META-LUDOLOGICAL NARRATIVE IN DIGITAL GAMES: A STUDY ON ALAN WAKE II

Abstract

This study, examining the innovative perspectives and opportunities video games offer to narratology, particularly through the game Alan Wake II, scrutinizes the potential of digital games to develop new narrative forms and techniques beyond traditional narrative frameworks. Alan Wake II stands at the convergence of meta-fiction, meta-narrative, and meta-linear cinematic narration, adding new layers of meaning to the narrative through player interactions. It expands the boundaries of storytelling by employing methods such as creating stories within stories, transitioning between characters and fictional universes. This interactive storytelling grants players the freedom to explore different layers of the story while also allowing for deep inquiries into the structure of the narrative, fictionality, and reality. The layered structure of the narrative in Alan Wake II and the intertextual and intermedial integration of numerous story elements emphasize the meta-linear cinematic narrative, giving the player an active role in assembling the story. Through synthesizing traditional narrative methods with the techniques used in the analysis of digital games, this study opens a discussion on how video games can form a meta-ludological narrative form. It provides a comprehensive evaluation of the contributions of the structure formed by the combination of ludic and narrative elements to narratology, demonstrating how metaleptic transitions between different fictional planes on various layers can be integrated into gameplay.