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I can use the aforementioned Hangman's NOOSE session as an example: Our four-man squad was having our butts handed to us by Liberty City's tactical squad time after time. Totally on his own, one of our team got the bright idea to drive around the airport and found a helicopter for the taking. After holding off NOOSE and getting mob boss Kenny Petrovic to the chopper, we were exultant and home free. Or so we thought. Our pilot accidentally hit the Y button and plummeted to the river below. With our copter in freefall, I hit the Y button, foolishly thinking I could jump into the pilot's seat. Instead, I followed after our fellow gunsel, as if we had some bizarre suicide love pact. We'd managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory and the feeling of empowered control suddenly vanished. You may have a story totally similar to this or your co-op playtime may differ wildly, but you're creating a narrative just by playing.
Recently, Stephen Totilo of MTV's Multiplayer blog wondered, "
Are Our Games Our Fantasies?" It reminded me of the first installment of Thought/Process, where I wrote about superplayers:
Superplayers will be gamers who can see how a game creates its own context, supports that context, and fits into a larger continuum of creativity.
The awesome potential of Encompassing Narrative means that you or I as individual players could be part of that continuum, too, just by picking up a controller and thinking about the way you're playing. Honestly, I can't dream up anything better than that.