Narrative News December 2023: Festive Opportunities, Jobs, and More!
Your monthly round-up of all things narrative design.
Hi fellow narrative designers!
The christmas-y, hanukkah-y, kwanzaa-y season is upon us, a season of lights in the darkness and a time for cozying up.
However, for many of us in the games industry, this year has been exhausting and demoralizing. Perhaps you’ve been laid off, out of work, unable to get your foot in the door, or are simply burnt out. I know it hasn’t been easy, and I encourage you to get some rest this month, if you can.
Once you’re refreshed (or if you’re simply one of those teflon-strong individuals who is chugging along at great personal cost), it’s time to prepare for the new year and plan your next steps for a 2024. Maybe this includes a new approach to your job search, or maybe it involves delving into the world of labor organizing.
To that end, I have a request. I’m planning to host a (potentially streamed) New York City-based panel on the topic of labor organization in games, and I’d like your stories and input. What’s your worst layoff story? How hard has it been to get into the industry? Comment on this post and I will compile these stories for potential use in creating topics and questions for the panel (you will be credited if you prefer, or you can remain anonymous).
On to the links!
Events
Meetups
The SF Bay Area Interactive Fiction Meetup is meeting today (Dec. 2nd) to read some top-rated IFComp games! This is a hybrid event, so you can join on Zoom if you’d like.
Jams + Competitions
The Case of The Thinky Game Jam runs until December 17th and features a kick-off talk from the creators of The Case of the Golden Idol (above)!
Creative an interactive experience based on dreams for the two-month long LSDJAM 2023.
PunyJam #4 runs until December 17th. It’s a jam where you make an interactive fiction game using PunyInform.
Parlez-vous francais? If “oui!” is your answer, check out this French interactive fiction jam, Partim 500!
News + Resources
Check out this fascinating deep-dive into how Mask of the Rose lets players express specific multi-faceted personalities through dialogue choices. This is the good stuff, guys. Thanks Emily Short!
A simple but true fact about narrative design from Alexander Pugachev of Belka Games.
Watch of the Week: The Design Philosophy behind Pentiment.
Opportunities
General
Pixelles has put out a call for a Writers Group Coordinator for their wonderful Writers Program. This is a volunteer position with an honorarium of $500.
Christian Mahnke of EarReality is inviting narrative designers to contribute educational guest posts to their series “5 tips on writing with: with XY”. Reach out to him via LinkedIn. There are several interesting ones up already, check ‘em out!
Jobs
Localization Writer at Nintendo
Producer at Twin Swans (Narrative video game studio started by former Stanley Parable devs)
Writer at Take-Two Interactive (Judas by Ghost Story Games)
Narrative Designer at DECA Games
Narrative Designer at KRAFTON Montreal
Lead Narrative Game Designer at Elephant Games (Unverified, but might be worth looking into)
Senior Game Writer at Cloud Chamber
Senior Writer at Santa Monica Studio
Senior Writer at PlayStation Global
Senior Narrative Designer at Yotta Games (Open World AAA game)
Lead Narrative Designer at Wizards of the Coast (Digital D&D)
Thanks for reading, until next month!
About Me
I’m a narrative designer and instructional writer whose work is featured in Longleaf Valley, which recently won an Honorable Mention in Google Play Best of 2023 in the Games for Good category and Ashe Cove by Double Loop Games, among other projects. I put out the free Narrative News roundup every month.
One further note: The atrocities in Gaza continue. For those seeking more information about what is currently happening in Palestine, I’d recommend subscribing to Foreign Exchanges. To help support Palestine, find resources here.
What a great idea and I am sure you will get people lining up to speak and be heard.