Playing with the Medium Part 1: Gameplay

Hey all,

Blog life has been a bit slow for me lately. After viewing my numbers, it seems that I got the most hits when I was ranting about video games way back when, so I decided that maybe you guys just like to hear me ramble on about such things. This will be the first blog within a short series in which I will go over a few of the elements that make video games a unique narrative medium.

To begin, I'd like to say that I won't really be talking about the finer points of a particular game's narrative. Certainly, video game narratives can, and should, be held to many of the same standards as literary texts are (symbolism, irony, reversal, etc etc); however, I'd like to cover the conventions that are unique to video gaming. These conventions don't necessarily revoke the rules of narrative that we're all so familiar with, but they often times supplement them.

So let's look at the most basic convention. I mean, what makes a video game a video game? Well, gameplay of course. Video games create a visceral interaction between the game and the player (i.e. text/reader). Reader response nuts, don't start, it's different and you know it. Gameplay styles have been split up into all kinds of genres like platformers, shooters, role playing games, real time strategy, side scrollers, and on and on and on. Some forms of gameplay may seem more basic than others, but the true merit of gameplay is contingent on how it is used to supplement the narrative (if even an implicit narrative). For a good example of this, you should head over to my other blog in which I linked a video about Megaman X. The video covers how even a simple gameplay mechanic like running, jumping, and shooting supports an unspoken story.

Or, you can stick around and listen to what I have to say.

For my analysis of gameplay today, I'll be citing the Metal Gear Solid series-- Metal Gear Solid 4 in particular. The MGS series is quite famous for its recurring themes and gameplay throughout the series. Each game is nearly identical in gameplay and story line, yet each game covers a different theme such as predestination, deception, a soldier's role, ethics, and maturing. The theme of MGS4, however, is change. The very first words spoken in the game are delivered by the series' main character, Solid Snake, who states "War has changed." The player will quickly notice that Snake has aged a good 30 years since his last appearance in previous games (making him about 60). He's been placed out of his element, and he can't cope with the technology of the soldiers around him. It's not easy to watch a 60 year old man stumble across an active warzone, especially when it is the shell of a great hero.

So where does the gameplay come in? Well, MGS4 was the first game in the series to be developed on the Playstation 3 console (previous incarnations were on the ps2 or ps1). The new technology allowed for more potential. MGS4 sported an over-the-shoulder camera with a completely new control scheme than the previously used bird's-eye-view camera shot. This throws the player into a totally new situation that they need to cope with. They are, like Snake, finding that the actions and commonplaces of the world no longer apply. They find out quickly that the old methods of playing through a MGS game won't hold up anymore. So, while Snake's aged ass is clumsily rolling around and trying to blast enemies like in the good old days, the player will be clumsily stumbling over the controller trying to find out the rules of the game.

So why is this important? Because the convention of gameplay, in this case, greatly enhanced the power of the narrative while remaining absolutely unnoticed. It connects the player and the game in a way that is more powerful than a player simply assuming control of a character. Players don't observe Snake's plight, they don't guide him through it-- they feel it, and they feel it in a way that does not hinder them.

To close, I think it's important to note that this change was made due to an advancement in technology. Unlike text, video games are constantly being changed by, and are dependent on, technology (of course, the distribution of text has been hugely changed by technology, but the writing process remains the same). Whether this is a good or bad thing, I don't know, but it is true.

Stick around till next week when I cover another convention in video gaming.

Until then,

-Rainamoinen