THE INTERACTIVE DRAMA
A cinematic genre pioneered by Quantic Dream.
PART I: “THE ORIGIN STORY”
It all began with Maniac Mansion and an imagination was captured…
This was the start of something important, something enduring — a strange and off-putting love affair, even. I had fallen and fallen hard for the noble point-and-click adventure game…
I had played and loved other genres before, but this one was something special.
It was one that immersed you in a story.
It was one built around a story instead of the other way around…
I was pretty young at the time, but then again, so was the genre.
In hindsight Maniac Mansion wasn’t too sophisticated. It was an intriguing glimpse of a new kind of gameplay I had never experienced before. The closest damn thing to being in a movie.
This game became something of an obsession for me and my siblings. My folks weren’t big believers on buying new games for this Nintendo dealy that had consumed our lives, good and proper — thankfully they weren’t opposed to us renting stuff from the old timey video shop. (Remember when they were a thing? Good times!) I can’t even tell you how many times we rented out Maniac Mansion. It was a lot. We moseyed around, solved puzzles, and battled through the story — even phoning the insanely expensive hint line once or twice.
I think it’s safe to say that I was hooked, damn it. As addictions go the point-and-click adventure isn’t too bad. At least it’s not drugs, huh? It wasn’t long until my adventure game horizons expanded and I discovered LucasArts’ other games as well as their rival Sierra’s.
These kinds of games have always had a balance between puzzles and story.
I always favoured the stories more in adventure games, especially the dramatic kind. Embarrassingly enough, I was too young to understand that Maniac Mansion was actually a comedy. Who knew? (I thought it was pretty scary with adult themes at the time.) The point-and-click adventure game lets you get lost in a story like no other genre. You’re an active participant in what was happening. You interacted with the game’s world mostly through puzzles, but it was the compelling stories and intriguing characters that kept me going.
Soon enough the other genres caught up and started integrating this story stuff into their games too. Games as a whole were elevated on the shoulders of the humble adventure game.
That paragraph was pretty much the most pretentious thing ever written, huh? Moving on!
If other genres have changed, then adventure games have changed pretty dramatically too.
We still see the traditional entries of the genre with classic point-and-click gameplay, but there’s also been different interpretations of what an adventure game can be. The genre has been taken into two extremes: the incarnation which puts an emphasis on the puzzles over the story and the incarnation which puts emphasis on the story over the puzzles…
An imagination was about to be captured all over again…
PART II: “THE NEW CONTENDER”
Lucas Kane stands over his victim in the men’s room of a New York City diner, bloodied knife strewn to the side. He has no idea who this person is, what possessed him to commit such a violent act, or any thing that happened in the lead up, really. There isn’t a whole lot of time to process such things, that would have to wait — right now there were more pressing matters.
An NYPD beat cop sipped coffee and chatted to a waitress only metres away…
This is all happening in real time. No matter what I do, Lucas only has a matter of minutes.
There’s no puzzles to solve here that will get Lucas out of this predicament, just choices…
Lucas Kane is our protagonist and that means we’re in this together. So, here goes…
We could just make a run for it. The man’s panicked, after all. Getting some distance could be good? The diner had a back door that would take him out to an alley, then on to the street…
No. That’s not a good plan. Lucas Kane is certain that he’s no murderer. We need to be smart, buy some time to work out how he found himself here with no memory. I make a judgement call — dragging the body into a bathroom stall, mopping the blood stains off the floor, disposing of the weapon. Lucas is a mess, both mentally and physically. I walk to the basin to clean the guy up as best as I can. I splash water on his face in an effort to calm him a little. It helps.
Okay, it’s time to get gone…
There’s a pay phone just outside the bathroom door. It could be used to call Lucas’ brother. He might know what to do? No, that was stupid. It could make him an accessory. No phone calls.
I decide to return to Lucas’ table like nothing is wrong. The man sits down, pays his bill…
Believe me when I say the walk out of the diner is incredibly tense…
Lucas makes his best damn attempt to appear like a normal person and strides calmly by the waitress and beat cop and out onto the street. So far, so good. He hasn’t been noticed. Once outside, the controlled pace turns into a sprint — we’ve got to get out of here. In this moment the police officer has just stood up and is making his way to the men’s room. It won’t be long before the diner is put on lockdown and a whole lot of backup will arrive. There’s a taxi. Taxi’s can be traced. That idea is quickly abandoned. The subway! That’s a good idea! Let’s go!
Lucas Kane vanishes beneath the streets of New York City, never looking back…
This was Fahrenheit and one of the greatest video game openings of all-time…
I had never played any thing like this.
