Plot Devices: Should we use them? (part 3)

In mystery stories, one commonly used plot device is the red herring, which involves false information that diverts the audience's attention away from something important. This method is often forgiveable, especially when it is easy to make incorrect assumptions despite the truth being available. Human emotions can easily distract, so when these are emphasized in a story and key elements are overlooked, the audience will appreciate their discovery of the truth later, especially when they can look back and see what they missed. However, bad writing sometimes involves a red herring that is not paired with any useful information at all, so when the big surprise is revealed at the end, people will be angry if they never had even a small chance to figure it out in the first place.

Plot Devices: Should we use them? (part 2)

It is often the case that an author creates so many problems and so much tension in a story that it is nearly impossible to write a believable, satisfying resolution. You've seen it happen before—the villains are about to triumph and just when there is no possible way for the protagonist to recover, some hero arrives unexpectedly out of nowhere, just in time to rescue everyone. This kind of plot device is the type that will sour an audience that might retaliate with bad reviews and complaints, possibly even starting a petition demanding that things be rewritten! Plot devices that cause the audience to lose their suspension of disbelief should obviously be avoided, but not all plot devices are bad. Some of these techniques are useful in conveying a side of the story you might not otherwise be able to enjoy, and some create a sense of mystery...

Plot Devices: Should we use them? (part 1)

Have you ever tried writing a story and run into problems that are somehow preventing you from advancing the plot? When the narrative stalls or comes to a complete impasse, the solution to moving forward again might involve the use of a plot device. Simply put, a plot device is a technique that is used to help move the plot forward. What is the technique, though, and how is it used? There isn't just one specific technique that can be used, because there are a number of different problems that can emerge when writing, and each of these might require the use of a different plot device. As an example, however, a fairly common plot device is known as “deus ex machina,” which involves something improbable happening that resolves all problematic situations and allows the story to conclude with a happy ending. However, this type of plot device sometimes results in the audience crying foul, and acceptance levels for the convenient happy ending vary among the audience.

VR Report (part 5)

Spiderman: Far From Home is a VR game trial that is free to download. No news of a full VR game release yet, but after playing this “demo” of sorts, I have to say that I'm ready to buy the game when it's ready. The graphics were sub-par, admittedly, but honestly, I didn't care very much because being Spiderman was an absolutely incredible experience! Jumping off that first skyscraper and falling towards the ground is a literal rush as you feel your heart jump into your throat, but this is soon followed by reaching out and shooting a web strand to a building. Suddenly you are swinging at tremendous speed between buildings, reaching out your other hand to shoot another web strand, and then another! Sometimes I'd shoot strands simultaneously, pull my arms in and vault myself straight up into the air. Other times I'd bring the strands together to create a giant, sticky web. And in some situations, I'd shoot flying drones out of the sky with little bursts of web from my wrist. It was all an incredible experience, and it further convinced me that THIS is what VR games should be about—being a different person and doing something incredible that you can't experience in real life (or maybe wouldn't want to risk!) As kids, we all imagined being someone else and pretended to be a police man, a cowboy, an astronaut, a knight, a superhero, a giant, a dragon, an alien from outer space, or anything else that felt impressive or fun. VR is the chance for us to pretend again, so game developers, please! Don't pump out another VR version of an existing game, and don't give us yet another wave shooter. I bought a VR headset because I wanted to immerse myself in new worlds as another person doing amazing things that aren't part of my normal, everyday life!

VR Report (part 4)

Though I complained about initial prices for the previous two games being too high, I was recently given a gift card that I decided to use for an expensive ($40) game called “Focus on You.” The price might feel too high for some, especially considering that the game is on the short side, but the production quality and the innovative concept of the game drew my curiosity. Focus on You (no spoilers) is about your encounter as a teenage boy with a teenage Asian girl in a coming of age experience. You can adjust the spoken language to either Japanese or Korean, and English subtitles will be displayed (which did break my immersion a little, sadly.) This “snapshot” of life really captured the experience of a first crush in a way that brought back memories of my own high school and early college dating before I was twenty. The shy, awkward, cute exchanges, the subtle nuances in expression and body language, and the exciting build of hope that interest is shared—all of this brought back those innocent memories of a first girlfriend. The game focuses on shared experiences, such as that first meeting at a coffee shop, a moment in the school stairwell, and even a trip to the beach. As a player, you can actually speak the dialogue choices presented and your voice triggers the choice—something I'd like to see in more interactive games. You can also manipulate objects around you, like filling a cup with coffee, taking pictures with your camera, or interacting with your smartphone to deter an annoying friend from disrupting your date. The short romantic story involves some light-hearted emotions and to date, shows the most realistically acted/animated VR character I've seen yet. It might all seem a bit cheesy to some, but if a VR game can capture this level of nuance and create this level of immersion, I'm excited to see more games involving characters with realistic voice, facial animation, and motion acting like this! And to be honest, going through this game in VR has placed the entire VR-simulated date in my memory as if it actually happened to me in the past!

VR Report (part 3)

Batman: Arkham VR is another VR game I bought on sale for half price that was priced, in my opinion, too high when it was released when the PSVR hit the market. The game is short, but there are plenty of unlockable incentives if you'd like to keep playing, such as solving the Riddler's riddles and unlocking different character models you can look at in 3D. The part I liked most about the game, however, was the feeling that I was Batman. Looking at myself in a virtual mirror and seeing me, as Batman, moving exactly as I'm moving...that's an experience that really enhanced the immersion when I was flinging batarangs around at objects. I also really enjoyed using Batmans various gadgets, but the thrill of pretending to be someone else and seeing the represented in the game—that's something I really want to see more developers focusing on! I do wish the developers had done more with this, because there were a lot of missed opportunities like riding in the batmobile, gliding down from roofstops, or getting pulled rapidly upwards with a grapple-cable. I wanted to engage in a fist fight using Batman's martial arts moves, but at least I got to watch a recorded replay of Nightwing fighting a villain. I understand, though, that at the time of the game release, a lot of developers were being very careful with movement to avoid making a player sick and dizzy. These days, developers have found lots of alternatives and tricks for player comfort, and many of us have found our “VR legs,” so I hope to see another Batman game that further explores what being Batman is all about. 

VR Report (part 2)

Superhot is a VR game I bought recently when it was on sale for half price. The game released on PSVR only a few months after the PSVR itself hit the market, but I didn't want to support the bloated pricing strategies developers had initially for anything that had even a small VR moment included. Thankfully, prices for VR games have settled into reasonable and fair ranges in most cases these days. When I tried out Superhot for the first time, I was not thrilled with the low-detail graphics, but the graphics were not the point—the game was immediately immersive. In each scenario I found myself in, there were different objects I could grab and use against my enemies, who were often armed with firearms. I soon learned that their attacks and the bullets speeding towards me only moved if I did, at a rate mirroring my own rate of movement. If I moved slowly, so did the bullets, but if I fired a gun back, the bullets sped up. I felt like I was Neo in the Matrix, using a “bullet-time” slow-motion approach to dodge bullets, grab guns out of the hands of enemies, throw knives and bottles, and even block attacks with whatever I had on hand. This extremely innovative game made me feel like I had time-bending abilities, and I could affect the flow of time like a superhero, such as “The Flash,” moving around like I was in a slow martial arts ballet of death.