Chapter 4. Storytelling and Narrative 第四章：讲故事与叙事
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Stories are as old as communication itself. Since the first protohominids daubed their paintings on the rough walls of their caves, stories have been told. Stories and games have been intertwined to varying degrees for almost as long.
故事与交流本身一样古老。自从第一群原始人在粗糙的洞穴墙壁上涂鸦以来，人们就开始讲故事。故事和游戏在不同程度上交织在一起的时间几乎一样长。
Computer games generally have some sort of story attached to them as well. Sometimes it is a one-paragraph backstory. In other cases, it's a fully integrated story line—where the game is the story.
电脑游戏一般也会附带一些故事。有时只是一段背景故事。在其他情况下，它是一个完全整合的故事线——游戏就是故事。
In this chapter, we discuss some guidelines for constructing compelling stories and integrating them into game designs. To some extent, the importance of story integration is dependent on the type of game you are designing: Some games require more integration than others. For example, a simple game such as Space Invaders requires only a one-liner: "Aliens are invading Earth, and only you can stop them." Why? It doesn't matter. The player's imagination takes care of that. At the other end of the spectrum, adventure games such as Grim Fandango and Discworld Noir have a detailed and involving story line, as convoluted and structured as any novel. And, of course, we have the middle range—games in which story is important but is not the overriding gameplay feature. This concept is illustrated in Figure 4.1. As we progress across the story spectrum from left to right, the importance of the story increases. Examples of games such as this include Half-Life and Luigi's Mansion (shown in Figure 4.2).
在本章中，我们将讨论构建引人入胜的故事并将其融入游戏设计的一些指导原则。在某种程度上，故事整合的重要性取决于你所设计的游戏类型：有些游戏比其他游戏需要更多的整合。例如，像《太空侵略者》这样的简单游戏只需要一句话：“外星人正在入侵地球，只有你能阻止他们”。为什么？这并不重要。玩家的想象力可以解决这个问题。在另一端，冒险游戏如《冥界狂想曲》和《碟形世界：无尽黑夜》的故事情节详尽而跌宕起伏，其曲折性和结构性不亚于任何小说。当然，我们还有位于中间的游戏——在这些游戏中，故事很重要，但并不是压倒一切的游戏特征。图 4.1 举例说明了这一概念。当我们从左到右跨越故事光谱时，故事的重要性就会增加。这样的游戏包括《半条命》和《路易吉洋楼》（如图 4.2 所示）。
Figure 4.1. The story spectrum. 图 4.1. 故事光谱。
Figure 4.2. Luigi's Mansion. 图 4.2. 《路易吉洋楼》。
In Half-Life, the story is an important part of the flavor of the game, but aside from acting as a mechanism to allow the player to become more immersed in the game world, it bears no relevance to the actual gameplay. (And by this we mean that the gameplay of Half-Life is virtually identical to that of any other first-person shooter; it's just the story and setting that give it the edge.)
在《半条命》中，故事是游戏风情的重要组成部分，但除了作为一种机制让玩家更加沉浸于游戏世界之外，它与实际的游戏玩法毫无关联。(我们的意思是，《半条命》的游戏玩法与其他第一人称射击游戏几乎完全相同，只是故事和场景使其更具优势）。
The use of stories in games is a fundamental part of game design. A game without a story becomes an abstract construct. Of course, for some games, such as Tetris, this is ideal, but the vast majority are much improved by the addition of a story.
在游戏中使用故事是游戏设计的基本组成部分。没有故事的游戏只是一种抽象的构架。当然，对于某些游戏（如《俄罗斯方块》）来说，这是理想的状态，但对于绝大多数游戏来说，加入故事会大大改善游戏的效果。
Over the course of the 20th century, story form and design have been researched. As always, research gravitates toward money, so the most significant portion of this research over the last few years has tended to be about Hollywood and the movie industry. The rewards for a hit movie are usually much greater than the equivalent rewards for a best-selling book, so this is where we find the most accessible information.
20 世纪以来，人们一直在研究故事的形式和设计。一如既往，研究都是为了赚钱，所以过去几年中最重要的研究往往都是关于好莱坞和电影业的。一部卖座电影的回报通常比一本畅销书的回报要高得多，因此我们能在这里找到最容易获得的信息。
The main focus of story-form research has been based on the concept of the monomyth: the fundamental story form that is common to most, if not all, accomplished literature and movies. We'll be discussing the structure of the monomyth a bit later. Of course, we are not saying that all stories conform to this formulaic approach. Many do, but not all. What we can say is that the concepts and ideas behind the monomyth are present in some form in virtually all nontrivial stories.
故事形式研究的主要重点是基于“单一神话”的概念：这是一种基本的故事形式，在大多数（如果不是全部）成就卓著的文学作品和电影中都很常见。我们稍后将讨论单一神话的结构。当然，我们并不是说所有的故事都符合这种公式化的方法。很多故事是这样，但不是所有故事。我们可以说的是，单一神话背后的概念和想法几乎以某种形式出现在所有重要的故事中。
Previously, we mentioned the story spectrum as applied to games. At one end of the spectrum, we have the light backstory—usually a brief sentence or paragraph that sets the theme for a game. This is usually fairly trivial stuff, so we will not concern ourselves with it much. However, toward the other end of the spectrum, the importance of the story increases, culminating in those games in which the story is the game. In these cases, you will find the recurring elements of the monomyth, and it is in these cases that the structure and definition of the story is most important. Hence, it is this area that we will focus on.
之前，我们提到了应用于游戏的故事光谱。在这个光谱的一端，我们有一个简单的背景故事——通常是简短的一句或一段话，为游戏设定主题。这通常是相当微小的东西，所以我们不会过多关注。然而，到了另一个极端，故事的重要性就会增加，在那些故事就是游戏的游戏中达到顶峰。在这种情况下，你会发现单一神话的重复元素，而在这种情况下，故事的结构和定义是最重要的。因此，我们将重点关注这一领域。
Don't worry, though: All the concepts we discuss are equally applicable to the lighter end of the story spectrum. It's just that they are not as important for the success (or failure) of the game. If a game has a bad backstory, and the backstory has little impact on the game, then no one is really going to care. In fact, a number of games pride themselves on the absurdity of their (either real or implied) backstory. Consider Sega's Super Monkey Ball. The player's avatar is a monkey. In a ball. Collecting bananas. And as far as we can tell, that is the extent of the story, which is fine for that particular game. Any attempt to flesh it out further would be extraneous effort.
不过不用担心：我们讨论的所有概念同样适用于故事光谱上轻松的一端。只是它们对游戏的成功（或失败）没有那么重要罢了。如果一款游戏的背景故事很糟糕，而背景故事对游戏的影响又很小，那么就不会有人在乎。事实上，许多游戏都以其（真实或隐含的）背景故事的荒谬性而自豪。比如世嘉的《超级猴子球》。玩家的化身是一只猴子。关在一个球里。收集香蕉。据我们所知，这就是故事的全部内容，对这款游戏来说也没什么问题。任何进一步充实故事的尝试都是多余的。
Not all games require a detailed and rigorous story. Often a couple of short paragraphs just setting the background are required. For example, a game such as R-Type doesn't need much of a story line. An evil galactic empire is invading, and you're the only one who can stop it. Original? No. Good enough for the purpose? Yes.
并非所有游戏都需要详细而严谨的故事。通常只需要几段简短的背景介绍即可。例如，像《异形战机》这样的游戏并不需要太多的故事情节。一个邪恶的银河帝国正在入侵，而你是唯一能阻止它的人。原创吗？不是。够用了吗？是的。
If a game doesn't require a detailed backstory, there is nothing to be gained by adding one. Think carefully before you decide this, though; consider the difference that the addition of a story made to Half-Life. (For those of you who don't know, Half-Life was the first decent attempt at a first-person shooter with a strong backstory.)
如果一款游戏不需要详细的背景故事，那么加入背景故事也不会有什么好处。不过，在做出这样的决定之前，请仔细考虑一下添加故事对《半条命》的影响。(对于那些不知道的人来说，《半条命》首次成功将故事融入到第一人称射击游戏当中。）
Games such as the Mario series often have simple backstories that are expanded upon during the game. The story line does not affect the gameplay to a restrictive degree, but it does provide direction and increases the interest level. By creating a loose story line that does not impact the gameplay, the designer increases the interest level by using the story line to involve the player in the plight of the characters.
马里奥系列等游戏通常都有简单的背景故事，并在游戏过程中加以扩展。故事线并不会对游戏产生限制性的影响，但它确实提供了方向，提高了游戏的趣味性。设计者通过创建一个不影响游戏性的松散的故事线，利用故事线让玩家参与到角色的困境中，从而提高游戏的趣味性。
Commonly, the backstory is used to provide a framework for a mission-based game structure. For the majority of games, this is the ideal approach. As the complexity of the game increases, the relative importance of the story to the gameplay can (but does not have to) increase. For example, the story line of a simple arcade game is a lot less important to the gameplay than in the case of a more complex game such as a role-playing game. This is shown in Figure 4.1.
通常，背景故事被用来为基于任务的游戏结构提供一个框架。对于大多数游戏来说，这是理想的方法。随着游戏复杂程度的增加，故事与游戏玩法的相对重要性可以（但不一定）增加。例如，一个简单的街机游戏的故事线对游戏性的重要性要比一个更复杂的游戏（如角色扮演游戏）小得多。如图 4.1 所示。
It is important for the designer to consider who exactly the storyteller is. Who is the main driving force behind the narrative? Is it the designer or the player? Often a game designer falls victim to "frustrated author syndrome." The designer feels as if she should be writing a great novel and forces a linear and restrictive story line onto the player.
对于设计师来说，重要的是要考虑到底谁在讲故事。谁是叙事背后的主要推动力？是设计师还是玩家？游戏设计师经常会患上“作者挫败综合症”。设计师觉得自己应该写一部伟大的小说，于是把线性的、限制性的故事线强加给玩家。
In other cases, the designer might swamp the player with reams of unnecessary dialogue or narrative. The player then has to fight his way through the excessive text, attempting to sort the wheat from the chaff.
在其他情况下，设计师可能会用大量不必要的对话或叙述淹没玩家。这样，玩家就不得不在过多的文字中挣扎，试图从谷壳里面分拣出小麦。
译者注：sort the wheat from the chaff，去芜存菁，沙中淘金。这里的意思是啰嗦文字太多，有用的信息很少。
The main distinguishing factor between games and other forms of entertainment is the level of interactivity. If players just wanted a story, they could watch a movie or read a book. When players are playing a game, they do not want to be force-fed a story that limits the gameplay. Stories generally are not interactive; the amount of branching available in the story tree is limited, so only a few alternative narrative paths are usually available. Hence, the story needs to be handled carefully. It should not be forced on the player, and wherever possible, you should avoid railroading the player down limited story paths because of your own frustrated author syndrome.
游戏与其他娱乐形式的主要区别在于互动程度。如果玩家只想听故事，他们可以看电影或者看书。当玩家在玩游戏时，他们不希望被强行灌输一个限制游戏性的故事。故事一般不具有互动性；故事树的分支数量有限，因此通常只有几条可供选择的叙事路径。因此，需要谨慎处理故事。不应将故事强加给玩家，而且应尽可能避免因自己的“作者挫败综合症”而迫使玩家进入有限的故事路径。
So what is the answer to the question of who the storyteller is? Simple. The players should be the primary storytellers. They are the stars of the show. The time they spend playing the game is their time to shine, not yours. Consequently, the game should be structured so that for the majority of the time, they are telling their own story.
