Birdie

[DESIGNER-CHOICE TWINE GAME]

Artist Statement

This game is based on my obsession with golf. I picked this obsession because it’s what I’m most invested in and excited about at the moment, and so I knew I would be more motivated to write about it. The thematic argument I’m making is that if you really want something in life, then you will find a way to achieve it. The craft elements that support this argument are the characters, plot, and structure of the game. Jack and Frankie both have a lot of perseverance. Jack’s goal is to make a birdie in the first hole of the golf course. He doesn’t give up despite many implied failed attempts in the past. Frankie’s goal is to marry the girl of his dreams. Similar to Jack, he doesn’t give up on his relationship with the girl when faced with rejection or the challenges of a long-distance relationship. Regarding plot and structure, the player is able to decide how Jack plays the hole which simultaneously decides how Frankie approaches his relationship with a girl. This motivates the reader-player to find the correct set of choices (the optimal route) that will achieve both characters’ goals. These craft elements directly relate to our working definition of a game. In a game, you “behave as if achieving victory is important, to let the objective guide [your] behaviour” (Greg Costikyan). This game gives the reader-player a clear way to “victory” for two different characters, thus double the motivation that “guides their behaviour” and guides their choices. We also said that a game must involve struggle. This struggle occurs when the reader-player has to choose the right golf club for a given scenario. Finally, we agreed that “the outcome of the game will differ depending on your decision” (Greg Costikyan). This relates directly to the structure I chose to work with which was inspired by Nat Mesnard’s article “Branching Infinity”. I used the first structure they outlined which involves the use of “key nodes”. With this structure, the passages converge at important points in the story and in between these points, the story is variable (Nat Mesnard). These variable areas are where my reader-player experiences different golf shots with Jack and different interactions between Frankie and his girl. I chose this structure because I liked the idea that the decisions the reader-player makes in these variable portions of my game will result in different emotional reactions to my one single ending. 

I playtested this game by watching my younger sibling (T) play it and I didn’t interrupt their play unless I really had to. This was an example strategy that Nat Mesnard gave us in their class visit: to “watch someone play and suffer”. I also asked T how they felt about the game and asked them yes/no questions (more example strategies given by Nat Mesnard). The feedback I got from T was that it was difficult for them to follow the story at times because they were unfamiliar with some of the golf terms in the game. Although my intended audience for this game is people who do play golf, I still want it to be playable for those who don’t so I fixed this problem by creating a “golf glossary” with definitions of different golf terms used in the story. The reader-player is able to reference this glossary throughout the entire game. 

[SPOILER ALERT] T also said my ending was too abrupt. I initially had the story end right after Jack realizes that Frankie’s wife is Marge at the front desk. To make this ending less abrupt, I added another passage after this realization that goes deeper into Jack’s feelings and thoughts about his interaction with Frankie. I found that this passage helps underline my thematic argument and hopefully provides the reader-player with a more satisfying ending.

Cover Image from: https://nsga.ns.ca/articles/calling-all-caddies/