Please help! Research Project into branching narratives (Warning DA:O spoilers!)

Hi, I am currently researching emergent narratives for a uni project and would really appreciate some help filling out a short questionnaire on Dragon Age. Hopefully this research will be of interest to all the folks here at RPGWatch

The research I am conducting is looking at all forms of emergent narrative, but for this questionnaire I am focusing on branching narratives. In particular, I hope that this research will show some trends into the paths that people take and how much divergence there is from person to person (do we all take the same route through a story? Is there even any point making branching narratives?)

If you have played though DA:O and can spare 5 minutes your help would be hugely appreciated. There are video links for all of the questions that should act as a memory prompt if you've forgotten this quest.

Easiest way to submit answers would be to simply reply to this post with a list (eg. 1b, 2c, 3a etc…).

Again, many thanks for your help and I will be sure to keep you all informed regarding the results of this.

Lastly, please feel free to post thoughts about any aspect of emergent narrative in this thread, as I would be greatly interested in hearing them!


Questionnaire on branching narrative in Dragon Age - Redcliffe
Note: If you have played through the game multiple times please select the options you took on your first playthrough. If you loaded the game as you played through it to try out different options, please select the option that you decided on before continuing playing.
If a question is not applicable (some branches of the story will depend on previous options), please answer 'N/A'.

Plot outline: you arrive at Redcliffe village to see Arl Eamon. The castle has been overrun and the village is under attack (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olxCmN4Fe-M)

Question 1: Did you stay and help defend the village?
a) yes, I stayed and helped in the defence ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XT4D6hzPY0g)
b) no, I left the Village and moved straight onto the castle (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHb-JCHWVoo )

Question 2: Helping the blacksmith (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrcTHkD053g)
a) I promised to help the blacksmith by returning his daughter, Valena (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zwAhBCEnVM )
b) I killed the blacksmith, took the weapons and distributed them (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ty99EuCwpg )
c) I killed the blacksmith, took the weapons and kept them (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ty99EuCwpg )
d) I left the blacksmith alone

Question 3: Dwynn ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeBM3f85p7E )
a) I persuaded Dwynn to help in the defence of the town
b) I killed Dwynn
c) I left Dwynn alone

Question 4: The Imprisoned Mage, Jowan ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xm-RtAIcj8 )
a) I released Jowan and let him escape/run away
b) I released Jowan in order for him to help
c) I killed Jowan (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8yt9bxlrns )
d) I left Jowan imprisoned

Question 5: Valena (the blacksmiths daughter) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nDUbuJ3GcI )
a) I found and freed Valena
b) I left Valena

Question 6: Connor ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ovbj5tV49M )
a) I killed Connor in order to defeat the Demon (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZnFskB1ZFc )
b) I let Jowan use Blood Magic on Isolde (Connors mother), killing Isolde and entering 'the fade' (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LnW9jF3UqU )
c) I went to the circle of Magi to get help to enter 'the fade' (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oi6OKdgvBgE )

Question 7: Who entered 'the fade'?
a) Me
b) Jowan
c) Morrigan
d) Wynne
e) First Enchanter Irving

Question 8: Confronting the Demon (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qONP-1ZEVD0 )
a) I made a deal with the Demon
b) I intimidated the Demon into leaving
c) I killed the Demon

Question 9: The fate of Jowan (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFltvPh1sVM )
a) Jowan was executed for his crimes
b) I persuaded the Arl to hand Jowan over to the circle of Magi

Question 10: What character class did you play as? (used to determine if certain options were open to your character)
a) Mage
b) other

1a
2a
3a
4b
5a
6c
7b
8c
9b
10a

1a
2a
3a
4d
5a
6c
7d
8c
9b
10b

1a
2a
3a
4b
5a
6c
7a
8c
9b
10a

1a
2a
3a
4a
5a
6c
7a
8b
9b
10a

1a
2a
3a
4b
5a
6c
7c
8c
9b
10b

1a
2a
3a
4b
5a
6c
7c
8c
9b
10b

a,a,a,b,a,c,a,b,b,a

1a
2b
3c
4b
5a
6c
7a
8c
9a
10a

thanks for all the responses so far

Theres a definate trend towards taking the 'good' route through the quest. This is pretty much to be expected, but as of yet I've not had a single response saying that they killed Connor, or that they let the village fend for itself (this is from about 25 questionnaires that have been filled in so far).

Given that nobody seemed to take either of these options, does it actually add anything to the game by them being there? Is it more satisfying to pick the 'good' route than to simply be automatically led down it? Personally, I think it would diminish the game somewhat if they were taken away - the illusion of freedom is one of Dragon Age's greatest assets.

