil disobedience game - where you played Ghandi And check out `The Mythology of Kyoto which rewards you with `karma in gameplay. Games are really serious literature. The `Sam & Max games are as funny as any TV sitcom in the new `Simpsons game, you go around collecting `platform game cliches - such as The Double-Jump - its as wittily intertextual and self-reflexive as any Italo Calvino novel `Myst was like Shakespeare for the multimedia masses. Whats really ironic is, games dont evenneedto be literary, they just need to be fun to play. Serious literature can include violence (Crime and Punishment!) and this is also why we need an R-rating for games... We may want to see the films `American Psycho and `Fight Club for their brilliant satire and biting socio-cultural commentary - but dont necessarily want under-18s to see it not until theyre old enough to `get it but - the average gamer is 28 years old now - And as for `games causing violence? - Aristotles theory of Catharsis.Joe Velikovsky, Game Writer-Designer-Producer, JOETEEVEE.COM - 2008 4.

GAMES NEED TO:

• Work

• Be fun to play

• Have a [good?] story. But - its actually optional.

Why Point #3 is optional : Games must first of all `work (ie have no `bugs, and not crash). Secondly - must be fun (not frustrating to play the gameplay `hook is the key here) and thirdly they CAN have a great story but since this 3 rdpoint is optional (Gameplay is king, any Story is secondary), we have only gradually seen `literary game narratives emerge: e.g. Myst, Half Life, Deus Ex, Halo, Metal Gear Solid, Bioshock, etc)

5.

MY SO-CALLED CAREER:

Joe Velikovsky - JOETEEVEE.COM

91-94 Newcastle Uni (B.A. Comms)

95 - Game Design courses AFTRS, 2 years

98 Script Assessor ( Fox, Polygram, NSWFTO , etc)

99 Sci-fi TV series for Fox Studios

2K Freelance Script Writing & Script Doctoring

• Game Writing, Multipath Movies @ BII

• Inform P/L - Games Market Analyst

2000-2002 Game Writer/Designer @ Ratbag

2004-5 - Creative Director/Designer, A-Rage P/L

2005-7 - Game Designer/Writer Redtribe

2008 JOETEEVEE.COMGame Consulting, writing Feature Film Script, TV, ARGS

6. GAME SCENARIO DESIGN, andGAME STORYTELLING & SPACE c/- Prof Henry Jenkins, MIT Game storytellingis often more aboutspace , and less aboutcharacter .Why?BecausePlayer freedomannihilates Character .Consider a ` Choose Your Own Adventure book (over 250 million copies sold) - of all possible decisions, many are totally `out of character for the hero. But Games must allow for freedom of player expression, which often removes limits Character behaviour enabling them toact out of character . Games narratives are therefore more aboutadventure, and moving through space . We can therefore look atGames as Spatial Stories Game ads (promotional material) usescreenshots . They show the audience (the Player) thespacethe game occupies... They show a potential to explore, to roam, and they present a notion of animmersive space. 7.

Games as `Spatial Stories/

Professor Henry Jenkins (cont)

Compare games with travel narratives they are less aboutcharacter development , more aboutthe travel between spaces .

Consider most of Jules Vernes work:

• From the Earth To the Moon,

• 20 000 Leagues Under the Sea,

• A Journey to the Centre of the Earth,

• Around the World in 80 Days.

• If your [film] story has limited/non-interactive

• locations, It may not adapt so well to a game

8.

Also, consider the front material in various classic works of literature:

• War & Peacehas a family tree in the frontispiece;

• Solzenitzyns works have military organization charts (Battalions, Generals, Sergeants, Privates etc);

• Pat OBriens sea stories have a diagram explaining the ships parts.

• Tolkein hasmaps.. .

• Games often haveMapsas well.

9.

• ONE KEYGAME/NON-LINEAR

• WRITING TIP:

• *KEEP ITMODULAR ! (So that your 10 Chapters can mostly be rearranged but maybe Chapter 1 [your `intro level] and Ch 10 [the final level] are mandatory.)

