How do you write for games?

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WinterDusk14

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Just curious.

Does this mean like, writing script for Mass Effect 5?

How do you get in, anyway? Most openings I see are usually aimed for developers, programmers, etc.
 

SilverDragon

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As a former game writer, it makes me sad that nobody has answered this question yet.

There is all kinds of writing that goes into making a game. There is the technical side, which includes things like instruction manuals, doing copywriting for ads, blogs to promote the game, and all sorts of other things. On the creative side, you have scripts for games and lines of dialogue for the characters.

Whichever you prefer to do depends on the kind of writer you are. I enjoy anything to do with marketing and creativity, so I did both.

The way you get into a writing position in a gaming company is to just apply. However, there is a lot more to it than that. If you want to write for most gaming companies, you'd better have some experience under your belt. For big game companies, you'd better have a lot.

One good way to get started is to just gain some experience. Pay attention in your high school english classes, or if you're in college, take some creative writing classes. Try to learn more about writing in general. There are many good books on writing, especially game writing.

One thing you want to do is build a portfolio. There are lots of ways to do this. The best ways are to start blogging about video gaming or a topic you enjoy, write fiction, write screenplays, write just about anything to show you are dedicated to you writing.

Not only this, but you should explore other writing avenues as well. For me, I was able to get my foot in the door because of the experience I had as an ad copywriter. The more diversified you are, the better your chances of landing a game writing job.

If you can do it, it wouldn't hurt to pick up some technical skills as well. You don't have to do hard programming, but learning some basic scripting languages will help you. I don't know what's popular now but when I was in it Lua was a popular learning language.

Because of the direction games are going, game writing is possibly a dying profession. It's a shame, because I found it really enjoyable. But I found the jobs I got because I looked for them. That's what you have to do. When I first started, I just typed in "game writing" into google and searched all the pages. It's how I landed my first job.

I don't do it anymore, but when I did, I found the profession very rewarding. Even though I didn't make a lot of money from it (If you want to know what I do now I self publish fiction).

If you have any questions let me know, I could possibly help you out.
 

Maxinquaye

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From what I’ve seen in games, and this goes for anyone from BioWare to indie productions, is that writing is not a prioritised skill. The amount of ham-fisted dialogues and macguffins and deus ex machinas in game stories are staggering.

Unlike, say movies, games seem to prioritise visuals ahead of everything. So, it’s more important to have a realistic foliage movement than it is to have deep characters.

For instance, I just replayed Mass Effect 3 again, and I was taken aback how many times my Callista Shepard just stood there with a strained ‘Oh yeah” as a response to everything. I’ve seen better acting in high school plays.

But most gamers don’t see that because they’re so used to it by now. Though, as writers we should see it, and think “If Shepard had said this instead, it would have been much more in tune with the persona”. I don’t expect this to change though because like I said, story writing in games, seem to be an after-thought. And if something needs to be cut, it’s the story that is cut instead of the cool levels, even if the cool levels become disjointed.

I have actually toyed with the idea of trying to make a game where the writing was paramount, but realism tells me that I'd never get funding for it, and the reviews would tank it. It wouldn't focus on dazzling visuals. Although, maybe Dishonored have opened that a little bit now.
 

SilverDragon

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Hey Maxinquaye!

I think you are right about your observation, and it's really sad. I feel that a game with good writing, sculpted evenly into a game, could add to the game experience.

I have actually worked with people who wanted to make writing in a game the most important aspect. It was a fun game to work on, and it was even accepted to be presented at a big game convention (Sony...something I forget the name). The main problem with the game is that it relied so heavily on the writing that it made the game unplayable.

A "well written" game has dialogue that is equally proportioned with the gameplay, controls, and everything else.
 

Arcadia Divine

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Just curious.

Does this mean like, writing script for Mass Effect 5?

How do you get in, anyway? Most openings I see are usually aimed for developers, programmers, etc.

I just want to put in my 2 cents and say that if you want to break into that industry as a writer, you will want to pick up another game development trade. Trust me when I say that you will have a much better chance of at least getting a job if you do this. Art tends to be the more popular choice with designers due to the fact that not only can you design whatever you are assigned to design but you can put that into a physical form and that is very powerful and much more sought after versus someone who can't.
 

Satsya

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From what I’ve seen in games, and this goes for anyone from BioWare to indie productions, is that writing is not a prioritised skill. The amount of ham-fisted dialogues and macguffins and deus ex machinas in game stories are staggering.

Depends on the company and game genre. Sure there's a ton of bad writing out there, but when something is well-written it gets noticed, same as all the other media industries involving writing.

Take a series like Monkey Island, for instance. The writing is why it's so popular. And one of the two main writers behind it? Tim Schafer, who this year has gotten over $3 million for his Kickstarter (making it apparently the most well-funded Kickstarter so far) so he can make another well-written game.
 

Vaulted

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From what I’ve seen in games, and this goes for anyone from BioWare to indie productions, is that writing is not a prioritised skill. The amount of ham-fisted dialogues and macguffins and deus ex machinas in game stories are staggering.

Although, maybe Dishonored have opened that a little bit now.

I'd say bad acting can make even great writing seem terrible.

From the previews I've seen, Dishonored has some woeful voice-acting (also mediocre AI).
 

ShadowyEclipse

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I'd say bad acting can make even great writing seem terrible.

From the previews I've seen, Dishonored has some woeful voice-acting (also mediocre AI).

I honestly think Dishonored is pretty much great.

AI is pretty challenging, also, but then again, I don't find any fault with the game whatsoever, so I am not exactly the best reviewer for it.

It was pretty good writing, although I was not really attached to the queen as much as I was to Emily, and I think it's because I'm usually instantly attached to any sort of child character in games, movies, or books.
 

Camilla Delvalle

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Maybe you can begin to build your portfolio by writing for open source games. At least that would could be a hobby that you like to do.

In recent years, the technology for graphics has advanced enormously. It's no surprise that a lot of effort goes into graphics, when they compete about having the most modern game. If the technological progress stalls, or they reach a limit where it's too expensive to go further, they may begin competing in other areas like writing instead.
 

Megacorvid

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I've always wondered about games writing. It's a curious thing to me, seeing as the average game's writing consists mainly of A. Stupid bravado military humping machoistic bear blasting, B. Cutesy uninspired nonsensical horse-poopy, or C. Damnit Damnsel in Distress.

Some of the games whose writing have really struck me are:
-Planescape: Torment -- DUH!!!
-All the Fallouts -- excluding Fallout 3. I'm talking about the Black Isle/Chris Avellone headed games. Gods I love that Chris Avellone. Nature allow it I'd have his babies. Damn you nature.
-Star Wars: The Old Republic II -- No, I'm not an Obsidian fanboy... where did you get that idea? So, in spite of drastic cuts to the game, the writing is superb and represents a keen deconstruction of the Star Wars fiction. LucasArts is actually to blame for the cuts and I hope they rot for eternity in the labyrinthine abyss that is Disney.
Deus Ex: Human Revolution -- The parallels drawn to today's society are uncanny and provide an actual realistic depiction of the impact of heightened science and transhumanism on society. Sure there are some hiccups here and there, but it's superb... just amazing.
-Spec-Ops: The Line -- Generic title, awesomely realized work exploring the depths of PTSD and a neat homage to Heart of Darkness.
-Portal 2 -- The story is generic, the writing is stellar and hilarious. Again, duh.
...

I'm not sure if there's already a thread for these, but running lists are always nice, I find.
 
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