noitCARetni-interACTion

question 3. jungle book

3. Discussing the concept of interpretation, or "filling in the gaps", in narrative, Chatman states that “there is… a class of indeterminacies… that arise from the peculiar nature of the medium. The medium may specialize in certain narrative effects and not others. For instance, the cinema may easily – and does routinely – present characters without expressing the contents of their minds… verbal narrative, on the other hand, finds such restrictions difficult… Conversely, verbal narrative may elect not to present some visual aspect… The cinema, however, cannot avoid a rather precise representation of visual detail.” Think of an example of the use of narrative in interactive media. With reference to your example, suggest what the “peculiar nature” of interactive media may be, and which narrative effects it may specialize in.

I’m going to use the example of Jungle book here. The movie Jungle book (if I do not recall this wrongly) is narrated. Later, there was a computer game version of it which made it rather interactive. So what is the peculiar nature of both? The movie, as a medium, does routinely present the characters; and as it moves from scene to scene, it is able to convey the idea of simultaneous happenings. (Can this be considered as multiple layers of representation?) In addition, the story, while being narrated, allows the viewer to take on the third person perspective. Therefore, the viewer can see what’s going on, on both sides of the story though they are not given the choice to switch between either one.
It also provides visual (dressing, facial expression, setting) and sound effects to enhance the overall experience of the viewer.

In contrast, the game version of the movie moves from scene to scene in a linear fashion. It is developed such that the player has to complete a stage first before the story unfolds. This technique allows the player control in the game but limited choice in the story. The story in the game appears as a text message across the screen, as told by the panther. The player is then expected to fill in the gaps between each stage of the story. They are allowed to imagine what has happened between each level (since the level itself is of no relevance to the show) or to base it upon what they know happened in the story. In this sense the player is presented with different possibilities of filling in the gap (mentally), while keeping the narrative structure is kept intact. The task of the game at each level, however, is of no much relevance to the story.

In the game and while playing the character of jungle boy, you essentially cannot tell what the character is thinking nor any of the characters. They don’t really speak either. It does however provide visual and sound effects as well. However there are limitations to this in the game in terms of facial expression of the character. The player is also only able to take on the first person perspective and has to explore the game on his own. As he is taking on the perspective of the jungle boy, the player is not able to switch mode to view things from the perspective of other characters. This might give the player a sense of ownership.

posted by shamanthayan @ 4:35 PM