“Help” – February 2009 Round Table Entry

February’s BoRT invites you take a game design suggested by another blogger in last month’s Round Table and build upon it. You should ignore the literary source of the original design, but attempt to communicate the same themes and/or convey the same mood as the proposed game. This means you can alter the game genre, change the setting, and add new layers to the game mechanics. This is not an opportunity to critique a previous design, but to honor it by striving to reach the same goals, while adding your own personal touch.

This month’s BoRT topic allows each of us to build upon another blogger’s game design idea, so I’ve chosen Joe Tortuga’s idea based on Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart.” The notion of an unreliable narrator in a video game is one that fascinates me, and Joe does a great job of discussing the issues video games have dealing with that narrative technique, so please check out his post!

For school, I’ve been reading the short story collection Points of View, which does a great job of explaining the various options a fiction writer can use to tell a story and then giving examples for each type. “Subjective Narration” is the type most often used to portray an unreliable narrator because the person telling the story is close to the events and the reader experiences the story in the character’s voice. This allows the author to set up a schizm between the reader’s expectations and the character’s thoughts and actions.

In a video game, as Joe talks about in his post, the developers attempt to eliminate any difference between the player and the character to aid immersion. Most video games attempt to put the player directly into the action, to create that viscereal feeling of experience. Instead of attacking the problem head on as Joe did, I’m going to sidestep the issue a bit and make the gap between player and character wider. I love the idea of causing the player to feel real guilt over the actions of the character, however, so I want to incorporate that into my redesign of Joe’s idea.

My game is an ARG that lets the player maintain their identity and instead involves them in the story by making them an accomplice. The entire experience will be short, around 30 minutes. The game’s name is “Help,” and it begins with a call from a stranger that the player receives on their phone. A strange man has found a lost cellphone with your number in the address book, and he sounds desperate. The phone conversation is key, and the player will remain on the line for most of “Help.”

“Help” will incorporate voice recognition to enable the player to communicate with the man, but the limitations will be obscured by the call’s poor connection and the panicked state of the caller. Sometimes he’ll say that he can’t hear you, and other times he just won’t respond, instead background noises are heard that suggest he isn’t listening. Players will answer questions prior to starting the game that provide the name of the person who lost the cellphone. The game will select the name that is easiest for a simulated voice to pronounce.

The man explains that he needs a few favors for you in exchange for returning the phone to its owner. He gives you a web address and account information for his e-mail, asking you to filter the messages for a specific person and find a street address mentioned in an e-mail. You follow the man’s instructions, but also notice a number of other intriguing messages in his inbox. If you take too long, he will warn you that he has little time and become suspicious that you are rooting through his e-mail. You can respond to his questions with “yes” or “no.”

“Help” will use the phone call to control the pace of the game. If the player has difficulty entering the password and needs it repeated, they can say, “What is the password?” and the game will recognize “password” and repeat the information. Noisy dead air will occupy any extra space that the player needs, and cues will be used to move the dialogue forward. When the player opens the website, the man will ask, “Are you in yet?” and when they enter the username and password they’ll hear police sirens in the distance, etc. This will add tension to the experience and also allow some flexibility based on player speed.

You ask the man questions as you search for the e-mail, like where he is (he responds with a city pulled from the questionaire), and where did he find the phone, “In a fast food restaurant.” The man seems distracted and you hear some sort of struggle. The man drops the phone, you hear it bang against the plastic shield around the payphone. He apologizes, but seems out of breath. After you find the street address he needs, you read it to him, and he hangs up without saying anything. You’re upset and confused, but you continue to explore his e-mail account, finding a link to a Facebook account. You try to use his e-mail address and password on the site and they work. As you explore his account, you find out the man’s name is Samuel Neat and other personal details, and then your phone rings again.

“Help” will use subtle clues in web material to show the player that Samuel Neat is not what he seems, but the primary clues will be provided in the phone conversation using background noise. Players can use information they gain from the web to find out more about Samuel on the phone by throwing him off guard, but if he becomes too upset he will hang up, ending the game.

Samuel calls back and you greet him with his name. He sounds surprised and a bit hostile. He realizes that you’ve access his Facebook account. You ask him where he is and he tells you he’s at a payphone outside of the apartment complex, but the phone connection seems better and you don’t hear any street noise. You hear the sound of a gun being cocked. Clicking back over to Samuel’s e-mail account, you notice the phone number he’s calling you from is listed as the home number for David Perez, the sender of the e-mail. You find David’s profile on Facebook, one of Samuel’s friends, and examine it.

You hear something shatter in the background, and then the sound muffles and Samuel is shouting. He sounds like he is inside. When he returns he has you order pizza from a local place that you don’t recognize. When you ask why he responds, “Because I’m hungry.” You hear faint police sirens and Samuel cocking and un-cocking the gun. Samuel asks you to send a message to David, and include a picture of a little girl from another e-mail in his account. The picture shows a girl on a swing, but taken through a chain-link fence from inside of a car.

The player has many opportunities to mess with Samuel. Order the wrong kind of pizza, mention his name, ask him about the sounds. The player can ask, “Who is the girl?” and Samuel will respond, “My friend’s daughter, he wanted me to send him that picture I took.” Bringing up other friend’s names from his Facebook account will get a reaction, allowing the player to learn more about the character.

When David responds to the Facebook message with the picture he asks what Samuel wants and why he won’t pick up his phone. Samuel tells the player he wants the money David owes him for the girl’s swing set, and gives the player a bank account number. If the player sends the information to David, they’ll get a message saying that he transferred the money. The ending of “Help” is determined by the player’s actions:

- You tell Samuel that David won’t send the money. You hear a ripping sound, like tape being removed, and a little girl screams. A gunshot is heard and the screaming stops.

- You tell Samuel that the money is there. He tells you to send the address to David and you hear him drop the phone and walk away. A door slams. Something shuffles toward the phone and you hear muffled pleading. Eventually police sirens are heard and a police officer knocks down the door.

- You tell David the address and he calls the police. Sirens are heard, Samuel starts to yell, curse, and throw things around. The police knock down the door and you hear them order Samuel to drop the gun. A single gunshot is heard and the thump of a body on carpet. Multiple gunshots follow and the phone hits the ground.

- You tell David the address and explain that Samuel has a gun and his daughter. David responds that the police are on there way and you tell Samuel that David has transferred the money. Samuel leaves the apartment as the police arrive and you hear muffled gunshots. The little girl’s muffled voice says “Thank you” over and over again.

Check out previous month’s entries at the Round Table’s main page!