WGE MAG: 17
“One of the problems with a tree structure is that there is often the need to copy whole sections of dialogue into new places in the tree in order to get them to trigger in the right way”.
The Approach Normally writers use a form of tree structure to display dialogue, Steve Ince, who has written the dialogues for Broken Sword - The Sleeping Dragon, points out in Develop magazine that: “One of the problems with a tree structure is that there is often the need to copy whole sections of dialogue into new places in the tree in order to get them to trigger in the right way”.
A directed graph can avoid a lot of copy and paste and still offers an adequate structure compared to a tree structure. Why? Because a graph gives plot lines the possibility to rejoin, so instead of copying the same content to different spots within the tree structure over and over again the writer just has to take care that the different connections flow back together at one point. In addition this approach makes errors in the dialogue structure visually apparent like plot holes or branched out dialogue sequences with no end.
Even the directed graph approach still bears an obstacle that prevents writers from concentrating only on their creative work - different output demands. Coders need clear conditions that they
can transmit, actors need stage directions and producers need additional information about characters and locations to create asset lists. This increases the time necessary to copy and paste content from flow charts and excel files to word documents and final draft formats (and vice versa). And it all starts over once again, when the design phase moves on to the production phase, because now content has to be transmitted into an engine format.
While coders, graphic designers and producers have specified tools for their tasks that make their everyday work life easier and more productive, game writers and game designers still have to make use of auxiliary constructions.
articy: draft - finally a solution? Our approach was the previously mentioned graph, or to be more precise a story network. articy:draft splits a game’s plot into fragments which can be interconnected to form a branching “flow”. Each branch represents a player decision, answer or junction in the game. In addition to the synopsis and dialogues, users can attach images, videos and other assets to story fragments via drag and drop in articy:draft. They can also create characters, objects and locations and link these with fragments or assets. As a client-server solution, articy:draft supports single-user and multi-user environments and offers a comfortable foundation for creative collaboration, intended to increase productivity, fun and – most of all – storytelling quality, regardless of how extensive and complex the story network becomes.
Nevigo articy: draft website
www.articydraft.com
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