A Matter of Perspective
In our textbook the author talks about the Perspectivist Approach to be the building blocks on interactive narrative. The Perspectivist Approach helps bridge the gap between foreground and background and context to decision. I was trying to find an exact example in video games that I could reference and speak about.
The first thing that came to mind when thinking of perspective is the thought of first and third person perspective in video games. I think when people think of perspective in video games their mind thinks of perspective of camera angles.
The first thing that came to mind when thinking of perspective is the thought of first and third person perspective in video games. I think when people think of perspective in video games their mind thinks of perspective of camera angles.
This got me thinking about perspectives and which one is better to tell a story in. Then I thought of the game Metroid: Other M. I think it is important to think about this game because of what the developers are saying about the narrative.
If you are not familiar with Metroid Games take a look here:
The recent games of the Metroid series saw a shift from the 2d perspective to a first person view. The game still centered around Samus being a silent protagonist as you complete missions with her blaster and gain the story from others around her.
This is the most recent game that came out this last week:
This is the most recent game that came out this last week:
The developers moved the game from being first perspective to third person at the same time they were trying to flush out Samus back story. The interesting fact is whether the switch of perspective gives the players a better chance of being interactive with the narrative. Samus gets to speak in this game and we can learn about her past but we no longer control the game through her eyes.
I pose the question on whether perspective of camera angles matters when making a story interactive or not?
Comments
In my opinion, the perspective it takes doesn't affect either immersion or interactivity. For example, say you were playing an MMORPG. It is third-person, yet the player still feels as if the character is their character. The Zelda series are an example of games where you can't influence the plot; the interactivity is limited and it is a third-person game, but Link has no personality of his own.
As for first-person games, I believe Mass Effect is an example of an interactive game [I've never played it]. Halo is an example of a non-interactive game; most of the game is going from point A to point B.
Interactivity, in my opinion, has nothing to do with perspective. Perspective allows you to influence how you present the plot by affecting the aesthetic distance [lolHighSchoolEnglishterm] of the work, but it's only a technique. It doesn't define whatever it is you're doing.
I was wondering what people's thought were that the developers switched perspective when wanting to focus on the story and whether that change was a conscience choice.So is third person easier to tell a story about a character than third person.
I doubt the change wasn't a conscientious choice. If you're making a dramatic change to a game as huge as Metroid, you have to have a reason for it. I haven't played Metroid [any of them], but I would guess that the change from first-person to third-person was probably to create a more seamless transition from the gameplay elements of the game to the cutscene/story elements of the game.
So, in a sense, it is giving the character a separate identity. I think it is easier to tell a story about the controlled character through the third-person.
What's your opinion on it, by the way? How do you think perspective affects the ability to interact with the story?