Character and Story for Games Midterm

Q: Define Character Development
A: An unveiling or disclosure of a character's traits

Q: Years between the Great Train Robbery & Birth of a Nation
A: 12 years, important because it demonstrates how much time it takes to develop

Q: Define obligatory scene
A: A scene that has been built up to and the audience expects in order to not be disappointed

Q: What are the three things our audience asks of storytellers
A: Take them to a place they've never been, make them someone they can never be, or do something
they can never do.

Q: In traditional media, we are told to show don't tell, in games, Falstein urges storytellers to
A: Do, don't show

Q: Describe the physical dimension of a character
A: Their physical appearance, what the character looks like.

Q: Define antagonist
A: The principle adversary of the protagonist

Q: Describe the psychological dimension of a character
A: The character's world view, what they think about

Q: Name three special roles sidekicks can fill
A: helping hand, comic relief, useful exposition

Q: Define character growth
A: The change a character undergoes during a story

Q: How can commentary and gossip be used to enhance storytelling
A: They can fill gaps in exposition, providing clarification, and adding perspective

Q: Describe the sociological dimension of a character
A: Past, upbringing, and current environment.

Q: Name 6 possibilities for preserving character when a level is cut
A: Trim excess fat, identify how the level affects the character arcs, preserve entertaining moments,
gameplay can be moved, single out points of exposition

Q: Define foreshadowing
A: The process of hinting towards developments

Q: Story or game: Which should come first?
A: Ideally they should be worked on simultaneously

Q: Define point of attack
A: The point where you enter the story, where the action has already started.

Q: What rule must be used when creating an antagonist in order to not weaken the protagonist
A: They must be equal to or greater than the protagonist

Q: Draw a stairway with crises, climax, and resolutions of different length.
A: yeah whatever

Q: Define willing suspension of disbelief
A: The credibility budget of an audience; what they're willing to accept is possible

Q: Define conflict
A: opposition of two characters, push-and-pull.

Q: Name and define Aristotle's three unities
A: Unity of Place (Keep it centered in the same area), Unity of Action (Actions should be consistent,
and contribute to the plot), Unity of Time (keep it short to maintain relevance)

Q: Name five ways to keep exposition from interfering with action
A: Keep it brief, get to the point, reserve it for cutscenes, stick it in gameplay sequences, and break it up

Q: Give two examples of revealing character through action
A: Their physical activity by responding to action, and decisionmaking

Q: Name eight useful rules a mentor can fill
A: Backstory, story hints, game hints, memory jogger, training, quests, support, and rewards

Q: Name six tools useful when sketching minor characters
A: recognizable character types, turns of phrase or accent, lcosthes, distinct attitudes & opinions

Q: Translate and define Deus Ex Machina
A: God from the machine, when a divine action pushes the plot forward arbitrarily

Q: Define the fourth wall
A: The barrier between the audience and the players that is not to be crossed(In games, the camera)

Q: Name the seven things reappearing characters add
A: A sense of mobility, a chance to characterize further, advance relationship, foreshadowing, congratulation,
less NPC's to create, a sense of inevitability

Q: Define a reversal in drama
A: Turn of events or change in fortune

Q: Explain the concept of consistency in a game
A: Everything falls into place when remaining consistent with that style

Q: Name two ways to remind players of their progress
A: Journal-type thing, NPC conversations

Q: Define character orchestration, and give an example
A: Balance the characters against each other, an example is having a character who is a warrior and a rogue

Q: Why are symbols great for games?
A: They are a shortcut to the human heart

Q: Versimilitude
A: Close enough to reality, which is the real thing.

Q: 6 things that are good about cutscenes
A: They're good for exposition, prerendered, graphics can be richer, produced independently,

Q: Define protagonist
A: The main character who pushes the story forward

Q: Name the five excuses people give for stereotypes
A: We don't realize they're stereotypes, easy to write, help with time constraints, are more familiar to
players

Q: List five bad things about cutscenes
A: They break flow, it makes the characters shift gears, reinforce games not mixing with story, reinforces
that game and story don't mix

Q: If we see a child struck by a car are we seeing drama
A: No, because drama is in the interpretation, not the events themselves

Q: What are the three major parts of Campbell's hero's story
A: The call to action, the departure, the return

Q: Draw a stairway with major character and minor character arcs
A: Yeah whatever.

Q: Define Fed-Ex quests
A: Given a task to fetch and return

Q: Define emotional memory
A: Recalling events in the past that have caused that emotion

Q: Five ways a PC can advance vs an antagonist of equal strength
A: Give the antagonist a tragic flaw, subject to irony of fate, incompetent minions,
continually better weapons, give the player a McGuffin

Q: Define pivotal character
A: A character whose actions define and shape the story (sets the story in motion)

Q: Draw a grid containing three variables for a matrix quest
A: Character gives item to character

Q: The book compares two types of collaboration: orchestra and rock band
A: Conductor has a sole vision, whereas a rockband has many parts that contribute

Q: Name three challenges when adapting a character
A: We have to add something new, we can't stray too far from source, and the gameplay
should contribute to the character in mind

Q: Name four considerations when finding a style for a story
A: True to the story, makes sense with the medium the best style for the story

Q: List nine ways from the book to categorize quests
A: Overall complexity or difficulty, unique components, ease of execution, repeatability, single or multiplayer, usefulness in storytelling and character, effect on the world, value of effort versus