Today, it seems as if everyone from heroic-yet-angsty teenagers, to giggling schoolgirls, to middle-aged businessmen, to bored moms are finding themselves whisked away to save distant worlds from some kind of unspeakable evil. But how do you prepare for such an amazing adventure? And, more importantly, how do you make it through without getting horribly maimed or killed along the way? Fortunately, this handbook has analyzed the accounts of numerous heroes who have traveled to magical lands and returned to tell the tale in order to create the definitive guide to survival and success no matter where in the fantasyverse your adventures may take you. In these pages, you'll learn how to increase (or, if you prefer, decrease) your chances of successfully being chosen, what types of preparation and training you should undertake beforehand, and how to hit the ground running on arrival and become the legendary hero that you were always destined to be.**Makes no guarantees of destined heroism and cannot be held liable if it turns out that you are instead destined to be eaten by a giant toad.

What really makes a video game story interactive? What's the best way to create an interactive story?How much control should players be given? Do they really want that control in the first place?Do they even know what they want-or are their stated desires at odds with the unconscious preferences?All of these questions and more are examined in this definitive book on interactive storytelling for video games. You'll get detailed descriptions of all major types of interactive stories, case studies of popular games (including Bioshock, Fallout 3, Final Fantasy XIII, Heavy Rain, and Metal Gear Solid), and how players interact with them, and an in-depth analysis of the results of a national survey on player storytelling preferences in games. You'll get the expert advice you need to generate compelling and original game concepts and narratives.With Interactive Storytelling for Video Games, you'll:

While writing for straight, linear media like films or novels requires certain skills, writing for video games requires a whole new set of skills. Writers need to contend with overlapping stories, different conclusions based on different actions taken by the player. It's challenging to create compelling digital storylines - and writers need help. In video games, highly interactive stories are the way of the future, but what really makes a story interactive? What's the best way to create an interactive story? How much control should players be given? Do players really want that control in the first place? Do they even know what they really want, or are their stated desires at odds with their unconscious preferences? All these questions and more are examined, carefully explained, and answered in this definitive book on interactive storytelling for video games. Features include clear and detailed descriptions of all major types of interactive stories, case studies of popular games (including Animal Crossing, Bioshock, Braid, Chrono Trigger, Donkey Kong, Fable, Fallout, Final Fantasy, Grand Theft Auto, Heavy Rain, Kingdom Hearts, Mass Effect, Metal Gear Solid, The Sims, World of Warcraft) and how players interact with them, notes from notable writers and game designers, and an in-depth analysis of the results of a national survey on player storytelling preferences in games. Game writers will get the expert advice they need to generate compelling and original game concepts and narratives for games.