Incidentally, if you do choose to kill Connor then I think the scenes that are played out have some of the best voice work in the entire game

bazmod said:

Given that nobody seemed to take either of these options, does it actually add anything to the game by them being there?

Click to expand...

For me, definitely. I usually play as a good guy the first time, but I always like to think what I'd do different if I played a different character with a different alignment. Knowing that I could actually do something different if I wanted to, or just the illusion of choice, is good fun. I usually try a different (evil) route on my second play through a game.

Sadly, it often turns out that the evil route plays pretty much the same as the good route (think Mass Effect), but still, knowing that the option was there made me enjoy the first time more. There is no light without shadows.

Clearly have he choice of an evil path highlight the choice of the good one. But I consider it weak gameplay design anyway. You can setup more complicate choices that are real player choices, The Witcher has many good example of this. It's more difficult to setup and write but it's much more rewarding for the player.

I'm so much used in such games to make the good choice that I don't feel them anymore choice and more, I feel evil choices often only to be stupid choices. It's still a bit better to have a choice but that's weak in comparison of having choices where there's no clear good/evil sides, no clear choice more greedy than the other.

It's even quite fun to have choice involving difficult morale debate with no clear answer of what is the good and what is the evil choice. MoTB had few good one like that.

DAO had in its story the potential to setup many more difficult choices, but they choose the facility by using this too standard good/evil alternative of most choices the game offer you.

Hi all, if people are interested you can see some of the results and a quick bit of analysis of this survey here (its a blog that i have to keep for uni - just incase people think I've gone a little perculiar and write very bizarre blog posts in my spare time! )
http://barrylowndes.wordpress.com/

I completely agree with what you've said Dasale, I'm bored of the good/evil non-choices that these games present - I also thought the Witcher was a decent attempt at doing something a bit different.

What's interesting from my research so far is the suggestion that games writers do this intentionally to be able to control the route that people take through a quest - its all about creating an illusion of freedom to the player without having to actually cater for these different choices. In this sense, maybe simplistic narrative/storytelling is actually intelligent game design (from the perspective of a developer creating this kind of game).

Anyway, would just like to say thanks again to everyone that contributed so far to the suvey and discussion

Yes on purpose, that's possible but not always in some games you'll see ton of time and sweat put in the evil paths, even if most often the whole isn't as well managed than the good path. In those cases those alternate choices wasn't a trick to save time and money and build an illusion of freedom. The good/evil choices in those cases was more a convention and because it's more easy to write good/evil choices than gray/gray choices.

I haven't yet check all links you collected but interestingly I quote a DAO designer commenting good/evil choices based of AD&D conventions vs gray/gray choice about The Witcher. And interestingly look how DAO not constrained by AD&D cliché, felt in the easy path of good/evil choices, despite the story had plenty elements making possible quite more gray/gray choices.

I agree that the trick to build and illusion of freedom through Good choice/Evil false choice was a good trick. But there's two points making me think it won't be the future even of AAA simplified gameplay:

• The more you develop your stories the more you are educating your fans and the less they'll be abused by sample tricks.
• The Witcher, just setup a mark in Video game history, there's before and after. After The Witcher there isn't only good game writing but also good pure writing in CRPG and real grey/grey choices in CRPG. It's not the first doing it, it's just the first making it well enough to mark the minds. It's the "the king is nude" effect.

A side quote, about "emergent", it's weird but I read this word about video games only recently or at least quote it for first time only recently and don't know (didn't investigate) exactly what's behind. It's from a post about Din's Curse that I quote it for first time.

Din's Curse is just an ARPG Diablo like but it implements a rather fun and original system setting up a rather strong feeling of world living and quest living. The fights and most things of the game aren't remarkable but this bit of "emergent" gameplay is totally remarkable and for me a quite unique gaming experience.

One problem with real alternate choices is that they won't become concrete until a replay. The Witcher pinpoint the problem and tried address it in some ways. At some key points the result of past choices are highlighted in the game and the opposite choice ie the choice not made by the player is at least a little highlighted, not much to avoid spoil a replay but enough to try setup the feeling you made a real choice.

In Din's Curse one trick is used to make you feel strongly how the game is living and how the quests can change depending of the events in the world. This trick will probably hardly work in a classical CRPG. But in its own context it's rather fine. It is based on global world events and random+repetition. The global world event is that you get text events about important events occurring in the world and important but less important events occurring in the area where you are currently. And through random and repetition you rather quickly identify that your quests can evolve based on monsters living.

Very fun, gives it a shot to see what I mean, the demo will give a good idea even if it is based on an older version of the current beta and then doesn't work fully exactly as the current full beta.