那么，“谁是讲故事的人”这个问题的答案是什么呢？很简单。玩家应该是主要的故事讲述者。他们才是主角。他们玩游戏的时间就是他们的闪光时刻，而不是你的。因此，游戏的结构应该让他们在大部分时间里都在讲述自己的故事。
The theme of a story is the philosophical idea that the author is trying to express. You can think of it as the "defining question" of the work. For example, can love triumph? Is murder ever justified? Are dreams real? Is death the end? We've said that the true author of a game narrative is (or should be) the player. Game design can steer the player toward the favored themes of the designer, but it's like leading the proverbial horse to water. You cannot force the players to think your way. Bearing these caveats in mind, let us continue with a discussion of story structure.
故事的主题是作者试图表达的哲学思想。你可以将其视为作品的“决定性问题”。例如，爱情能胜利吗？谋杀是否合理？梦是真实的吗？死亡是终结吗？我们说过，游戏叙事的真正作者是（或应该是）玩家。游戏设计可以把玩家引向设计者喜欢的主题，但这就像牵马到水边的谚语。你不能强迫玩家按照你的方式思考。考虑到这些注意事项，让我们继续讨论故事结构。
译者注：you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink。谚语，意思是牵马到河易，强马饮水难。
What is this construct that we are calling the monomyth? In 1949, Joseph Campbell published a seminal work called The Hero with a Thousand Faces, exploring the interrelationship among the legends and myths of cultures throughout the world and extracting a complex pattern that all of these stories followed. This pattern, the monomyth, is called "The Hero's Journey" and describes a series of steps and sequences that the story follows, charting the progress of the story's hero. The archetypal character types—those that occur across all cultures and ages—are incumbent features of the hero's journey. These powerful archetypes are so innately recognizable by all individuals through Jung's concept of the collective unconscious that they have a familiar resonance that serves to strengthen and validate the story. We cover these in detail in the next chapter. The following quote summarizes Campbell's belief in the universal story form.
什么是我们所说的“单一神话”？1949 年，约瑟夫·坎贝尔出版了一部开创性著作《千面英雄》，探讨了世界各地文化传说和神话之间的相互关系，总结出了所有这些故事都遵循的一个综合模式。这种模式，单一神话，被称为“英雄之旅”，描述了故事所遵循的一系列步骤和顺序，描绘了故事主人公的成长历程。原型人物类型——那些出现在所有文化和时代中的人物——是英雄之旅的固有特征。通过荣格的集体无意识概念，这些强大的原型是所有个体与生俱来就能识别的，因此它们会产生一种熟悉的共鸣，从而强化和认可故事。我们将在下一章详细介绍。下面这段话概括了坎贝尔对普遍故事形式的信念。
译者注：hero，根据上下文来确定它翻译为“英雄”或是“主人公”，“主角”。唯一差别是，英雄需多了一些英勇行为、高尚品质等优秀的特点。
"Whether we listen with aloof amusement to [a] … witch doctor of the Congo, or read with cultivated rapture thin translations from the sonnets of the mystic Lao-tse; now and again crack the hard nutshell of an argument of Aquinas, or catch suddenly the shining meaning of [an] … Eskimo fairy tale: it will always be the one, shape-shifting yet marvelously constant story that we find, together with a challengingly persistent suggestion of more remaining to be experienced than will even be known or told."
—Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, 1949
“无论我们是带着超然的兴致聆听[一位]……刚果巫医的讲述，还是带着修养的热情阅读神秘主义者老子诗篇的薄薄译文；无论我们是时不时地敲开阿奎那论证的坚硬外壳，还是突然捕捉到[一个]……爱斯基摩童话的闪亮含义：我们发现的永远是一个千变万化却又奇迹般恒定的故事，伴随着一个具有挑战性的持续暗示，即还有更多的东西有待我们去体验，远超已知或已被讲述的一切。”
——约瑟夫·坎贝尔，《千面英雄》，1949 年
Despite the excellence of Campbell's book, it can be somewhat heavy going, and for all but the most story-intensive games, it could be considered overkill. The Hero with a Thousand Faces is recommended as an essential addition to the game designer's reference library. For the purposes of this chapter, we want to make use of a slightly lighter analysis, one that has been updated with modern considerations and that presents the concepts in a clearer fashion.
尽管坎贝尔的书非常出色，但它的内容可能有些繁重，对于除故事性最强的游戏之外的所有游戏来说，这本书可能会被认为是矫枉过正。建议将《千面英雄》作为游戏设计者的必备参考书。在本章中，我们希望使用稍微浅显一些的分析，这种分析已根据现代考虑因素进行了更新，并以更清晰的方式介绍了相关概念。
Fortunately, such a work exists. In 1993, screenwriter Christopher Vogler published the first edition of a book based on a seven-page pamphlet that he had been circulating around the Hollywood studio where he worked. This pamphlet, "A Practical Guide to the Hero's Journey," took the movie industry by storm, and the obvious step for Vogler was to expand the work and publish a book based on it. This book, The Writer's Journey, presents the concepts and ideas of the hero's journey in a concise and easily digestible form. It's not a perfect fit for our purposes, but it is an excellent start. As such, it forms the basis of our analysis of stories and comes heavily recommended. Any serious game designer needs to read this book thoroughly.
幸运的是，这样的作品已经存在。1993 年，编剧克里斯托弗·沃格勒根据他在自己工作的好莱坞制片厂传阅的一本七页小册子出版了本书的第一版。这本名为《英雄之旅实用指南》的小册子在电影界掀起了一场风暴，沃格勒理所当然地将这本小册子的内容扩展开来，并出版了一本书。这本《作家之旅》以简明易懂的形式介绍了英雄之旅的概念和思想。这本书并不完全符合我们的目的，但却是一个很好的开始。因此，它构成了我们分析故事的基础，值得大力推荐。任何严肃的游戏设计师都需要通读此书。
Note that we are not just trying to feed you the line that games are merely interactive movies. That is plainly not true. They are an entirely different medium. However, the ideas presented by Campbell and Vogler are universal. They transcend the medium of film and are applicable—at least, to some extent—directly to the field of game design, particularly where the story line is a major factor in the design.
请注意，我们并不是在向你灌输游戏只是互动电影的说法。事实显然并非如此。它们是完全不同的媒介。然而，坎贝尔和沃格勒提出的观点具有普遍性。它们超越了电影媒介，至少在某种程度上直接适用于游戏设计领域，尤其是在故事线是设计的主要因素的情况下。
One of the chief arguments against patterns—especially when related to design aspects—is that they stifle creativity, producing a lackluster and formulaic output. Of course, if you just take the basic interpretation and apply it, this can be true.
反对模式的一个主要论点是，模式会扼杀创造力，产生缺乏活力和公式化的结果，尤其是在设计方面。当然，如果你只是将基本的解释加以应用，这可能是对的。
However, it should be realized that the monomyth is a form, not a formula. It is a set of guidelines for creating a rewarding and fulfilling story line, not a cookie-cutter template for autogenerating the same tired old story in a slightly different guise. Another important point to bear in mind is that we are using the term hero to refer to either sex. It could just as easily apply to a female hero as it does to a male.
然而，我们应该认识到，“单一神话”只是一种形式，而不是一个公式。 它是一套创造有价值、有成就感的故事线的指南，而不是一个千篇一律的模板，来自动生成换汤不换药的老掉牙故事。另一个需要牢记的要点是，我们使用的英雄一词指代任何性别。无论男女，都可以成为英雄。
译者注：cookie-cutter，一种带有锋利边缘的模具装置，用于将饼干面团切成特定形状。常见的形状有圆形，五角星，梅花，小人，动物，等等。比喻大规模生产或缺乏任何显著特征的东西。 {% endhint}
With that in mind, let's take a look at this universal story form in more detail. The next few sections describe the stages present in Vogler's interpretation of the hero's journey. We will be careful to use the same terminology and notation as Vogler so that those of you who refer to his book will be able to use the same frame of reference.
有鉴于此，让我们来详细了解一下这种普遍的故事形式。接下来的几节将介绍沃格勒对英雄之旅的诠释中的各个阶段。我们将注意使用与沃格勒相同的术语和符号，以便参考他的书的读者能够使用相同的参照系。
Note that not all games use these structures for their story line. Some use just a few of them and miss out on key features (and, in some cases, their story usually feels somewhat unsatisfactory). For others, some of the steps are inappropriate and would add nothing to the game. For example, many games gloss over the introduction to the ordinary world and the hero's refusal of the call. Sometimes that is ideal—the player actually wants to be a gung-ho hero who is ready for anything, no matter how unrealistic that might be. There is no law, written or unwritten, that says that games have to conform to reality. They just have to be self-consistent.
请注意，并非所有游戏的故事线都采用这些结构。有些游戏只使用了其中的几个步骤，却遗漏了一些关键特征（在某些情况下，它们的故事通常会让人感觉有些不尽人意）。对于其他游戏来说，有些步骤并不合适，对游戏毫无益处。例如，许多游戏对普通世界的介绍和主人公拒绝召唤的过程一笔带过。有时，这是理想的做法——玩家实际上想成为一个勇往直前的英雄，做好一切准备，不管这有多么不现实。没有任何成文或不成文的法律规定游戏必须符合现实。它们只需要自洽即可。
The steps in Vogler's hero's journey are as follows:
The ordinary world.
The call to adventure.
The refusal of the call.
The meeting with the mentor.
Crossing the first threshold.
Tests, allies, and enemies.
The approach to the innermost cave.
The ordeal.
The reward.
The road back.
The resurrection.
The return with the reward.
沃格勒英雄之旅的步骤如下：
平凡的世界。
冒险的召唤。
拒绝召唤。
与导师的会面。
跨过第一道门槛。
考验、盟友和敌人。
进入最里面的洞穴。
磨难。
奖励。
归途。
重生。
带着奖赏归来。
We discuss these in detail and apply the ideas to game story design in the following sections.
我们将在下面的章节中详细讨论这些内容，并将这些想法应用到游戏故事设计中。
All stories should start at the beginning (or thereabouts). The ordinary world is where the player first meets the hero and is introduced to her background and normal existence.
所有故事都应从开头（或大约开头）开始。普通世界是玩家第一次见到主人公，了解她的背景和正常生活的地方。
The ordinary world of the hero is used to set up the story, to provide a mundane canvas for the storyteller to contrast with the special world that the hero will be entering in the game. Often the introduction to the ordinary world of the hero is combined with a prologue. The prologue generally takes one of two forms:
主人公的普通世界用来为故事做铺垫，为讲故事的人提供一个世俗的画布，与游戏中主人公将要进入的特殊世界形成对比。英雄的普通世界介绍通常与序幕相结合。序幕一般有两种形式：
Explains the events that have happened to the hero so far, setting up the context for what is about to happen 解释迄今为止发生在主人公身上的事件，为即将发生的事情设定背景
Provides a snippet of the special world, either by covering past events in the special world that are about to collide with the hero in the ordinary world or by foreshadowing an event to come 提供特殊世界的片段，可以是特殊世界中即将与普通世界中的英雄发生碰撞的过去事件，也可以是预示即将发生的事件
Care must be taken with the backstory and how this story is revealed to the player. Don't just blurt it out in one go. Nothing appears flatter than a straightforward monologue detailing the hero's background and motivations. It's far better to reveal the backstory gracefully. Make the player work a bit to put the pieces together. It's a more rewarding experience, and it makes the player feel as if he has achieved something in uncovering the story.
