GDC Game Narrative Review

This analysis was written as a student at DigiPen Institute of Technology for the 2014 GDC Game Narrative Review Competition. Information on the competition can be found here.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Game Title: One and One Story
Platform: PC browser
Genre: puzzle platformer
Release Date: 2011
Developer: Mattia Traverso
Publisher: Mattia Traverso (distributed by Armor Games)
Game Writer/Creative Director/Narrative Designer: Mattia Traverso

Overview 

One and One Story follows a young couple as they fall in love, out of love, and in love again. The
player primarily takes on the role of the male character, but also takes on the role of the female
character when the narrative dictates. The story begins with the characters not actually knowing each
other, but the male thinks about the female. As the relationship grows, the two of them fall in love,
though it is just beginning. They experience rough patches, as many couples do, with opposing views
and disagreements. The female runs away, leaving the male, breaking his heart, and leaving him to feel
awful without her. She returns, in the end, promising not to hurt the male anymore. Once again, they
have fallen in love. One and One Story is an elegantly simple telling of this beautiful narrative.

Characters 

• Boy – This is the main player character. A male silhouette outlined in blue, Boy is easy to
identify. Throughout the game, the player experiences Boy’s thoughts about Girl. Based on the
textual, on-screen thoughts from Boy that the player is able to see, Boy is a very feeling-based
thinker. His world almost seems to revolve around his emotions. The love that Boy feels drives
him forward within the story of the game, always reaching out to Girl, the cause of the strong
emotions Boy is experiencing. At this point in his life, Girl, and the love he feels for her, are the
only things that matter to Boy—they are the sole focus of his attention.

• Girl – Girl plays several different roles within the game. She is one of the player characters, she
is the goal, and she is the antagonist. Her biggest role, however, is as Boy’s psychological
Shadow. A female silhouette outlined in pink, she is just as easy to identify as Boy is. She is
unsure of her emotions as she is the one to run away. Not only does she run away from the emotions she is afraid and unsure of, but she also runs away from Boy, leaving him. Her
decisions are based on gut reaction and instinct. In the end, she realizes how she really feels,
having fallen in love with Boy, and she stops running away.

Breakdown 

One and One Story’s narrative is outstanding because of its elegance and simplicity. There are
three pieces of the game in particular that really stand out as being perfect examples of the game’s
simple elegance. The first piece is the interstitial text between chapters, or sections, of gameplay. The
second piece is the use of mechanics as metaphor that exists throughout the entire game. The third
piece is the way the game was cut into chapters. Each of these pieces helps to create a whole that is
narratively excellent and well-communicated to the player.

One of the best ways to communicate an idea in a game is through text. One and One Story uses
the interstitial text between chapters to communicate the story of the game. The first text outside of
gameplay is simple: “Once we were shadows.” During this section, the player can control either Boy or
Girl. Prior to this section, in the tutorial section, the player is told that he can switch to the other
character, but it is in such a way that says that Boy is thinking about her, “I used Z or C to think of her.”
This simple sentence provides a fair amount of information to the player— that Boy and Girl are not yet
necessarily together at this point in the story. This is again hinted at with the interstitial text through the
use of the word “shadows.” Girl, as Boy’s psychological Shadow, represents something unknown within
him. Girl’s thoughts, her reasons for action, and her emotions are all unknown to Boy, and therefore the
player. Shadows are intangible, and Boy, being a physical being, cannot simply reach out and touch the
Shadow. He needs to become one with his Shadow in order to understand it and what really hides in its
darkness. Neither Boy nor Girl is fully aware that they are in love with the other. As they are unaware of
their true emotions, they are living in darkness of their True Selves. By using these simple and elegant
words, the player is given both the conscious and unconscious stories of the two characters. The
interstitial text moves the story forward in a way that makes it easy for the player to understand.
Another example of the text that helps to explain the course of the story near the middle of the game,
is, “And she was running away.” This denotes a major change in the course of the story. At this point,
Girl has possibly fallen out of love and is running away from Boy, hurting him in the process. Without the
text, the story is not communicated quite as clearly as it needs to be as there is no audio outside sound
effects and music. The game is simple, almost too simple for the story to be explained without the use of
words.

