Narrative Design The Craft of Writing for Games

Narrative designers and game designers are critical to the development of digital and analog games. This book provides a detailed look at the work writers and designers perform every day on game development projects. It includes practical advice on how to break into the game industry as a writer or game designer. Readers can use the templates and detailed instructions provided here to create lively portfolios that will help open the door to jobs in the game industry. Key features of this book: • An intimate look at the workings of AAA game development from someone who has spent decades embedded on teams at well-known companies. • An insider’s look at the game industry, including advice on breaking into the industry. • Detailed instructions for creating a portfolio to demonstrate narrative design and game design skills to prospective employers. • Lessons and exercises to help students develop narrative design and game design skills. • A how-to guide for college instructors teaching classes in narrative design and game design. Detailed assignments and syllabi are included. Author Bio: Michael Breault is a 35-year industry veteran who has contributed his writing and game design skills to over 130 published games. He currently teaches narrative design and game design courses at Webster University in St. Louis. The courses he creates and teaches are based on the tasks narrative designers and game designers undertake every day while developing games. These classes provide his students with a real-world view of the work they will be doing as writers and designers in the game industry.

Chapter 1 ? What Is Narrative Design? 1 Chapter 2 ? What Is Game Design? 9 Chapter 3 ? Story in Games 17 Chapter 4 ? Game Development as a Craft 25 Chapter 5 ? The Idea Is Everything…and Nothing 31 Chapter 6 ? The Player’s the Thing 41 Chapter 7 ? The Team’s the Thing, Too 47 Chapter 8 ? Game Genres and Their Players 57 Chapter 9 ? The Game Development Process 63 Chapter 10 ? Writing and Design for Analog Games 75 Chapter 11 ? Writing Advice 81 Chapter 12 ? Teaching Narrative Design and Game Design 89 Chapter 13 ? Career Opportunities in the Game Industry 99 APPENDIX A: PUBLICATIONS LIST, 105 APPENDIX B: CLASS SYLLABI, 113 APPENDIX C: COURSE ASSIGNMENTS (INSTRUCTIONS AND TEMPLATES), 145

Michael Breault is a 35-year industry veteran who has worked on just over 130 games. Much of his work in the game industry has been as a writer or narrative designer (the rest has been as a game designer). For the last few years, he has been teaching narrative design and game design at several universities, currently at Webster University in St. Louis. The courses he creates and teaches are based on the tasks narrative designers and game designers do every day while developing games, providing students with a real-world view of the work they will be doing as writers and designers in the game industry.