This was essentially the video game equivalent of a choose your own adventure book. The story branches off into different directions and the game will change depending on all the little choices you make. I felt a real sense of ownership of the story here, how I played the game wasn’t going to be the same as how others played the game — this was something special.
What would happen if Lucas didn’t get rid of the evidence at the crime scene?
What would happen if you implicated his brother?
Often the game just gave you the illusion of choice, eventually veering back to the same place — just with subtle differences along the way. Others can change things dramatically though…
I don’t like to know which one is which.
Some folks might be tempted to see how all the differences played out, but I liked the idea of not knowing and just committing to the choices I had made. It gave a weight to everything I did in the game and made me choose all my moves wisely — if I messed up, I just had to live with the consequences. It’s such a cool thing to influence the story and characters in a real, substantial way. It’s like being part of a movie, but controlling where it goes…
The way the game played was incredibly cinematic too.
This was the incarnation of an adventure game that put emphasis on the story over puzzles.
With the exception of quick time events, it didn’t feel like other video games.
An argument was made that this was no longer an adventure game at all. That label didn’t matter all that much to me though — I could see the things I loved about those games here.
Developer Quantic Dream were pioneering something new with Fahrenheit.
Just like Maniac Mansion, this was a glimpse of potential waiting to be pursued and refined.
PART III: “THE INTERACTIVE DRAMA”
In Quantic Dream’s follow up to Fahrenheit, one of the first trophies you unlock is titled “Interactive Drama” — the developer is thanking you for supporting this new genre.
So now this kind of game I loved had a name…
It’s a genre that continues to get more sophisticated with every instalment.
Here are some of my favourites — some from Quantic Dream, some from other developers:
HEAVY RAIN
Heavy Rain opens on a city panicked in the wake of a series of murders by The Origami Killer.
The crime thriller unravels through the perspective of four invested protagonists:
Ethan Mars’ life has changed dramatically in the past two years. What was once a text book definition of perfect is now shattered in the aftermath of his son’s accidental death. The man’s determined to protect his remaining son when he’s abducted by The Origami Killer.
Norman Jayden is a detective brought in from the FBI. He’s tasked with helping a resentful police force track The Origami Killer. The man’s damn good at what he does, but is struggling with a pretty hard core drug addiction that’s beginning to bleed into his working hours.
Scott Shelby is an old school private investigator type, who’s hitting the pavement and doing the leg work thing. Shelby’s made it his mission to talk to the grieving parents of victims of The Origami Killer, hoping to uncover clues that sloppy police work might have missed.
Madison Page? Well, she’s a bit of a mystery who finds herself crossing paths with Ethan.
The multiple perspective thing is Heavy Rain’s greatest strength. It’s all kinds of compelling to piece together the clues by contrasting the various methods, skill sets, and experiences of such a diverse group of characters. They are motivated by their own agendas with a unique stake in the investigation. Their lives intersect in lots of intriguing ways as the story develops too. Each character finds themselves making tough choices that will alter how the rest of the story plays out. If a character screws up, there’s no guarantee they’ll live to see the credits roll.
There’s an intriguing mystery to unravel, but you keep playing for the characters…
The atmosphere of Heavy Rain is a thing of beauty. A constant down pour of rain sustains an incredibly foreboding mood, accompanied by an insanely fitting score. There’s a general feeling of unease to the game as the story escalates. I was hooked from start to finish.
Pursuing The Origami Killer is harrowing, dramatic, and an experience worth enduring!
BEYOND: TWO SOULS
Jodie and Aiden are tethered together. She’s corporeal, he’s something else entirely…
Beyond: Two Souls opens on an experiment deep within the halls of the Department of Paranormal Activity. This is the first glimpse of our protagonist outside of the intriguing opening that featured a decidedly broken future incarnation of Jodie Holmes, but right now she’s just a little girl hooked up to machines and being monitored from behind a two way mirror. This younger Jodie is seemingly alone, but that’s not entirely true — she has never been alone. What appears as manifested psychic abilities or telekinesis is just Aiden’s doing.
Just what exactly is Aiden? Well, that’s what Jodie’s been trying to figure out since she was born. He’s always been there, for better or worse. The two are inseparable. Literally…
The non-linear structure of Beyond: Two Souls jumps back and forwards through formative moments of Jodie Holme’s life, contrasting and emphasising the influence Aiden has on our protagonist, how she changes, and what put her on a trajectory with the trouble that finds her on many different fronts. It’s an incredibly powerful way to explore the evolving dynamic between the two, taking us from tense action sequences to slow burn moments of character development in an instant. As the game progresses everything begins to click into place.
