Crafty Game Writing

<P>Every writer dreams of creating their own game world and telling their own stories. But creating a new game from scratch is different from working on an established franchise. If you¿re writing for <I>Star Wars</I> or <I>Assassin¿s Creed</I> or the Marvel Universe, the groundwork has already been laid for you. But what if you are the person who has to lay that groundwork? Where do you start? How do you decide which, among the endless story options, is the right one? How do you create a story that plays nice with the gameplay and pulls the player in?</P><P>Alex Epstein, an experienced narrative director who has worked on half a dozen new IPs, takes you step by step through the process of creating compelling new worlds and characters that feel real.</P><P>Of course, many challenges are the same, whether you¿re creating your own game or working within a franchise. How do you make players think they have maximum freedom when they absolutely do not? What makes players inhabit a game stor