Advanced Game Narrative Toolbox

Tobias Heussner is a principal game content/narrative designer, producer, and writer. He has been working for over 25 years in the game industry, and with his teams, he has successfully developed and published more than 20 titles, including the award-winning AAA RPG Drakensang, the action-RPG Drakensang Online, and NBA Playgrounds. He has worked in various design roles and led teams as both a designer and a producer. Throughout his career, he has had the opportunity to work with a wide variety of professionals, gaining knowledge and experience in various project management philosophies and approaches. He has spoken at game developer conferences multiple times and enjoys sharing his expertise with fellow developers and learning from their experience and feedback. In 2015, he published The Game Narrative Toolbox with CRC Press, co-authored by Ann Lemay, Toiya Kristen Finley, and Jennifer Hepler. A second edition of The Game Narrative Toolbox was released in 2024. His personal website and resume can be found at http://www.theussner.com.Contributors: Alexander Bevier, Brian Kindregan, Cash Decuir, Chris Skaggs, Craig Sherman, Danny Salfield Wadeson, Heidi McDonald, Matt Forbeck, Tanya DePass, Toiya Kirsten Finley, and Tobias Heussner

• List of Contributors, Chapter 1: Introduction, Chapter 2: Building A Universe, Chapter 3: Get It into the Game: Writing and Implementation, Chapter 4: Cinematics and Dialogue, Chapter 5: Get This, Kill That, Talk with … Mission and Quest Design, Chapter 6: Planning Your Work, Chapter 7: Yes, Videogames Need Story Editors!, Chapter 8: Why Authentic Diversity, Consultants and Research Are Needed in Narrative Design, Chapter 9: Writing Romance and Sexuality in Games, Chapter 10: Writing for Nondigital Games (Board Games), Chapter 11: From Novel to Game and Back Again, Chapter 12: From Movie to Game (and Back Again?), Chapter 13: Working with Licensed Worlds and Content for Children, Chapter 14: Freelancing in Games: Narrative Mercenaries for Hire, Chapter 15: Working with Communication Biases, Chapter 16: Unreal Engine for Narrative Designers, Chapter 17: Conclusion, Chapter 18: Resources and Groups, Glossary