Within
the past eight years an intense discussion has been going on
between two positions that usually are termed
ludologist or
narratologist, even though this
discussion has not always been productive.
One
point of departure was a paper by Gonzalo Frasca suggesting
that outside of other viewpoints and especially beyond
narratology computer games should also be seen as games. His
goal was to complement existing viewpoints. However, an
important part of the paper dealt with the question of the
difference between game and narrative. Frasca
introduced the term ludology “to refer to the yet
non-existent ‘discipline that studies game and play
activities’. Just like narratology, ludology
should also be independent from the medium that supports
the activity. (“Ludology Meets Narratology”
2).”
However, it
was the strategy of replacement implied in his argumentation
that caught on rather than his suggestion to see
ludology as an alternative to narratological
perspectives. In his view computer games in principle are
something else than narratives. If you want to analyze them
you have to choose intellectual tools adapted to the special
characteristics of games and these tools can only be
provided by a type of scholarship that sees them first of
all as games and that therefore resorts to game-theory for
their analysis.To quote Eskelinen’s
unequivocal manner of speaking: “there is a crucial
difference separating these practices from each other: in
art we may have to configure in order to be able to
interpret, whereas in games we have to interpret in order to
be able to configure, and proceed from the beginning to the
winning or some other situation” (197).
Especially
on the part of the ludologists the debate was held with
unusual stridency and polemics. Thus their representatives
were accused to have mainly political reasons, i.e. trying
to safeguard their exclusive claim for the newly created
jobs analyzing computer games.
Narratologists
have tried to describe computer games from the point of view
of narrativity. One of their most astute representatives,
Marie-Laure Ryan, has formulated the possibilities and
limits of such an approach in the following way:
Are we then
entitled to say that a computer game is, or can be a
narrative? To parody former President Clinton, it all
depends on what the meaning of "is" is. Those who deny
narrativity to games on the ground that the point is to
play, not to hear stories nor to produce a trace readable
as narrative adhere to a narrow interpretation of the
word "is," an interpretation that reduces the possible
modes of participation of a text in a narrative
representation to the traditional modes of literary
narrativity. The inability of literary narratology to
account for the experience of games does not mean that we
should throw away the concept of narrative in ludology;
it rather means that we need to expand the catalog of
narrative modalities beyond the diegetic and the
dramatic, by adding a phenomenological category
tailor-made for games. (“Beyond Myth and
Metaphor”)
However,
Ryan’s position does not convince me for reasons that I
will clarify immediately even though her suggestion
regarding the challenge of narratology by computer games is
decidedly worth some consideration.
One of the
basic problems of her argument is not only the vagueness of
some of the terminology used, as Frasca mentions quite
correctly, but also the fact that the particular claims can
hardly be negotiated rationally. Ludologists do not maintain
that narratives do not play a role in computer games. They
argue in particular, however, that the analysis of
narratological aspects is not productive, since it is not
really compatible with the dominant characteristics of
computer games (cf. Eskelinen and Tronstad; Frasca, “Ludologists”).The comments of the ludologists
regarding this general ‘nature’ of computer games
are relatively imprecise; they are based on a wide-ranging
phenomenology of computer games. Obviously in the
ludologists’ camp there is as much agreement about the
fact what a computer game ‘is’, as there is
agreement in the camp of narratologists what a narrative
is.
To my mind,
computer games have as much in common with conventional
games as with narratives. In some aspects there are quite a
lot of similarities, but in others they clearly diverge.
Like games, computer games have rules and some of them also
define the conditions of winning and loosing. On the other
hand it is unusual for games that the worlds of the game are
extensively formed or developed. The inventors of games are
also in no way interesting for the players, since they only
define the rules, whereas there are many computer games that
to a large extent are attributed to a designer who can even
have a cult status. The history of traditional games also
cannot be used as a foundation for a film.
From these
observations, however, we cannot necessarily deduct that
computer games have to be attributed to the category of
narration. As I will argue presently, quite a bit speaks
against this conceptualization. I believe, however, that a
perspective of computer games that sees them predominantly
as games loses sight of some important aspects, as
for example the mediality of computer games or their
communicativity.
