Game Writing #1 – A Narrative Inspired by Raid: Shadow Legends
Do you want to become a game writer? So, do I! Unfortunately, it is no easy task. However, my recommendation is this: if you love gaming and you love writing, then I would urge you to write stories inspired by your gaming passions if that is a desire that enthrals you. Even if you never end up becoming a game writer as a career, even if you feel overwhelmed by the thought of a competitive industry like gaming, don’t stop writing game stories – don’t let any of it stop you from writing. I hope my game narration inspires some of you to do the same!
Raid: Shadow Legends is a turn-based RPG which can be played on PC or mobile device. What I love most about Raid is that it is a fantasy-themed game; I am a great fan of fantasy and prefer it to sci-fi (Oh no! Shock horror!). What also drew me to the game are the fantastic graphics and the fabulous array of races. From High Elves to Banner Lords, the choices are endless – in fact it boasts over 300 characters. Every character is deliciously decorated in stunning armour, you find it hard not to gasp at their magnificence.
Taking place in the wonderous realm of Teleria, your characters fight their way through dangerous fortresses lined with villainous enemies, from castles, dungeons, deserts and temples. It is a bewitching game, full of exciting battles, strategic gameplay, and endless choices for the player to upgrade their characters into powerful warriors. I am so addicted to the game, I spend countless nights raiding to gain experience, to collect potions, to complete challenges and to collect precious shards. After all, every shard has the ability to resurrect a new champion which will fight beside you in an effort to overthrow the evil Siroth who has cast a dark shadow upon Teleria. The Arbiter, a beautiful red-head mysterious warrior, is the resurrector who brings your character to life and relies on you to fight against evil and help resurrect more warriors to come to battle. What I love about each resurrection of a warrior is the excitement of ‘who will be my next warrior?’.
As writer and storyteller, my gaming experience has profoundly affected my imagination. Over the past few days I have had wonderous dreams of developing a storyline around my characters; creating binding friendships, imagining dynasties and family bloodlines, developing stories of undying love and treacherous deceptions. My writing is also profoundly inspired by female empowerment and thus my storyline gears more toward a female warrior as the chore character of my narration.
For the purpose of creating enticing narration, though I have named this article as ‘game writing #1’ it is in actual fact written in the format which is less of a gaming script and more of a storyline as gaming principles can be complex and spoil the narration for the generalist reader. I want to make my game story accessible to a broad reader base and hope it comes across as such. For the professional game writer out there, please forgive me if I do not do ‘the gaming industry’ it’s due justice with my game writing, and leave your judgements at the door. This piece is ‘inspired’ by the game Raid and I do not pretend to be the game writer in any shape of form.
EXT. Teleria desert lands - day
The camera slowly moves forward over the map of Teleria and focuses into a desert landscape.
Juliana, our main character from the Banner Lords faction comes into focus.
She has been tasked by the Arbiter to find an important member of the Orc Faction called Shaman.
Narrator (V.O.)
Legend speaks of the Lost Shaman, princess and heir to the Shamanic rule. Since her father’s death, the Dark Lord, Siroth, took over the desert lands and the shamanic tribe were banished into exile. Shaman withdrew into the desert mountains never to be seen again. Juliana, the warrior princess of the Banner Lords must find her to fulfill her destiny. Without the preaching of the Shamanic Princess their destiny is doomed. Though, something far more profound lies in the encounter of these two unlikely companions… Until that encounter, Juliana must fight the desert ghouls to gain passage to the desert mountains beyond before nightfall.
Suddenly, an army of desert Orcs appear. Unbeknownst to Juliana, these are supporters of the evil Siroth.
Juliana
I am here in search of your future Queen, Shaman. Where can I find her?
Army of Orcs
We have no queen! Shaman has been denounced and exiled to the desert mountains. Friends of the Shamanic tribe are enemies of the Dark Lord! All Hail Siroth!
Juliana CRASHES her SWORD to the ground, ready for battle as she realises that the Shadow Lord has taken over these lands.
Juliana
At arms BEASTS!
Army of Orcs
ROAR!
Juliana battles alone against the desert army of Orcs. Luckily, her raid experience combined with her upgrade skills and powerful armour give her the ability to WIN.
She takes heed that Shaman has been exiled to the desert mountains and soon finds herself at a cave. It is guarded by an Orc Boss.
Orc Boss
Who dares trespass these desert lands?
Juliana
I am Princess Juliana of the Banner Lords and I shall fight for the freedom of Shaman, the Shamanic Tribe Princess!
