The narrative-communication structure in interactive narrative works

Abstract

Interactive work on new media platforms differs from familiar work on more traditional media, such as literature, theatre, cinema and television, in terms of their narrative-communication situation. Interactive works, unlike cinematic works, allow the viewer to participate to a different extent, involving a reciprocal communication process. In this paper I propose a bi-directional communication structure for interactive storytelling systems, based on narratology theory and communication film theory. I adapt existing narrative-communication models of conventional media, mainly those of Seymour Chatman and Vivian Sobchack, to suggest a detailed narrative-communication model for interactive storytelling systems, which would facilitate the formulation of a better definition of the various constituent elements of interactive storytelling communication, and the functions they fulfill. © 2009 Springer-Verlag.