Textual Analysis: Week 03

Discuss the in-game design and implementation of decision points in your chosen game[s] (i.e. the actual way conveying choice to the player looks and functions)\

In my chosen game,"The Banner Saga", decision points were presented in situations where the player must make a choice that influences the game, be it on a micro or macro level.
 These decision points were presented by sliding a list of options up from the bottom of the screen for story decisions and conversations, most commonly between battle segments.
 The Banner Saga is heavily text based and to acquire the players motivation I believe requires heavy attention to the plot which, because is text driven, can feel very hard to immerse the player into the world as the heavy amounts of texts can feel intimidating and some lore can be confusing if you miss or cannot connect the diegetic pieces together from prior knowledge to similar themed narratives.

Because of this I found many early game decisions to be meaningless and uninteresting and although I have some sense of agency over what the character responds, not understanding the context entirely makes them feel hollow.
 In a text section where the Dredge are invading a small village, amidst the panic your character can choose to send his ally to safety or to let them fight along side you in battle. After prompting my choice to send her away I found myself in battle and outnumbered resulting in my defeat. Understanding the consequences of the decision and having it reflect in the following gameplay so dramatically made the decision feel meaningful, compared to a conversation segment where I got lost by the language and lore which made me less interested in the decision.
In this heavily Text based game, the decision points were implemented seamlessly into the flow of the gameplay but whether the text kept my attention or not would reflect on the amount of agency I felt making those decisions.