Orc Boss
Ha! Never! She has been exiled from these lands. I guard the caves where she lives in eternal darkness never to see the desert sun again. You shall not pass!
Juliana
You SHALL be defeated beast!
The power that Juliana holds is so strong she is able to WIN the battle against the BOSS with her tactical skills. She enters the cave.
EXT. Teleria desert mountain caves - darkness
As she moves along drawings appear on the walls of the cave. They depict a story:
Narration (V.O.)
A Banner Lord Princess battles against an orcish army and an Orc Boss and finds the Shaman. The story unfolds that together they go on a journey, escaping the caves of the desert mountain, fighting barbarian clans taken over by the Shadow Lord, Siroth. On their journey they meet a legendary Barbarian Princess who joins their ranks.
Juliana unearths a VOID SHARD upon entering the caves. The RESURRECTION releases the SHAMAN.
Shaman
Who dares wonder in these caves? Enter at your own peril! Fight or flee!
Shaman comes out of the shadows wearing heavy armour.
Juliana
I am Juliana, the Princess of the Banner Lords.I have come here to release you, Shaman?
Shaman
So my preaching shall come to pass? As destiny foretold, you are finally here. I have been awaiting your arrival. It is time then. Make haste, destiny awaits no woman. We must be on our way.
Juliana
Shaman wait, what do these writings on the wall mean?
Shaman
The Shamanic tribe for centuries have had a member of their tribe who has been able to foretell the destiny of the lands. I am the chosen. They come to me in my dreams. While at exile in these dark desert mountain caves I drew out what came to me in my dreams. The story tells of a Banner Princess coming to find me. You, Juliana. Together we must fight. As we leave these caves we shall come across Barbarian tribes. Sadly, the desert lands have been taken over by the Shadow Lords. And so have the Barbarian tribes. They are our enemy now. We must defeat them. Upon doing so we shall find a Barbarian Princess. She is planning an uprising, but she does not know whom to trust. When we meet her, it is foretold that she will know to trust us.
Juliana
But how will she know to trust us?
Shaman
That shall remain to be seen. Make haste!
EXT. Teleria desert lands - day
Juliana and Shaman run across the desert. Suddenly, an army of Barbarians cross their path. They raise arms ready for battle.
Barbarian Army
You are not from these lands. This is Barbarian territory. Trespassers! Heed our words or die!
Shaman and Juliana
Charge!
With their combined powers Juliana and Shaman fights bravely and WIN.
They arrive at a Castle made of Sand, guarded by a Barbarian Boss.
Barbarian Boss
Hold! You are the heathen Shaman, exiled by your own faction. How did you escape?
Barbarian Boss
I am Princess Juliana of the Banner Lords. Shaman and I require an audience with your Princess.
Shaman
Grant us way or be killed, Barbarian!
Barbarian Boss
Blasphemy! You, Banner Lord, are friends with a heathen Shaman? Then you are a foe to the Barbarian tribes!
Juliana and Shaman raise arms and battle with bravery against the Barbarian Boss, and eventually they WIN.
EXT. Teleria desert Sand Castle - day
The golden-sand doors of the castle open wide to show a glimmering golden interior with sand columns. A sandy golden thrown appears. Upon it a VOID SHARD from which a RESURRECTION of a barbarian warrior named WOAD-PAINTED (Liliana).
Liliana
Who goes there?! Approach the throne. Make your intentions known or I shall cut you down where you stand.
Juliana
Forgive me Shaman, I believe it is best I speak with the Barbarian Princess. Historically the Orcs and the Barbarians have been sworn enemies, fighting over territories of the Desert Lands. I believe it most likely for her to raise arms if she sees an Orc than a Banner Lord. May I?
Shaman
My duties lie under your command, Juliana.
Liliana
Proceed I say or see the wrath of my sword!
Juliana approaches the thrown alone. The Barbarian Princess comes into full view.
Juliana
Sister?! Liliana, my long lost sister is that you?!
Juliana GASPS and approaches the throne further.
Liliana
Sister! It has been so long! I have missed you dearly. Ever since I left home to make my own destiny in the realms the one thing I missed was my little sister. I would ask how mother and father are but as the dark horse of the family who left our faction behind, I am sure they care not for me.
Juliana
Dear Liliana. Mother and father are dead. They were killed in battle against the most powerful of all evil. A dark alliance of the highest order; A cross faction of Dark Elves and Demon Spawn.
Shaman
Though this is a touching family reunion, I simply must ask that we make haste. Time is of the essence, if we are to save Teleria from the Tyranny of the Shadow Lord.
Liliana
So you are Shaman, the Shamanic Princess. It has been foretold to me that a Banner Lord and an Orc Shaman shall venture into these lands.
