#gamewriting

[steve-ince]

Just a little reminder that I have four books on game writing available.

[glitchpalantir]

🎮 Why Your Game Characters Feel Flat — And How to Make Them Haunt Players Forever

“They left the game... but the character stayed in their mind.”

Sounds like magic? It’s actually narrative science — and emotional engineering.

✨ The Problem: Characters That Feel Like Cardboard

Ever played a game where the graphics slapped, the mechanics were slick, but the characters felt... forgettable?

You didn’t connect with them. You didn’t miss them. They were just... there.

That’s the #1 sin of bad narrative design — and the #1 opportunity for game writers and solo devs to build an unforgettable world.

🧠 The Brain Science Behind Emotional Bonding in Games

Humans don’t bond with perfect characters.

They bond with:

Flaws

Secrets

Conflicting desires

Unfinished arcs

This is what makes Ellie (The Last of Us), Geralt (The Witcher), or even HK-47 (KOTOR) live in your head rent-free.

These aren’t just characters.

They’re psychological loops waiting to be closed.

🚀 5 Ways to Make Players Fall In Love With Your Characters

1. Give Them a Scar, Not a Superpower

Players connect with trauma, not talent. Give them something they’re hiding.

2. Let Them Fail

The moment they break... is the moment we bond. A failed mission, a wrong decision — make it count.

3. Dialogue That Reveals the Soul

Forget lore dumps. One line can say everything:

“You remind me of someone I buried.”

4. Relationships That Shift

Let allies betray. Let enemies cry. Let love hurt. Dynamic relationships = human immersion.

5. Let Them Haunt the World After Death

The most powerful characters are the ones who die and leave players aching.

(See: Aerith. Arthur Morgan. V.)

🔥 Bonus: The “Ghost in the Code” Trick

Write a scene your character never gets to say.

A dream. A fear. A what-if.

Then hide it somewhere in the game.

A note. A terminal. A dream sequence.

Players who find it will never forget them.

💬 Let’s Talk

Who’s one character you still think about years after playing the game?

Drop their name in the replies 👇

Want more writing hacks, character psychology, and worldbuilding fuel?

👉 Follow for daily insights from a narrative designer who dreams in dialogue and bleeds lore.

[clarismakesgames]

Oct. 18th, 2024 Devlog: The Eco Game Show Is Here!

Hello, gamers!

My newest game, The Eco Game Show, is finally here!

This is my first visual novel and the first game I ever made using Ren P'y!

Help the player character, Lavender, win an eco-themed game show!

Click here to check out the game and download it to play on Itch.Io! 

As this is my first visual novel, I’m proud of putting this together. It’s very short and simple, but I hope all of you enjoy playing it!

[gowerhardcastle]

"Having the Reader's Back"

In my pinned post, I make the bold claim that "my games are designed to have the reader's back no matter what choice you make." This is kind of my interactive fiction credo, but I've been asked before what it even means, so let me see if I can articulate it.

In a way, I kind of want to just gesture vaguely to my demo and my published games and say, "games like that," but that is not super useful. Let me do better.

I write games that I want to play. When I was younger, I really, really wanted games that made me feel angst and horror or made me sad or presented me with anxious, difficult choices that tore at me. I loved that. Now, years later, my point of view is rather different as far as what I want from my games.

I want to settle into a narrative, not feel like I'm holding onto something with my fingernails, in a struggle against the game where everything I care about might be ripped away from me because of my choices. In short, I want to feel like the storyteller and I are working together on something. That if I choose something, there's going to be the reward of story.

And to be totally clear, that doesn't mean everything goes right for the *character*--but the storyteller, the writer has my back--they are not going to narratively mock me for my choice (I've seen this); kill my character on the spot (Seen this, lots); hobble my character (constantly); shut me out of the "good" or "true" path and put a big BAD END on the screen; or make me feel like I'm playing the path that the writer wasn't interested in.

On the contrary, the storyteller/gamewriter has to do a sleight-of-hand, making every single player feel like they are forging their own story, and whatever they choose, even if it's not a story about a big hero's success, it's a *cool* story. It's something memorable and big and full of memorable moments.

