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Player and character knowledge

By: Rainyfrog

  A side note: Some of you, as I am aware, do not like Final Fantasy 7. If this is the case, then some parts of this article may annoy you. My apologies in advance, and I hope that the contents of this article are useful to you.

  Arguably the most important part of making your game is the story. So many articles have been written on the subject that it is not worth writing an article upon that theme, because at least something would no doubt be repeated.

  The focus of this article is the question of player and character knowledge. Mass debate may rage over this subject (or, on the other hand, it may not). What I am generally asking is this: how much should the player know in comparison to the character(s)?

  Let's take one example to start with: in a game, the character is destined to find a sword and save the world. The player begins the game by seeing an intro that tells of the ancient legend where another hero did similar. The game makes clear from the outset: the main character is destined to the same. Although the character is never told this, story-telling sequences that do not involve the character tell of this constantly. The player is therefore aware of the hero's destiny, but the hero is not.

  This game is shallow, but at least gives the player lots of knowledge, and a sense of purpose. The player can aspire to have this aim done, even when the character does notknow where he should go next. He would strive to first find the sword, and then reach the enemy and slay him, although there may be many minor pieces to each of these quests. However, the relative stupidity of the character and the need for the character to be informed or discover that he has this great destiny, can be slightly boring for the player. So, the main advantage of this method are a definite aim for the player, whilst the main disadvantage is that long sequences will no doubt be featured that the player will find boring.

  Note that sometimes a game can try and avoid this situation, but fall into the trap of having too predictable a plot, and so the player 'figures out' what is going to happen, and so will suffer all the disadvantages of the above situation. For this reason, I recommend that you avoid simple plots if you don't want this syndrome - add some plot twists and it should be avoided. Speaking of such plot twists, if you are aiming for the above high-player low-character knowledge base, don't have too many plot twists as these will destroy the one aim that you had in mind. A simple plot works best if you want an intentional high-player knowledge situation.

  The second situation I will deal with is that where the character knows lots, and the player very little. A good example of this situation of low-player high-character knowledge is in Final Fantasy 7, where Cloud has his past at Nibelheim locked away in side of him and (spoiler alert!) uses his friend Zack's story of fighting alongside Sephiroth as his own. In this situation, the player may be aware that something is not quite right, and a (very interesting, but lacking in common sense) story interlude where Tifa explores Cloud's memories will be necessary, and usually gets the player closer to the character.

  Having a shrouded history is the only way in which I recommend you use low-player high-character knowledge base. Otherwise, steer clear. Writing a believable dialogue for a situation where the characters know a lot more than the player is extremely difficult (all that hinting and foreshadowing within the conversations and so on), and so this method is not recommended, especially for inexperienced RPG makers. In fact, the only other situation where I find this method intriguing is for use at the beginning of a game.

  When you want your player immediately involved and immersed in the game, you can employ this as a beginning. Take Final Fantasy 7 (again, sorry but it's a best seller so most people will know what I'm taking about) where Cloud jumps out of a train, and begins fighting as Barret and co. lead him into the reactor. Here, the characters already know each other, about Mako, about Cloud's profession (mercenary) and so on, but we are told this through the introduction sequence. Even simple things like names are introduced only as we need them. This is a good way of starting a game with the player right in the action, so don't hesitate to use it. Just make sure that this beginning portion is well written in dialogue terms, and interesting, and chances are your player will be hooked (although well-drawn graphics and well-selected or well-composed music will aid immensely in this act, also).

  Finally, we come to the situation where the player and character know exactly the same. In most games this is the case: this is the method that allows you to use all those amazingly brilliant plot techniques such as foreshadowing, which you may not be able to use otherwise. This method is often used, most people are familiar with it, and that 'most people' likely includes you, so sub-consciously you will be experienced with writing dialogue for this situation. Do not hesitate to use this method: foreshadowing and plot twists work the best when this method is employed.

  So, the question is: what do you want from your game, or rather what do you want the players to have from the game? A definite aim can be achieved will low-character high-player information, some interesting sections with the low-player high-character situation, and most games will settle for equal information for both parties.

  Mixing the methods can be equally effective: from the very moment Sephiroth is mentioned within Final Fantasy 7 it is obvious that he will be featuring very heavily. Even the upcoming fight with the new ShinRa President is unimportant once the Sephiroth slaughterfest in the building is unveiled. Cloud's past seems reasonable until it comes under question by Sephiroth later, and then the interlude exploring his troubled mind creates an interesting story scene, and yet for the majority of the game, things are viewed from the all-equal information perspective.

  As I have said, it is really a case of what you want your game to achieve. I hope this article got some interesting ideas flowing, and if not then my sincerest apologies for wasting your time.