How to Write a Video Game Script

Writing a video game script offers a challenge that goes well beyond the normal realm of writing. But it is also something that can be tremendously rewarding in the scope of its creativity. Here are some guidelines and tips for writing a video game script.
Today's video games are based in complex worlds and they tell stories. No longer does a player simply advance through repetitive screens slaying goblins and ghouls in a quest toward the goal. A player now expects to progress through a world where there is a rich history and a plethora of decisions to be made. This adds to the complexity of writing a video game script and it also adds to the richness of the creativity involved.
The first thing you need to think about is that writing a video game script is that it is not the same as writing a movie script. The two processes are similar and you do write a movie like script for your video game but that is only part of the process. There is a whole host of accompanying materials that you need to write for your game script. Here is an overview of what you need to write and why.
Write An Executive overview of the story in prose
This is the most important part of your game script and this is what will sink or float your script. This overview has to tell a compelling and unique story and it should tell the complete story from the opening scene of the game through the major steps all the way to the completion of the game. An overview like this can be almost any size and it would be very easy for this to be ten written pages or more. Remember that today's video games are very complex and the stories can be very complex. This overview is also the most important part of the script. You would shop this to game developers to see if they are interested in developing it into a game.
Write a History and Background of the world
Video games are complete worlds and game designers need to know what the world is like and what kind of history it has. This will help the designers to visualize what the world will look like.
Create a Flowchart for the entire game
Your game is going to be very complex and there will be many decisions that the player will have to make and each decision opens up a whole new path for the player to take. Creating a flowchart is the best way to keep track of all the possible paths through the game.
Create sub-quests and write a prose overview of each quest
Sub quests can be simple or complex but each one is a story in itself and you must tell these stories.
Create character descriptions and bios for all the major characters in the game.
Game designers need a complete picture of the characters in the game. Many of the non-player characters you create will pop up time and time again. And their story is woven deeply into the fabric of your world. You need to describe this relationship in detail to the game designers.
Write interactions with non-player characters
Your game will probably involve interaction with non-player characters (NPC's). You should write out the dialogue and flowchart the choices the game player can make. These interactions are often critical to the story and they can take the player on very different paths toward the conclusion of the game.
Write Cut scenes
Cut Scenes are short animations or movies that come before or after major plot points in your story. A cut scene should always be written to enhance or describe the story. A cut scene is also a reward given to the player for achieving a major milestone in game play.
Writing the actual storyboard script
This is the final step in the whole video game script writing process and it is the most detailed. You do this step last because you need all the supporting materials to understand and describe this correctly. This part is very similar to that of a movie script. You progress through each scene of your story and you detail all the necessary information. Here is an example:
Scene 1:
Location: A dark cathedral with stained glass windows. An NPC is kneeling before a stone casket in the center of the main room
Music: background music of an organ playing introduces the scene but subsides
Characters: Main player, NPC named Thomas, seven were creatures
Player Goal: Discover the location of the underground lair
Action: Player must initiate discussion with Thomas, upon first contact we activate cut scene (1) where Thomas morphs into a were-creature and summons his were-minions. Main character must battle the were-minions then re-initiate discussion with Thomas.
Flowchart: No decisions made at this point: If battle is completed Thomas reveals the entrance to the underground lair and player advances to that level. If player is defeated in battle revert to death cut scene (11) and move to try again screen.
Notes: Player is locked in the cathedral and there is no exit. The only viable way out is to initiate contact with Thomas. Random were-creatures can be activated if player explores cathedral before talking with NPC.
Scene End
When writing a video game script you have to remember that your primary audience is not the game player but the game developer and what the developer needs is a complete picture of what your game is about. This means that you are not just writing a story but you are creating a world complete with a tone, sounds, characters, story, plot, and subplots. To successfully communicate this to the developer you need to use a whole set of creative tools and this is where video game scripts depart from normal scripts and open up a whole realm of creative possibilities.

