New Bostan
Interactive storytelling: where narrative emerges from user interaction, not predetermined plot.
Interactive storytelling is a form of digital entertainment in which the storyline is not predetermined. The author creates the setting, characters, and situation which the narrative must address, but the user experiences a unique story based on their interactions with the story world.
Quick Facts
- Type
- Orbital space station
- Location
- Earth orbit (Citadel Station for SS1); deep space (Von Braun for SS2)
- Setting of
- System Shock (1994) on Citadel Station; System Shock 2 (1999) on the starship Von Braun
- In-game era
- 21st century (2072 in SS1; 2114 in SS2)
Lore & Background
The field of interactive storytelling encompasses psychology, sociology, cognitive science, linguistics, natural language processing, user interface design, computer science, and emergent intelligence. It is distinct from interactive fiction and video games with strong narrative focus, such as Mass Effect and BioShock, by user agency and open-ended narrative. Chris Crawford coined the term in the 1990s, arguing that interactive storytelling is not a video game with a narrative and cannot be combined successfully with a game. Early attempts date to the 1970s with Roger Schank's research and TaleSpin. The first widely recognized interactive storytelling software was Façade, created by Michael Mateas and Andrew Stern, released in 2006.
Reader's Guide
The architecture of an interactive storytelling system includes a drama manager, user model, and agent model. The drama manager guides the narrative by searching and executing story beats, refining events, and collaborating with the agent model. The agent model generates possible actions for non-player characters based on personality and emotion. The user model tracks player choices so the system cooperates with the user's play style.
More in Story & Campaigns
Elsewhere in System Shock
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced