Connecting the dots: Quantifying the narrative experience in interactive media

H??kon Jarl Hannesson, Thorbjørn Reimann-Anderse, Paolo Burelli, Luis Emilio Bruni

Research output: Journal Article or Conference Article in JournalConference articleResearchpeer-review

Abstract

The design of an interactive narrative begins with the choice of a type of story. In this paper I examine the potential of three kinds of plot for active user participation: the epic plot, which focuses on the struggle of the individual to survive in a hostile world, the dramatic plot, which deals with the evolution of a network of human relations, and the epistemic plot, which is propelled by the desire to solve a mystery. I distinguish two basic types of immersionludic and narrative, the latter subdivided into spatial, temporal and emotional variants, and I discuss the ability of the three kinds of plot to generate these various forms of immersion.

Keywords

  • Closure
  • Computer games
  • Emergent narrative
  • Experienced narrative
  • Immersion
  • Interactive narrative
  • Narrative research
  • Narrative transport
  • Quantifying emergent narrative

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