On the other
hand the suggestions of the ludologists that narratives have
a different function in games and that they are created
differently than in traditional narrative media is decidedly
worth some consideration. A problem in the discussions seems
to be the double meaning of the term narration that is also
mentioned by Ryan in her contribution. On the one hand
narration signifies the medial representation of a
self-contained storyline; on the other hand it means a
sequence of chronologically ordered and causally linked
events. This second meaning of narration in my opinion
emerged in the process of a displacement; it therefore seems
more plausible to use the term plot instead. For reasons
that I have elaborated upon elsewhere I would conceptualize
the term narration in its first meaning as prototypical (“Narratology and the Narrative”).This prototype roughly means that
somebody narrates to others a concluded sequence of
chronologically and causally connected events that have
happened in the past. Related to this prototype of oral
narration, literate narration is already a variant,
connected to a change of medium. To my mind it is an
advantage of this terminology that thereby the dependency on
the medium remains obvious. Since the point of departure is
a prototype in the case of film one does not have to ask any
more who the ‘narrator’ is in the film, since it
becomes clear how great the gap between this type of
narration and the prototype already has become.
Let us come
back to computer games. Their impressive diversity clearly
has the effect that general statements valid for all
computer games are quite abstract and do not open up a path
for the analysis of individual works. Therefore in the
following I would like to discuss the phenomena that
interest me with the help of two examples representing two
genres: Black Mirror (Adventure) and Everquest
II (MMORPG).These games certainly contain plots,
but unlike plots conforming to the prototype of narrative
these game plots are not experienced as completed at the
moment of playing the game.
The initial
observation for the following ideas was an experience while
playing ego-shooter Half-Life 2. In his fight against
the invaders and while he is constantly running away from
the security forces of the Quisling government the hero led
by the player ends up in a labyrinth of courses of rivers
and channels that he crosses with a speed boat. Times and
again he is shot at from the air above or from the banks or
has to dodge mines that just were planted. In this stressful
situation we simply follow the course of the rivers and
channels, always hoping that the next place might be a bit
calmer than the one we have just left. At the same time it
is obvious that one always knows where to go. The route
through the system of channels is constructed in such a way
that we can decide very quickly which is the correct way,
since it is the continuing one that finally leads us to the
next level. Where do we know this from?
Expressed
differently and more generally: I am interested in a series
of questions that are connected:
1. How
does the player of a computer game know what to do next?
2. How are events in the game connected to an event-sequence
that is relevant for the game?
3. How do these patterns and gameplay relate to each
other?
4.How are these event-sequences embedded in the game?
5. How do these event-sequences relate to
‘narrativity’?
The
different questions are connected to different perspectives
of the game. In order to answer the first question the game
has to be reconstructed from the perspective of the player
at a certain point in the game. In order to answer the
second question, we have to reconstruct the relevant
mechanics of the game as a whole. The third question, the
embedding of the event-sequences can be seen both in the
context of other possible patterns of activity in the games
and in the context of the story that is constituted by it
and its relation to other stories connected to the game. All
these questions initially have to be answered differently
for each game, while the last question is aimed at a more
general problem.
II.
Let
us start with a simple example. In MMORPGs quests are tasks
that the player receives from a quest giver and that are
rewarded in the end. Games like Everquest II contain
several thousands of quests. There are especially simple
quests ("Go to place X and speak with NPC Y") and very
complex series of quests.Quests are simple examples insofar
as some of the above mentioned questions can be answered
very quickly. Since in MMOPRGs several thousand PCs (player
characters) and NPCs (non- player characters) can exist in
the same virtual world it is by now an established
convention to mark the quest givers graphically; accordingly
the situation is unequivocal for the player before he even
approaches a quest giver. Since quests in the games are
tasks, which the player can take on if he is interested in
the indicated reward, there is no uncertainty about the
question when he receives the option to act. Our example,
the quest "The Missing"is the first quest of a lengthy
series at the end of which the player has activated a new
‘race’ and now on his own can create characters of
this race. Within the world of the game these first three
quests are aimed at the player’s winning the trust of
the quest giver.
The player
gets the task of a quest giver in the context of a
dialogue.
Fig. 1. Receiving a quest
through a dialogue (in Everquest
2)
After he has
accepted the quest it is entered into his quest-book that in
a few sentences informs him about his task. If we compare
the two sources of information in the present case we notice
that in the quest-book only the name of the character to be
found is given, but not a description of the place. The
description of the place by the quest giver in the dialogue
on the other hand dispenses with the usual names of the
game, which are also visible on the map that each player has
of many zones: "I apologize, I do not know the names of
places here. T’was quite a ways south east of here,
however. There was a great forest situated on the banks
above." With some knowledge of the place the player then
nevertheless is able to recognize the intended place; at
least he will recognize roughly the direction in which he
has to search. These instructions however are in no way
clear enough for him to get all the information. On the
contrary, in many cases quite a bit of knowledge about the
game is necessary in order to interpret the clues
correctly.
