Category: Design for Animation, Narrative Structures and Film Language

get to know how to reference games:

Presentation Outline：

1. Introduction to Player Agency

2. Question and Answer: is the Auther dead？

3. Life is strange

4. Baldur’s Gate 3

5. Summary

During the writing process, I gained new insights: the importance of balancing the player’s agency and the author’s intent. Now, I no longer see them as opposing forces, but rather as complementary aspects of storytelling, emphasizing this collaboration.

Opinion: There needs to be a balance between player agency and the author intent

Discovery: Although Baldur’s Gate 3 has significantly higher freedom, especially compared to Life is Strange. However, in terms of cinematic language, Life is Strange better expresses the story and immerses the player in the emotions brought on by the story. High degree of Play Agency is a limitation as well. It is not just increasing the freedom that will result in a more immersive game. It requires the author to bring detailed character design and plot design.

I realized that my topic was still not specific enough, especially there is not many article supporting it. So I decided to shift the focus to the relationship between player agency and authorial intent, which felt more specific but was closely related to interactive storytelling. As I delved deeper into the literature, I noticed an interesting evolution in thinking about this issue over time. For example, Barthes’s 1968 theory of the death of the author posited that readers’ interpretations would ultimately override the author’s intent. However, later researchers proposed a more collaborative relationship between creator and audience, in which both parties contribute meaningfully to the narrative process.

This shift was a turning point for my research, and player agency will be my main focus, giving players the ability to shape the story within the boundaries set by the game developers. At the same time, authorial intent is crucial to ensuring that the story retains its coherence and emotional impact.

Case Study: Baldur’s Gate – player freedom

After receiving feedback, I reached out to academic support to refine my proposal. The updated topic now centers on real-time ray tracing and its impact on player immersion in cutscenes.

The new title: The Development of Real-Time Rendering in Video Game Cutscenes: A Comparative Study of Player Immersion Before and After Ray Tracing

Research Objective: This study aims to explore the impact of real-time ray tracing technology on the visual quality and player immersion in video games, focusing on how real-time rendering has evolved before and after 2018, when ray tracing technology was introduced for consumer-grade gaming hardware. By comparing games released before and after the introduction of ray tracing, the study will investigate whether and how this technological advancement has led to a fundamental shift in narrative design, cutscene integration, and player engagement.

Research Question:

• How has the introduction of real-time ray tracing in 2018 influenced the visual quality and storytelling impact of real-time rendered video game cutscenes?
• What differences can be observed between games developed before and after the introduction of ray tracing in terms of lighting, reflection effects, and overall player immersion?

research proposal:

Title: Enhancing Immersive Game Narratives: Real-Time Rendering’s Impact on Storytelling and Player Engagement in Video Game Cutscenes.

Objective: To examine how real-time rendering technology enhances narrative design and player engagement in cutscenes.

Project Rational: Advancement in technology have revolutionized the gaming industry, especially the interactive storytelling. Unlike traditional pre-rendered methods, real-time rendering allows dynamic, player-driven narratives to adapt in-game choices.

This term, by studying Unreal Engine 5, a real-time rendering software. I have developed my interest in how this technology reshaping the gaming narrative. Real-time rendering has the capacity to produce highly immersive and interactive experiences. This technology will continue to expand and find new application in the industry.

The central question is how does the application of real-time rendering influence game narrative and player immersion. My argument is that real-time rendering enriches narrative design by enabling interactive and dynamic cutscenes with player choices (both story direction and character appearance). And this heightens player emotional investment and experiences in game.

Case study： Baldur’s Gate 3

Detroit: Become Human

A French term that literally means “placing on stage.” – a visual language

1 . Settings & Props

2. Costume, Hair & Make Up

3. Facial Expressions & Body Language

4. Lighting and Colour

5. Positioning of characters/objects within the frame

Mood and Emotion， Theme and Symbolism， Character

BoJack Horseman (2014) balances humor with heavy, introspective themes. It manages to be both funny and meaningful, exploring topics like mental health, addiction, and personal responsibility in ways that can be uncomfortable.

BoJack: flawed, self-destructive, narcissistic, cruel, and real

BoJack Horseman reflections on political and social issues, setting in a fictional society where animals and humans coexist. It uses this multicultural background to mirror real-world political dynamics. It tackles themes like power structures, capitalism’s cold indifference, and society’s obsession with celebrity culture. For instance, BoJack’s fame grants him privileges that let him escape certain consequences, yet it also isolates him in a relentless cycle of loneliness. This perfectly captures the paradoxical way society both idolizes and scrutinizes celebrities.

Auteur Theory Model – by Andrew Sarris: Interior Meaning > Personal Style > Technical Competence

Hayao Miyazaki:

• Style: He has an absolutely distinctive style, as always hand-draw magical 2D animation with many details and fluency movement.
• Aesthetics: Mono no Aware – a uniquely Japanese aesthetic concept that refers to an awareness of the transient nature of life and the beauty found in its impermanence. It was originally from the Edo period of Japan
• Ideology: Humanism, sometimes from the perspective of children as innocent and pure
• Personally: sensitive to small details in life, full of emotion

Howl’s Moving Castle (2004)

•       Categorisation: Experimental Animation, About life

 •       Form and Function: The artist thinks that “Everything that is alive is hungry; seed is hungry for light, bird
is hungry for flight, man is hungry for the touch of another. The seed of longing grows into what feeds us.”

 •       Process: pencil and ink on paper

 •       Formal Elements: format: HD duration: 6’09” 3 colors (yellow is standing out)

For choosing a critical report topic, one should consider asking a research question that has the potential to impact present or future theoretical and practical study. Use academic journals, papers, books… as references and make notes of them to summarize into an essay.

This week, I was thinking choosing my research topic around animation or game. I am interested in both of them, and it is hard to decide. However, I think cutscenes in video games would be the one I will go for, as they combine cinematic storytelling with interactive experiences.

– From Disco Elysium