That's why huge branchy narratives are my thing--because the smaller you slice the pie with each choice, the fewer players explore down each little passageway--and the more that story feels like theirs, like they did something and you, the storyteller worked with them to make it happen. You remembered a choice they made earlier or opened up a path, or accounted for the fact that they might actually have fallen in love with the bank teller, or whatever.

That's what it means to have your player's back.

[dalekowrites]

Just found out your blog and already fell in love with The In-Between — already planning to make Evil Ale realise that, despite owning MC's body and submission for now, he doesn't own their heart. That he's pathetic and is going to lose to Raf in the end, mwah. ❤️

But really, I'm loving the story so far and having a lot of fun learning more about the characters. Mostly MC, they're intriguing and I want to know about them — their past; how they'll get out of this mess; their sibling's illness and so on.

Also, Evil Ale is interesting as in a "I'm writing an essay regarding narcissistic behaviours on a sociopath person". I'd despise him in real life but as a character? He's one of my favourites so far. (Waiting for MC to punch him hard in the face, really)

Nooooow, about Chiara and Good Ale's relationship... Goddess, they're both idiots. I get it that Good Ale was mad (hurt) about Chiara's crush on Evil Ale, but I got so disappointed when he started going out with Cinzia and didn't have the balls to tell it to her friend... (men, huh) Like, why are people in love so stupid sometimes? Please, be an adult (and Chiara, don't fall for your ex's trap, please, he's not a good man; get behind me, I'll protect you!)

(I'd love to read the novel as the way you publish it the first time. Is there a way to buying it? I don't mind if it's only in Italian!)

Thanks for reaching out—your message made me laugh out loud, I truly appreciated your enthusiasm! ♥

While I can’t promise MC will be throwing punches (they tend to be a bit more subtle than that), let’s just say Evil Ale’s endings aren’t going to be all very nice :P

As for Chiara and Good Ale, give the poor freshmen a break—they’re fumbling through early adulthood just like we all did... Because we were all a little stupid at that age, right? (At least, I’d like to think I wasn’t worse than average, haha.)

Regarding the novel, thank you so much for your interest! Unfortunately, it was never officially published—my publisher went under right after COVID, and by then, I was too caught up with work and studies to start the whole process over. I did post it in installments for a while, but I’ve reworked it so much since then that it’s practically a different thing. If you’re curious about some background on the story, though, I actually answered a similar question before—you can read it here (spoiler-free!).

If you’d like to stay updated or just hang out, you’re welcome to join the Discord server or follow along on the free tier of Patreon. And if you ever feel like supporting my work, Patreon also has early access and bonus content, or there’s the option for a one-time tip via PayPal. But really, no pressure—if you’re just curious about my other projects, my webspace has links to some old books and gamewriting work (though I don’t make anything from those, so don’t feel obligated to buy anything just to support me!).

Thanks again for your message—it really made my day! I always love hearing readers' thoughts, so feel free to reach out anytime on here or Discord if you have more comments or just want to chat about the story ☺

[ahcoffeebeans2]

this is the sideblog of @ahcoffeebeans. I mostly reblog photos and fandom stuff. follow my main for my art and gamewriting

[stuffedcrocodile]

Write Your Own Fantasy Games For Your Microcomputer

I was searching through some old files on one of my storage disks when I came across this book again: Write Your Own Fantasy Games For Your Microcomputer by Les Howarth and Cheryl Evans, with a program credited to Chris Oxlade, and illustrations by various people including Chris Riddell. It was part of the series of Usborne Gamewriters’ Guides back in the 80s, which consisted of multiple books…

[bobastudios]

A little late, but we wanted your thoughts on our updated speech bubbles!

↔️ Wider for efficient storytelling

➕️ Reduced text lines to increase font size

♻️ Reduce wasted screenspace

🚫 Removed HUD behind bubble (not pictured)

[hpowellsmith]

Free update to Blood Money is now live on Choice of Games, with expanded romantic and magical scenes!

When your cousin murders the city's most notorious crime boss—your mother—a power struggle erupts across the criminal underworld. As your sisters Octavia and Fuschia vie for control, you alone in the family possess the blood magician's power to summon and command ghosts. They hunger for your blood; if it's blood they want, then blood they'll have.

[gamewritingbook]

We’re superproud to be on Career Gamers' list of Top 10 Game Narrative Books! “Slay The Dragon’s goal is to teach you how to go about marrying fun, thrilling and, immersive gameplay with rich characters and stories that drive the player forward.”