必须注意背景故事以及如何向玩家揭示这个故事。不要一下子就说出来。没有什么比直接独白主人公的背景和动机更平淡无奇了。优雅地揭示背景故事要好得多。让玩家花点心思去拼凑。这样的体验更有成就感，也会让玩家觉得自己在揭秘故事的过程中有所收获。
Foreshadowing is a powerful technique in storytelling. Consider an example from the introduction to Valve's Half-Life. The noninteractive opening scenes tell the story of Gordon Freeman, who has accepted a research position at the ultrasecretive Black Mesa research laboratory. As Gordon takes the underground monorail to the main security entrance, he gets a glimpse of the ordinary world of the research facility. At certain points throughout the journey, Gordon's attention is drawn to various constructs and facilities that will feature heavily in the special world when the catastrophic accident occurs. Another more explicit example of foreshadowing occurs at the point at which the accident occurs. When the experiment goes awry and the dimensional rift is opened, Gordon is transported to a variety of strange locations and glimpses strange alien landscapes and beings. This (unbeknownst to Gordon) is a taste of things to come.
在讲故事的过程中，预示是一种强大的技巧。请看 Valve 的《半条命》介绍中的一个例子。非交互式的开场场景讲述了戈登·弗里曼的故事，他接受了超神秘的黑梅萨研究实验室的研究职位。当戈登乘坐地下单轨列车前往主要安全入口时，他看到了研究设施的普通世界。在整个旅程中的某些时刻，戈登的注意力被吸引到各种建筑和设施上，这些建筑和设施将在灾难性事故发生时在特殊世界中大显身手。另一个更明确的预示例子发生在事故发生的时刻。当实验出现意外，维度裂缝被打开时，戈登被传送到各种奇怪的地方，并瞥见了奇怪的外星景观和生物。这（戈登并不知道）是对未来事物的预示。
Because foreshadowing is so powerful, it is very commonly used. Often in games that have boss characters, such as shoot 'em-ups, the boss character puts in brief cameo appearances throughout the level before appearing at the end of the level for the big confrontation. The various Star Wars games (an example of which is shown in Figure 4.3) that feature the Death Star often use this technique. The Death Star appears as part of the background graphics a couple of levels before the player is called upon to destroy it. As soon as it appears, ominously hanging in the distance like a small moon, the player knows that sooner or later he will be there.
因为预示的作用非常强大，所以它被非常普遍地使用。通常，在有头目角色的游戏（如射击类游戏）中，头目角色会在整个关卡中短暂客串，然后在关卡结束时出现，与玩家展开激烈的正面对抗。以“死星”为特色的各种《星球大战》游戏（如图 4.3 所示）经常使用这种技巧。在玩家被要求摧毁死星之前的几个关卡中，死星会作为背景画面的一部分出现。它一出现，就像一个小月亮一样不祥地悬挂在远处，玩家就知道自己迟早会去那里。
Figure 4.3. Star Wars: Rogue Squadron II. 图 4.3. 《星球大战：侠盗中队 II》。
This foreshadowing is so effective because it contrasts the special world against the ordinary world. This confuses the player, and confusion eases the process of mental suggestion. Players who are susceptible to mental suggestion are easier to immerse in the game. The willing suspension of disbelief that the designer is aiming for becomes that little bit easier to achieve.
这种预示之所以如此有效，是因为它将特殊世界与普通世界形成了对比。这种对使得玩家感到困惑，而困惑有助于心理暗示的过程。容易受到心理暗示的玩家更容易沉浸在游戏之中。设计师所追求的“主动信任感”也就变得稍微容易实现。
The "Ordinary World" section is the place to introduce the reasoning and motivation behind the hero's being who she is. Why is she even in this situation? What is the game actually going to be about? Here we discuss the best way to get that information to the player without being blatant and uninteresting.
“普通的世界”部分介绍英雄成为这样的人背后的原因和动机。她为什么会处于这种情况？游戏究竟是关于什么的？在这里，我们将讨论向玩家介绍这些信息的最佳方式，同时又不会显得过于直白和无趣。
This is where you introduce the hero to the player. You want to make the player identify with the hero. This is crucial—if you fail to do this, there is no compunction to play the game. There are many ways to do this, but probably the most effective way to get the player to identify with the hero is to play on the player's emotions.
这是向玩家介绍主人公的地方。你要让玩家认同主人公。这一点至关重要——如果做不到这一点，玩家就不会有玩游戏的冲动。做到这一点的方法有很多，但让玩家认同主人公的最有效方法可能就是利用玩家的情感。
We discuss non–story-based methods of creating the bond between the player and the hero in the next chapter. For now, let's consider how you can use the story to accomplish the same task. Often in classical literature, the hero has a flaw or some mental or spiritual wound that the reader can empathize with. This doesn't necessarily mean that the hero needs to be an inmate of a mental asylum (although some games have used just that mechanism—American McGee's Alice, shown in Figure 4.4, was set in the fantasies of a female patient).
我们将在下一章讨论在玩家和主人公之间建立联系的非故事性方法。现在，让我们考虑一下如何利用故事来完成同样的任务。在古典文学作品中，主人公通常都有缺点，或者有一些心理或精神上的创伤，让读者感同身受。这并不一定意味着主人公必须是精神病院的囚犯（尽管有些游戏正是采用了这种机制——图 4.4 中所示的《爱丽丝梦游魔境》就是以一位女病人的幻想为背景的）。
Figure 4.4. American McGee's Alice. 图 4.4. 《爱丽丝梦游魔境》。
An example is Gordon Freeman's inexperience in his new job. Gordon is a new employee in a top-secret lab. The player can empathize with this. We're pretty sure that the vast majority of Half-Life players would also feel rather overwhelmed in Gordon's position. The superb introductory sequence amplifies this sense of awe and transmits it to the player. In this way, a bond is created between the player and the avatar.
戈登·弗里曼在新工作中缺乏经验就是一个例子。戈登是一个绝密实验室的新员工。玩家对此可以感同身受。我们可以肯定，绝大多数《半条命》玩家也会对戈登的处境感到不知所措。精彩的开场镜头将这种敬畏感放大，并传递给玩家。通过这种方式，玩家和化身之间建立了一种联系。
The call to adventure is the first inkling the hero gets that she is going to be leaving the security of the ordinary world to enter the special world of the adventure ahead.
冒险的召唤是主人公得到的第一个暗示，即她将离开安全的普通世界，进入未来冒险的特殊世界。
Now, bear in mind that the players already know they are going to be entering a special world, so it is very difficult to surprise them. It can be done—you can take the story line off at a tangent they would never expect—but the safer and easier approach is to make use of this expectation and build up the players' anticipation levels so that they can hardly wait to enter the special world. Don't try to maintain this buildup for too long, however. The player bought the game to play it, not to wait until the designer allows him to play it.
现在，请记住，玩家已经知道他们将进入一个特殊的世界，所以很难给他们一个惊喜。但更安全、更简单的方法是利用玩家的这种期待，提高他们的期待水平，让他们迫不及待地进入特殊世界。不过，不要试图将这种铺垫维持太久。玩家买游戏是为了玩，而不是等着设计师让他玩。
The call to adventure can take many forms. Infogrames's Outcast (see Figure 4.5) portrays the hero, retired Special Forces man Cutter Slade, sitting in a bar knocking back straight whiskies. As he is sitting nursing his drink, several G-men approach him and inform him that he is needed with the utmost urgency by Cutter's old commanding officer. This is his first call to adventure.
冒险的召唤可以有多种形式。Infogrames 的《时空英豪》（见图 4.5）描绘了退役特种兵卡特·斯莱德坐在酒吧里喝威士忌的情景。就在他喝着酒的时候，几个探员找到他，告诉他以前的指挥官急需他的帮助。这是他第一次接到冒险的召唤。
Figure 4.5. Outcast. 图4.5. 《时空英豪》。
The call to adventure is often the catalyst or trigger that initiates the story line. It can take many forms, and we detail some of those here. In a few stories, the hero receives multiple calls. It then becomes the task of the hero to decide how to prioritize these calls—which to answer first or which to reject outright. In some cases, these priorities will already have been decided—or at least hinted at—by the designer.
冒险的召唤往往是故事线的催化剂或触发器。它可以有多种形式，我们将在这里详细介绍其中的一些。在一些故事中，主人公会接到多种召唤。然后，主人公的任务就是决定如何安排这些召唤的优先顺序——先回答哪些召唤，还是直接拒绝哪些召唤。在某些情况下，设计者已经决定了这些优先顺序，或者至少已经暗示了这些优先顺序。
Ultima VII epitomizes this concept. The avatar really leaves his own world through an obelisk into the fictional world of Brittania. In a sense, there are two dimensions to the fiction in the game because the "real world" is the initial setting of a fictional story. This extra dimension adds tremendously to the game experience, by adding yet another level to the suspension of disbelief. When playing Ultima VII, the player is fully engaged in the game world and the character. When players occasionally do think about the "real world," it is often thoughts of the avatar's "real world," not their own. They empathize with the avatar's wish to return home. In other words, they're sympathetic to the plight of a fictional game character!
《创世纪七》就是这一概念的缩影。化身真的通过方尖碑离开了自己的世界，进入了虚构的布里塔尼亚世界。从某种意义上说，游戏中的虚构有两个维度，因为“真实世界”是虚构故事的初始背景。这个额外的维度极大地增加了游戏体验，让玩家的信任感更上一层楼。在玩《创世纪七》时，玩家会全身心地投入到游戏世界和角色之中。当玩家偶尔想到“现实世界”时，往往想到的是化身的“现实世界”，而不是自己的世界。他们同情化身回家的愿望。换句话说，他们同情虚构游戏角色的困境！
Often the call to adventure is personal to the hero. Nintendo uses this technique a lot, particularly in the Mario series of games. For example, usually the Princess manages to get herself captured, and Mario, being the sterling sort of hero that he is, feels a burning urge to rescue her. This is a common thread running through the entire series of games. The call to adventure often involves family or friends in jeopardy. In Luigi's Mansion, Luigi is called upon to rescue his brother, who is lost inside a mysterious haunted house.
冒险的召唤往往是主人公个人的。任天堂经常使用这种技巧，尤其是在马里奥系列游戏中。例如，通常公主会被抓走，而马里奥作为一个高尚的英雄，会有一种拯救公主的冲动。这是贯穿整个系列游戏的一条主线。在冒险的召唤中，家人或朋友往往处于危险之中。在《路易吉洋楼》中，路易吉被召唤去营救迷失在神秘鬼屋中的哥哥。
Of course, the call does not need to be on a level personal to the hero. External events are often used as a call to adventure. Some grand event happening on a large scale might act as the call. In these cases, only the hero's sense of decency (or other motivation, such as avarice) propels the hero into adventure.
当然，这种召唤并不一定是对主人公个人的召唤。外部事件也经常被用作冒险的召唤。一些大规模发生的宏大事件可以作为召唤。在这种情况下，只有英雄的正义感（或其他动机，如贪婪）才能推动英雄去冒险。
Temptation can always be used as a call. Many forms of temptation exist, but in games, it usually comes in the form of greed. There are various reasons for this. One is that sexual temptation does not make a very good theme for a game. A few games have tried to use this, but they were, for the most part, poor games, and in some cases, verged on the extremely distasteful, with Custer's Revenge (which can be seen with a Google search) being a particularly obnoxious (and classic) example.
