In Approaches to Game Construction, Julialicia Case, Eric Freeze, and Salvatore Pane explore essential aspects of game design—such as player types, perspective, and structure—that are crucial to creating immersive and engaging interactive experiences. These ideas resonate strongly with the interactive nonfiction project, especially since we’re using platforms like Twine to construct narratives around dynamic topics like fandom culture (our project).
Player Types
One of the most interesting points in Approaches to Game Construction is the discussion on player types—ranging from explorers and achievers to socializers. In the context of our Twine project on fandom culture, understanding player types can help us tailor the narrative paths to match varying user motivations. Fandom culture encompasses diverse personalities, including creators, curators, and community leaders, each with their unique interests and engagement styles. By reflecting these different roles within the Twine project, we can create experiences that appeal to a broad audience. For example, we could develop separate branches for “explorers” who wish to delve into the lesser-known corners of fandom history and “socializers” who might be more interested in understanding community dynamics.
Perspective
Case, Freeze, and Pane also emphasize the importance of perspective in shaping a player’s engagement with the narrative. For a Twine project on fandom culture, perspective is instrumental in conveying authenticity. Fandoms are built upon shared experiences and often thrive on the relatability of community narratives. By choosing perspectives that represent various voices within fandom—such as a newcomer, a veteran fan, or even a critical outsider—the Twine story can offer readers a range of insights into fandom dynamics. Using Twine’s structure, we might invite readers to select a viewpoint at the start. A “newcomer” perspective could highlight fandom culture’s welcoming aspects, while a “veteran” perspective might focus on nostalgia or the evolution of fan communities. We haven’t entirely decided yet!
Structure
Structure dictates how a story unfolds and shapes a reader’s journey. For a Twine project on fandom culture, adopting a modular structure—where different sections cover aspects like fan theories, history, fan art, or influencers—can give readers the flexibility to explore topics that interest them the most. Fandoms are sprawling and interconnected, much like Twine stories themselves, which makes the platform ideal for representing this complexity!
By giving readers a “map” to navigate, we can simulate the organic way people often explore fandom culture, moving from one subtopic to another based on personal interest. This structure would allow us to introduce branching paths that make fandom’s broad scope feel navigable and engaging.
Conclusion
Through the lens of Case, Freeze, and Pane’s ideas, we see how the principles of game construction—player types, perspective, and structure—become powerful tools for creating an engaging, multifaceted interactive nonfiction piece. By using Twine, we can represent fandom culture in a way that is as layered and participatory as the culture itself! I’m excited to work on this piece with my project partners and see what comes of it!