Being able to communicate what we want to say in video games is essential for any game developer with a taste for storytelling. Doing so in an interactive medium is not always straightforward. Characters have to behave realistically in response to the player’s behaviour. Designing the behaviour of both the player and AI characters can be tricky. But nailing it will ensure that your player receives your message.

In this 2018 podcast, Norwegian game designer Marius Holstad goes through the process of designing a lifelike character like Trico in The Last Guardian and gives a clear, in-depth breakdown of the approach.

Holstad takes the listener on a spoiler-free journey from the second the behaviour occurs, all the way back to millennia before. All while examining what caused it to happen. And he explains everything from a biological perspective, staying true to how the world really works. It’s an unique opportunity to gain some new knowledge not commonly found in video game literature.

Game developers that are interested in learning how to create behaviours that tell a story can now listen to the podcast via popular streaming services or read the transcript over at Medium!

About On Human Design

On Human Design is a podcast focused on figuring out how we humans really work. It’s about how we can design our experiences to live a better life. It’s often about science, our biology and our brains. All with the wonderful focus on video games! If you’re interested in this kind of stuff, you can visit the podcast’s home page for more information.

You can follow Marius Holstad on Twitter: @MariusGames