诱惑总是可以作为一种召唤。诱惑有很多种形式，但在游戏中，它通常以贪婪的形式出现。原因有很多。其一是性诱惑并不是一个很好的游戏主题。有些游戏曾试图使用这一主题，但它们大多是拙劣的游戏，有些甚至令人极为反感，《卡斯特的复仇》（谷歌搜索即可看到）就是一个特别令人讨厌（也是经典）的例子。
A far safer and more socially acceptable form of temptation is greed. (You've got to love capitalism!) For example, many games use the old "earn as much cash as possible" or "treasure hunting" paradigms as the call to adventure. Games such as Monopoly Tycoon (and, in fact, the majority of the tycoon-style games) use greed as the motivation to play. Remember, kiddies, greed is good! Even Luigi's Mansion uses treasure hunting as a secondary call (as do the majority of the other games in the series). The primary call is to rescue Mario, but the secondary call is to get rich in the process.
更安全、更能被社会所接受的诱惑形式是贪婪。(你一定会爱上资本主义的！）例如，许多游戏使用“尽可能多地赚取现金”或“寻宝”的老模式作为冒险的号召。《垄断大亨》等游戏（事实上，大多数大亨类游戏都是如此）将贪婪作为游戏的动机。记住，孩子们，贪婪是好的！即使是《路易吉洋楼》也将寻宝作为次要目的（该系列的大多数其他游戏也是如此）。首要目标是营救马里奥，次要目标是在这个过程中发财。
Sometimes the call comes in the form of a message from a herald, a character archetype. The herald does not have to be an ally of the hero. In fact, the character acting as the herald might reappear as another character archetype later in the game, such as the mentor or the shadow. Examples of the use of the herald to deliver the call are present in many games. The specific example we will use here is Lionhead's Black & White. In this game, two mentor characters representing the good and evil sides of the player vie for the player's attention. Both characters call the player to adventure—one on the side of good, and one on the side of evil.
有时，召唤会以预言家（一种人物原型）信息的形式出现。预言者不一定是主人公的盟友。事实上，充当传令者的角色可能会在游戏后期作为另一种角色原型再次出现，例如导师或影子。许多游戏中都有使用传令官传递召唤的例子。我们在此使用的具体例子是 Lionhead 的《黑与白》。在这款游戏中，代表玩家善恶两面的两个导师角色争夺玩家的注意力。两个角色都号召玩家去冒险——一个站在善的一方，一个站在恶的一方。
In other situations, the call to adventure isn't an explicit call. It can be the result of a void felt by the hero due to a lack of or a need for something. What that "something" is can be the choice of the game designer. For example, in Planescape: Torment, the call for adventure is lack of knowledge on the part of the hero. The fact that he is referred to as the Nameless One indicates the magnitude of the call.
在其他情况下，冒险的召唤并不是明确的。它可能是主人公由于缺乏或需要某种东西而感到空虚的结果。至于这个“东西”是什么，可以由游戏设计者来选择。例如，在《异域镇魂曲》中，主人公因缺乏知识而需要冒险。他被称为“无名者”这一事实表明了这一呼唤的严重性。
The call to adventure does not need to be optional. The hero isn't always given a choice (even if the player is: He can choose to play or not to play). In Space Invaders, the call to adventure is the need to destroy all the aliens to prevent the player's own destruction.
对冒险的召唤不一定是可选的。主人公并不一定有选择权（即使玩家有：他可以选择玩或不玩）。在《太空侵略者》中，冒险的召唤就是需要消灭所有的外星人，以防止玩家自己被消灭。
In the traditional monomyth form, the next stage after the call is the refusal. This is the representation of the hero rejecting the offer to leave her comfortable ordinary world. It does not have to be portrayed as a grandiose event—often the refusal amounts to little more than a quiet moment of personal doubt or a brief rebellious outburst on the part of the hero.
在传统的单一神话结构中，呼唤之后的下一个阶段是拒绝。这个阶段表现了主人公拒绝离开她舒适的平凡世界的提议。这种拒绝并不一定表现为一个宏大的事件——通常，拒绝仅仅表现为主人公内心片刻的疑虑，或者短暂的叛逆情绪爆发。
For a computer game, the call is usually not refused—especially if there is only one call. After all, if that were to occur, there would be no game. That is not to say that the refusal is never issued. Usually, however, it forms part of the initial background story, as is the case with Cutter Slade in Outcast. Cutter's response to the plea for assistance from the G-men is to turn away, slug back a shot of whiskey, and growl, "I'm retired." As an example of drama, this is far more involving than if he'd just leapt to attention and replied, "Yes sir, let's go." It's more believable and compelling, leaving the player wondering, "Will he or won't he?" even though we know he will. More important, it sets the stage for conflict. And conflict, as we all know, is interesting.
对于电脑游戏来说，召唤通常不会被拒绝，尤其是在只有一个召唤的情况下。毕竟，如果真的出现这种情况，游戏也就无从谈起。这并不是说从来没有拒绝过。不过，通常情况下，这种聚会构成了最初背景故事的一部分，《时空英豪》中的卡特·斯莱德就是如此。面对探员的求助，卡特的反应是转过身去，猛灌一口威士忌，然后咆哮道：“我已经退休了”。从戏剧性的角度看，这比他一跃而起，立正回答“是的，长官，我们走吧”更扣人心弦。这更可信，也更引人注目，让玩家不禁揣测：“他会去吗？还是不会？”尽管我们知道他最终会同意。更重要的是，这为冲突设置了舞台。而冲突，众所周知，是有趣的。
The refusal of the call is usually reserved for games that place more of an emphasis on story. For example, a call refusal would make little sense in a simple arcade game; it can be added to the backstory for additional flavor, but in general, it would have little effect on the gameplay.
拒绝通话通常只适用于更注重故事情节的游戏。例如，拒绝召唤在简单的街机游戏中意义不大；它可以被添加到背景故事中以增加趣味性，但一般来说，它对游戏性影响不大。
Any games that offer multiple quests and subquests allow for multiple refusals. As long as the overall grand quest is attended to, the game designer can allow the hero to ignore some of the smaller quests without any serious penalty.
任何提供多个任务和支线任务的游戏都允许玩家拒绝某些任务。只要完成了总体的主要任务，游戏设计师可以允许主人公忽略一些小任务，而不会受到任何严重的惩罚。
In the case of conflicting calls—when the hero is given two or more conflicting calls simultaneously—a dynamic tension automatically is created. The player has to decide which (if any) call to follow. The classic case is the choice between good and evil. In Black & White, the player is given the choice to be an evil god or a good god (and anything in between). The player's actions determine which call he has refused.
在冲突召唤的情况下——当主人公同时接到两个或更多冲突任务时——活跃紧张气氛就会自动产生。玩家必须决定听从哪种召唤（如果有的话）。最典型的例子就是在善与恶之间做出选择。在《黑与白》中，玩家可以选择成为邪恶的神或善良的神（以及介于两者之间的任何角色）。玩家的行为决定了他拒绝哪种召唤。
In some cases, refusal of the call can be seen as a positive action. The call to adventure can be a negative thing. For example, the hero might be offered a quest that involves partaking in some form of action that would result in unpleasant consequences. In the case of a role-playing game based on the familiar Advanced Dungeons and Dragons rules, a lawful good hero might be asked to perform an activity that would conflict with his alignment, such as killing a household of innocents. If the player sees it as advantageous in the long run to maintain his alignment, it would be wise to refuse this quest.
在某些情况下，拒绝召唤可以被视为一种积极的行动。冒险的召唤可以是消极的。例如，英雄可能会接到一个任务，要求他参与某种会导致不愉快后果的行动。在以我们熟悉的《龙与地下城》规则为基础的角色扮演游戏中，一个善良的英雄可能会被要求去做一件与他的阵营相冲突的事情，比如杀死一户无辜的人家。如果玩家认为从长远来看，保持自己的阵营是有利的，那么拒绝这个任务是明智之举。
The character archetype of mentor is discussed at length in the next chapter. You've already seen an example of a mentor in the previous section, when we discussed Black & White. Another example is Morte, the first character that the Nameless One encounters in Planescape: Torment. At the start of the game, Morte's main purpose is to provide the Nameless One with information about his location and situation. As the Nameless One progresses further, Morte provides further tips and helpful suggestions until he is more familiar with his surroundings.
下一章将详细讨论导师这一角色原型。在上一节讨论《黑与白》时，你已经看到了导师的例子。另一个例子是莫尔特，他是无名者在《异域镇魂曲》中遇到的第一个角色。在游戏开始时，莫尔特的主要目的是向无名者提供有关他的位置和处境的信息。随着无名者的不断前进，莫尔特会提供更多的提示和有用的建议，直到他对周围环境更加熟悉为止。
If the call to adventure is seen as the catalyst to the story, creating an impulse and motive where previously there were none, then the meeting with the mentor serves to give direction to these unleashed forces. When the hero decides to take action, it is the task of the mentor archetype to give the hero the information needed to choose which action to take.
如果说冒险的召唤被视为故事的催化剂，在没有冲动和动机的地方产生了冲动和动机，那么与导师的会面就是为这些释放出来的力量指明方向。当主人公决定采取行动时，导师原型的任务就是为主人公提供选择行动所需的信息。
Note that the mentor does not have to be a single character. Often the mentor is a clichéd wise old man, but there is no reason why this should be the case. The position of the mentor archetype can be filled by any combination of characters that give the hero information. In fact, the mentor does not even need to be a character. The hero can use past experiences, a library, a television, or any other information source. It's not important what or who fills the role of the mentor, as long as the information the hero needs is provided.
请注意，导师不一定是单一的人物。导师通常是一位老生常谈的睿智老人，但没有理由非得如此。导师原型的位置可以由给英雄提供信息的任何角色组合来填补。事实上，导师甚至不需要是一个角色。主人公可以利用过去的经验、图书馆、电视或任何其他信息来源。只要能提供主人公所需的信息，由什么人扮演导师角色并不重要。
After the hero has decided to leave the ordinary world, accepted the call to adventure, and discovered what needs to be done, she still has to make that first step and commit to the adventure. Vogler refers to this as "crossing the threshold" from the safe and comfortable ordinary world into the dangerous and strange special world of the quest ahead.
在主人公决定离开平凡的世界，接受冒险的召唤，并发现了需要做的事情之后，她仍然需要迈出第一步，投入到冒险中去。沃格勒将此称为“跨过门槛”，从安全舒适的普通世界进入危险奇特的特殊世界进行探险。
This step is not always optional. Sometimes the hero is thrust into the special world against her will. For example, in Planescape: Torment, the amnesiac hero wakes into the special world at the start of the game, with only a few tattered memories of the ordinary world from which he came.
这一步并不总是可选的。有时，主人公是在违背自己意愿的情况下被推入特殊世界的。例如，在《异域镇魂曲》中，失忆的主人公在游戏一开始就进入了特殊世界，而他对自己来自的普通世界只有一些残缺不全的记忆。
To enter the special world, the hero must mentally prepare, garner her courage, and perform a certain amount of symbolic loin girding to confidently enter the strange and unknown experiences ahead. Often the hero expresses misgivings, concerns, and fears but makes the crossing anyway. This is a good time to bond the player with the hero by creating a sense of concern. The threshold guardian archetype often comes into play here. This could be manifested as the hero's own misgivings, the fear of the hero's companions, a warning from the enemy who the hero seeks to defeat, or any combination of these.