The simplicity of the game, and the gameplay, comes from the use of mechanics as metaphor.
With each new section, denoted and described by a piece of interstitial text, there is a slight change in
the mechanics. At the beginning, the player can switch between Boy and Girl. When the player is not
playing as one of them, the character’s silhouette appears slightly transparent, as a shadow, just as the
first interstitial text states. The first time the mechanics change, the interstitial text states, “When she
saw me, she ran to me.” Right off the bat, the player can imagine what this means for the mechanics.
The mechanics are used in such a way that the player understands the part of the story through
gameplay. While they can be told the story through text, by forcing them to be part of the story through
gameplay, the player becomes more invested in the story. By getting immersed in the story, the player
then feels the emotions the story is intended to evoke. The use of mechanics as metaphor within One
and One Story is possibly the strongest element of the narrative the game has to offer. The narrative is
enhanced through the use and authenticity of the mechanics, as well as the evoking of the appropriate
emotions throughout. By having the mechanics change as the story changes, it feels more like the story
is actually progressing rather than a story being told over an unchanging game.

The story feels like it changes and actually progresses because the game does so. The game does
this through chapters. By calling each section a chapter, it helps the player to get into the necessary
mindset to experience a story. Chapters is a word typically associate with books, and therefore, stories,
which is why it helps the player to understand that a story is being told. By cutting the game into
chapters, the player experiences each section slightly differently. The game is split into eight chapters,
each with a different mechanic that helps to tell the story of that section. Each section allows the game
to be delivered in small chunks that make the story much more manageable to take in. The chapters
help to make the game feel simple by forcing it to fit into these blocks that highly simplify the game in
general. As each chapter progresses, the player can easily see the same progression within the game’s
story.

Through the use of interstitial text, mechanics as metaphor, and chapters, One and One Story
presents a narrative that is both simple and elegant. Players can relate to the story and the characters
that feel almost like empty shells that the player is meant to project himself into.

Strongest Element 

The strongest element of the narrative was the changing mechanics throughout the game. Every
time the story changed, so did the mechanics. By changing the mechanics, the player feels the story that
much more strongly. The changing mechanics, like moving from a section where Girl moves with Boy to a section where Girl is always moving to the right, assist the narrative by making it truly interactive.
While some games present their narratives in ways that simply tell the player the story, One and One
Story captures the player and allows him to become invested in the story. By playing through the story,
the player experiences the story almost as if it were actually happening to him. The changing mechanics
immerse the player in the story by supporting the idea that they are part of the story, not just watching
it.

Unsuccessful Element 

 The least successful part of the game was the ending. This small section is the only part where
the interstitial text that comes before it does not adequately describe the mechanics of the section.
Because the text does not describe what it actually going on, it feels like a much weaker piece of the
game. While the section is important in completing the metaphor of becoming one with the
psychological Shadow, it lacks the presentation required to make it both strong and meaningful to the
player. There is an element of trust in the section that certainly makes it stand out from other sections;
however, it still does not quite meet the expectations set up by the rest of the game.

Highlight 

While much of the game has great narrative moments, the highlight of One and One Story is the
section in which Girl is running away. This entire section has the strongest use of mechanics as
metaphor within the entire game. Girl is constantly running away, moving from her typical starting
position on the left side of the screen to the right. There are moments where the player must move
quickly to push a block to save Girl from walking into spikes or so she can still assist the player in
successfully completing the level. However, the most important part of this section is the urgency that it
evokes. When the player sees Girl moving constantly, running away, he feels like he needs to get
through the level as quickly as possible so he can try to catch her. This moment particularly stands out
because of how much emotion it actually evokes from the player as they play through this section.

Critical Reception 

 One and One Story was a finalist in the Student Competition of IGF (Independent Games
Festival). However, even being a finalist, it has not been reviewed by many reputable sources to any
great ends. However, there are a couple short reviews of the game which mention aspects of the game’s
narrative. On the website Indie Game Reviewer, there is a short review of the game. The writer states,
“What is particularly impressive about The One and One Story is how well its creator has married gameplay with narrative. Granted, the narrative maybe a minimalist love story but each beat in the plot
is directly connected to the way in which the two characters interact in the game play. This is a rare
achievement and it should be commended.” Kit Goodliffe, the writer of the article, gave the game a
score of four out of five stars. In another review, on a blog entitled Sit Sam, the author writes that, “The
game’s story is the second unique aspect that sets it apart...The romance of the boy and girl is told on
the text between levels in such a way that the player connects with the breadth of the experience.”

Lessons 

• Minimal text can create a compelling story – One and One Story is possibly one of the greatest
examples of this. This is one of the strongest lessons that can be learned from this game. The
only text in the game is used to teach the player how to play the game while simultaneously
putting the story into words for the player. The interstitial text throughout the game is a great
example of this.

• Simple mechanics can be used to create an emotional response in players – While the lesson
learned from this game’s design is mainly about using minimal text, we can also learn that
simple mechanics have their merits. While many people want to experience games with
complex mechanics that make an engaging experience, simple mechanics can be used to deliver
a specific emotional experience. For instance, when the game states that Girl is running away,
the mechanics match the story. With Girl constantly moving, the player feels the urgency and
fleeting hope that the game is meant to create.

