Interatividade e Storytelling: Desenvolvimentos narrativos em videojogos

Abstract

The present work is integrated in the syllabus of Multimedia Masters Degree in the Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto. The objective of this investigation is the definition of the adaptive elements, whether by addition or subtraction of the narrative components present in the alteration of the medium from which they are incorporated. Thus, it is possible to observe that specific and different structures exist, that, in some way, reflect the behaviour of the narrative according to its mediatic context. It was attempted to clarify the subject concerning the understanding of these different existing narrative structures, and in what way they influence the narrative development. The transposition of a narrative created towards dramatic context, to a medium so flexible and expandable like the video game, allows not only the application of such narrative structures, but, as well, by consequence of its implementation, a reflection about the compromises and concessions made by the narrative in the medium. This way, by reflecting the theoretical component of this dissertation, it is presented in parallel, an adaptation of William Shakespeare's work The Tempest. In this stage, the work was fragmented and readjusted to assimilate the player as a character, maintaining a cohesive narrative, granting him the possibility to alter the original story. In this video game, the group of possibilities, allied with the mechanic to randomize the words, will always generate a different and/or divergent result for each time the game is played. With this dissertation, it is intended to expand even further the bounds of the narrative regarding its implementation in the context of video games.