为了进入特殊的世界，主人公必须做好心理准备，鼓足勇气，并通过某种象征性的准备工作，来自信地进入陌生而未知的历险。主人公通常会表示出疑虑、担忧和恐惧，但无论如何都会跨过门槛。此刻正是通过营造关切感来加深玩家与主人公联系的好时机。此时，门槛守护者原型往往会发挥作用。这可以表现为主人公自己的疑虑、同伴的恐惧、主人公想要打败的敌人发出的警告，或者这些因素的任意组合。
译者注：loin girding，古代近东人穿着束腰外衣，当男人从事苦役或者打仗时，束腰外衣的下摆常常会妨碍。因此，他们会把下摆卷起，将其塞入腰带或打结以使其远离地面。因此，“束紧腰”就是告诉他准备好艰苦工作或战斗。
The opening scene of Midway's Pac-Land (shown in Figure 4.6) shows Pac-Man leaving the ordinary world of his home and setting out of a strange road full of danger and mystery. The act of leaving the house and heading off through the dangerous ghost-infested path is the crossing of the first threshold.
Midway的《吃豆人世界》（如图 4.6 所示）的开头场景显示，吃豆人离开了平凡的家庭世界，踏上了一条充满危险和神秘的陌生道路。离开家，穿过鬼魂出没的危险小路，就是跨过了第一道门槛。
Figure 4.6. Pac-Land. 图 4.6. 《吃豆人世界》。
When the first threshold of adventure is crossed, there is no turning back. The next phase is entered, and the adventure into the special world truly begins.
当跨过冒险的第一道门槛，就再也无法回头。进入下一阶段，进入特殊世界的冒险才真正开始。
The crossing of the threshold is the first test. In this phase, many more similar tests are thrown at the hero. This phase is often the longest phase of a game story and makes up the bulk of a game.
跨过门槛是第一个考验。在这一阶段，主人公将面临许多类似的考验。这一阶段通常是游戏故事中最长的阶段，也是游戏的主要部分。
In this phase, the hero ventures forth into the special world and meets many of the character archetypes on the journey. For the majority of games, the character archetypes that the player meets are either allies, shadows, or tricksters. At the left edge of the story spectrum, you would expect to meet mainly shadows. For example, in Space Invaders, the player is alone against the alien onslaught—a hero surrounded by shadow.
在这一阶段，主人公会冒险进入特殊的世界，并在旅途中遇到许多角色原型。在大多数游戏中，玩家遇到的角色原型要么是盟友，要么是阴影，要么是骗子。在故事光谱的左边缘，你会遇到的主要是阴影。例如，在《太空侵略者》中，玩家孤身一人对抗外星入侵者——一个被阴影包围的英雄。
Slightly more complex games often provide allies, such as the fairies at the end of each Pac-Land level. In arcade-style games—those that place more emphasis on the action than the story—these are likely to be the only archetypes present. The player will go through a series of tests with successively more powerful shadows, to be given a brief respite when an ally occasionally shows up to replenish the hero's spirit and resolve. In some cases, the player might even encounter the trickster and shape-shifter archetypes in the form of false allies who turn out to be shadows after all.
稍微复杂一点的游戏通常会提供盟友，比如《吃豆人世界》每个关卡最后的仙女。在街机风格的游戏中——那些更强调动作而非剧情的游戏——这些可能是唯一的原型。玩家将经历一连串的考验，面对的是一个个越来越强大的阴影，偶尔会有一个盟友出现，补充英雄的精神和决心，让玩家得到短暂的喘息。在某些情况下，玩家甚至会遇到骗子和变形怪的原型，他们会假扮成盟友，但最终却变成了阴影。
In a more complex game, where story is the biggest consideration, you would expect to see many more character archetypes during this phase of the game. For example, a role-playing game with a well-developed story line would be expected to use all of the major character archetypes many times over and in varying combinations.
在一个更复杂的游戏中，故事是最大的考虑因素，在游戏的这一阶段，你会看到更多的角色原型。例如，一款故事线发展完善的角色扮演游戏就会多次使用所有主要的角色原型，并以不同的组合形式出现。
The main purpose of this phase in the story is to test and prepare the hero for the grand ordeal that lies ahead. Here, the hero is expected to learn the unfamiliar rules and customs of the special world. During this succession of increasingly difficult tests, the hero forges alliances and makes enemies. Depending on the nature of the game, the opportunities available for the hero to actually make enemies or allies could be limited or predestined, as is the case with most games; the majority of characters the hero meets are already enemies, and allies are few and far between. This is not necessarily a disadvantage—an element can still add flavor to a game, even if it is noninteractive.
故事中这一阶段的主要目的是考验主人公，让他为即将到来的巨大考验做好准备。在这一阶段，英雄要学习陌生的特殊世界的规则和习俗。在这一连串难度越来越大的考验中，英雄会结盟，也会树敌。根据游戏的性质，主人公真正结成敌人或盟友的机会可能很有限，也可能是命中注定的，大多数游戏都是如此；主人公遇到的大多数角色都已经是敌人，而盟友则少之又少。这并不一定是一个缺点——即使是非互动元素，也能为游戏增添风味。
After the succession of tests, the hero approaches the innermost cave. This is the core of the story, where the hero will find the reward he seeks. Mostly, this is toward the end of the game, but in some cases, this occurs almost exactly in the middle.
经过一连串的考验后，主人公来到最深处的洞穴。这是故事的核心，主人公将在这里找到他所寻求的奖励。大多数情况下，奖励会出现在游戏的结尾，但也有一些情况下，奖励几乎正好出现在游戏的中间。
The difference between these two alternatives is that the first—where the reward is close to the end of the game—doesn't pay too much attention to the journey back. The retrieval of the reward is the high point of the journey, and the return is assumed. This has its merits. In some cases, you would not want to force the player to retrace his steps back the way he came.
这两种选择的区别在于，第一种选择——奖励接近游戏尾声——并不太关注返回的旅程。取回奖励是整个旅程的高潮，而返回则被认为理所当然。这样做也有其优点。在某些情况下，你不希望强迫玩家按原路返回。
The second situation, in which the reward is close to the middle of the game, pays special attention to the journey back. In this case, retrieving the reward is only half the story. Now the hero actually has to escape with the reward and return to the ordinary world in one piece. For this style of game, the journey back is well integrated into the quest and should be significantly different than the journey that brought the hero to that point.
第二种情况是奖励接近游戏的中间部分，这就要特别注意返回的路程。在这种情况下，找回奖励只是故事的一半。现在，主人公实际上必须带着奖励逃走，并全身而退回到普通世界。对于这种风格的游戏来说，返回的旅程被巧妙地融入到任务中，并应该与来时的旅程有明显的不同。
The traditional use for this story element is to help prepare the hero for the ordeal ahead. This is done by a number of means, including doing reconnaissance, gathering information, checking or purchasing equipment, or mentally preparing and girding loins for the coming tasks.
这个故事元素的传统用途是帮助主人公为未来的磨难做好准备。具体做法有很多，包括侦察、收集信息、检查或购买装备，或者为即将到来的任务做好心理准备。
The ordeal is the ultimate test: the fight with the nemesis. This is the culminating battle of the story. Until now, the hero might have dealt with some serious tests, but this is the real thing. The stakes are high, and the final reward is at hand.
这场磨难是终极考验：与宿敌的搏斗。这是故事的巅峰之战。在此之前，主人公可能已经经历过一些严峻的考验，但这才是真正的考验。赌注很高，最终的奖励就在眼前。
Many games follow this pattern. In fact, any game that has a succession of levels punctuated by increasingly powerful boss enemies for the player to defeat follows this pattern. Luigi's Mansion, Quake II, Half-Life, R-Type, and Diablo II are some of these. We're sure that you can add hundreds to the list.
许多游戏都遵循这种模式。事实上，任何游戏，只要关卡层层递进，玩家要打败的敌人头目越来越强大，就会遵循这种模式。《路易吉洋楼》、《雷神之锤二》、《半条命》、《异形战机》和《暗黑破坏神二》都是这样的游戏。我们相信，你还可以将数百种游戏添加到列表中。
During the ordeal, you might try to cement the player's bond with the hero further. This is sometimes achieved by making it appear as if the hero is almost defeated, before fighting back from seemingly impossible odds to defeat the enemy.
在经历磨难的过程中，你可以尝试进一步巩固玩家与主人公之间的联系。有时，可以通过让英雄看起来几乎被打败，然后在看似不可能的情况下奋起反击，打败敌人来达到这一目的。
In the ordeal, the hero faces the ultimate shadow. Defeat means failure, final and absolute. Victory means claiming the reward and the ultimate success. However, sometimes achieving victory is possible in many ways and at many levels, not all of them immediately obvious. For example, in the case of games such as LucasArts' Jedi Knight series, it could mean deciding whether to fight the ultimate nemesis.
在这场磨难中，英雄面对的是终极阴影。战败意味着彻底而绝对的失败，而胜利则意味着夺取奖励并获得最终的成功。然而，有时候取得胜利可以通过多种方式和多个层面实现，并非所有方式都是直白明显。例如，在 LucasArts 的《绝地武士》系列等游戏中，这可能意味着决定是否与终极敌人作战。
After the ultimate shadow is defeated, the reward can be claimed. The reward can come in many forms—and not all of them are positive. Sometimes the reward can be a negative option, something the hero would rather avoid but cannot, or simply was not, expecting.
战胜终极阴影后，就可以领取奖励。奖励有多种形式，但并非都是正面的。有时，奖励可能是一种消极的选择，是主人公宁愿避免却无法或根本没想到的事情。
More often, however, the reward is positive, even if it might not seem that way to the player. For example, the reward in Planescape: Torment is mortality and the promise of death. Although this might not seem like much of a reward to the player, to the hero—who has endured a long and painful cycle of continual death and rebirth—the ability to finally die and join his lover in the peace of eternal sleep is an ideal boon.
但更常见的情况是，奖励是正面的，即使在玩家看来并非如此。例如，《异域镇魂曲》中的奖励就是死亡和死亡的承诺。虽然这对玩家来说可能算不上什么奖励，但对于经历了漫长而痛苦的不断死亡和重生循环的主人公来说，能够最终死去并与他的爱人在永恒的睡眠中团聚，是一种理想的恩赐。
Many games end at this point. Some of these show the remaining story as a final cut scene. For other games, this is merely the beginning of the final phase.
许多游戏到此就结束了。其中一些游戏用最后的过场动画来展示剩余的故事。对其他游戏来说，这仅仅是最终阶段的开始。
Note that nothing says that the reward has to be the same one that the hero set out for at the beginning of the story. In Half-Life, Gordon Freeman initially sets out to escape from the alien-infested laboratory. By the end of the story, the stakes—and the potential reward for success—are much higher. The important thing is to make sure that the reward reflects the effort expended in reaching it. Nothing falls flat more than an insignificant reward—an excellent example of this being the ending of Unreal. After fighting the alien threat and escaping the planet, the player's avatar is left drifting in space as his escape pod runs out of fuel. The assumption is that you will eventually be rescued—or not (see Figure 4.7).
请注意，没有任何规定说奖励必须与主人公在故事开始时的出发点相同。在《半条命》中，戈登·弗里曼最初的目的是逃离外星人出没的实验室。到了故事的结尾，赌注和成功的潜在奖励都要高得多。重要的是要确保奖励能够反映出为实现奖励所付出的努力。没有什么比微不足道的奖励更让人失望了——《虚幻》的结局就是一个很好的例子。在与外星威胁战斗并逃离星球后，玩家的化身因逃生舱燃料耗尽而漂流在太空中。不知道最终会获救，还是不会（见图 4.7）。
Figure 4.7. The ending of Unreal. 图 4.7. 虚幻的结局。
With the reward won, the hero now has to prepare for the journey back to the ordinary world. The experience of the adventure will have changed the hero, and it might be difficult (if not impossible) to integrate her successfully back into the ordinary world. As we've said, most games do not go as far as this in their interactive stories—instead, they leave this and the following two story elements to a final cut scene.
