Player-Character Relationship and Game Satisfaction in Narrative Game: Focus on Player Experience of Character Switch in The Last of Us Part II

Abstract

While player characters (PCs) are the key element in engaging players in narrative games, the experience and relationship of the player with the PC have received scarce attention from the perspective of the subjective player experience. The diversity of players and the importance of the PC in the game suggests meaningful connections between how players relate to their PC and the resulting satisfaction with the game. We, therefore, investigated in this study how the player-character relationship influences satisfaction of the player with the game. We performed semi-structured in-depth interviews with 12 players of The Last of Us Part II, a game that has elicited highly polarized reactions in relation to how players responded to a switch of the PC in the game. Through thematic analysis, three themes were found, illustrating the connection between aspects of the player-character relationship and the overall game satisfaction. The themes are “Tolerance of forced character switch”, “Malleability of character image” and “Flexibility of character attachment”. We discuss how those findings should be taken into consideration when designing diverse and meaningful gaming experiences.

The Effect of Perceived Quality, Perceived Enjoyment, and Social Influence toward Brand Loyalty of Valorant

“…Game players are frequently provided with online real-time broadcasting facilities so that their friends may watch or support them from a distance. Players may have been influenced by their peers in these scenarios, resulting in higher degrees of satisfaction (Erb et al, 2021). Thus, we can hypothesize: Hypothesis 3: There is a significant relationship between social influence and customer satisfaction.…”

“Go. Just take him.”: PTSD and the Player-Character Relationship in The Last of Us Part II

“…In a small study exploring the PC relationship through an analysis of player reactions to Part II , researchers noted that “controlling a PC in a narrative game includes more than just the mere mechanical steering of a virtual figure. It can mean to take on and project oneself into a given role in a fixed narrative or closely following a character through their story” (Erb et al, 2021, p. 9). The study draws from a variety of existing theories of PC relationships and uses data gathered from player interviews to expand upon these theories as a way of accounting for the dramatically polarized player reactions to Part II .…”

“…Building on this theory of alterbiography, the study identifies the forced PC switch from Ellie to Abby nearly halfway through the game as a key factor in explaining why certain players within the study strongly disliked Part II —some to such an extent that they refused to complete their playthrough of the game—while others found it to be a masterpiece of storytelling (Erb et al, 2021, p. 4). 3 This switch is not simply a novel moment or an enhancement of Ellie's journey—it is crucial to the narrative, especially for player interpretation of Ellie's decisions in the game's final moments.…”

“…As part of their attempt to understand why the PC switch to Abby was so polarizing, Erb et al (2021) use Calleja's concept of “focalization,” in which player disposition is the primary determinant for whether the alterbiography is of an “entity” or of “self” (Calleja, 2009, p. 4; Erb et al, 2021, pp. 8–9).…”

“…8–9). Some participants in the study used language indicative of the creation of an alterbiography with a focalization on the “self,” meaning that they formed strong attachments to Joel (in Part I ) and Ellie (in Part I and Part II ) that they saw as part of their own identity; one participant even called Joel their “alter ego” in the game (Erb et al, 2021, pp. 6–7).…”