The
respective events of the quests, often small tasks like
"find the place X" or "kill the monster Y" are rather
independent and the connections between the events are quite
loose so that the player of a quest can interrupt his work
on the quest at each point and can do something completely
different. The player is informed about such a task in the
quest through a clearly visible visual announcement, called
a quest update in the jargon of games; subsequently
quite often the description of the quest is changed in the
diary. When the player is working on the quest "The Missing"
after having received the command, he will search for the
beach on which the missing Froglok was seen the last time.
But at the beach he will not find the Froglok but tracks
which he now has to follow. This pursuit in the game is
staged in such a way that at the beginning he received a
direction, i.e. "The Froglok tracks continue back to the
East." This clue, however, is consciously vague and the
player has to search in the indicated direction until he
finds an object that he can click on. In this case it is
relatively unproblematic, since the player has many levels
more than the animals or the aggressive inhabitants of the
area in which he has to search. In other quests it may be
just this task to find ones way in a dangerous
environment.
At the end
of the search for tracks the player has finally found the
missing Froglok and now has to lead him to the next
watchtower. But this task cannot be completed successfully
since his charge always dies shortly before reaching the
watchtower. Only the changed entry in his quest-book tells
him at this point what he now has to do: to return to the
Quest Giver. Actually the player has successfully completed
his quest despite his failure in the narrative and now has
the possibility to start the subsequent quest.
How are the
quests embedded in the game? Probably in this case we have
to differentiate between two aspects. After the player has
accepted the quest, he has two possibilities to act. He
instantly can work on the quest or do something completely
different. Even though quests are possible sequences of
activity for a player they do not necessarily structure the
game as a whole. In other words, quests may offer
possibilities of meaning to the player, but he can and will
at the same time accept many other possibilities. By himself
or as a group he can collect experience points in order to
reach the next level; he also can buy or sell things through
the broker in order to make money or to improve his own
equipment. He can also pursue a trade or he can harvest in
order to sell his crop or use it in his trade. Quests, in
other words, are relatively independent sequences of events
and this means that it is not important for the game whether
one follows a quest or not. In Everquest II there
seems to be a tendency to abolish all quests relevant for
the game.The only exceptions to this
autonomy of quests are connecting quests that are only
cleared and activated after the preceding quest has been
completed. In this manner relatively long chains of quests
can emerge.
Alongside
this relatively tight embedding through a pattern of events
that is made possible only by completing the quest there are
still other forms. Everquest II, for example, knows
an intricate faction system. Faction means the
status of the player during a certain social unit of the
game. If this status falls below a certain value the player
is attacked by the members of this group. Quite often the
result of quests is the fact that a player improves or
worsens his status. Certain quests only are cleared or
activated when the player has reached a very high status. In
dialogues the player often gets clues that he has not yet
acquired the ‘trust’ of the group to the extent to
receive additional information.
Another form
of embedding is achieved by the narrative elements. Everquest
II is surrounded by and contains
numerous lore and legends. Everquest II is the
successor of the relatively successful game Everquest
I. The setting is the same world as in Everquest
I, but the time of action is 500 years later. Before the
game was published on a website, a series of short prose
texts were circulated that informed about the main events
between Everquest I and Everquest
II.The events of this earlier frame
narrative determine the game from several points of view,
starting with the political factions and including the
appearance of the world as well as the fact that a series of
quests is even more or less closely related to events in
this frame narrative.
The quest
"The Missing" analyzed above refers to the narrative of the
Frogloks. Only some years after Everquest I was on
the market the Frogloks became a race that could be chosen
by the players and they obtained their own city, Gukta. This
was motivated by a frame story that narrated the eviction of
the trolls who had been the original—of course
‘evil’—inhabitants of the city. Between the
two games a great battle of the evil forces took place that
among others also conquered Gukta. But some Frogloks managed
to flee, even though they lived in slavery for a long time
and only lately a small community of free Frogloks was
built. But the player does not receive this information at
the beginning of this quest sequence but only after he has
won the trust of the Quest Giver and when he has reached the
secret subterranean city of the Frogloks. There he has to
complete several additional quests in order to gain the
trust of the Chief. One of these quests is finding the
answers to a series of questions concerning a history
lesson.