Summation 

One and One Story is a narratively beautiful game. The story, while it is a common one, is
delivered in such a way that it almost feels new. The elegance of the game’s simplicity alone makes it
worth analyzing. There is so much narrative designers can learn from something so simple when so
many games are moving towards making stories that are complicated and difficult to explain without an
exceptional amount of text.

Sunitha - Trouble

**Trigger Warning: this post contains some extreme violence**

Despite his being half dead, Sunitha had enjoyed seeing Quinn again. He wasn't nearly was gruff or rude as he had been during their first meeting. It was kind of nice. No, it was very nice. That wasn't all, though. He had kissed her. Kissed her. And he'd meant it. It had been a wild ride, that past twelve hours or so. Quinn has swept back into her life like a hurricane, had told her so much about the trouble he was in, and he had kissed her, which she was still honestly having trouble getting over. Every time she thought about his lips against hers, she couldn't help but smile, her heart pounding happily in her chest.

Only a few minutes ago, Sunitha had been transferring every credit she had left to her name over to Quinn in hopes that it would help. He had promised to pay her back, but hadn't given her the time to retaliate. She didn't want him to pay her back. It had been a gift. Besides, as soon as she went to work for Rory, she would be perfectly financially stable-- for the most part, anyways. Already, she had told Quinn not to worry about paying her back, and yet, he had still promised to do so. She was broke now, though. It would only last a short while, though. Within a few days, she would be moving and Rory had promised her a much more stable life. It was a nice thought, and she was more than grateful for the opportunity. She would have to remember to call and check in with him soon.

Sunitha was sitting on her blood-soaked couch, looking down at her old iX, not really seeing it. Her fingertips were touched lightly to her cheek, where Quinn had kissed her before walking out her door. He had actually managed to convince her that everything would be just fine. He would come back after the two weeks were up and he wouldn't be dead. For a time, Sunitha sat there, a smile on her face.

..................................................................................

Had it been five days? Or six? Sunitha hadn't really been counting the nights she spent alone, but she knew it had been a while since she had last seen Quinn. However long it had been, she was really feeling it. There was a longing in her heart that she couldn't quell. Truth be told, she was a bit worried about him. She couldn't quite place a finger on why-- it was just a gut feeling she had. For the most part, she ignored it, pushed the worries aside to focus on everything else.

She was moving.

Today was the day. What little she had was all packed up into a few boxes. The furniture that she had managed to get would be left behind-- it wasn't all that great, and besides, it was stained with blood. Quinn's blood. It would be the second time she was moving within the year. It felt strange to her. When she had come to Cometra, a martyr hated by most everyone for her views on the aliens, she had never really expected to even move out of the slums. Now she was moving into her own little home. And it would be a home-- not just an unstable shelter where she hid from hateful words and attackers. Rory had given her much and more. She would never truly be able to repay his kindness.

Just an hour earlier, he had stopped by to check on her. She had greeted him with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Rory had taken two of the boxes with him when he'd left, leaving Sunitha with just the one to tote. It was her box of sentimental items-- the things she had saved from earth (which wasn't much) and the few important things she had gathered during her time in the slums. Some oddly-shaped items kept the box from being able to close entirely, but Sunitha was certain she would be able to manage it no problem.

Stepping out the door, Sunitha was prepared to never look back at the little apartment like house she'd been living in for the past few months. Setting the box down carefully on the ground, she attached a note to the outside of the door with her new address-- just in case anyone should come looking for her. Once that was done, she picked up the box and turned to continue. With the box in her face, though, she stumbled on the step that led down from the door. With a soft squeak, she caught herself, but her grip on the box began to fail. On the other side of the box, Sunitha felt it steady. She was so sure it was Rory, come to make sure she was safe and could find her way to her new home. "Oh, thank you!" When she lifted her brown eyes to the face of her savior, however, it wasn't anyone she recognized.

The man standing there, holding her box of sentimental items, was big and frightening. His face was just about emotionless, making him look almost robotic. "Um... Th-thank you, Sir. How can I...how can I repay your kindness?" She offered a delicate and warm smile as she looked up at the man towering over her. Without a word, he grabbed Sunitha as if she were a ragdoll, throwing her over his shoulder. The box hit the sidewalk with a crunch, its contents spilling out as the only sign of struggle.

Sunitha wriggled in the man's grasp for only a short time before she realized it was a fruitless effort. Finally, she gave up. There was nothing else she could do.

