Although Dungeons and Dragons co-creator Gary Gygax claimed not to have been a fan of Tolkien's sprawling masterpiece, he conceded its huge influence on his legendary tabletop RPG, specially in the fantastical races that inhabited the rule set. A couple also mentioned Theodore Roszak's Flicker, a slightly more conventional take on Danielewski's use of fictionalised historical writing. In essence its a story about how to tell stories in the digital age.Īlternatively: Fictions by Jorge Luis Borges is another surreal and playful text that creates meaning in obtuse layers – it has been name-checked by many developers I've spoken to. Through footnotes, blank pages, interviews and codes, Danielewski creates a sort of dynamic experience, that reflected a lot of the experiments into interactive fiction and alternative reality gaming taking place on the web at the time. Here, though, it's as much about form as it is about content – House of Leaves is a cybertext, a work of "ergodic" literature in which the formatting of the text becomes a puzzle the reader must solve. There was a time in the early 2000s when it seemed every studio I visited had a well-thumbed copy of this challenging but fascinating novel left on a desk somewhere. The Hero With a Thousand Faces – Joseph Campbell There's also the Bible, of course, which is filled with war, heroism and wrathful deities. I have opted for Robert Graves' much-respected analysis here, but there are plenty of other options, including Bullfinch's Mythology.Īlternatively: the Norse and Celtic mythologies have also been a huge influence on game designers, adding their own slants on iconic concepts such as magical items, warring gods and heroic journeys. This inspiration is obvious in titles like God of War and Altered Beast, but every time a character reaches for a magic item or feels as though they are at the mercy of vengeful gods, it is likely the source goes back to Ancient Greece. The idea of the heroic quest, a central element in almost every role-playing game, is symbolised in the adventures of Odysseus, Perseus and Theseus, as are the underlying concepts of prophesy, destiny and of 'the chosen one' who is born to vanquish evil. Video games are utterly crammed with conventions, ideas and archetypes ripped from world mythologies, but Ancient Greece has provided many of the key inspirations. Lovecraft was also an influence on another provider of video game set texts, Robert Bloch. And the Cthulhu Mythos that emerged from his works has had an enormous influence on games designers in other genres: indeed, the entire concept of 'end of level bosses' practically percolates Lovecraft's entire philosophy into one game convention.Īlternatively: other writers whose own complex fantasy/horror mythologies have inspired game designers include Michael Moorcock (especially the Elric books) and Stephen King (The Dark Tower). Lovecraft's bestiary was a huge influence on the makers of seminal tabletop role-playing game, Dungeons and Dragons, thereby working its way into most video game RPGs ever since. Through a selection of interconnected stories written throughout the twenties and thirties, American writer HP Lovecraft created a new horror mythology, blending the supernatural and science fiction and imagining a universe of dank oppressive dread in which humanity is at the mercy of gigantically powerful monsters. I should stress, however, that these aren't the only books ever referenced to me in development studios. I think they will certainly give you a better idea of the concepts and conventions driving the games industry – perhaps they will tell you why we have the games we have. In some ways the list could be seen as evidence of the industry's cultural homogeneity – the way in which big franchises like Mass Effect, Elder Scrolls and Halo all draw from similar influences. There is a lot of science fiction and fantasy, of course – these being the predominant genres in the realm of mainstream narrative gaming. Here, then, are the 10 books that game designers and developers have cited to me most often as influences on their work. And although the cultural references can often be hugely diverse, there are certain books and movies that come up in conversation over and over again. I have visited studios throughout the US, in Russia, in Japan, in France, Denmark and, heck, even Britain. In the 17 years I've spent writing about technology, I have had the good fortune to meet, interview and chat with hundreds of game designers from all over the world.
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