获得奖励后，主人公现在要准备返回普通世界的旅程。冒险的经历已经改变了主人公，她可能很难（如果不是不可能）成功融入普通世界。正如我们所说，大多数游戏的互动故事都没有做到这一步——相反，它们会将这一故事元素和下面两个故事元素留到最后的过场动画中。
Interplay's Fallout (shown in Figure 4.8) used this particular element to good effect. In this post-apocalyptic role-playing game, the hero was tasked with finding a replacement chip to the water processor to allow the vault-dwellers to continue living in their underground vault. The hero was sent out into the radioactive wilderness to find this chip and, after many adventures, successfully returned with the reward. Upon his return, he was not permitted to re-enter the vault. The vault elders claimed that he had been so changed by his journey that he was too dangerous to be allowed to live in the vault with the others. Hence, he was turned away from his old ordinary world. His special world became his new ordinary world.
Interplay 的《辐射》（如图 4.8 所示）很好地利用了这一特殊元素。在这款末世角色扮演游戏中，主人公的任务是找到水处理器的替代芯片，让地窖居民继续生活在地下地窖中。主人公被派往放射性荒野寻找芯片，经过多次冒险后，他带着奖励成功返回。回来后，他被禁止再次进入地窖。保险库的长老们声称，他的旅程改变了他，让他和其他人一起住在保险库里太危险了。因此，他被赶出了原来的普通世界。他的特殊世界成了他新的普通世界。
Figure 4.8. Fallout. 图 4.8. 《辐射》。
The resurrection is the point in the story at which all outstanding plot threads are resolved. Any problems or consequences from the retrieval of the reward are (for the most part) resolved here. Does the story resolve itself? Are any questions left unanswered? Is this an oversight on the part of the designer, or are they deliberately left open for the sequel?
复活是故事中所有悬而未决的情节线索都得到解决的时刻。取回奖励所带来的任何问题或后果（大部分）都在这里得到解决。故事本身解决了吗？是否有任何问题没有得到解答？这是设计者的疏忽，还是故意为续集留下悬念？
The resurrection is the final set of tests the hero faces before being able to enjoy the hard-earned reward fully. In conventional stories, this is comparable to the last-minute plot twist: Just when you think the story is over and the hero has won, the enemy resurfaces briefly for a final stand before dying.
复活是英雄在充分享受来之不易的奖励之前所面临的最后一系列考验。在传统故事中，这就好比最后一刻的情节转折：当你以为故事已经结束，英雄已经获胜时，敌人却在临死前短暂地复活，做最后的挣扎。
Another purpose of the resurrection is so that the player can see clearly how the hero has evolved throughout the story. Has the hero changed? More important, does the hero have the answer to the question posed by the story?
复活的另一个目的是让玩家能够清楚地看到英雄在整个故事中的演变过程。英雄是否已经改变？更重要的是，英雄是否找到了故事所提出问题的答案？
The resurrection might also be in the form of an internal revelation for the character that the player might not have foreseen—a trick ending: "No, Luke…I am your father."
复活的形式还可能是玩家可能没有预料到的角色的内心坦白——一个出人意料的结局：“不，卢克……我是你的父亲。”
Now the story is over, and the hero returns to his ordinary world to resume life as normal. The player gets to see the hero enjoy the benefits of the reward, and the story is over. This is the last stage in the circular story form. The story returns completely to its starting point so that comparisons can be drawn between the hero before and after.
现在故事结束了，主人公回到了他的平凡世界，恢复了正常的生活。玩家可以看到主人公享受奖励带来的好处，故事也就结束了。这是循环故事形式的最后一个阶段。故事完全回到起点，这样就可以对主人公的前后进行比较。
However, a neatly tied-up story is not always desirable. Sometimes it is nice to leave a few questions open. One of the most popular forms of ending for a story is the "new beginning." In this type of ending, the story continues in the imagination of the player long after the game is completed. The player is left asking, "What happens next?" and the way is left open for a continuation or a sequel.
然而，一个整齐划一的故事并不总是可取的。有时，留下一些悬念也不错。最受欢迎的故事结局形式之一是“新的开始”。在这种结局中，游戏结束后，故事仍在玩家的想象中继续。玩家会问：“接下来会发生什么？”这就为续集或续篇留下了伏笔。
The most obvious example of this is Half-Life. The story line for this game contains a last-minute plot twist. Just when you think Gordon Freeman is about to escape, he is accosted by a man in black (who has been covertly watching Gordon during the entire game) and is offered two choices. We won't spoil the surprise for those of you who have not played the game to completion; suffice to say that it is certainly an unexpected twist. The reward in this case has mutated from freedom to something else entirely.
最明显的例子就是《半条命》。这款游戏的故事线在最后一刻出现了情节转折。当你以为戈登·弗里曼即将逃脱时，一个黑衣人（在整个游戏过程中一直暗中监视着戈登）向他搭讪，并提供了两个选择。对于那些没有玩完游戏的人，我们就不剧透这个惊喜了；我们只想说，这肯定是一个意想不到的转折。在这种情况下，奖励从自由变成了完全不同的东西。
The most common format for a story is the three-act structure. This is by no means the only structure, but it seems to be the most common structure. For example, some of Shakespeare's plays use different structures, such as five- and seven-act ones. However, most modern stories conform to the more common three-act structure, and that's what we'll concentrate on here.
最常见的故事形式是三幕结构。这绝不是唯一的结构，但似乎是最常见的结构。例如，莎士比亚的一些戏剧采用了不同的结构，如五幕和七幕。不过，大多数现代故事都采用更常见的三幕结构，这也是我们在此要重点讨论的。
The hero's journey is often used in a circular story form split into three acts. This does not mean that all stories return exactly to their starting point and circumstances. Often the manifestation of the circular form means that the hero's special world becomes his new ordinary world. How the hero's journey is related to the circular form is shown in Figure 4.9.
英雄之旅常用于分为三幕的循环故事形式。但这并不意味着所有故事都会完全回到起点和环境。通常情况下，循环形式的表现意味着英雄的特殊世界变成了他新的普通世界。英雄之旅与循环形式的关系如图 4.9 所示。
Figure 4.9. The circular story form. 图 4.9. 循环故事形式。
Classically, this story form is used in literature and movies. It also applies directly to story-focused games and can be used as a guideline for games in which stories are present but are not the primary focus. Let's discuss the figure in some more detail.
这种故事形式通常用于文学作品和电影。它也直接适用于以故事为重点的游戏，并可作为游戏的指导原则，在这些游戏中，故事是存在的，但不是主要重点。让我们来详细讨论一下该图。
The first act deals with the introduction of the hero and the ordinary world. The end of the first act is the point at which the hero prepares to cross the first threshold and enter the special world.
第一幕介绍主人公和普通世界。第一幕结束时，主人公准备跨过第一道门槛，进入特殊世界。
Act 2 is the longest act and takes place entirely in the special world. This act is often split into two parts, with the end of the first part coinciding with the ordeal. The second part begins with a change of pace; the story now begins to wind down, and the farthest point in the journey has been reached.
第二幕是最长的一幕，完全发生在特殊世界。这一幕通常分为两部分，第一部分的结尾与磨难相吻合。第二幕开始时，节奏发生了变化；故事开始进入尾声，旅程的最远点已经到达。
Act 2 ends with the road back, and the beginning of the third act heralds the return of the hero to the ordinary world, ending back where the story started in the ordinary world (although not necessarily the same one that the hero left).
第二幕以返回之路结束，而第三幕的开始则预示着主人公回到平凡的世界，回到故事开始的平凡世界（尽管不一定是主人公离开的那个世界）。
The converse of the circular story form is the open-ended form. Here, the story is not tied up nicely as in the circular case. Plot strands are deliberately left open so that there is a sense of unresolved ambiguities and unanswered questions. This form is not often used in stories in Western culture and is often reserved for serials. Two classic movie examples of this form are Robert Zemeckis's Back to the Future, Part II and George Lucas's The Empire Strikes Back. In both of these films, we are left with many unanswered questions, leaving the way wide open for the sequels. Of course, the worst sin of the storyteller is to artificially include a fake plot element simply to force the circle to a close.
与循环故事形式相反的是开放式故事形式。在这种形式下，故事不会像循环故事那样被很好地收尾。故事情节故意留有悬念，给人一种模棱两可、悬而未决的感觉。这种形式在西方文化的故事中并不常用，通常只在连续剧中使用。罗伯特·泽米吉斯的《回到未来，第二部》和乔治·卢卡斯的《帝国反击战》就是这种形式的两个经典影片范例。在这两部电影中，我们都留下了许多未解之谜，为续集留下了广阔的空间。当然，讲故事的人最大的罪过就是人为地加入一个虚假的情节元素，仅仅是为了强行画上一个句号。
We previously mentioned that the plot can be paced in one of two main ways. The position of the crisis in the story makes the difference in the feel of the story: Whether the third act is a quick resolution or a slow wind-down of the story depends on it.
我们之前提到过，情节的节奏主要有两种。危机在故事中的位置决定了故事的感觉：第三幕是快速解决危机，还是缓慢收尾，都取决于此。
Given a conventional three-act structure in which the long second act is usually split into two parts, there are two main points at which the crisis occurs. How these are used is related to the pacing of the plot. The standard approach (shown in Figure 4.10) is to slowly build up to the ordeal at the end of Act 2 and move on fairly swiftly to the final climax. This approach is the more common one, both in games and in the movies. It allows the story to concentrate on the pre-ordeal story line, and after the reward is claimed, it tidies things up quickly.
在传统的三幕结构中，较长的第二幕通常被分为两个部分，危机主要出现在两个点上。如何使用这两个点关系到情节的节奏。标准的方法（如图 4.10 所示）是在第二幕结尾处慢慢铺垫磨难，然后相当迅速地进入最后的高潮。这种方法在游戏和电影中都比较常见。这种方法可以让故事集中在磨难前的故事主线上，而在领到奖励后，又可以迅速收尾。
Figure 4.10. Delayed crisis in a three-act story. 图 4.10. 三幕故事中的延迟危机。
That's one approach to plot pacing. The other common one is the central crisis. Here, Act 3 is lengthened so that the ordeal occurs roughly in the middle of the story, giving a symmetrical appearance. This approach allows for the consequences of the ordeal and the claiming of the reward to be expounded upon in more detail. Both halves of the story have equal importance, both pre- and post-ordeal. Often this can be used to give the villain a fighting chance to reclaim the reward and kill the hero, a sort of "just when you thought it was over" approach to the story. This form (shown in Figure 4.11) has not been used much in the games industry so far. This is a shame because it seems a bit naïve to assume that everything turns up rosy after the hero has claimed the reward. As we all know, sometimes that is not the case. For example, E.E. "Doc" Smith used an interesting variant of this in writing his Lensman and Skylark novels.
这是情节节奏的一种方法。另一种常见的方法是中心危机。在这里，第三幕被拉长，使磨难大致发生在故事的中间，给人一种对称的感觉。这种做法可以更详细地阐述磨难的后果和获取奖赏的过程。故事的前后两部分具有同等的重要性。这通常可以用来给反派一个夺回奖赏和杀死英雄的机会，一种“就在你以为一切都结束的时候”的故事方式。迄今为止，这种形式（如图 4.11 所示）在游戏行业中使用得并不多。这是一种遗憾，因为假设英雄获取奖励后一切都会变得美好，这似乎有点天真。众所周知，有时情况并非如此。例如，爱德华‧艾默‧史密斯在创作《透镜人》和《云雀》小说时，就曾使用过这种有趣的变体。
Figure 4.11. Central crisis in a three-act story. 图 4.11. 三幕故事中的中心危机。
In this book, we've defined narrative to mean the noninteractive part of a computer game's story, the part in which you as the designer and author tell the player things without letting him do anything. This definition ignores literary theory and all the academic debate that surrounds modern creative writing, but it serves our purpose: to discuss the nature of storytelling in games and the relationship between interactive and noninteractive elements.
