In a recent statement that challenges the importance of story and writing in gaming, one developer states that characters are what’s most memorable to consumers, not the plot itself.
Tom Abernathy (lead at Riot Games who previously worked on Halo: Reach ) revealed that after extensive research on the matter, results show people don’t make their gaming purchases based on elaborate story arches, but rather the brand recognition of franchise mascots. “It’s not plot that truly hooks gamers, but rather characters. Users don’t remember plot; what they do remember is they remember characters.” He says.
While designers spend metric-tons of energy building expansive worlds or even pulling all-nighters in order to tweak that one weapon or vehicle just right, Abernathy’s claim essentially makes all of that secondary to the antagonist or protagonist of the story. When speaking to those at GDC, he emphatically states they should “Focus on the things that they will retain, that are going to be most important to them in the long-run. Focus on character.”
This definitely poses an interesting question; do we actually love certain games due to style over substance? Character over narrative? Check back tomorrow as I explore the importance of these conventions to see if Abernathy’s assertions are in-fact true.