..................................................................................

Sunitha stood before a woman with a dark look in her eye. Wherever she was, the place was expensive. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she glanced around the pristine room. Finally, her eyes made it back to the woman lounging in front of her. As Sunitha gawked, the woman's lips curled into a devious smile. "Hello, Dear." The woman's voice was sickly sweet. There was something about it that made Sunitha feel sick and frightened. "You're probably wondering where you are and why I've had you brought here." Sunitha nodded slowly, afraid to speak. "You see, a certain...Mr. Quinn Dwyer owes me some money. A great deal of money. Which he has neglected to get to me for a long, long while. And well," The curl of the woman's lips deepened into a sadistic smile. "You're collateral."

Sunitha's breath caught in her chest, her eyes widened. She wanted to protest, to do something, but fear rooted her to the ground. All she managed was a tiny squeak before the gigantic man who had taken her in the first place hit her in the back of the head and everything went black.

..................................................................................

The room was dark save for the glow of what appeared to be a brand in the hand of the monstrous man. It was moving towards her.

Sunitha's screams ripped from her lungs, echoing around the sound-proofed room.

..................................................................................

When she woke, she was in pain. So much pain. Sunitha couldn't recall having ever been in so much pain before in her life. Every time she moved, it was like her body was on fire. Red flashed before her eyes before dissolving into dots of pain. Her breathing was harsh and ragged. Tears fells from her eyes over her cheeks, cutting paths through the grime that had accumulated there. 

Sunitha had no idea how long they had been torturing her, but it felt like it had already been a lifetime. Blood has dried on her back, her arms, her face...everywhere. Her eyes darted around the room, looking for something, anything, that might be of use. Nothing. These people-- whoever they were-- were not new to this game. That frightened her even more. 

Just as her breathing seemed to settle into a normal pattern, the door opened. The woman with the sinister smile waltzed into the room, that same sadistic smile playing on her lips. Something flashed in her hand and Sunitha's heart pounded harder and harder, her breathing growing ragged once more. 

..................................................................................

There was so much pain that Sunitha could hardly feel anything anymore. Her body was battered and broken and scarred. She felt dead-- knew this had to be the end. She would never get out of here. The door opened, spilling light into the dark and bloodied room. Sunitha didn't fight it anymore. She stayed still as a corpse, waiting for the torture that she knew was coming. Instead, she was lifted off the ground by the monster of a man who had kidnapped her in the first place. The movement made her whole body flare to life, shooting pain everywhere making her cry out.

The man brought her to the room she had first met the sinister woman in. This time, it was a bit different. There were body guards standing around the figure of another person. The monster of a man flopped Sunitha down onto the floor without care. She winced and cried out from the pain once more, before cautiously lifting her head to glance at the other person who had been recently bloodied. When her eyes landed on him, they widened with terror and worry. It was Quinn.

A Love Story: Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Love is a strong word, and I'm not really sure most of us know what we're talking about when we use it. Plenty of people, myself included, think they know what real love is. Now, I'm not talking about love like when a parent loves a child or when you absolutely love that restaurant down the road-- no. I mean the thing that everyone seems to want so badly. Love. Between two people-- man and woman, man and man, woman and woman, or whathaveyou, it doesn't matter to me who you love. Well, anyways, the bottom line is, I thought I was in love. Maybe I was, but a lot of stuff happened and things changed and then I just wasn't in love. Maybe I came to some dawning realization that I wasn't in love and never had been, or maybe it was that I really had been in love, but I had fallen out of love unexpectedly. Who can tell for sure? Doesn't matter. This is a love story-- or something along those lines. I guess I'll start at the beginning-- can't think of a better place for a proper story to start.

* * * * *

High school had been a long, rough journey. I started out as one of those kids that got picked on, and it was awful. Bullying really sucks, but that's a topic for another time. Right, so, anyways, high school had sucked big time. But I was done with it all. I had graduated and I was moving on to bigger and better things. College. I hadn't gotten into my dream school, but Haskel University was a good school, and they had offered me scholarships, so I was going to go there. I lived in a quiet little town growing up, and Haskel was smack dab in the middle of the city. It was an adventure I was more than ready to embark on.

Driving down to Haskel took forever. Ten hours in a car with your mother? Man... Actually, I would probably do it again-- I love my mom. Right, back to Haskel. Anyways, it was buzzing with activity when we got there. I was going to be living in a freshman dorm, I would have a roommate I had never met. For someone from a quiet little podunk town, this was possibly the most exciting thing to have ever happened to me. Ever.

