Emotion and Narrative in Videogames…the Next Level?

So we’ve discussed a few times in class the role of stories/narrative in videogames, as well as their ability to emotionally involve the gamer. The game Heavy Rain, which was released just about a week ago, attempts to take both of these gaming elements to a new level.  This review is a nice summary of the games innovations in both narrative structure (if a character dies, the story continues without them) as well as innovative gameplay designed to blur the lines between the non-diegetic world of the gamer and the diegetic world of Heavy Rain. Decisions, morality, and consequences all play a heavy role in the game. My brother and sister both played through the game this week and reported that it does indeed pack an emotional “punch” and even said that there were times when taking one action (like killing another character) would have helped them advance towards their goal, but were unable to do so because of some emotional reaction to the scenario in the game. Seems interesting to me when considering how far games can go, and whether or not they can “make you cry”.

One thought on “Emotion and Narrative in Videogames…the Next Level?

  1. Professor Sample

    It’s worth noting that David Cage, the creative lead behind Heavy Rain, has made no qualms about thinking of himself as the Orson Welles of videogames (a reference to Welles’ groundbreaking film Citizen Kane). Cage’s previous game Fahrenheit (also known as Indigo Prophecy is generally considered to be a truly innovative (but not always successful) stab at taking interactive storytelling to new heights. I’m personally disappointed that Heavy Rain is only available on the PS3!

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