This is the third edition of Character Development and Storytelling for Games, a standard work in the field that brings all of the teaching from the first two books up to date and tackles the new challenges of today. Professional game writer and designer Lee Sheldon combines his experience and expertise in this updated edition. New examples, new game types, and new challenges throughout the text highlight the fundamentals of character writing and storytelling.
But this book is not just a box of techniques for writers of video games. It is an exploration of the roots of character development and storytelling that readers can trace from Homer to Chaucer to Cervantes to Dickens and even Mozart. Many contemporary writers also contribute insights from books, plays, television, films, and, yes, games.
Sheldon and his contributors emphasize the importance of creative instinct and listening to the inner voice that guides successful game writers and designers. Join him on his quest to instruct, inform, and maybe even inspire your next great game.
Preface to the Third Edition. Acknowledgments. About the Author. Introduction. Part I Background. Chapter 1 Equations. Chapter 2 The Story Remains the Same. Part II Creating Characters. Chapter 3 Respecting Characters. Chapter 4 Character Roles. Chapter 5 Character Traits. Chapter 6 Character Encounters. Part III Telling the Story. Chapter 7 Once Upon a Time. Chapter 8 Respecting Story. Chapter 9 Bringing the Story to Life. Chapter 10 Games: Charting New Territory. Chapter 11 Story Anatomy. Chapter 12 Editing. Chapter 13 The Roots of a New Storytelling. Chapter 14 Modular Storytelling. Part IV Games People Play Today. Chapter 15 Game Types. Chapter 16 Game Genres. Chapter 17 Storytelling in Virtual Worlds. Chapter 18 Storytelling in Small Games. Chapter 19 Storytelling in Applied Games. Part V Reflections. Chapter 20 Postlude: Endgame. INDEX.
Biography
Lee Sheldon began his writing career in television as a writer-producer, eventually writing over 200 shows ranging from Charlie’s Angels (writer) to Edge of Night (head writer) to Star Trek: The Next Generation (writer-producer). Having written and designed over 40 commercial and applied video games, Lee spearheaded the first full writing for games concentration in North America at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the second writing concentration in North America at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
The second edition of his book, The Multiplayer Classroom: Designing Coursework as a Game, was published by CRC Press in March 2020. The second edition continues the story of multiplayer classrooms from elementary schools to post-secondary classrooms, designed and taught by Lee and 16 other educators.
A companion book, The Multiplayer Classroom: Game Plans, was published by CRC Press in March 2021. Complete with design documents and associated production materials, the book covers in detail four multiplayer classroom projects, funded by grants or institutions and played in the real world in real time to teach and entertain. They were collaborations between Lee, as writer/designer, and subject matter experts in various fields. They are written to be accessible to anyone—designer, educator, student, or layperson—interested in game-based learning. The subjects are increasingly relevant in this day and age: physical fitness, Mandarin, cybersecurity, and especially an online class exploring culture and identity on the internet.
This third edition of Lee’s book, Character Development and Storytelling for Games, is a standard text in the field. He is a regular lecturer and consultant on game design and writing in the U.S. and abroad. His most recent commercial game, the award-winning The Lion’s Song, is currently on Steam. Recently he was a consultant on an “escape room in a box,” funded by NASA, that gives visitors to hundreds of science museums and planetariums the opportunity to play colonizers on the moon. He is currently narrative designer on a new game for Microids in France.
