. For Hellblade, that meant replicating Senua’s psychosis in a convincing and sensitive way,
I really must pick this game up on PSN this Christmas. Although I never played Hellblade :Senua's Sacrifice I have read about it seems to be a unique and breaks new ground when treating of severe mental illness', such as schizophrenia, in a sensitive and accurate manner. (I think the studio when made it closed down recently which, if true, is very sad. )
or to make them emotional or to make them feel.”
While I can see where the author is coming from I stand by my comments on the example of Cloud and Squall from Final Fantasy VII and VIII respectively. Cloud and Squall are not just examples of "the strong, silent and stoic" male trope- they are downright broken individuals initially who are coaxed by their female companions (Tifa and Rinoa respectively) to become more well rounded human beings. That being said, it is true that part of Cloud's character development is predicated by the death/ self sacrifice of Aeris. However he then subsequently goes into a catatonic state and Tifa saves his life while he is wheel chair bound and she ultimately plays a huge role in his psychological rehabilitation. Overall I would say Tifa's pro activity is more of a catalyst for Cloud becoming a more well rounded character than the sacrifice of Aeris/ Aerith.
, while coping with her own posttraumatic stress disorder.
Dealing with mental illness is something western developed games have avoided for quite some time so Lara's and PTSD and Hellblade: Senua's sacrifice, which deals with schizophrenia are ground breaking in that regard.
So we can see there's a change developing in the industry. Rather than the narrative being an after thought to the gameplay it is taking on a more salient role in the initial development of games.
but the trouble was that they designed a lot of the game with no narrative in mind.”
I've noticed this is common within the games industry. Shigeru Miyamoto and Eiji Aonuma design the game mechanics of each Zelda game first and then build the narrative around the gameplay mechanics.
This relates to how the use of new technology can enhance the dialogue, narrative and character development in video games. It poses the question what can the technologies A.R. and V.R. do to enhance the emotional impact the narrative and character development have on the player.
I actually never knew Terry Pratchett's Daughter is a video game writer. My girlfriend is a massive Discword fan and from her I learned about the Discworld universe and Terry's witty and sardonic writing style. I always thought someone like Terry would make an excellent contributor to video game narrative so it's fascinating to see that his Daughter is carrying the torch for her late Father.