道德游戏7条实用建议编辑本段回目录
电子游戏写手和剧情设计师一直以来都怀有强烈的愿望，就是将道德元素放到游戏中。但到底要怎么做呢？
在游戏开发者大会上，微软资深游戏设计师Richard Rouse III为编写道德游戏提出了以下7条实用的建议：
1、道德游戏不一定需要玩家导向型选项
这看起来好像违反电子游戏为玩家提供选择这一本质了。Rouse表示，如果你想在游戏中添加道德成份，你不必依靠玩家导向型选项。他以thatgamecompany的《Journey》为例，这款游戏并没有提供明显的玩家导向型选项，但仍然体现其深刻的道德寓意（游戏邦注：只要情境是合适的，并非所有网民都会表现得像个彻头彻尾的傻瓜）。
Journey(from forbes.com)
2、将同一阵营的角色置于矛盾冲突中
玩家扮演的角色不仅要探索外部矛盾，还要应对内部冲突。斗争不应该只能发生在“好人”和“坏人”之间，同一条船上的人也可能内讧。
3、如果存在选择，那么必须对过程产生相应的影响，而不只是体现在结果中
虽然道德游戏不需要玩家导向型选项，但影响玩家做出有意义的选择可能是个好主意。Rouse以原版《骇客任务》为例，表示游戏应该时时对玩家的选择做出反馈。
Rouse解释道，去年的《耻辱》看似只提供潜行和杀伤这两个直接的选择，但是将选择交织在整个游戏中。简单的选项会从头到尾影响剧情、玩法和系统。
4、把握预算
做一款包含大量选择、不同结局和分支剧情的道德游戏，成本可能非常惊人，如果你还执著于场动画和背景故事的话。有没有什么办法既能对玩家的选择做出反馈，又不那么费成本呢？也许就是丰富角色外观、对话和根据玩家选择改变旁白。
5、选项不要太肤浅
Rouse提出，在制造道德困境时，各个选项都应该有可支撑的理由。他以《行尸走肉》为例，认为这款游戏让玩家非常难抉择。
the-walking-dead(from lovecraftzine)
6、创作者不过三
当编写游戏剧情或撰写故事时，团体创作并不好。多人参与游戏设计可能会得到好结果，但太多人写故事就未必了，因为太多人的道德立场会干扰游戏想传达的道德寓意。
Rouse认为：“太多人写故事，确实会产生反作用。”
7、确保故事与玩法的道德立场一致
有时候，游戏玩法会与道德寓意相分离。Rouse以《生化奇兵》和《孤岛惊魂3》为例，认为这两款游戏在结尾传达了明确的寓意，但也惩罚了按照设计意图玩游戏的玩家。Rouse指出：“不要做了游戏卖给我后，又责怪我玩它。”
他又补充道：“优秀的游戏会考虑玩法和剧情的一致性，如果你没有想到这一点，那你就错了。”（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，作者：Kris Graft）
7 practical tips for making a moral game
By Kris Graft
Video game writers and narrative designers have long had a strong desire to instill a moral component in their games. But how exactly should writers do that?
At GDC’s Narrative Summit on Monday, Richard Rouse III, senior game designer at Microsoft, offered seven practical ways for writing moral games:
1. You don’t need player-driven choices to have a moral game
This might seem counterintuitive, as the interactivity of video games offer opportunities for player choice, but if you want to add some morality to a game, you don’t need to entertain player-driven choices, says Rouse. He used thatgamecompany’s Journey as a game that didn’t really offer overt player-driven choices, but still presents a moral (that not all people on the internet are complete jerks, if you put them in the right situation).
2. Put beloved characters in conflict
Bring players along for the ride as characters explore internal and external conflicts. Conflict shouldn’t just happen between the “good guys” and “bad guys,” but also among characters who might be on the same side.
3. If there are choices, there must be repercussions, and not just at the end
While moral games don’t need player-driven choices, it’s probably a good idea to leverage the medium to offer players meaningful choices. Rouse used the original Deus Ex as a good example of a game that constantly offers feedback for player choice.
Rouse explained how last year’s Dishonored gave the seemingly straightforward choice of stealth vs. lethal, but wove it throughout the entirety of the game. That simple choice effects narrative, gameplay and systems throughout the game.
4. Keep the budget in mind
Making a moral game full of choices, different endings and branching paths can get expensive if you go to crazy on cut-scenes and huge changes to a game’s backstory. Some inexpensive ways to give players feedback on the choices they’ve made may include varying textures on a character, or dialog and and voiceovers that change depending on the choices a player has made.
5. Don’t provide easy answers. (But I don’t mean impossible [choices])
Create moral quandaries — there should be a good argument for each choice, says Rouse, who used The Walking Dead as an example of the game that offered tough decisions.
6. No more than three stakeholders
When writing for a game or crafting a narrative, it’s not a good idea to write by committee. Having many stakeholders can work well with game design, but having too many cooks in the kitchen on the writing side can muddle the moral message.
“When you have too many people involved with that, it can really drag it down,” says Rouse.
7. Make sure your story and your gameplay have the same moral
There is sometimes a disconnect between the gameplay and the moral message. Rouse used BioShock and Far Cry 3 as examples of games that convey a clear message at the end, but also chastise the player for playing the game as it was designed to be played. “Don’t set up the game and sell it to me and then blame me for playing it,” said Rouse.
“The best games think about what the gameplay and the story say together, and if you don’t think about that you’ll be behind the curve,” he added.(source:gamasutra)