• So, this way - if aLevel / Environment /Chaptergets cut/re-arranged during production (or, turns out not to be `too hard/not fun in the Playtesting stage)

• • Your narrative doesntsufferfrom `losing that Chapter of the story

• Ditto, if aCharactergets cut in development

• • As above (make it so that losing this Game Character doesnt `break the story as a whole)

• ALSO- `Make it Modular so that perhaps the Player canchoosetheirown path through the Story ie They may want to explore a certainEnvironmentfirst, so -- let themchoosebetween (say) 3 different Levels or, from 3 types of gameplay (choose: 1) on-foot, 2) driving, 3) flying)

• ie Vive le capitalism-`Choice is good

10.

• GAME DESIGN/WRITING PROCESS:

• Also Design / Structure (and Write!) your Levels/Chapters so that they allbegin and endat the same place (ie back at the game `HUB -- from which all/most other Levels are accessed.) e.g. say a Central Control Room, or a HQ, or a Game `Base, etc etc.

• Eg - GAME STRUCTURE / & `Tiers :

• So -start with - The GameIntroCutscene/FMV (say, 30 seconds long)

• Play Level 1 (Like aGameplay Tutorial , and intro the Characters & Story)

• Then, at the Game `HUB,the Player can maybe Choose from 3 different Levels in any order: ie Choose Level 2 - or 3 - or 4? ( Tier 1 easy to play )

• Then Cutscene #2 plays - taking you back to `The Hub (a new HUB?)

• Then the Player can choose from: Level 5, or 6, or 7 in any order (call this`Tier 2 Medium difficulty to play ) - Etc!

• NB But ensure that the First and also Last Chapters (eg 1 and 10) are mandatory, so that - as a Game/Story Designer - you know the Start and End of the Game Story and the `middle can be in any order.

11. GAME WRITING/DESIGNINGPROCESS AS OPPOSED TO FILM... Film-writing Elements : Premise ThemeCharacte r Plot Dialog Game Design(in an FPS) : Good guys Bad Guys Items Guns Locations Level Design `marriage of Gameplay & Story Screenplay= 45 scenes ! 12. Boys Games (eg `War games) Typified by: 1) competition 2) physical violence 3) a battle for territory 4) the elimination of competitors= say an FPS Girls Games (`Sim games)Typified by:1) building social relationships 2) communication 3) community4) co-operation = say an MMORPG Prof . Henry Jenkins, MIT 13.

GAME DESIGN / WRITING PROCESS

Decide ontypeof game: a shooter, a driver, action - adventure, RP G?

• What type ofM issions?Player `experience?, Ramped up difficulty.

Missions -l eads to-Game Scenarios / Locations / Situations i. e .scenes!(I s it set mainly in aKitchen - or a Spaceship? )

Locations/Scenarios dictate the `filmic genre Westerns &S ci -F i are about `conquering frontiers = so they have big `game maps/worlds

Genre usually dictates your Story (type)

Type of Story - dictates the types of Characters/ Archetypes (Heros/Villains)

Characters - speak Dialog = Scr een writing!WriteCutscenesto link Missions.

Development Prototyping - Play-testing

Then you have to writeOnscreen Text Help & THE GAME MANUAL

14.

GAME WRITING / DESIGN / PLAY THEORY - Texts

`Ultimate Guide Flint Dille & John Platten

Andrew Rollings & ErnestW Adams(Ebert of games)

Prof Henry Jenkins( Kaelof games)

David Freeman Creating Emotion in Games

Academic Texts :

Rules of Play Salen & Zimmerman

Gonzalo Frasca (Ludology .org)

Christy Dena - ARGs

The Best Sites :

