“In a novel, the author decides the ending. In a game, the player does. Your job isn’t to control the story—it’s to build a world where every choice feels like it matters.”
— L.A. Walton, The Book Maven
Game writing is storytelling’s wildest frontier. You’re not just writing a narrative—you’re writing multiple narratives that branch, converge, and respond to a player who has their own ideas about how this story should go. It’s like writing a novel where the protagonist can ignore your plot and wander into the forest to pick mushrooms. And somehow, the mushroom-picking needs to feel meaningful.
Game Writing vs. Traditional Writing
| Traditional Storytelling | Game Writing |
| Linear: one path, one experience. | Branching: multiple paths, multiple experiences. |
| The reader is passive. | The player is active—they make choices that matter. |
| The author controls pacing. | The player controls pacing (and might grind for 3 hours). |
| One ending. | Potentially dozens of endings. |
| Character is defined by the author. | Character may be defined by the player. |
Essential Game Writing Skills
- Think in systems, not scenes. Your narrative must work within game mechanics. Story and gameplay should reinforce each other.
- Write meaningful choices. A good choice has no obviously ‘right’ answer. Both options should have real consequences.
- Create environmental storytelling. Let the world tell stories through objects, architecture, and atmosphere—not just dialogue.
- Write for replayability. Players will experience your story multiple times. Each playthrough should reveal something new.
- Collaborate obsessively. Game writing is a team sport. Work with designers, artists, and programmers from day one.
Your Move, Creative
Take a scene from your current project and write it as a branching narrative with two meaningfully different choices. How does each choice change the outcome? That exercise is the heart of game writing.
Stop letting your stories stay stuck.