Video Games As A Truly Recognised Medium

Video games are misunderstood. Often thought of as something children occupy their time with before they eventually grow up and discover the wonders of alcohol and socialising with 'normal people' (at least this was my personal journey) I've decided to try and redress the balance and explain not only how video games have started to surpass film in awareness but also in recognition to rise as a behemoth of the entertainment industry that carries inside it secretly unique experiences unobtainable in other mediums.
Ask any average person on the street to name a video game character they've heard of and I would hazard a guess most would say either Sonic The Hedgehog or Mario. Nothing surprising about this. Not only has Nintendo slapped the plump plumber on every conceivable game, lunchbox and toy in the past two decades but joining Sonic, has even had multiple cartoon series based on their adventures. Any parent with children would be well versed in trawling the local Toys 'R' Us and avoiding anything Nintendo related. The bright colours, the plush toys, the candy. Despite all of this, when teacher's used to ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up I never said, 'Plumber'. Astronaut, Fireman or Ninja tended to have higher priority in my lofty life ambitions. Yes, that's right, all could be potential members in a Village People comeback tour.
Nintendo has always been about the family market, and with the latest Wii U release further cementing itself as the 'go to brand' for family friendly gameplay, gaming is actually bringing people together more than it ever has. It's become a truly social experience where people who have little to no knowledge about gaming or complicated controllers can get involved simply by moving their arms and a small wand like device. Whilst not being viewed as 'art' in the strictest sense of the word (even I can't claim squashing an evil mushroom is high brow) it allows people to experience things they traditionally never would have due to misunderstanding, cautiousness or simply fear of being bad with new technology. If art is about personal experience, then gaming can be considered the peak of both social and personal entertainment.
Ultimately, the reason games can be treated as an equal, or even a superior medium to films or books, is the level of interactivity. Some books draw you in allowing you to imagine a character, period or event - a game picks you up, puts you in the world and asks YOU to experience it firsthand. Even with 3D, surround sound and IMAX creations, films still can't compete with video games in the true level of absorption or immersion you experience.
If anything be it film, book or video game manages to evoke true human emotion as result then that is a success in my book. Sometimes zombies must be killed, it's a fact, but for those looking for slightly more refined experiences let me point out two hidden gems. Catherine and Nier. Both could be described as 'niche' games because they either didn't have the budget or the marketing behind them for promotion. The reason I choose these specifically is partly because many reading this wouldn't have heard of them, but also because the experiences both deliver are diverse and emotionally extremely engaging unlike anything I am yet to find in comparison (real life withstanding).
Catherine is so unique in not only it's concept but the whole aura of the game is both decidedly off-the-wall Japanese yet instantly grounding to anyone in the 27-35 demographic. It's both a puzzle, adventure, dating sim elements, horror evoking a whole host of emotions from surprise and happiness to shock and awe. Revolving around a 32 year old male unsure of how the rest of his life will pan out he finds himself struggling to come to terms with the developments between his long term girlfriend Katherine and the new girl he wakes up to one night after a drinking session called Catherine. Wording careful text messages to both, speaking with your friends in the bar, and dealing with the recurring nightmares and puzzles within, all amounts to a game that will have you transfixed on Victor's world but also on your own and how much you can relate to the problems you both face. It's genuinely like looking in a mirror at times, and that's what makes it such a clever game.
Nier is a similar in that it's a pastiche of many genres, some completely jarringly different and unexpected from what the game appears to be on the surface. It is however unusual in that the main protagonist (at least for the European version) is a man in his 40s+ which is rare in an industry always including wide-eyed youthful characters to appeal to as big a market as possible. Set in a fantastical and beautiful world, but without the traditional goblins and warlocks archetypes, you're thrust into a journey centred around trying to save your daughter from dying. She has been inflicted by 'The Black Scrawl' and you have an unstoppable urge (as any father would have) to save her at any cost. For all intents and purposes YOU are her father. It creates an immediate purpose driving all of your actions and understanding why this has happened to his family. The music is hauntingly beautiful and I would genuinely pay good money to hear this repeated by a full orchestra - honestly it really is that powerful and the characters you meet are so full of personality that by the end you feel exhausted and emotionally drained. In a good way. The emotional power this game packs is staggering and incomparable to any book I've read or film I've seen. The action has immediacy, the voice acting is some of the best I've heard but I fear it was overlooked by many.
We've got clans of people winning hundreds of thousands of dollars through Call of Duty tournaments, London's first e-sports bar opening soon focussing on, that's right, virtual sporting games and tournaments and Candy Crush Saga taking over the mobile gaming universe single handed - gaming is very alive and here to stay. No extra lives needed.

