quote: Original post by Ketchaval
Having been reading the latest Harry Potter book recently, and noticed how one of the main factors that motivated me to read it so fast, is the anticipation of future twists and discoveries, or thrilling events that I might find. How can we get the player to look forward to (or 'dread') events in games?

Two primary dramatic tools are foreshadowing (the gun slipped into the bureau drawer early in the film makes you wonder when it will come out), and

Exposition. Oftentimes, it is not what has already been shown or said, but what is not that makes the person fill in the details of the gaps in dramatic continuity with their mind.



[edited by - adventuredesign on June 29, 2003 2:13:51 AM]

One dungeon I DM'd a while back allowed the players to control some high level wizards, which were killed very quickly by an enemy with powers they had never experienced before.

Then the players were allowed to control their own characters. Of course, in their minds, they worry about having to face this same foe as they hunted down a cult. That was an excellent dungeon, by the way (Vecna Lives).

Time travel or non-linear storytelling is another one. It gives the player a chance to see future events first, then play the events that lead up to it.

The Ring movie had a good one too - you die 7 days after viewing the video. The main character finds this out AFTER she watched it.

Let's see, what else... you fight an invincible foe in the beginning, expecting that you will have to face him later...

Or a foe is so powerful you expect you won't have to face him, but surprise, you do!

You approach a mountain pass and can see the silouhette of a spire castle in the distance, surrounded by dark clouds and lightning. What a pleasant hike that will be...

[edited by - Waverider on June 30, 2003 3:45:18 PM]