November 20, 2003 - There can be no doubt whatsoever that the CRPG genre occupies a place of significant importance in the history of the game development industry. Whenever any publication produces an all-time best list, it's readily apparent that during the past two and a half decades or so, the category has spawned a substantial number of excellent individual titles as well as a disproportionate share of exceptional and long-running series. It has also nurtured the creativity and talent of countless game makers, including a goodly number whose names are frequently seen associated with laudatory appellations such as legend and visionary. And if that weren't enough, it's abundantly clear that the impact of the CRPGs has reached into other genres. Indeed, the continuing profusion of titles touting the incorporation of RPG elements suggests that the degree of such influence is still growing.

Some time ago, we started up a terrific series of features that we call Online World Roundtables. The format we came up with brings together a panel of developers, who are then asked to provide their thoughts on a particular subject that affects or at least interests them. There are two stages, the first for initial statements, then one for open discussion. The composition of the participating group changes from one session to the next, as does the specific topic, making for a rich, diverse array of expert opinions. It was evident from the beginning that this type of feature was equally suited to addressing the wide, diverse assortment of issues and questions related to standalone CRPGs. As a result, we initiated a parallel series of RPG Roundtables. In this one, we look at storytelling, commencing with these six statements.

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Topic: Storytelling
Players seem almost invariably to expect computer RPGs and RPG hybrids to have interesting, compelling stories. This month, we asked a number of our friends in the development community to share their feelings on effective storytelling, how to tell stories well, the necessary elements of a good story, the main challenges and pitfalls related to the genre and the computer medium, what separates a good story from a very good or excellent one, the benefits and pitfalls of open-endedness vs. linearity, what makes a story "immersive", the benefits and pitfalls of humor, writing devices and conventions that do and don't work well in games, and any related matters they wanted to address.

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Ken Rolston
Lead Designer, The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind et al
Bethesda Softworks
There is a continuum in RPGs between linear, mission-based RPGs like Thief and Deus Ex on one hand, and open-ended, freeform RPGs like Morrowind. The more linear the game structure of the RPG, the more appropriate is a linear story spine.

In Morrowind, the main quest story is of secondary importance. I use it to drag you across all the distracting crosscurrents of the faction conflicts. It is my profoundest hope that while advancing along the main quest line, you will find some story YOU want to tell about yourself, or some aspect of the world YOU want to explore, and turn at right angles to the main quest narrative and march off on your own.

I'm glad that many players deliberately avoid pursuing the main quest when they start playing Morrowind, preferring instead to explore faction advancement ladders, pump up their skills, search for loot, hunt monsters - or innocent civilians - or just wander around like a tourist.

There are epic characters, stories and themes behind Morrowind's main quest, but you can ignore them and still enjoy the main quest gameplay. Even if you don't explore the background of the main quest, however, that epic background gives the world dignity, and by association, gives your hero dignity for the part he plays in its affairs.

In an open-ended, freeform CRPG, the important narrative elements are setting, themes, characters and faction conflicts - NOT the central story. Linear stories are the enemy of good gameplay. "Stories are linear. Games are not." [See "I Have No Words & I Must Design," Greg Costikyan (http://www.costik.com/nowords.html#Not_story) for a fine discussion of the distinctive features of games.] I devote most of my energies to developing the themes, characters and faction conflicts of the world, and use the main quest narrative to showcase those dramatic elements.

Regarding the pitfalls of humor, most CRPG players want to be able to take their epic hero roles seriously. My first rule is - if it makes me laugh, delete it. And my second rule is to break that first rule whenever I can't stop myself. Fortunately, in a big-assed&153;, freeform RPG setting like the Elder Scrolls, you can get away with breaking the rules because the setting is so large and all-inclusive. I can give the player a silly hat to wear, and let him parade around naked in the world, because a freeform setting needs to have some tools for letting the player play the role of a clown if he wants.

Regarding the pitfalls of linearity, linearity in CRPGs is bad. And unavoidable. I accept the necessary evil of a linear central story in a CRPG, and attempt to mitigate it by providing the richest, most open-ended collection of setting-defined advancement ladders, miscellaneous quests and freeform gaming activities possible. I count on players to perversely devise new ways to define themselves and their own stories by their actions.

The Greatest Story Ever Told in CRPGs: "I killed everything in the game - even the trees - and went through their pockets. And I'm still not dead! Woo-hoo!"