Week 7 - Day 4 (7/4/2016)
Back in week 5 I addressed question 3. How does morality influence the choices you make in the game? in regards to my gameplay of The Wolf Among Us. While I still stand firmly by what I'd previously spoken about in regards to moral influences and choices made during the playthrough, I'd also like to add story, or more specifically question 2. Unpack the first level of your chosen game (including cut scenes) – how does it tell its story, and how is the player involved in the telling (consider all of the narrative elements discussed so far in the course)?
The game opens up with the title screen and a scene of Bigby walking amongst the people of Fabletown and, upon starting the game, transitions over immediately to a cutscene of him walking into an apartment where a domestic quarrel seems to be occurring on the second level. The impact of this transition is small but as you play the game you'll see a lot more of this as Bigby seems to favor walking from one location to the next, possibly implying that the size of Fabletown is quite small in relation to New York as a whole. The opening cutscene between Bigby and Toad is largely multiple choice and on a timed basis; the player is constantly involved because they have to make quick, snap decisions on the fly and if you're a little too slow with your response then the game will also take your lack of action as silence, a kind of non-answer. This is very reflective of real life because we can't just pause and take our time thinking every little thing over as most conversations require an immediate reaction and back-to-back dialogue. The Wolf Among Us displays "A harmonious fusion between action and narration. [Gamasutra]" throughout the entirety of the game.
In terms of level design and linearity of gameplay, The Wolf Among Us follows an easy enough script that anybody can follow, with the exception of the quick-time events that require the player to input keys to encourage more player involvement and to also progress the story along. The first fight between Bigby and Woodsman, also reflective of time in real life, is quickly executed with button and mouse gestures one after another and, if done incorrectly, could spell the end of Bigby's life as well as player interaction. With regards to choices made by the player, the game will still progress in a linear fashion regardless of what you choose to do as a person, whether you decide to give Faith the money to help her with her troubles or not as "Not all choices need to be motivated...‘not choosing’ is regarded as a further option which is in this case considered less desirable than ‘choosing to choose’. [Sebastian Domsch]" The player is given a statistic breakdown at the end of the chapter of what other players did within the game and they're able to see which percentage they fall under. This helps reaffirm player involvement as you can see the decisions other people have made in relation to your own choices.
The closing of the first scene ends with Bigby walking the streets of Fabletown amongst the crowd, bringing us back to the title screen with the inclusion of an opening credit scene and coming back full circle to the fact that despite the sheer size of New York City, Fabletown is small enough that Bigby can get to most places without the use of a vehicle. This also speaks of his character as a creature of nature (being that of a wolf), preferring to walk on his own power rather than use other means of transportation. This whole section of the first game level is very reminiscent to that of an opening of most television shows and is a great pull to draw players into the game as it feels like you're watching a drama unfold but you're also given the option of interactivity where the game will also take your choices and decisions into consideration to feed into the continuing scenes.
The Wolf Among Us follows a fairytale-esque route mixed with high drama that creates a strong pull that not only drags the player into the Fabletown universe but also immerses them into the story and gameplay as soon as the first scene occurs. Its use of multiple choice actions and reactions give the player a feeling of involvement and participation even within cutscenes where the game takes your answers and even non-answers into consideration for your gameplay, tailoring the scene leading into the next and so on.
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