Video Streaming Performance Metrics

Video traffic has become the dominant component of Internet as well as mobile networks in the recent years and is expected to continue - applications include video calls (e.g., FaceTime, Skype), video conferencing (e.g., Cisco's Telepresence, Skype), video chat, and video streaming (e.g., YouTube, Netflix). All of us had many times satisfaction issues with video applications over the network. One is with the picture quality or resolution of the video itself - e.g., NTSC versus HD quality which has mainly to do with the encoding. For a given picture quality, the other equally important aspect is the delivery quality. We will focus here on the delivery quality with reference to video streaming. We will try here to define a measure like the response time for data applications. Note that video streaming uses TCP/IP protocol and there should not be any corruption in the bits delivered.
The metrics that count for the video quality delivery are the following:
1. Start time of the video after initiation
2. Number of pauses during the video
3. Start time of the first pause
4. Time to recover from each pause
The overall testing duration of the video stream (D) has to be stated along with the actual length of the video program (L). Although a particular video stream could be anywhere from 2 minutes to 2 hours long, the test duration itself cannot be much shorter - say 10 minutes for a 2 hour stream. It is rare that any person would continue to watch the video of a 2-hour hour duration if the delivery quality is poor for a sustained period of 10 minutes or more.
The above metrics should also be stated along with the environment - video source or provider, and the receiving device details (hardware and software versions) - laptop/PC, Tablet, Smartphone, Roku, Wii etc.
A composite quality parameter could possibly be defined using the above four parameters after normalizing with the test duration or full duration of the video. One way of expressing the video quality is to simply add up the start time, combined duration of all pauses and divide it by the duration of the video stream. For example, a 10 min video tested for its entire duration may have an initial start time of 1 min and 1 pause of 1 min somewhere in the middle. We can say that the video quality is (1-1/10-1/10-1*1/10) or 70%. Here we are not yet using the third parameter. One way to use the third parameter is to give more credit if the first pause occurs towards the end rather than right near the beginning. But note that for each pause that is counted we are deducting 1 extra minute.
If we can understand the impact each of the above four parameters on the perception of video quality by the user, it might turn out that the parameters may have to be weighted non-uniformly. For example, a long starting delay may be less tolerable than a pause in the middle. Or a pause that occurs toward the end of the video stream may be less annoying than the one that occurs near the beginning. We can come up with a more realistic score similar to the mean-opinion-score (MOS) used for voice quality - let us call it Video MOS or VMOS.
Measuring VMOS may be a challenge as it would take enormous testing time if done manually. The user himself may not be able to measure those time intervals. Hence we would expect the device itself to have the capability to collect the above parameters and also provide the final VMOS score for each video clip. The VMOS scores for each streaming can be stored on the device itself or in the cloud for data mining.
A measure similar to VMOS can be used for audio streaming especially applicable for audios streamed over mobile connections (e.g., Pandora or Bloomberg radio).
Providing the highest VMOS will be equally important to all the stakeholders (content providers, network owners, and device manufacturers). The content providers may have a little more at stake (e.g., Netflix) and hopefully take the initiative to spearhead defining a standardized VMOS in the industry.