The gameplay
for the completion of quests mainly consists in moving the
character through very dangerous environment, in finding
objects and in killing monsters. The latter can often be
very difficult since it necessitates a group (6 persons in
all) or even a raid (totaling 24 persons).
How
important then is the embedding of the sequence of events
into a meaningful structure of the narrative? We can
complete most of the quests without paying attention to this
narrative and according to my observations this is the
manner in which most players are playing. The reason
probably is that the quests do not change the world of the
game. The only change that can be achieved by the player is
receiving his reward,which is his main interest anyway.
There are some signs that quests can change the world of the
game for a certain time or even lastingly. Everquest I
for example contains a zone in which a continuous war
with battles between three parties is taking place and it is
part of the assignments of the player to help one of the
parties to a temporary victory. But it is clear that in this
respect the design of the game conflicts with the story.
From the point of view of design every player of a MMORPG is
supposed to have the same possibilities, i.e. quests, as all
the others. A story, however, put very simply,
narrates—if it is worth telling at all—a
fundamental alteration of the world.
III.
Black
Mirror: The Dark Side of the Soul is a horror-adventure
game that is not afraid of some strong splatter-effects. The
player is leading the young nobleman Samuel Gordon who for
the first time in many years returns to his ancestral
castle. Samuel soon suspects that the alleged suicide of his
grandfather was a murder. It seems to be somehow connected
to a curse that William had investigated because it has
haunted the family for many years: Every 200 years one of
the family members goes insane. William had found out that
this curse somehow is connected to five peculiar keys that
are handed down in the family. The greatest part of the
activities of the player consists in getting back these five
keys, mostly from the graves of the respective family
members. During Samuel’s investigations a series of
further murders occur which he is also trying to clear up.
An added parallel plot concerns his uncle Robert who later
is also murdered. He is the classical mad scientist
who is using his position as the director of an insane
asylum for lethal experiments on human beings. In the end
Samuel finds out that he himself is the murderer. He
succeeds in breaking the curse and commits suicide in order
to atone for his sins.
The way in
which this game is played as well as its technique makes it
into a classical adventure game. The player receives a fixed
2D-view of each setting and can only change from one view to
the next. The mouse helps to explore the image and changes
its color for all active objects. The player can investigate
all these objects and can take over some of them into his
inventory or use them. Objects in the inventory often have
to be combined with other objects.
The section
analyzed in the following is part of the narrative sequence
in which Samuel receives the key from James, his unhappy
uncle, whose mild insanity was reason enough for his brother
Robert to put him into an insane asylum. As the player knows
at this point in the game, James has hidden the key in the
ancestral castle, in all probability in the intricate sewage
system that could not be entered until now.
The first
image shows a turning wheel on a mechanism on its right hand
side (fig. 2.).The mechanism cannot be operated
and at this point the player would not even know why he
should operate it. On the other hand, half-broken mechanisms
that have to be repaired belong to the conventions of the
genre. The player then can rightfully assume that this
mechanism will significantly contribute in reaching his goal
to collect all five keys.
Fig. 2. Strange mechanism
in Black Mirror as the next problem for the
player.
One of the
active objects in this image is the gear wheel on the floor.
If you click on it, Samuel picks it up. The description of
the gear wheel in the inventory: "Where could this fit?"
indicates that the player has to fit it into something. The
great similarity of the picked-up gear wheel with the one
that is part of the mechanism provides a further clue to the
player where he has to install it. After the installation,
however, the mechanism still is not moveable. Another empty
pin seems to imply that the player has to look for the third
gear wheel in order to finally be able to get the mechanism
going.
The player
then finds what he is looking for on the second image of the
sewage system, but he cannot reach it. This opens up another
task that further delays the main task. In order to reach
the gear wheel he first has to change the level of water;
for this he needs a lever. And in order to be able to use
the rod he found as a lever he first has to grind it down,
etc.
One of the
characteristics of Adventure Games is to give the player
only vague hints what has to be done next. However, the goal
of his activities is quite clear.It is only the way to the goal
which is unclear. To find out which steps to take is one of
the basic repertoires of the gameplay of Adventure Games.
