GamerZines: The atmosphere of Human Revolution is very sombre and quite oppressive. Do you guys have any plans to add some levity into the game with some lighter quests? I mean obviously you don’t want to break the atmosphere, but at the same time players need some levity at times. Is that a view you ascribe to?
Mary DeMarle, lead writer and narrative designer: I agree that you need to add humour to lighten it up or it becomes very one-dimensional. It’s kind of like…I’m not sure I should say this. It’s kind of like, why didn’t Indiana Jones 2 (Temple of Doom) do as well as the first one (Raiders of the Lost Ark) and the answer is because as well as having those high points of excitement, you need the softer moments to make those high points important.
Humour is definitely an important part of it and there’s a lot of humour in the original Deus Ex, but it’s understated and I think we’ve followed that approach. There will be characters and side-quests you encounter which will feature pretty humorous moments. We just hope people will like our humour! (laughs)
GZ: During a recent play session we were penalised for taking too long addressing a hostage rescue mission, with some of them dying before we reached the facility. How do you warn players of their actions having repercussions in an RPG, yet still ensure the consequences seem organic and not so gamey?
MD: That definitely is a challenge and I hope we have succeeded. In that one it was a conscious decision when we looked at the opening. We created Serif industries and there’s a lot to look at, and we want you to explore. In one respect being able to explore without consequences would be a good way to go, but at the same time we are creating a story. You have a job to do and there’s a serious situation going on, so we don’t want you to lose track of that. We need to show you that this is a game of choice and consequences, so we have to build in moments to facilitate that.
For me at least, the key is ensuring that the choice is communicated to the player, as a choice is only relevant if you are aware of it. So we have to give you the warnings and make sure you are aware of the fact that there will be repercussions, but we also can’t judge you on said repercussions. We can have characters in the game who say it is your fault people died, but at the same time we can’t make that judgement call. It’s an interesting balance that we have to try and maintain.
GZ: How important do you view narrative in the overall development of a game? Do you think gameplay rises about it or do you think story has the potential to rise above everything else?
MD: We’re making games, so the most important part is the gameplay and I think what we need to understand, as story writers for games, that the gameplay is part of the story. The gameplay is helping us to create that story, so we have to make decisions that are combined with the way the game plays and support it to make for a richer experience. It’s an issue a lot of people talk about in the games industry.
GZ: When it comes to game stories where does Human Revolution measure up?
MD: I don’t know what I could compare it to. I think the challenge of writing stories in games is really starting from the beginning with the design decision, do you want a story? Is it one of your guiding principles, because many games don’t need a story. Our story is nothing like Resident Evil 4, but I love that particular game’s plot because it perfectly suits the game. It does what it needs to do for that game and it’s an amazing story from that standpoint. It’s nowhere near as deep, rich or complex as our story, but it starts from that fundamental decision.
With Deus Ex we decided story was a key part of the game and we wanted something that was deep, rich and mature, so we devoted a lot of effort to create it. Every game needs to make decisions about story, how they want to treat it from the beginning and build what they need.
To see the first part of our exclusive chat with Mary DeMarle, please follow the link on the right.
Tags: Deus Ex, Deus Ex Human Revolution
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