If Heavy Rain’s hook was changing perspectives often and constantly seeing the world through different eyes, Beyond’s is in the complexity given through Aiden’s abilities. Though we stay firmly locked on Jodie’s perspective, the ways she interacts with her surrounds are completely different and every bit as compelling. The decisions you make to influence the story are a lot more disguised here. Instead of presenting you with an obvious choice, the changes play out intuitively and on a smaller, character scale based on the many subtle ways a scene can unfold.
All this high concept weirdness is grounded through the amazing performances of Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe, who elevate every damn scene they’re in.
LIFE IS STRANGE
Returning to your old stomping grounds is a surreal experience.
Things are disconcertingly similar. Old dynamics come into play. It’s almost like time travel…
Max Caulfied has made her triumphant return to Arcadia Bay to finish her senior year at the prestigious Blackwell Academy, a liberal arts boarding school filled to capacity with a who’s who of obnoxious teens and the cliques that come with the territory. That all too familiar feeling of being the new kid is nailed in an instant. Max is unfazed though, navigating these trials and tribulations like a trooper. She’s just happy to be here, honing her love of photography in the best damn place to do it as student to a world renowned photographer.
Life is good. Well, it is until our protagonist wakes all dazed and confused in the middle of a catastrophic storm to end all storms. Max has no memory of how she got here, but knows in an instant that she’s got to find shelter if she’s going to survive out in the elements. She quickly finds her bearings and scrambles for the nearby lighthouse. That’s when we see the scale of what’s really happening. Turns out this isn’t just any storm, this is a tornado on a trajectory to devastate Arcadia Bay. The lighthouse is torn apart as Max wakes from this vivid dream…
It’s safe to say Max is rattled. She’s back at Blackwell Academy and apparently all is right with the world again. Something doesn’t sit right though. She ventures to the girl’s bathroom to contemplate her experience, unaware that the day’s about to get a whole lot stranger. Our hero witnesses a violent confrontation and eventual murder of a woman by a gun wielding fellow student. A horrified Max reacts on impulse, tapping into an ability she never knew she had. We find ourselves back in the class room, awakening from that tornado dream all over again.
Turns out Max Caulfield is a human time machine! Who knew? As the season progresses Max explores her new found power, while unravelling the mystery of a missing student.
You best believe you haven’t seen the last of that tornado either…
It might seem like I’ve spoiled a good chunk of the story right here, but this is just the start.
Life is Strange is a five part episodic series from Dontnod and something truly special, a thing of beauty really. I’m not exaggerating when I say this series captivated me from start to finish, as I got caught up in the world of Arcadia Bay and the vast ensemble of characters that populate it. I anticipated every damn episode with so much enthusiasm, de-constructed all the plot points, replayed more than once, and thought about the various going ons long after the credits rolled on each instalment. I wouldn’t stop rambling about this series to my friends.
I was hooked, I tells ya — in a way very reminiscent of a compelling television show…
That’s no accident either. It’s a comparison impressively achieved by design.
While the Quantic Dream incarnation of the interactive drama takes the form of films, Dontnod’s effort is deliberately structured like a serialised television show. The scale is smaller and we stay with the same characters in the same place for the long haul. The mystery is more of the slow burn kind as seeds are planted in earlier episodes that will have pay off somewhere down the line. We have a relatively self-contained story for each episode as well as an overarching arc that carries the season. The pacing allows five beginnings, middles and ends.
Getting to know the people of Arcadia Bay over the span of the season is one of the game’s strengths. It gives us the time to explore what it means for Max to reconnect with an old friend, change our opinion of folks, and generally get the kind of character development you achieve when you have more time to explore them. The world feels lived in, because we have lived in it. We see the characters move about the town and go about their lives. It’s easy to become invested in Life is Strange because we become a local and feel part of the mystery.
The story may be high concept, but it’s grounded incredibly well by realistic character stories and a world brought to life with so much attention to detail. The music alone is a thing of beauty. Life is Strange feels so relatable too. If you’ve ever been to high school or watched an excessive amount of American TV, you will understand the seemingly universal teenage experience here — just with a little bit more time travel and intrigue a-foot.
Interactive dramas are often at their best when you make a decision and stick with it, not knowing how things would have played out if you went the other way. Life is Strange is different. The time travelling mechanic that can be accessed at almost any time allows us to experiment with the outcomes. We get a glimpse of the vastly different ways even the most seemingly of mundane scenarios can play out. The tension in this game is achieved through having to commit to one of these outcomes. It’s as gruelling as it is awesome…
There’s also the matter of the ethics of time travel coming into play: should we be able to change things in the first place? Should it be used for personal gain or only when necessary?
