If it ain't broke, don't fix it

Janet Murray returns to us to present yet another wonderful piece on the nature of the game vs. puzzle vs. story. She does a very good job of separating these three terms, but as she is using them in reference to everything from scrabble to myst, I wasn't exactly sure if she was addressing all forms of games, or computer games in general. Anyway, I have always seen the narrative computer game as a combination of those three terms. One of the responses to her on pg. 10, declaires that books and films have already established themselves as a perfect medium for story telling, "so if it ain't broke, why fix it?". This got my attention, as in my opinion, the video game can not only tell just as good a story as any other medium using story, but it can incoprorate puzzle and game to enhance the experience.

When people think puzzle, they shouldn't relate it to games such as tetris, or text based narratives such as return to zork, where the narrative stops and the puzzle begins. Instead, the puzzle aspect can be key to creating a better "Cyberdrama", increasing anxiety in the player and adding an extra layer to the narrative. Going back to film, one of my favorite action scenes is not filled with explosions or gun fire, it is a puzzle. In Die Hard 3, when Dect. McLane and Zeus are trying to disarm a bomb in cental park they must figure out a puzzle placed for them by the criminal they're chasing. The viewer must watch them solve the puzzle, and if they're quick, they might even solve it before the characters on screen do. Now in a game, if the scene is set up right, having a player solve a time sensetive puzzle can bring out emotions in a player in the same light as if they we're watching other characters do it, but in an even more intense way. Since much of story is set by mood, it is key to alter the player's mood whenever possible, and puzzle segments can accomplish this well.