Exploring methods of narrative and its role in adventure games

Abstract

The art of visual storytelling has been present ever since the absence of human culture. From primitive cave paintings to the digital age, individuals relied on the use of imagery to tell a message or express a story. Having everlasting portrails throughout the years, hero-oriented stories are still a relevant niche in modern culture. This research analyses the properties of linear and non-linear storytelling, the media and techniques required to apply these structures and the concept of making meaningful choices. The preliminary stage of the project development merges the elements of branching narratives with philosophical ideology proposed by Existentialists and theories. Creating an interactive visual novel provided a balanced relationship between text and imagery to support the context of the narrative. The main interests of the project were the visual presentation and documentation of the story. This hero centred adventure narrative inspired from Campbell’s The Hero’s Journey, formed the script for this dissertation as the story line follows a similar outline of events. The visual novel was created using a relatively new asset in Unity 3D called Fungus. The final product is presented as a demo, operated by simple mechanics. A combination of raw traditional media with digital were utilized to make the illustrations for the game. To eliminate static flat imagery, 2.5D animation is used to obtain the illusion of three-dimensional depth. The methodology granted different insights and approaches on how to improve the final quality of the work.