[cupofwords]

Yarrow

Ye wanna steal my crumbling crumpet!

“Yarrow” is a short dialogue-game I wrote for an application to Larian Studios. The dialogue should take place in Rivellon, the universe of Divinity – Original Sin.

Play for free on my itch.io page!

The task came together with a bunch of writing tips from the writers at Larian, which were really great and helpful. I didn’t get the job (which is okay, for I was pretty unexperienced then but thought to just give it a shot nonetheless), but I learned a lot even from applying and I also had a great time writing this dialogue. 

Here is a short part you might encounter in a playthrough.

Druda turns her head in your general direction: “Hey, yeh talking about me? I can hear you, y‘know.“ 

You take a few steps in Druda‘s direction to try and talk to her.

The old woman stares fiercely at you, threatening you with her fists, swaying unsteadily. “You! Whadya want from me! Ye wanna steal my crumbling crumpet!“

“Don‘t worry, you can keep your crumbling crumpet. I Actually have a matching tumbling trumpet which I would trade for some yarrow flowers.“

“I don‘t need no tumbling trumpet, you hear me? What‘s a tumbling trumpet supposed to be anyway! Besides, I have plenty of them at home“, she at least seems a bit calmer now. “But ... I‘m generous and sell you some of them  flowers. You can have one for ten gold, two for thirty gold and three for seven gold. What do you say, eh?“

“Three flowers, then.“

“You really know a bargain when you see it, don‘t you? There you are. And I give you one for free as well. Now off you go, I have things to do and crumpets to crumble.“ After saying that she just stands there, gazing at stones at the ground, completely ignoring you.

[steve-ince]

The first review of "Collected Game Writing Articles" and it's a really good one that gives the book five stars!

"What this is ... is a fascinating history of a man who spent a significant part of his life working in the video game industry."

[glitchpalantir]

Games for Analyzing Game Design and Narrative Structures:

Undertale: Known for its innovative narrative choices and branching storylines, Undertale offers rich material for analyzing player agency and narrative consequences.

The Last of Us: This game combines compelling storytelling with immersive gameplay, making it a great case study for examining character development, emotional impact, and world-building.

Portal 2: Renowned for its puzzle design and witty writing, Portal 2 provides insights into level design, player progression, and integrating narrative within gameplay.

Bioshock Infinite: With its intricate narrative layers and thought-provoking themes, Bioshock Infinite offers opportunities to explore nonlinear storytelling and thematic depth.

Celeste: This indie platformer not only showcases tight gameplay mechanics but also delves into themes of mental health and personal growth, making it a compelling study in integrating narrative with gameplay.

.

[clarismakesgames]

March 2024 Devlog: Here's my new website!

To make it easier for those looking for my published games and my game writing samples, I've created my own website!

I also did some rebranding, changing my game dev name from ClariLaGames to clarismakesgames!

I hope to use this site as a centralized place to show off my work, post monthly devlogs and occasionally share my own commentary/discussion/analyses of games that I've played!

Check out the website here: https://clarismakesgames.com Check out my first devlog on the website here: https://clarismakesgames.com/march-2024-devlog-hello-world/

[keichiokami]

I bought this amazing book from Critical Role. I wasn’t sure what I was going to use it for but then #dungeon23 is happening and I am planning on joining. I took it out of the cellophane and was pleasantly surprised it has lines pages, grid pages, and a envelope! This is going to be fun! #ttrpg #criticalrole #dnd5e #writing #gamewriting #dungeonsanddragons #dungeon23 (at El Cajon, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cms33g0Od2r/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[pagesofkenna]

Solo but not Alone 2 is live on itch.io, raising money for Jasper's Game Day! I supported this bundle last year and I'm excited to see that they're doing it again this year!

It's over 100 solo tabletop RPGs, which I love because it's not always possible to get friends together to play new games. Some of these are repeat games from the previous bundle, but many of them are new. If you've never played a solo TTRPG before, they can range from storywriting prompts, to meditative exercises, to map or character builders (which are perfect for prepping for group games) and more.

They're trying to raise over $30k, and you can get all 100+ titles for only $10! Check out the charity bundle on itch.io