Part of these is the careful searching of the image for
active objects and the combination of objects in the
inventory with objects in the image as well as dialogues
with characters and the solution of independent puzzles. In
the search for solutions, however, several aspects support
the player. It is especially his knowledge about the
conventions of the genre and his knowledge of everyday life
that limit the free permutation of all activity-options. The
similarity of the gear wheels with the free pin for example
works in this manner so that it does not make much sense to
use the map or a coin on the gear wheel swimming in the
water. This, however, is a scaleable dimension to which
reviews of the game often refer with phrases like: "The
riddles are logical." It is of prime importance for the
player to know that there is a solution at all and that his
hunt will be definitely successful at some point.
In many
games not all objects are functional but exist only in order
to enrich the world of the game; to a certain extent then
they belong to the category that Roland Barthes has called
reality effects enlarging the seeming options of activity
for the player. The designers of Black Mirror
therefore have chosen a middle way. Many of the
non-functional objects cannot be activated any more after
having been clicked on once or twice so that they are no
longer activity-options.
The
activities of the player create a sequence of events of
which some are relevant for the game in order to allow for
further steps. Therefore, as in the case of MMORPGs, we have
to differentiate between the narrative sequence of the
player and that on which the game is dependent with a
minimal amount of steps for the solution. The one is
accessible by means of narratives of players like: ". . .
and then I searched for a long time until I found out that .
. . ." The other by studying the code or the suggestions for
solutions, the so-called walkthroughs.
The
activities of the player and the events in the world of the
game are more closely related than in a MMORPG. As I have
already mentioned: Even though the gameplay mostly consists
of the combination of objects, the type of combination is
made meaningful by referring the possible combinations
sensibly to each other since its semantizations like "tie
the hook to the string," or "use the fishing rod to get the
gear wheel out of the water" contribute to limiting the
activity-options for the player.
IV.
If
we look at these admittedly still very sketchy analyses of
narrative sequences in MMORPGs and Adventures it becomes
clear that we have to distinguish between three types of
event-sequences, at least for these genres:
1.
The sequence of activities of the player
2.
The sequence of events as it is determined by
the mechanics of the game, i.e. in
quests, but also in the type of setting and the arrangement
of objects in ego-shooters or the distribution of mobs with
certain levels in different zones.
3.
This sequence of events (as mentioned in point 2) understood
as a plot, that is: as a sequence of chronologically ordered
and causally linked events.
After what
has been said so far, the first probably has been described
clearly enough. In point 2 I am referring to sequences of
events that are defined in the mechanics of the game.
Depending on the genre and type of action this can mean
clearly defined events or also rather as possibilities. A
quest for example describes a clearly defined sequence of
events. The arrangement of zones can be one that brings you
always to areas where you find mobs that are appropriate for
ones own level. Or, the arrangement of these mobs in a zone
are rather handicaps for the players through which they can
collect experience points at a certain time in their
playing-career. Thereby greater sequences of events emerge
because there are players of level 10-20 in zone A and some
of level 20-30 in zone B etc.
The
difference between my points 2 and 3 will best become
obvious from an example. If the player in the quest-sequence
in Everquest II that I analyzed has won the trust of
the quest giver he can travel into the hidden city. From the
perspective of the mechanics of the game two flags have been
set in order to save the successful completion of two
quests. What from the point of view of the plot appears as a
causally connected sequence of events from the point of view
of the mechanics of the game materializes as the setting of
binary flags. Why is this perspective of the mechanics of
the game important at all? Because players know about it and
behave accordingly. Indeed, the relation of points 2 and 3
is a problem for each computer game and we can assume that
the fact that many observers still claim an infant state of
computer games has to do with the slow progress of their
development.
The more
rigorous the sequence of events is organized in the sense of
the second point, the fewer event-sequences can be added
that are considered meaningful. The more complex the worlds
of the game become the more independent point 1 will become
of point 2. Certainly it is no coincidence that especially
in MMORPGs the narratives of players are so
numerous.
Apart from
these three event-sequences there are also those that are
narrative in a traditional sense: cut scenes informing the
player about changes in the game world or texts (for example
as narratives of characters in the world of the game that
describe past events) or even in form of narrative
paratexts. As mentioned above very often these forms have
been called ‘narrative’ and have been seen in
contradistinction to the ‘interaction’ of the
game.If we treat these
narratives as unimportant because for the gameplay they seem
to be insignificant additions then we have constructed a
strong opposition, which, however, is intellectually not
very satisfying. I also believe that narration in this
traditional sense is not a central element of computer games
but I do not feel that it is opposed to the organization of
event-sequences that are central for computer games or at
least for the two genres analyzed here.