在本书中，我们将“叙事”定义为电脑游戏故事中的非交互部分，即作为设计者和作者告诉玩家事情而不让他做任何事情的部分。这个定义忽略了文学理论和围绕现代创意写作的所有学术争论，但它符合我们的目的：讨论游戏中讲故事的本质以及互动和非互动元素之间的关系。
From this definition, you can see that a game's story content can be divided into interactive and noninteractive parts: the gameplay and the narrative. These exist in inverse proportion to one another: The more you have of one, the less you have of the other. A novel or a movie has no gameplay; it is entirely narrative. A simple arcade game such as Space Invaders has no narrative; it is entirely gameplay. The majority of home computer and console games lie somewhere in between; they seek to strike a balance between gameplay and narrative. You, as the designer, must decide where that balance lies.
从这个定义中可以看出，游戏的故事内容可以分为互动和非互动两部分：游戏性和叙事性。这两部分的存在是互成反比的：其中一个部分越多，另一个部分就越少。小说或电影没有游戏性，完全是叙事性。一款简单的街机游戏，如《太空侵略者》，没有叙事性，完全是游戏性。大多数家用电脑和游戏机游戏介于两者之间；它们力求在游戏性和叙事性之间取得平衡。作为设计者，你必须决定平衡点在哪里。
To make that determination, you have to ask what function narrative will have in your game. At first glance, it might seem to be pointless. A game is a form of participatory entertainment, and purists would say that any nonparticipatory elements are extraneous. A number of players feel that way, too: As soon as they are given some text to read or see a movie come up, they hit whatever button will skip past it and take them on to the gameplay. These kinds of players tend to be core gamers, motivated primarily by the challenges in the game and the desire to defeat them. To them, beating the game is its own reward, and they need nothing else.
要做出这样的判断，你必须先弄清楚叙事在你的游戏中会起到什么作用。乍一看，这似乎毫无意义。游戏是一种参与性娱乐，纯粹主义者会说任何非参与性元素都是无关紧要的。很多玩家也是这么认为的：只要有文字要读，或者有电影要看，他们就会点击任何按钮跳过这些内容，直接进入游戏。这类玩家往往是核心玩家，他们的动力主要来自游戏中的挑战和战胜挑战的欲望。对他们来说，战胜游戏本身就是一种奖励，他们不需要其他任何东西。
Not all players are this eager to dive headfirst into the action, however. Casual gamers, who play for the enjoyment of being in the game's fantasy world, need to have the stage set for them. They need to feel part of something larger, a story that will excite their imaginations. Casual gamers also need rewards for overcoming the game's challenges. For them, it's not sufficient to know that they've defeated a dragon; there must be a reason to do it and a positive consequence for having done it. Both the reason and the consequence are given to them through narrative, expository material that tells them, "The dragon is eating all our herds and soon the peasants will starve" and "The King is greatly pleased with you."
然而，并不是所有玩家都如此渴望一头扎进游戏中。休闲玩家玩游戏是为了享受置身于游戏幻想世界的乐趣，他们需要有一个舞台。他们需要感觉到自己是更宏大故事的一部分，一个能激发他们想象力的故事。休闲游戏玩家也需要通过克服游戏中的挑战来获得奖励。对他们来说，仅仅知道自己打败了一条龙是不够的，还必须有打败它的理由和积极的结果。原因和结果都是通过叙述和说明材料告诉他们的：“巨龙正在吃掉我们所有的牲畜，农民很快就会饿死”和“国王对你非常满意。”
The sights and sounds in your game, the graphics and audio, create the immediate physical embodiment of your game's setting, but that's not enough to establish a credible game world. Those sights and sounds should be informed by an underlying culture and a history that dictates not only how the world looks, but why it looks that way. If you don't design that culture and history, the game world will feel like a theme park: all false fronts and a thin, gaudy veneer over the game's mechanics. To establish the feeling of richness and depth, you must create a backstory, and some of that backstory must be revealed through narration.
游戏中的景象和声音、图形和音频可以直接体现游戏的背景，但这还不足以建立一个可信的游戏世界。这些景象和声音应该包含潜在的文化和历史，这些文化和历史不仅决定了世界的面貌，还决定了世界为何如此。如果不设计这种文化和历史，游戏世界就会给人一种主题公园的感觉：都是虚假的门面，在游戏机制上披着一层薄薄的、华而不实的外衣。要建立丰富而有深度的感觉，就必须创造一个背景故事，而且必须通过叙述来揭示其中的一些内容。
Action games, sports games, and vehicle simulations seldom include much narrative. They emphasize the activity, or interactivity, of the moment; for the core gamer, that activity is its own reward. Even so, you can attract a larger audience if you offer a story line to maintain the casual player's interest. The casual player wants that story because the action alone doesn't do it for her. Consider two first-person shooter games: In one, you offer 25 different, unrelated levels of varying degrees of difficulty. All the player knows is that she has to kill all the enemies to win. In the other, each level is an episode in a larger story, tied together with narrative material that explains why the player is there and what her exertions are in aid of. The second will undoubtedly cost more to make, but it will also appeal to more people. Those who care nothing for narrative will ignore it, but those who need narrative to motivate them will be rewarded.
动作游戏、体育游戏和驾驶模拟游戏很少包含太多的叙事。它们强调的是瞬间的活动或互动性；对于核心玩家来说，活动本身就是一种奖励。即便如此，如果能提供一条故事线来维持休闲玩家的兴趣，就能吸引更多的玩家。休闲玩家需要故事，因为单靠动作本身并不能吸引他们。请看两款第一人称射击游戏：在其中一款游戏中，你提供了 25 个难度各异、互不相关的关卡。玩家只知道她必须杀死所有敌人才能获胜。而在另一款游戏中，每个关卡都是一个更大故事中的一段，用叙事材料串联起来，解释玩家为什么会出现在那里，她的努力是为了什么。毫无疑问，第二种游戏的制作成本会更高，但也会吸引更多的人。那些对叙事毫不在意的人会忽略它，但那些需要叙事来激励自己的人会得到回报。
If you offer too much narrative and too little gameplay, however, your game will feel as if it is a bad value for the money. A number of games have made this mistake. Players are paying for the opportunity to act out a fantasy. If most of your game's content is noninteractive, they'll feel cheated—they won't get the experience that they paid for.
然而，如果你提供的叙述性内容过多，而游戏性内容过少，你的游戏就会让人觉得物不所值。很多游戏都犯了这个错误。玩家花钱买的是实现幻想的机会。如果游戏的大部分内容都是非交互式的，他们就会觉得被欺骗了——他们无法获得花钱买来的体验。
The other problem with too much narrative is that it tends to make the game feel as if it's on rails. It's very linear, as if the only purpose the player's actions serve is to move the game toward a predestined conclusion. Of course, unless you've written a game with multiple endings, the conclusion is predestined, but the goal is to make the player feel as if he is in a story of his own telling. When you as the designer take over too much of the telling, the player feels as if he's being led by the nose. He doesn't have the freedom to play the game in his own way, to create his own experience for himself.
叙事过多的另一个问题是，它往往会让游戏感觉像是在固定线路上运行。它非常有顺序，就好像玩家的行为唯一的目的就是让游戏走向一个注定的结局。当然，除非你写的游戏有多个结局，否则结局是注定的，但目标是让玩家感觉自己是在讲述自己的故事。如果你作为设计者过多地参与故事的讲述，玩家就会觉得自己被牵着鼻子走。他无法自由地以自己的方式玩游戏，创造属于自己的体验。
The raison d'être of all computer gaming is interactivity: giving the player something to do that he cannot do in the real world. The trick, then, is to provide enough narrative to create the game world and motivate the player, but not so much as to inhibit his freedom to meet the game's challenges in his own way. Consider this paraphrase of the words of the wizard Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings: "We cannot choose the times in which we live. All we can decide is what to do with the time that is given us." The player cannot decide the world in which he plays; that is for you, the designer, to determine. But he must be allowed to decide for himself what to do within that world, or there is no point in playing. When you create your game's narrative segments, try to avoid seizing control of the player's avatar. In too many games, the player reaches a certain point and then the narrative takes over and makes the avatar do something that the player might not choose to do. It is fair to change the world around the avatar in response to the player's actions; it is less fair to suddenly take control of the avatar away from the player.
所有电脑游戏存在的理由都是互动性：让玩家做一些他在现实世界中做不到的事情。因此，诀窍在于提供足够的叙事内容来创造游戏世界并激发玩家的兴趣，但又不能过多地限制玩家以自己的方式迎接游戏挑战的自由。请参考《魔戒》中巫师甘道夫的一段话：“我们无法选择所处的时代。我们所能决定的只是如何利用给我们的时间”。玩家无法决定他在其中游戏的世界，这要由设计者来决定。但必须让他自己决定在这个世界里做什么，否则游戏就没有意义了。在设计游戏的叙事片段时，尽量避免夺取玩家化身的控制权。在太多的游戏中，玩家到达某一点后，叙事就会接管，让玩家的化身做一些玩家可能不会选择做的事情。根据玩家的行为改变化身周围的世界是公平的，但突然夺走玩家对化身的控制权就不那么公平了。
Not all stories are told in one session. The games industry has expressed much interest in the possibilities provided by episodic delivery. This can mean anything from a simple sequel to a hit game (as in the Final Fantasy series) or a properly episodic game such as the ill-fated Majestic from Electronic Arts.
并不是所有的故事都能一口气讲完。游戏业对分集交付提供的可能性表现出极大的兴趣。这可以是热门游戏的简单续集（如《最终幻想》系列），也可以是真正的分集游戏，如艺电公司命运多舛的《宏伟》。
There are three main forms for episodic delivery; these are indicated in Figures 4.12, 4.13, and 4.14 and are discussed in the following sections.
分集交付有三种主要形式，如图 4.12、4.13 和 4.14 所示，下文将对此进行讨论。
Figure 4.12. An example of series structure. 图 4.12. 系列剧结构的例子。
Figure 4.13. An example of serial structure. 图 4.13. 连续剧结构的例子。
Figure 4.14. An example of episodic delivery structure. 图 4.14. 分集交付结构的例子。
A series is a limited sequence of episodes. Each episode is a self-contained story in which one major plot strand is resolved per episode. Usually, an overriding theme runs from the beginning of the series through to the end, as shown in Figure 4.12.
系列剧是一连串有限的剧集。每一集都是一个自成一体的故事，每集解决一个主要情节。通常，如图 4.12 所示，一个压倒一切的主题会从系列的开头一直贯穿到结尾。
This is the format used in the majority of game series. Each game in the series contains a complete story set against the consistent world. The games in the series are often linked by a grand overarching plot. To get a handle on the concept, imagine a series of films such as Die Hard or The Godfather trilogy. Each film has a self-contained plot, and each can be viewed individually with little disadvantage, even though there is a consistent world and an overarching theme that ties the series together.
大多数系列游戏都采用这种形式。系列游戏中的每个游戏都包含一个完整的故事，故事背景是一个连贯的世界。系列游戏通常由一个宏大的总体情节串联起来。要理解这个概念，可以想象一下《虎胆龙威》或《教父》三部曲等系列电影。每部电影都有自成一体的情节，尽管有一个连贯的世界和一个总的主题将整个系列联系在一起，但每部电影都可以单独观看，几乎没有什么缺点。
A serial is a (theoretically) infinite sequence of episodes. Serials are similar in nature to a series, except that the plot threads are not usually neatly resolved by each episode and there is generally no overarching story line—and, hence, no closure. To maintain interest, each episode generally ends halfway through the major plot strand, creating a cliffhanger situation that hopefully creates the "can't wait" feeling for the next episode.