Juliana
You know the legends too, Liliana?
Liliana
Firstly, dear sister, this is not legend. It is our destiny. Secondly, Shaman, it is not only the Orc tribes that have a shaman in their midst. The Skytouched Shaman, a majestic dark Raven flies across the skies of the desert. She is all-seeing. She takes both raven and human forms. She is my right hand woman and tells me about the fortunes of our beloved Teleria. She foretold you would arrive to these lands. She told me I could trust my new arrivals. I never knew why. But now I know, sister. I trust you with all my heart. Finally, my Barbarian name is Woad-Painted. I gained my place on the Barbarian throne through battle. I painted battle markings on my face in blue using the Woad plant. Ever since I won and became Princess of this throne I have taken on my given name.
Shaman
Woad-painted. Quite fitting I am sure [sniggers]. Now, please, let’s make haste!
Juliana, Shaman and Woad-Painted venture out from the sand castle beyond into the desert lands. A new journey unfolds as they venture on into territories unknown.
This storyline script is the first in a series which will be published every month telling the story of Juliana, the Banner Lord Princess on her journey to save Teleria. It is ‘Game Writing #1’ from which will follow further scripts where Juliana will meet new characters and grow her team with which she will fight her enemies as she journeys through the Realm of Teleria. I should make a note here that you will be aware I have not expanded the ‘battle scenes’ in this script. I have concentrated my time on the game script.
However, in one of my following articles in the series over the next months I shall describe a fully-fledged battle scene for my fantasy readers to enjoy! So, watch this space. Meanwhile, If you enjoyed my story inspired by Raid: Shadow Legends, make sure to read my new piece coming up next month titled ‘Game Writing #2’. Do you play Raid: Shadow Legends? Or maybe have I inspired you to have a go at the game? Do you recognise the characters I have named in my script? What do you think of the narrative?
Have a go at doing your own game writing script. There are many examples – such as mine above – of scripts you can use to practice your game writing. A good start if you want to get into game writing seriously is to do your research. I would recommend this website with downloadable templates for Word Documents to start with your gaming script and this blog post which has step-by-step advice on how to write it up!
Also, check out this page by Game Writer’s SIG in America which has some game writing examples you can read to get you inspired. By reading this website I came across the awesome game writer Anna Megill. I would recommend you having a closer look at her website and especially her FAQS section where she is both overwhelmingly helpful and realistic about the gaming industry and your expectations of being a game writer.
To get even more information about being a Games Writer as a financially viable career I would also urge you to have a look at the Writer’s Guild of Great Britain website for a plethora of resources and should you wish, you could become a member for even more perks. Meanwhile, I have dug out the best resource from their website which is about Writing Content for Videogames.
I have made an absolute effort to make this article accessible to both the generalist reader and those interested in becoming game writers. Again, the above script is not 100% representation of a true game script so please use the above resources to find templates, tips and tricks on writing complete game scripts. I am not in the gaming industry and I do not pretend to be a game writer, I just love the field and hope to make it justice purely from my research on the topic of game writing and my passion for gaming and writing combined. If you feel at all inspired, or even overwhelmed by the prospect of game writing, hit me up!
Written by Maria Nicolette
Hi! I’m Maria Nicolette, a writer and contributor to The Everyday Magazine.
I’m an ambitious disabled woman. I write about my passions in an authentic voice and absolutely abhor toxic positivity. So, don’t ask me to sugar-coat the truth!
My topics of interest are:
Diversity: disability and female empowerment,
Wellbeing: mental health, gardening, hobbies
Art and culture: street art, contemporary art
Luxury lifestyle: fashion, travel, beauty
Entertainment: movies, music, gaming.
I love writing in all it’s forms. I am an author under the pen name Elaunda Rox, dedicating all my time to my writing.
I have written short stories inspired by my studies at Wellesley University on Creative Writing, I have taken part in NaNoWriMo and NYCmidnight. I also love poetry and young adult fantasy fiction; You can see my work on www.elaundarox.co.uk.
I love MMO and RPG gaming, watching Netflix series – currently love His Dark Materials by fantasy fiction author Philip Pullman – I adore fantasy art my favourite being Anne Stokes whom I met personally. I am besotted by anything dark and gothic; vampyres, goth music, and dragons! My favourite comics are Lady Mechanika and Monstress.
My dreams: to write a graphic novel, to be in a fantasy anthology with other fantasy fiction artists, to be in a female lead goth band, to be an actress in my own fiction novel turned TV series, and to meet Keanu Reeves!