Game Narrative Kaleidoscope Podcast

Simulations, Questions, Dialogues Academic and game writer Seva Khusid (Harvest of Names) joins us to talk about the balance between what we simulate, and what we pass over to the player to simulate for us. Does narrative work best when it's outside of the system? How do we balance understanding the system of a game, and being in it? And are all games, ultimately, destroyed by us trying to break the fourth wall and master the underlying code? For more info the GNK book, and to buy, visit the website: https://www.inklestudios.com/kaleidoscope/ Music by Laurence Chapman (https://www.laurencechapman.com/)

Translucent Lies and other "Dirty Narrative" Techniques Narrative designer and screenwriter Alex Epstein (We Happy Few, South of Midnight) about gaps, lies and narrative tricks that make our worlds feel bigger than they are - especially other characters who lie. How do make players feel safe, if no one in the world can be trusted. How do we teach players to read between the lines when characters are lying? For more info the GNK book, and to buy, visit the website: https://www.inklestudios.com/kaleidoscope/ Music by Laurence Chapman (https://www.laurencechapman.com/)

Biographies: The Quick and Dirty Way Bertine van Hövell (Old Skies, Stellaris) talks to us about creating characters for LARPs by creating their biographies. How can adding a contradiction to a person's backstory spice up a character and give a steer on roleplaying that character? And how do we bring that idea over into a computer game, where the player has no one to judge or feed off their performance? For more info the GNK book, and to buy, visit the website: https://www.inklestudios.com/kaleidoscope/ Music by Laurence Chapman (https://www.laurencechapman.com/)

Why I Love Text Parsers We talk with Julia Minamata (The Crimson Diamond) about the joys of implementing a text parser-based game in the 2020s - but also about creativity as a process and craft as hard-work with no shortcuts. How do we find our way through a project when we don't know where we're headed? And how do we welcome players into a game that's unlike anything they've played before? For more info the GNK book, and to buy, visit the website: https://www.inklestudios.com/kaleidoscope/ Music by Laurence Chapman (https://www.laurencechapman.com/)

Set-ups, Attempts, Complications and Pay-Offs We're joined by Josh Labelle (Disney Dreamlight Valley, Kim Kardashian's Hollywood) to talk about the bare bones of what makes a story - and how that plays out over episodes and seasons of a live-service game with a hugely invested fanbase. How much do we play to expectations, and how much do we play against them? And how do we tell when a story is hooky enough to feel satisfying at the end? For more info the GNK book, and to buy, visit the website: https://www.inklestudios.com/kaleidoscope/ Music by Laurence Chapman (https://www.laurencechapman.com/)