But does it
then make sense to treat all these different forms of
event-sequences in the same way? To my mind, yes: All of
them, point 1 excepted, result in the player’s
awareness of an intelligence that invents the events and
their sequence and presents them to him, the main difference
between the event-sequences lying in the way in which they
are presented. In this perspective the comparison to
simulation that sometimes is applied in order to replace the
comparison to narrationdoes not seem very productive
since it is just this organizing intelligence as counterpart
that does not find a place here, even though it is securely
established in the world of computer games and its cult of
author-designers or in the complaints about bad
game-designers. The assumption that the world of the game is
an artifact that is intentionally related to the situation
of the player is a central element for the inferences of the
player to find out what he now can or should do. It is just
this minimum assumption that is the foundation for these
inferences that lead to a move after having evaluated the
possibilities of action.
Let us
summarize: In computer games event-sequences are organized
and actualized by players. The sequences can be organized
more or less rigidly according to the degrees of liberty of
the game. From the perspective of the player, at least two
important event-sequences will emerge: On the one hand the
one that is played by himself, and then the one that
corresponds to the mechanics of the game. As a third the
meaningful organization of event-sequences in narratives
comes into play. It seems to me that the narratology of
computer games has to be adapted to this multilayered
'nature' of the medium. If we want to talk of a narration in
computer games at all—since regarding the prototype of
narrativity it seems to be a borderline phenomenon—it
is mainly the organization of event-sequences that we have
to be concerned with and the different aspects of these
sequences that only in an interactive medium can drift apart
to such an extent.
This does
not mean that something important has been said about all
computer games. But maybe questions about the nature and
especially that of all computer games are not very
productive anyway.
Appendix
I.
Everquest II
The
following written record shows the dialogues and activities
of a quest which is the beginning of a longer sequence of
quests. The reward of this sequence is opening up the
frogloks, a froglike race, so that the player can choose a
froglok as PC himself. Played on February 2,
2006.
The first
three quests could be entitled: "Winning the trust of the
Frogloks." Here one can win the trust of the Frogloks to the
extent that one can travel to their village. There, one has
to win the trust of their leader with the help of a sequence
of further quests.
1st
Quest: The Missing
You say,
"Hail, Frup Groaak"
Frup
Groaak says to you, "Any of them at all? We were wandering
through the vast green lands beyond these walls, when we
were set upon by brigands!"
You say to
Frup Groaak, "Wait a minute, I don’t think I’ve
seen you around here before."
Frup
Groaak says to you, "Indeed, I should think not. I was very
surprised to see other of our kind around here. I and my
brothers managed to make our way here from far to the
south."
You say to
Frup Groaak, "Far to the south?"
Frup
Groaak says to you, "In the depths of the Feerrott. I cannot
explain more now - trust is something which must be won, and
our home cannot be revealed to those who might wish us
harm."
You say to
Frup Groaak, "I’ve no wish to harm you."
Frup
Groaak says to you, "Then perhaps you’ll wish to
help."
You say to
Frup Groaak, "I’d agree to that."
Frup
Groaak says to you, "The other I came to these shores with,
Giidib, set out from the beach in the opposite direction as
I."
You say to
Frup Groaak, "Which beach?"
Frup
Groaak says to you, "I apologize, I do not know the names of
places here. T’was quite a ways south east of here,
however. There was a great forest situated on the banks
above."
You say to
Frup Groaak, "I’m sure I can find that."
Frup
Groaak says to you, "I would like to see Giidib join me here
in Qeynos while I plead our case to your illustrious
Queen."
You say to
Frup Groaak, "I will set about finding him."
Description
of the quest (each player has a quest-book with all open
quests with their description):
“A
new froglok has washed up on the shores of Qeynos. Frup
Groaak bids me seek out [!] a lost compatriot of
his, Giidib. Very curiously, no one seems to have heard
anything about frogloks outside of Qeynos since the Age of
Cataclysms.”
In
the zone Antonica at the beach we find the tracks of Giidib
as well as an indicator for a direction. If we follow these
tracks we come to a rock that is only active for those
players who are on this level of the quest. Option for
activity: "Search around the rock." Result: "Quest journal
update! The froglok tracks continue back to the
east."