连续剧是一连串（理论上）无限的剧集。连续剧在性质上与系列剧相似，但情节线索通常不会在每集都得到圆满解决，一般没有总的故事线，因此也就没有结局。为了保持观众的兴趣，每集一般都会在主要情节进行到一半时结束，形成一个悬念，让观众对下集产生“迫不及待”的感觉。
Serials are designed to run and run. They rely on a large cast of characters, of whom a subset are involved in three or four different (and often quite independent) subplots at any one time. As one subplot ends, another one begins, using a new group of (formerly dormant) characters. Serials lack the grand sense of resolution that the hero's journey provides. Instead, they offer opportunities to observe different characters interacting under a variety of stresses. The cliffhanger at the end of each episode usually involves some shocking revelation that leaves us wondering how a key character will react to the news. One might say that serials are character-driven rather than plot-driven and involve a large number of archetypal characters: the bully, the good-hearted loser, the shrew, the plain but loving girl, the beautiful scheming woman, the ne'er-do-well, and so on. Occasionally, one of these characters will undergo a trauma so extreme that it produces a character transformation—for example, turning the noble young man into an evil schemer, which is, in effect, another plot twist.
连续剧的设计就是要不断地播出。它们依赖于庞大的角色阵容，其中的一部分角色在同一时间内会卷入三到四个不同的（通常相当独立的）支线剧情。当一个分镜头结束时，另一个分镜头又开始了，使用一组新的人物（以前处于休眠状态）。连续剧缺乏英雄之旅那种宏大的解决感。相反，它们提供了观察不同角色在各种压力下互动的机会。每一集结尾的悬念通常都是一些令人震惊的启示，让我们猜测某个关键人物会对这一消息做出怎样的反应。可以说，连续剧是由人物而非情节驱动的，其中涉及大量典型人物：恶霸、心地善良的失败者、泼妇、朴实但有爱心的女孩、漂亮的心计女、不务正业者等等。偶尔，这些角色中的一个会经历极端的创伤，从而产生性格转变——例如，将高尚的年轻人变成邪恶的阴谋家，这实际上是另一种情节的转折。
If the serial comes to an end, it's usually because of the failure of the story, either because of falling ratings or sales or because the story writers ran out of ideas (although judging by some of the soap operas on television, some serials seem to have survived even beyond that particular death blow). The specific grisly fate that a serial comes to can be determined by how it ends. If it ends abruptly, with no attempt at plot resolution, it's a pretty good bet that sales or ratings fell. If some attempt at closure is made, the serial probably came to a natural end. Comparisons for serials are soap operas such as Dallas, or the old Saturday morning serials that most of you are probably too young to remember, such as Rocket Man, Flash Gordon, and The Incredible Hulk.
如果连续剧走到尽头，通常是因为故事失败了，要么是因为收视率或销量下降，要么是因为故事编剧没有了灵感（不过从电视上的一些肥皂剧来看，有些连续剧似乎甚至在这种致命打击之后仍然存活了下来）。一部连续剧的具体悲惨命运可以由它的结局来决定。如果结束得很突然，没有试图解决情节问题，那么销量或收视率肯定会下降。如果试图做一些收尾工作，那么这部连续剧很可能就自然结束了。与连续剧相对应的是肥皂剧，如《达拉斯》，或者是大多数人可能太年轻而不记得的老式周六早间连续剧，如《火箭侠》、《飞侠哥顿》和《无敌浩克》。
You might be wondering why we're going to such lengths describing something that seems to apply only to television. With the advent of games such as Majestic and the continued rumbling of the industry on the subject of episodic (or Webisodic) games, it's a fair bet that we're going to be seeing attempts at providing some sort of interactive serials over the next few years. How successful these will be is open to argument, but being able to charge a monthly fee for new material is a very appealing honey pot. (Witness the success of EverQuest, with roughly 400,000 subscribers each shelling out $10 a month for access.) Figure 4.13 is a depiction of the structure of a serial.
你可能会奇怪，为什么我们要花这么大的篇幅来描述一些似乎只适用于电视的东西。随着《宏伟》等游戏的出现，以及业界对剧情式（或网络剧）游戏话题的持续热议，可以肯定的是，在接下来的几年里，我们将会看到有人尝试提供某种互动式连续剧。至于成功的可能性有多大，还有待商榷，但能够每月为新资料收费却是一个非常诱人的蜜罐（《无尽的任务》的成功就是最好的证明，它拥有大约 40 万名用户，每人每月支付 10 美元）。图 4.13 描述了连续剧的结构。
An episodic delivery is a cross between the serial and the series. Like the series, the episodic delivery contains a limited number of episodes, with an overall story line that is followed across the entirety. Unlike the series, however, there is often fairly tight integration between episodes and significant overlap of plot threads. This is similar to the serial, in which the plots thread across episodes.
分集交付介于连续剧和系列剧之间。与系列剧一样，分集交付包含数量有限的剧集，整个故事线贯穿始终。但与系列剧不同的是，剧集之间往往有相当紧密的结合，情节线索有明显的重叠。这与连续剧类似，情节线索贯穿各集。
Unlike the serial, this format doesn't rely so heavily on cliffhangers to end episodes and create interest in the subsequent episodes. Instead, the overall story line provides the driving interest, and the cliffhanger is used only as a secondary means of support (see Figure 4.14).
与连续剧不同的是，这种形式并不严重依赖悬念来结束剧集和引起观众对后续剧集的兴趣。相反，整体故事线提供了驱动兴趣，悬念只是作为辅助手段（见图 4.14）。
Bearing in mind that we already have series-based games, we believe that episodic delivery is the form that most attempts at interactive episode-based entertainment will take, at least initially. If the medium takes off and is financially viable, we gradually might begin to see interactive serials, with no fixed episode count and a constantly evolving story. The only fly in the soup as far as this is concerned is the difficulty of sustained content creation. There will have to be some evolution in the methods used to create the content for such endeavors.
考虑到我们已经有了以系列为基础的游戏，我们相信，至少在最初阶段，分集交付是大多数尝试互动式分集娱乐的形式。如果这种媒体能够兴起并在经济上可行，我们可能会逐渐开始看到没有固定集数、故事不断发展的互动式连续剧。就这一点而言，唯一的困难是难以持续创作内容。为此类活动创作内容的方法必须有所改变。
Storytelling and Narrative Worksheet 讲故事和叙事工作表
Does the game require a story, or is it entirely abstract? If it is abstract, would a story add to or detract from its appeal? 游戏需要故事，还是完全抽象？如果是抽象的，故事会增加还是减少它的吸引力？
Can the story begin at the beginning of the game, or would the game benefit from a backstory as well? 故事能否从游戏开始时就展开，还是游戏也会从背景故事中获益？
Will the story make use of the monomyth? Which elements? If not, what form will it have? 故事是否会使用“单一神话”？用了哪些元素？如果不使用，它将采用什么形式？
Will the story have a three-act structure or something else, and if so, what? Will it be open-ended, leaving some plot threads unresolved? 故事是采用三幕结构还是其他结构？会不会是开放式的，留下一些未解决的情节线索？
How will the plot be paced? Graph out the major points of crisis, climax, rest, and resolution. 情节节奏如何？绘制出危机、高潮、休止和解决的主要节点。
Will the game include narrative (that is, non-interactive) material? What role will it play—an introduction, mission briefing, transitional material, a conclusion, character definition? Is the narrative essential for the player to understand and play the game? 游戏是否会包含叙事（即非互动）材料？它将扮演什么角色——引言、任务简报、过渡材料、结尾、角色定义？叙事对于玩家理解和玩游戏是否必不可少？
Will the narrative material be integrated seamlessly into the gameplay, or will it be a separate screen or interface element? Will the player be able to interrupt or ignore it? 叙事材料是与游戏无缝整合，还是作为单独的屏幕或界面元素？玩家能否打断或忽略它？
What form will the narrative material take? Pages in the manual? Introductory text in the program? Movies? Cut-scenes? 叙事材料将采取什么形式？手册中的页面？程序中的介绍性文字？电影？过场动画？
Will the story be multi-part? How will the plotlines be handled: as a series, a serial, or episodically? 故事是否由多个部分组成？如何处理情节线：系列、连续还是分集？
The importance of story to a game tends to vary according to the complexity of the game. Of course, the importance of a story to a game is usually much less than the importance of a story to a movie. This is because of that magic ingredient, interactivity. Interactivity, at least currently, is at loggerheads with story. The more interactivity is desired, the less we can force the player to follow the story line.
故事对游戏的重要性往往因游戏的复杂程度而异。当然，故事对游戏的重要性通常远远低于故事对电影的重要性。这是因为互动性这一神奇要素。至少在目前，互动性与故事性是对立的。互动性越强，我们就越不能强迫玩家跟着故事线走。
Actually, that's not quite true. Apart from technical limitations, there is no reason why a story cannot be fully interactive and still be satisfying. Star Trek's holodeck often featured realistic characters and story lines, which adapted realistically to the characters. Of course, we're still a long way from that, even at the most basic level. Chris Crawford's Erasmatron (available from www.erasmatazz.com) makes bold strides in this direction, but there is still a long way to go.
事实上，这并不完全正确。除了技术上的限制外，故事没有理由不能完全互动，而且还能令人满意。《星际迷航》中的全息甲板经常出现逼真的人物和故事线，它们都能真实地适应人物。当然，即使在最基本的层面上，我们离这个目标还有很长的路要走。克里斯·克劳福德的《Erasmatron》（可从 www.erasmatazz.com 上下载）在这方面迈出了大胆的步伐，但还有很长的路要走。
As we've already stated, not all games need a well-developed story—or even a story at all. For those that do, the stories we've seen so far are generally not that strong. Even the best of them would not make good movies. Those games that have crossed over into movies have been (virtually without exception) poor. Consider the screen versions of Final Fantasy, Mortal Kombat, Super Mario Brothers, and Tomb Raider. Granted, the original story lines of the games were not that strong to begin with (with the possible exception of Final Fantasy), but watching the films, it becomes clear that they certainly weren't strong enough to support a film.
我们已经说过，并非所有游戏都需要一个完善的故事，甚至根本不需要故事。对于那些需要故事的游戏，我们迄今为止看到的故事一般都不那么精彩。即使是最好的故事也无法拍成电影。那些被改编成电影的游戏（几乎无一例外）都很糟糕。比如《最终幻想》、《真人快打》、《超级马里奥兄弟》和《古墓丽影》的电影版。诚然，这些游戏的原始故事线本来就不是很强（《最终幻想》可能是个例外），但看了这些电影后，就会发现它们的故事线肯定不足以支撑一部电影。
The techniques presented in this chapter are useful for guiding your story development. Remember, however, that story creation is not a formulaic activity. A fair amount of grunt work and creativity still is required. In the words of Christopher Vogler, the hero's journey is a form, not a formula. That is, it's a pattern (one of many) that can be used to develop your game story.
本章介绍的技巧对指导你的故事发展很有帮助。但请记住，故事创作不是公式化的活动。仍然需要大量的粗活和创造力。用克里斯托弗·沃格勒的话说，英雄之旅是一种形式，而不是公式。也就是说，它是一种模式（众多模式之一），可以用来发展你的游戏故事。
