For this assignment I have decided to study and analyse two video games: The Stanley Parable, Ultra Deluxe and What Remains of Edith Finch. The Stanley Parable, Ultra Deluxe was released in 2022 by the companies Crows Crows Crows. It is a first-person game in which the player is stuck in an office alone with little context. Kevan Brighting, the narrator becomes an enemy and a teammate of sorts and provides amusing commentary along the way (Stanley Parable). What Remains of Edith Finch is also a first-person game, released in 2017 by Giant Sparrow. The player is on a quest to uncover what happened to her family by moving through their old house, this game is heavily story-led (Edith Finch). I chose these games as they are both award-winning games with impressive and creative storylines.

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I will be analysing these two video games with three different metrics.  The first being the storyline and narrative.  Within this segment of the essay, I will consider which narrative structure the writers chose to produce.  Additionally, I will be analysing the video games in regards to interactivity and user agency.  Agency is defined by the choices and freedom given to the player or user (Cole).  This is linked to the storyline as the more user agency the player may have, the wider and more broad the story becomes.  The final analysis I will be using on the video games is the style and aesthetics.  This includes the visuals as well as the sounds.  There are studies that link visuals to player motivation in video games (Sepúlveda).