After
several such updates we finally find Giidib in a pond and
get the task to lead him to the next watchtower. Just before
arrival Giidib dies without the player having any
possibility to prevent that. All we can do is to let Frup
Groaak know.
You say,
"Hail, Frup Groaak"
Frup
Groaak says to you, "I sense from the sadness that surrounds
you that something has gone wrong..."
You say to
Frup Groaak, "I don’t know how to tell you
this..."
Frup
Groaak says to you, "...but he has gone to the embrace of
Marr’s mighty arms. This is plainly written in your
expression."
You say to
Frup Groaak, "He was ambushed before I found
him."
Frup
Groaak says to you, "Was he able to fend off his attackers
at least?"
You say to
Frup Groaak, "Yes. It was the poison that did him
in."
Frup
Groaak says to you, "Poison? This is an assassin’s
tool. Why would he be hunted in such a fashion?"
You say to
Frup Groaak, "I am unsure."
You gain
experience!
Frup
Groaak says to you, "Allow me to think for a time, and I
will commune with Marr. Perhaps he will grant me
guidance."
You say to
Frup Groaak, "Very well, I shall seek you out
later."
From
the history book of the Frogloks [The text is contained
in a history book of the Frogloks that the player receives
and about which he has to be able to answer questions during
a quest]:
We
are the children of Mithaniel Marr, god of valor. He has
given unto us a greater share of honor than was given to any
other creature. We would rather die with honor than extend
our lives through deception of any kind.
This
can be challenging for others—the concept that laws are
not meant for the breaking. While we try to be understanding
that not everyone shares our belief, it is still distressing
to see rules bent and broken. The laws of the land are not
simply suggestions, as some seem to think.
Such
is the way of the troll. After many attempts to peacefully
coexist with them in the Innothule Swamp, their utter
disregard for protocol finally provoked us to battle. The
blessing of Mithaniel Marr was with us as we drove them from
their filthy city of Grobb. In His honor, we renamed it
Gukta, Outpost of Marr.
Some
may wonder why we contented ourselves with a simple home
like Gukta, when our obvious intelligence indicates we might
prefer plush surroundings. That is not our way, you see. It
seems those whose skin is laced with hair need warmth and
softness in their surroundings. We are comforted in other
ways.
Others
have said that we frogloks are too proud and that we deserve
the challenges that have been our lot through the Ages. We
do not deny the pride we feel in our heritage. We were
created by Mithaniel Marr, after all. Through his grace, we
have overcome many adversities that would have brought
others to the brink of despair.
When
the ogres of Rallos Zek began their reign of terror, they
tried to start with Gukta. They thought they knew all the
deepest reaches of our territory, thinking that we had not
changed or developed it after wresting the city from the
trolls. The ogres fought without honor, to their own
detriment.
We
are not taken unawares with ease. The foul ogres thought to
destroy us, but we were guided by the Hand of Marr. Our eggs
were carried deep into the tunnels, followed by elite forces
to guard them. Deep beneath the marshes we went. We sent
emissaries to Freeport to advise the Overlord of the rise of
the Rallosians.
The
Overlord brushed our concerns aside and so, with barely
three days’ rest, our emissaries headed to Qeynos to
warn the Bayles. Though sympathetic, they chose only to
increase their watches rather than advancing to attack
before the Rallosians expanded their reach. How we wished
they had listened! The Rallosian Army grew in strength and
power until the cities of Freeport and Qeynos were besieged.
The
blessings of Mithaniel Marr still protected the faithful.
The honorless ogres broke faith with their own allies,
defiling the Temple of Cazic-Thule. And so, in the darkest
hours when it appeared that the Rallosians would conquer
all, the Green Mist covered the battlefields, slaying our
enemies. However, not all our enemies were destroyed.
Though
many of our adversaries perished in the time of the Green
Mist, some escaped by continuing to pursue us. Deeper into
the marshes we fled, and still they followed. It was then
that we felt the rage of the gods.
By
failing to stand our ground and hold back the tide of the
enemy, we disappointed the gods who had held us high in
their trust and esteem. Punishment was both swift and
severe.
Though
we had escaped the Rallosians, we could not escape the
torments to follow. The Rending kept those of us who had
scattered apart. Separated from any other honorable race, we
drifted into oblivion.
And
yet, oblivion would have been more kind than that which we
endured. For those of us who found our way to the Feerrott
were taken prisoner by the Tae’Ew, who fed us to their
god.