www. Gamasutra.com

www. DesignersNotebook.com

15. Noah Falstein the 400 Project The 400 `Game Design Rules 16. Top 20 Console Games of All Time (Wikipedia - 2008) 1.Pokmon Red, Blue, and Green (Game Boy 20.08 million 2.Nintendogs (DS 18.67 million) 3.Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES 18 million) 4.Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (PS2 17.5 million) 5.Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (PS2 14.89 million shipped) 6.Pokmon Diamond and Pearl (DS 14.77 million) 7.Pokmon Gold and Silver (GB Color 14.51 million) 8.Grand Theft Auto III (PS2 14.5 million) 9.New Super Mario Bros. (DS 14.16 million) 10. Super Mario Land (Game Boy 14 million) 17. Top PC Games of All Time(Wikipedia - 2008) * The Sims (100 million total including Expansions) * The Sims 2 (13 million)[170] o The Sims 2: Pets [expansion pack] (5.6 million) o The Sims 2: Seasons [expansion pack] (1 million) * World of Warcraft (10 million subscribers) o World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade [exppack] (3.5 million) * StarCraft (9.5 million, may include StarCraft: Brood War) * Half-Life (8 million) * Myst (6 million) * Guild Wars (5 million) * Cossacks: European Wars (4 million) * Diablo II (4 mi/ Diablo II: Lord of Destruction (1m) * Half-Life 2 (4 million) * Populous (4 million)[181][182] * RollerCoaster Tycoon (4 million in North America) * Doom 3 (3.5 million)[184] 18. Games Industry Structure Developer Consumer Retailer Distributor Redtribe Publisher Warner Bros SCE Harvey Norman/EB Games/etc John Netizen 19. Game Platforms - PC - PS2 - PS3 - XBox360 - Wii - PSP- DS - Phone 20. Console WarsInstalled Base PlayStation 2:127 million, as of December 31, 2007Wii:24.45 million, as of March 31, 2008 Xbox:24 million, as of May 10, 2006Xbox 360:19 million, as of April 25, 2008 PlayStation 3:13 million, as of April 21, 2008Nintendo GC:21.74 million, as of March 31, 2008Dreamcast:10.6 million [discontinued] GBA:81.06 million, as of March 31, 2008Nintendo DS:70.6 million, as of March 31, 2008PS Portable:34 million, as of Dec 31, 2007(Wikipedia - 2008) 21. A Typical Game Developer Team: Producer Production AssistantGame Designers (1 or 2 or 3) (much like a Director on a film) Project Manager Programmers (10) Artists/Modellers (10) Interface Designers (3) Animation Team 6, incl. Animation Director Game Writer (& maybe a Script Editor) Sound/Music Guy Marketing Department (3) = (approx 30-60 people in total) 22.

QUESTIONS FOR THE POTENTIAL

CONSOLE-GAME ADAPTATION OF A FILM

What is the Key situation in the film/TV property (eg - Trapped on an island?)

How to extend the story into `game space? (egLOST - phone games )

Locations? (How many, and What are they? Are they all fairly different?)

What type ofM issions?(Get off the island, find food, shelter, rescue someone)

Characters/ Archetypes (Do you needextra onesfor the game? - LOST)

WHAT IS THE `CORE GAME MECHANIC ...? The `Hook? Why playthis ?

Why unique? (Points of Difference?) FPS has been done

Why the same? (Predecessors?) FPS has been done

Use an Existing Game Engine? Costs $$$

Consider other genres besides console games ARG, handheld games, pc, MMORPG?

23.

FILM/TV/GAME CROSS-MEDIA

Big Franchises :

PC & Console Games

Harry Potter, Star Wars, LOTR,

Narnia, Jumper, etc

Shrek, Over The Hedge, The Simpsons

ARGs

Majestic (standalone)

The LOST Experience

Speilberg/Kubricks A.I. & `The Beast

24. THE TRIANGLE of Game Design Art / Animation Team Code Team Designer/s THEGAMEVISION 3 forces often pulling in 3 directions 25. THE TRIANGLE Art / Animation Team Code Team Designer/s THEGAMEVISION Technology Academic Theory Pop culture 3 more forces that `come into play on the Game Vision 26. THE TRIANGLE Art / Animation Team Code Team Designer/s THEGAMEVISION Technology Academic Theory Pop culture How the Game Vision alters: most games are overambitious in their scope and getscaled back Be prepared for this! 27. Designing/WritingLooney Tunes1) Basic `Game Vision / Story & WB client requests 2) Research (watching episodes, reading) 3) Choosing 10 game Levels (from 181 LT episodes) -The 10 Chapters were like `10 Playable Episodes4) Designing the Story for `Modularity5) Scriptwriting the Cutscenes and In-game Dialog 6) Cutscenes & Game Level re-writing of same 7) TheLooney TunesComic 8) The Manual/WB web site/promo material Looney Tunes ACME ARSENAL:Senior Designer & Writer: Joe Velikovsky Copyright 2007 - Redtribe/Warner Bros Interactive 28.

