Backstory (was RE: [MUD-Dev] New poll)

[rayzam]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Sellers, Michael" <MSellers at maxis.com>
To: <mud-dev at kanga.nu>
Sent: Friday, June 09, 2000 6:34 PM
Subject: Backstory (was RE: [MUD-Dev] New poll)


> Hmmm.  Yes, I think back stories (not "backing story," btw) *should* do a
> lot of these things -- they should explain the game and give context, make
> the game more real, help the players create their own stories, and give
the
> key for the game culture.

    They should also interact, and interlace, or at least not be
antagonistic amongst themselves, for a feeling of continuity and 'reality'
in the game setting.

>
> Unfortunately, the reality is that they're almost all meaningless and
> irrelevant babble.

    This may be the case, but it doesn't need to be so.

>
> How many games have you played in where you didn't just rush past the
> exposition and backstory in a "yeah yeah yeah -- get out of my way and let
> me PLAY" sort of mode?  What was the last game that rewarded you for
having
> read the backstory?  That is, a game that subtly and quietly provided you
> some nuggets of info that really helped you do something you wouldn't have
> been able to do otherwise, or helped you avoide danger, etc.  When was the
> last time a game's backstory foreshadowed something that didn't become
> obvious until much later on?
>
    The basic problem here is that when you first start playing a game, you
want to see how it's played. I fall into this exact example across all sorts
of games. Skip the intro movie, skip reading the manual, don't read the text
descriptions. After that, if the game, or area, or story, or whatnot, was
engrossing and of quality, then I go back to pick up all that, and start
again in more earnest. If the backstory is intriguing, it will gain more
attention by those who play it.


> Backstories suck.  They shouldn't, they really shouldn't, but almost all
of
> them do.  Why is this, do you think?

    I think this is a problem both for the backstory designer and the
player. A player who doesn't want a backstory, won't pay any attention to
it. If there are designs and puzzles and information that requires the
backstory, they'll get that from someone else.
    And then there are those who enjoy the backstory. If the backstory is
consistent and intriguing, that player will enjoy it and live it. If the
backstory sucks, because it's added as a gloss [as happens in some of the
first-person shooters] then even a player who wants to live it, won't.

    A good backstory has you picking up on little clues peppered around,
that make you go, A-ha! The same way that a book with a good twist at the
end has you re-reading it to find the clues you missed. But the reason to do
it, is to enjoy the story.

Rayzam
www.retromud.org






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