Character Development and Storytelling for Games

by Lee Sheldon

This is a book of ideas and of choices. Knowing which choices to make is not teachable. It's part of that creative instinct we call talent whose secret voice guides us every time we sit down at the keyboard. All stories are not identical. They are shaped by all those unique facets of the human beings who write them. All any writer can do when he wants to share his knowledge with others is be as open and giving as possible; and hope others can learn from that. You hold in your hands most of what I know about writing for games and much of what I believe and practice no matter what kind of writing I'm doing. It is meant to inform, to instruct, and maybe even inspire. It is as much about game design as it is writing for games. The two are virtually inseparable. The book itself has been designed as a quest. We are all of us on a journey toward a destination for which there is no single road. --Lee Sheldon, Author

Genres: Game Design, Games, Writing, Nonfiction

488 pages, Paperback

First published June 15, 2004

Reviews

[Nelson Zagalo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great pratical advice on character design for games.

[Andrea Blythe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recently, I finished reading Character Development and Storytelling for Games by Lee Sheldon. The author has a long history of working both in the games industry, as well as in television and fiction — enabling him to draw directly form his own personal experience in a variety of mediums.

Sheldon’s book provides a significant amount of interesting detail about character creation (roles, traits, encounters, etc.) and the ways in which games differ from other storytelling mediums. He uses examples from a variety of sources, including classic literature, film, and television, as well as games, in order to provide evidence for the theories on storytelling, theme, and structure that he presents. He makes some interesting connections between these different mediums. However, sometimes his chapters are so heavy with references (many of which I’ve never heard of) that I sometimes found it somewhat overwhelming to process the lessons he is trying to impart.

My copy of the book was the first edition, published in 2004. While discussions of character and story are everlasting, when the book speaks about the future of games, it sometimes felt a bit out of date. Apparently, a second edition was published in 2013, which likely provides a more modern perspective and up-to-date cultural references.

Regardless, one section in particular presented me with a new way of thinking about story — namely, modular storytelling and how it can help blend gameplay and story into interactive narratives. And I was surprised to learn that classic literature could provide an early example of this kind of structure, which you can read here: https://andreablythe-games.com/2022/0...

[Beatrice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to read it for my class, but it was actually fun!

Nice if you love videogames, but also if you are interested in writing screenplays or just understanding why some stories work better than others. It deals with the concept of narrative structure, archetypes, and three-dimensional characters. The author has written a lot of The Charlie's Angels episodes and is never boring or too technical.

[Alida · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seminal work in the field.

[Manuel Silva · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is fairly outdated, I'd love to see a newer edition.

Yet some gems can be found inside.

While some things have changed (a lot) since 2004, others surprisingly have not.

It gave me more insight into the writer's duties and process in interactive storytelling.

Overall I'd say it's worth reading (especially if there was a more recent edition).