That, my friend, is entirely up to you to decide!
UNTIL DAWN
A year has passed since the disappearance of Hannah and Beth…
One-by-one a group of pals uneasily returns to the Blackwood Pines lodge in the remote mountains of Western Canada. This just so happens to be where it all went down. We get the sense that not everyone wants to be out here, but Josh insisted. It’s all part of the healing process. Hannah and Beth were his sisters, after all. If he could be here, then his friends could too. So our reluctant gang make their best damn attempts to hide any residual guilt and step up! For Josh! A bunch of teens in the woods by themselves! What could go wrong?
Until Dawn is the interactive drama genres take on a horror movie, if you haven’t guessed by that ominous opening paragraph. Supermassive Games assembles a cast of eight teens that all assume the cliché archetypes of this genre, the usual suspects are here. The beauty of this game is that it knows exactly what it is and embraces all the horror movie staples with an expert precision. The atmosphere and tension is masterfully conjured and the Blackwood Pines lodge setting is the perfect place for scary times a-plenty to begin. (It doesn’t take long either.)
I quickly fell in love with this game during the opening meet-and-greet…
As the various characters arrive at Blackwood Pines, the perspective jumps around and establishes their relationships and character traits. We find out who likes each other and who doesn’t, who’s dating and who’s broken up, and all the other essential information you need in the teenage angst department. This is done very intuitively, while also immersing us in the story. The time spent getting this right pays off when they’re eventually grouped up and sent in different directions. From the get go you had favourites and people you loved to hate.
Over the course of the night we’re tasked with making all kinds of choices that will have life or death consequences for our protagonists. The hook of Until Dawn is that all the characters can die and the story will adapt. Often in horror movies we find ourselves judging the characters when they make stupid decisions, but in the game these stupid decisions are ours for the making. This mechanic adds a sense of weight to everything you do and can be incredibly tense in the best kind of way. I was determined that all my group would survive the night!
Alas, this plan did not go well the first time through. Two of my pals died. Fortunately Until Dawn is very re-playable. Almost immediately I started a new play through! I was hooked!
THE WALKING DEAD
Quantic Dream maybe the pioneers of the interactive drama genre, but Telltale Games are every bit as synonymous. These guys took the basic mechanics established in titles like Fahrenheit and Heavy Rain and applied them to the episodic model. I could ramble about countless titles Telltale have done that are worth playing, but without a doubt the best is the The Walking Dead. A few years back this game was a surprise hit for the studio and for good reason. People were hooked and comparing notes wherever you went on the interwebs.
The best zombie apocalypse stories aren’t about the blood, violence or gore. It always comes down to the character stories and group dynamics. The Walking Dead is no exception…
One moment Lee Everett sits in the back of a police car resigned to his fate, the next he’s frantically attempting to free himself from the crumpled wreck at the bottom of a ravine. Life has just gotten a whole lot more terrifying for our new found hero, whose perspective we see the emerging zombie apocalypse through. Lee escapes and it’s not long before he finds himself the guardian of an orphaned girl named Clementine. It’s them against the world. He makes it his mission to keep her safe as the two venture out into what’s left of civilisation.
The father/daughter-like bond between Lee and Clem is a thing of beauty. She is young and incredibly vulnerable and it’s up to you to keep her safe. This is something Lee doesn’t take lightly. Every decision he makes is with Clem’s best interest in mind. At least every decision my Lee made was in her best interest. That’s the thing, Lee’s choices are driven by the player. I felt a responsibility to Clem. I wanted to keep her safe. I wanted to be a good influence for her. This is by no means the only way to play the game and that is all part of the appeal.
There’s a sense of ownership to The Walking Dead. This is my story. These are my decisions.
I was a fan of The Walking Dead game long before I was a fan of The Walking Dead television series. Being an active participant makes the difference and immerses you in the world in a way the series can’t. This is the strength of the interactive drama as a genre, you’re not just a passive observer here. When you’re making the tough decisions, you’re going to be a whole lot more invested in how it all unravels. It’s pretty damn compelling. The game legitimately remembers everything you do and there will be consequences no matter what…
It’s not long before you have a group of characters you care about and are taking a sprawling road trip into a devastated world. It’s a confronting journey, but one well worth taking, friend!
Written by Dan Clarke. May 05, 2016.
Originally published at dcpresents.tumblr.com.