Move in went smoothly for the most part. Met my roommate (who has the same name as me-- what are the odds?!) and unpacked and all that good stuff. Later that night, once everyone had moved into the building, our floor had a meeting. All the kids who had just moved in were all in one room. The RA's led the meeting, and, oh God, was it cheesy. We all had to introduce ourselves and stuff like that. I hated it. Oh, but my RA shared a name with me and my roomie-- thought that was kinda funny. Anyway, the most important part of the floor meeting was him. Sitting across the circle was this one guy. He practically exuded confidence, and that was part of what made him so damn attractive. I couldn't stop staring-- until I realized I was staring and stopped. (Later, I would find out that he hated me upon first sight and had sworn he would never get with me, but we'll get to that).

Being the shy kid I was, I didn't talk to him at all, really. Actually, I didn't talk to him at all for the first semester. I watched him, though-- and now that I'm saying that, it sounds kind of creepy. It wasn't creepy like that, I swear. I just mean that, like, I would watch him when he walked past my door or would slow down for a second when I passed his. But talk to him? Ha. No. That was outside my comfort zone. Kind of. It was finals week of the first semester-- we were all swamped with projects and exams and the like, but we could feel the end drawing closer and closer. I have no clue whose idea it was, but someone in his group of friends decided to make a cake for a particularly awful professor. One of our mutual friends decided I was going to be a part of it, so I was dragged down to the kitchen in the common area.

The group must have been at least seven people-- maybe even ten or twelve. Anyways, we all crammed into the little dorm kitchen and made a cake. It was pretty...butchered by the end, but we had fun. That was the first night I really talked to him, got to know him, hang out with him. It was great.

When we got back from winter break, we were basically friends. No one knew that I had a thing for him-- not yet. Some time went by, we had a class together and made some jokes and blah blah blah bonding. You know how it goes. It was either late winter or early spring when he and one of our mutual friends (not the one who dragged me to the cake thing in the first place) started dating. I was crushed, but I hid it well. Well, long story short, they broke up after a fairly short time together. After that, I got close to him. Really close. I had had a really bad day and he was there, comforting me and all that stuff that really good friends and partners do. We spent a lot of time together after that. A LOT of time. He was teaching me how to give a "proper" back massage and I watched him raid in World of Warcraft. We would talk and hang out. Our friends were all friends, so it was easy to all hang out together.

Eventually, when things felt like they were kind of starting to get "real," I talked to my friend-- the one he had dated-- and explained all about my feelings and all that. Basically, I was asking if it was it was okay if I started dating him (if it came to that). I got a yes and a good luck.

One of my other friends-- one of his friends as well-- told me one night that he was an asshole, but if I wanted to still date him, I should. I never thought of him as an asshole, so I just ignored it and continued on my happy path.

Lo and behold, we started dating about a week before the end of the semester. It was mid-week when we went on our first date-- or what we would consider our first date later. It must have been about two or three in the morning. Maybe even later. Anyways, there was a construction site right next to the dorm-- a new dorm building. It was maybe half done at that point or something like that. Whatever the case, he had been venturing up to the roof of this building (it was twenty stories high) with friends for the better part of the past month. He had promised me a trip up there, but had failed to invite me anytime he'd brought people up since my expressing interest. So this night, he called me and told me we were going up. I dressed in whatever dark clothing I could find-- black pants, black sneakers, black tee under a black hoodie-- and went out to greet him. We walked around the block talking for a bit-- had to make sure the coast was clear and all that fancy stuff. Once he was sure, we moved between the buildings to where the fence didn't quite come together.

He helped me through the fence and there we were, standing at the foot of the building. I could feel my heart racing in my chest. This was one of the most exciting things I had ever done in my entire life. We quietly made our way through the door and into the stairwell. I don't remember much of the climb up, but at one point we cut across the building to the other side where there was another stairwell. I don't know how I managed to make it up twenty flights of stairs, but I did. Maybe it was the excitement. Anyways, we get to the top and it's sort of drizzling-- romantic, right? We look out at the skyline and he shows me all the cool places up there. I think he was trying to show off, but he climbed up on top of this thing that was up there. It was a maintenance closet or something-- maybe for the elevators? I have no idea, honestly. Anyways, he was afraid of heights and got stuck up there for a bit. It was kind of funny from where I was. But that's not the important part. He got down eventually and we stood at the landing of of metal steps that seemed to lead nowhere, really. Now, this is where it gets really good. I can't even remember the words he said-- I was completely swept off my feet. That was where we kissed for the first time. There, on the roof of an unfinished building, in the spring rain, looking out at the city skyline. How could it be anything other than perfect?

That was how it started. From that point, we were dating. Things could only get better from there...right?