Narrative and the Hidden Object Game
I'm not a huge fan of "hidden object games," but I don't have money to spend on video games and there are a lot of free hidden object game demos out there, so I've started trying those that seem to have some kind of narrative backbone to them. I'm seeing a real gap between those who get what narrative does for the game experience and those who are just tacking a storyline on because that's what people are doing these days.
For example, in the opening scene of "The Mystery of the Crystal Portal," you have to find the spare key to get into your father's house. Yet, instead of looking for the key, you need to break into the mailbox using a hammer, a screwdriver, a nail, a piece of wire, and a spring (or something along these lines). Why a spring??? The rest of the game progresses in the same manner: find the random things to put to work on the random object in order to change the scene in such a way that you can go on to the next random activity. The story, tired as it is, does progress at the end of each of these activities, but there isn't a sense that you have actually moved it forward. Instead, you have completed the hurdle that stands between you and the next level (which comes with a bit of story attached as well).
Sadly, I'm having trouble coming up with an "on the other hand." I think that "Natalie Brooks -- Secrets of the Treasure House" was a reasonable example of a game that used the hidden objects to its advantage. I seem to remember that one of the puzzles involved having to find a bunch of little animals that fit into the slots in a clock in order to access a secret room, in any case. And this is what I'm talking about: give me a sensible reason (or at least a faintly plausible reason) that I need to find all of these things and then have my reward be to logically push the narrative forward. (I unlocked the kooky lock by placing all the animals in their slots, and now the clock swings back to reveal the new room.) It's far more rewarding that way because I feel like I've done something more with my last 30 minutes than pick out strange objects from a complex background.
Information above is contingent on my terrible memory, but the principle rings true enough. Not all casual games need narratives. Peggle is just find without one. Time management games generally don't need much more than a progression / success timeline. But I really believe that a good narrative that truly integrates itself with a hidden object game makes a world of difference.
For example, in the opening scene of "The Mystery of the Crystal Portal," you have to find the spare key to get into your father's house. Yet, instead of looking for the key, you need to break into the mailbox using a hammer, a screwdriver, a nail, a piece of wire, and a spring (or something along these lines). Why a spring??? The rest of the game progresses in the same manner: find the random things to put to work on the random object in order to change the scene in such a way that you can go on to the next random activity. The story, tired as it is, does progress at the end of each of these activities, but there isn't a sense that you have actually moved it forward. Instead, you have completed the hurdle that stands between you and the next level (which comes with a bit of story attached as well).
Sadly, I'm having trouble coming up with an "on the other hand." I think that "Natalie Brooks -- Secrets of the Treasure House" was a reasonable example of a game that used the hidden objects to its advantage. I seem to remember that one of the puzzles involved having to find a bunch of little animals that fit into the slots in a clock in order to access a secret room, in any case. And this is what I'm talking about: give me a sensible reason (or at least a faintly plausible reason) that I need to find all of these things and then have my reward be to logically push the narrative forward. (I unlocked the kooky lock by placing all the animals in their slots, and now the clock swings back to reveal the new room.) It's far more rewarding that way because I feel like I've done something more with my last 30 minutes than pick out strange objects from a complex background.
Information above is contingent on my terrible memory, but the principle rings true enough. Not all casual games need narratives. Peggle is just find without one. Time management games generally don't need much more than a progression / success timeline. But I really believe that a good narrative that truly integrates itself with a hidden object game makes a world of difference.