Generation
upon generation of froglok has been subjugated by the Alliz
Tae’Ew. They demanded service and, weakened by the
calamities that had befallen us, we were in no position to
rebel. Until now.
In
secret, several of our strongest broke free and are
repeating the journey made so long ago when we first sent
word to Freeport and Qeynos that the Rallosians were on the
move. Surely we have atoned for our offenses against the
gods and will be saved.
II. Black Mirror
The
following written record somewhat simplifies matters
since the search for active points in the image is one of
the main tasks in an Adventure.
If the
player clicks on an active object for the first time, he
usually receives a lengthy description. Some objects cannot
be clicked on any more after the first or second time. Upon
further clicking on the others the player only gets a short
statement. In the following the number is marked directly
after the description of the object.
The exact
task is unknown to the player when he enters the sewage
system.
Upon
entering: "James did not lie. The secret subterranean system
of ducts exists. The air is very stuffy here."
The room has
two exits. "Upwards" into the normal basement and "Further
down."
Fig. 3. Strange
mechanism in Black Mirror. Interactive objects are
marked.
From
left to right:
Sewer
(1)
First:
"This intricate sewage system was built by my ancestors."
Well
(3)
First:
"What could a well in the basement serve? Maybe one could
get water from down below, when the castle was besieged. The
water here could not be drunk without problems. It is too
brackish."
Description:
1) "There is not a drop of water in it." 2) "It is empty."
First:
Gear wheel ® inventory.
Description
(in the inventory): "Where could this fit?"
Mechanism
(∞)
First:
"This mechanism probably regulates the pumps in the
basement. It certainly can’t have been standing here
since antiquity."
Description:
"It seems to be jammed."
Activities:
"Combine
gear wheel (inventory) with mechanism." Result:
Fig. 4. The strange
mechanism; obviously one wheel is
missing.
The
description of the mechanism has not changed.
2nd
Image:
Upon
entering:
"The
air in here smells horribly. It smells stale. There
hasn’t been any fresh air here for
centuries."
Fig. 5. Searching in the
missing wheel.
Banister
(1)
First:
"It’s rusty from the humidity. One of the bars is
loose." Bar ® inventory.
Sewage
shaft (1)
First:
"Probably that’s where the water runs out when it
overflows."
Dirty-cloudy
water (1)
First:
"The water must have been sitting here for years. It is full
of algae and dirt."
Opening
a (∞)
First:
"Some kind of opening. Maybe something is missing here."
Description:
"Some kind of opening. Maybe something is missing here."
Stairway
(1)
First:
"The stairs can’t be used. They are completely under
water."
Wheel
(∞)
First:
"I can’t turn it at all. It is blocked by chains that
are secured with a padlock."
Description:
1) "It can’t be turned." 2) "I can’t turn it at
all."
Opening
b (1)
First:
"I think this is where the water flows. But this probably
hasn’t happened for a long time."
Gear
wheel: (∞)
First:
"Part of a machine. There are so many algae in the water it
didn’t sink. How can I get it out of there?"
Description:
1) "From here I can’t reach it." 2) "It is too far
away."
Activities
1)
Try to combine the bar (in the inventory) with the opening
a.
"I
will try to put the bar in there."—"It doesn’t
work. The bar is too fat."
2)
Go into the basement above and grind the bar down to a
point
3)
Combine the bar with the opening a.
"With
this it should be better. I will try using the bar as a
lever." (Hatch by opening b has opened.) "The hatch has
opened, but the water isn’t running out."
4)
Combine the acid (from the inventory) with the
wheel.
"The
acid has dissolved the padlock as if it were made of
paper."
5)
Turn the wheel.
Water
comes through opening b. Short blackout. New image "The
water has risen to the edge of the drain pipe."
6)
Combine hook (in inventory) with rope (in inventory).
Combine rope with pointed rod. "A primitive fishing rod. It
will have to do."
7)
Combine fishing rod with gear wheel, Samuel catches the
wheel from the water. Gear wheel ® inventory.
8)
Combine the gear wheel with the mechanism from the first
image. Now the wheel can be turned.
"It
has worked. The mechanism is functioning."
The
water is flowing out. Upon entering the back part: "All of
the water has flown out to the subterranean sewage system.
The road is clear." At the end of the stairway now lies a
small case with the key.
Fig. 6. Problem
solved.
Translated
from German by Brigitte Pichon and Dorian
Rudnytsky
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Cited
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