The Importance of Online Video Marketing for Business

Online video marketing is increasing in popularity today as revealed by the sensation brought about by YouTube and other video sites. Websites are seeing the need to upload videos alongside other forms of content such as images and articles. Videos are becoming very powerful tools of communication in the effective marketing of various products and services. Many internet users are also fond of watching videos because they are not only informative. Videos are also very entertaining and light.
Online Video Marketing Allows Improved Communication
Videos are very crucial in marketing because they increase engagement with consumers. Internet users read articles targeting specific information. They have the choice to read the entire article. But most often, they do not. They simply search for keywords that are related to their inquiries and problems. This limits the conversation between marketers and potential consumers. Videos however need to be watched in its entirety making online video marketing very reliable. Marketers hold the full attention of consumers from the moment they press play until the video ends because they have limited option of skipping the video lest they miss vital information they are looking for. Internet users also find video materials preferable because their easily comprehend information out of the graphics and audio provided in videos compared to texts. Marketers can thus, easily influence internet users with the emphasis of words and intonation of voice that can be heard. They can easily relay their message using moving images that do not bore the audience.
Online Video Marketing Shows Quality Customer Service
Online video marketing is also very helpful in exposure and branding. Videos, unlike articles and images, project the image of who the audiences are talking to as if having a live conversation with someone. Audiences see the person talking about the product and the human behind the brand. Videos allow audiences to make an impression about the brand and company. Audiences will conclude how the company places importance on customer service by making the communication very personal.
Online Video Marketing Helps in Search Engine Optimization
Videos, when viewed in search engines, can be seen in thumbnails. If you post videos in your website and add thumbnails, tags and categories to your videos, your site is most likely to get attention in search engines. Videos, as web content, also get positive results in search engines unlike articles which usually get the scrutiny of tools such as Panda and Penguin. All these increase the chances of generating traffic into your website.
You can also use your videos and upload them on YouTube. YouTube can expand your potential market because the site attracts billions of viewers a year. You can maximize the solid audience base of YouTube to your goal of turning them into your consumers.
You can also maximize your videos by uploading them to social media sites for link building purposes. These sites, through your videos, increase the conversation rate of your products and services. In a way, it also increases the hits of your website and increases your ranking in search engines which are your objectives in online video marketing.

LCD Monitor Terms Everyone Should Know Before Buying

The LCD monitor has become the popular choice for a variety of applications from computer monitors and television screens to kiosk systems and video wall systems. While the ways an LCD monitor can be used continues to grow, the basic specification terms remain the same. Unfortunately, many of these terms can be confusing or misleading for buyers who don't understand what they really mean. While there are a numbers of variables to consider when purchasing an LCD monitor, there are four key specification terms which must be considered.
The first term to understand is aspect ratio. This is the difference between the width and the height of a monitor. Depending on how the monitor will be used, the aspect ratio could be a more important consideration than the "size". The size of a monitor is typically a diagonal measurement from opposite corners of the screen.
Screen resolution is another critical spec to understand. The resolution of a monitor is the number of pixels it has to display images. This is typically expressed by two numbers (e.g. 2560 by 1440 or 2560x1440). The first number is the number of pixels running horizontally. The second number is the number of pixels running vertically. Greater resolution means better definition or sharpness of the images being displayed. One factor to keep in mind is the screen resolution must be considered in combination with the screen size. If two LCD monitors have the same resolution, but one is 10 inches larger, the smaller screen will boast the best definition because it has more dots per inch (DPI).
The pixel rate response is often overlooked by LCD monitor buyers but it is critically important. The pixel rate response is measured in milliseconds and defines how long it takes for a pixel to change from black to white. A faster response rate means better video display. If the response rate is too low, buyers run the risk of blurring moving images or ghosting.
Another commonly overlooked LCD monitor characteristic is the panel coating. Today's monitors often feature one of two coatings. The first is "glossy". Glossy coatings are better at showing off color in low light conditions which makes it great for a home theatre. Unfortunately, it also generates a glare or reflections in high light environments. The second coating is "anti-glare". Anti-glare coatings are most commonly found on business LCD monitors. While it will slightly mute the colors, it is better suited for bright lighting conditions.
By considering these four characteristics when purchasing an LCD monitor it will be easier to choose the perfect solution for any situation.