GAME DOCUMENTS GENERATED:

• Game Vision (2 pages)

• Game Concept (10 pages)

• Game Design Document (30 - 200 pages) updated daily by Game Designer

• 60-Page Character Bible

• 30 pages of Cutscenes (in film screenplay format)

OTHER DOCS GENERATED ALONG THE WAY:

• Story Pitch Doc(30 pages)

• Gameplay Pitch Doc(30 pages)

• Interactive Screenplay( 5 00 pages)

• Cutscene Shooting Script( 120 pages )

29. GAME CONCEPT DOCUMENT- Headings: Overview Platform/s Genre Gameplay `Hooks Camera (1 stPerson/3 rd /Isometric?) Single/Multiplayer Characters Mission Types Game World/Setting See: www .Gamasutra.com for Examples ofHow to writeGame Design Documents & Game Scripts Realism?Theme Story Look & Feel / Visual Style Competitive Analysis Points Of Difference Target Audience Target Territory Licensing? Or - Original IP? 30. GAME OVERVIEW Genre Comedy Action-AdventureTarget PlatformPS2 (PAL, NTSC), Wii Xbox 360 Players 1 Player (with Companion Character) & 2 Player Co-Op. ESRB Titles rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older)have content that may be suitable for ages 10 andolder. Titles in this category may contain morecartoon, fantasy or mild violence, mild language,and/or minimal suggestive themes. Release Q3 2008 LocalizedEnglish, French, Italian, German, Spanish Demographic Everyone 10+(10-50) 31. FMV #1/Cutscene #1 Ch 9 Wackyland Tier #1 Ch 1 Castle FMV - to Hub Ch 7 WW1 Ch 5 - Mars End FMV Ch 2 - Egypt Game`Hub Ch 3 - Camelot Ch 6 Wild West Ch 8 Tazmania! Tier #2 Choose (from 3 Chapters) Tier #3 Ch 10Castle BFG Bugs! Tier #4 Tier#6 MODULARITY [Ch 4 = cut] NB - Each Chapter has own Intro & Outtro FMV Tier #5 Evil Porky in Hell bossfight 32. 10 WALKTHRUS (40 pages per Chapterx 10 Chapters) - plus images = 70 pp each 20 x CUTSCENES = 1-2 pages each EXCEL SHEET- 1060 ROWS x 8 COLUMN HEADINGS each: CH #FMV #/GP/SS Chapter Act Location Line Direction Notes Looney Tunes Game Script Copyright Redtribe/WBLine # Filename Character Type CH # FMV #/GP/SS Chapter Act Location Line Direction Notes 1 BUGSCH1ACT1FMV1Waaaaaaaaaaaaaagh.wav BUGS PLAYABLE CHAR 1 FMV 1 Castle Frankenbeans 1 Air over Forest/River Waaaaaaaaaaaaaagh ! (screams in terror) Bugs hurtles through the air 2 BUGSCH1ACT1FMV1IknewIshouldatakenthatleftturnatAlberquerque.wav BUGS PLAYABLE CHAR 1 FMV 1 Castle Frankenbeans 1 Castle parapet I knew I shoulda taken that left turn at Alberquerque! (matter of fact) Bugs checks his map 33. SCRIPTEXAMPLE ENTRY : (1060 lines total) Line#977Character DAFFYType PLAYABLE CHARACTERFilename DAFFYANYCHANYACTGPWellwealllearnedsomethingkids.wavCH # ALLFMV #/GP/SS ALLChapter ALLAct ALLLocation ALLNotes/Condition When Companion Character (eg Bugs) diesDirection (turns to CAMERA, shrugs, then - thoughtful)Line Well - we all learned something here, kids! 34. sumea.com.au gamasutra.com Game Writing jobs..? 35.

Send a Game Concept Doc (10p)

Send a Sample Game Script (30p)

Other Narrative Writing Sample (eg short story/short films)

Your CV

Ask Game / IT Recruitment Agencies (e.g. Conkerberry)

DIY [Console Games] Barriers to Entry :

Engine (Unreal 3 / Gamebryo 2.5) $500k / $50k

Anark Studio 4 - $1000

Maya 8/Max 9 - $5000 / $4000

Havok $500/seat Max plugin -- or $75k for GDK

Dev kits (PS3) - $10k Wii is $2k

Applying for Jobs 36. * The FUTURE of Writing for Non-Linear? *PS3, Wii, Xbox360 10 years cycle * Mobile phones = scenario writing * More x-media Film/TV/Game properties... * Need: Better A.I. For NPCs!!! (the Turing Test) *... &ARG s!