Decieving to start story off with character playing WoW?

[Xitra_Blud]

I have a story idea in which a modern day character from our world goes into a fantasy Universe and I was wondering if it was deceiving to the readers to start it off as if she is already there when, at the end of the scene, she would have just been playing World of Warcraft the entire time. Would that be deceiving to the reader? You know, like how when a story starts off with an epic scene and it turns out the whole time it was only a dream?

 

[Svrtnsse]

It could be, but it I think it depends on how you do it.
WoW (and most other MMOs) has a fair bit of conventions that you could use to tip the reader off to something not necessarily being entirely right. You could be very obvious about it, or you could be very subtle.

I guess as long as you don't drag it out too long, you'll be fine.

 

[Reilith]

I don't see it as deceiving, more like refreshing. Just take care if you're planning of going commercial with it, I am not sure about WoW's policy on that.

 

[Jabrosky]

Your opening does remind me a little bit of the infamous "starting with a dream" trope, but your mileage may vary on whether that infamy is justified.

I'm more pessimistic about the whole premise of a modern-day gamer being dropped into a high fantasy world resembling their favorite MMORPG. We may have all daydreamed about being dropped into our favorite video games/movies/books and fighting alongside their heroes (and maybe romancing the characters we crush on), but somehow I doubt most of us would last long in an environment with such a severe violence:modern convenience ratio. If you're working with the stereotypical affluent, suburban teenager, they'd probably get themselves killed before they even had time to whine about how the new world they discovered isn't as fun as they expected.

Unless you're consciously trying to poke fun at such fantasies, in which case I say go right ahead!

 

[Devor]

This reminds me of the opening scene from a movie - Team America (let's have it go without comment, please) - that is done with puppets, but opens with two really horrible old fashioned puppets dangling in front of a painting. The camera then zooms out to reveal that it's part of a "French Puppeteer" puppet character.

It also reminds me of Video Game High School, which opens with a gunshooting scene that happens in-game. I'll go ahead and link to that one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JqR3GVqib4

My takeaway from these two examples is this: Do it. But you need to make sure that there's enough "wrong" with the scene to make readers curious and just slightly suspicious about what's up, so that the ending is more of an "Ohh, that's what it is!" for readers than a "What the hell?" reaction.

Also, the actual events of the scene need to be 100% relevant - maybe they chat about important things, or they start to show patterns of behavior that will play out later.

 

[Xitra_Blud]

Your opening does remind me a little bit of the infamous "starting with a dream" trope, but your mileage may vary on whether that infamy is justified.

I'm more pessimistic about the whole premise of a modern-day gamer being dropped into a high fantasy world resembling their favorite MMORPG. We may have all daydreamed about being dropped into our favorite video games/movies/books and fighting alongside their heroes (and maybe romancing the characters we crush on), but somehow I doubt most of us would last long in an environment with such a severe violence:modern convenience ratio. If you're working with the stereotypical affluent, suburban teenager, they'd probably get themselves killed before they even had time to whine about how the new world they discovered isn't as fun as they expected.

Unless you're consciously trying to poke fun at such fantasies, in which case I say go right ahead!

She's not dropped into that particular game or world. I just have her play WoW to show you the kind of nerdy character she is. She's actually dropped into a world that I created with creatures I've made up and besides the fact it has a fantasy setting, it's really nothing like WoW. She's not a teenager. She's an adult. Her character is supposed to be, for lack of a better way to say this, a "loser that lives in her mom's basement". Being stuck in the fantasy world definitely was not something she wanted. It happened mysteriously and her goal is to find out what happened and why she is there. When she first gets there, she does have trouble as far as surviving and this part plays out more like the movie "Cast Away" rather than your typical fantasy, but that issue is taken care of by what I will not disclose (I don't like putting too much info about my stories online). Part of my goal with it is to be comedic and make fun of stuff like "Chronicles of the Narnia" and "The Wizard of Oz", but it's also a bit dark and creepy in many parts and often drifts over to dark fantasy. I definitely would not call it a kid's story, anyway.

 

[FarmerBrown]

Just curious, have you watched any Sword Art Online? If not, I think you should. Just the first few episodes anyway.

I think it's a great idea and I wouldn't feel deceived as a reader! I can see how some might get a little confused (especially non-gamers) but don't think it would cause many to put it down after chapter one.

 

[Penpilot]

I just have her play WoW to show you the kind of nerdy character she is.

If you're hiding that it's a game then the whole purpose about showing her to a nerdy character kind of goes out the door for most of the scene, don't you think?

If reader is fooled into thinking that it's a fantasy world and not a game world, they won't be thinking along the lines of her being nerdy at all. The reader will be thinking her to be what ever she is in the game.

I mean when I think about it, if it's known that she's just playing WoW right off the bat, there's so much more that can be shown in the scene other than her being nerdy. How she plays the game, all evil or all honorable, can reveal a lot about her personality. What character class she chooses to play can say a lot about her, dreams and desires. You can also be contrasting her epic deeds in the game versus her mundane life in the real world.


But if the game aspect is kept from the reader, I think some of those things can get overshadowed by the trick of it was just a game.

I'm not saying don't do it, but I'd say really think hard about what you're trying to achieve in this scene and what you gain versus what you loose in hiding that it's just a game.

 

[TheCatholicCrow]

There's so much more that can be shown in the scene other than her being nerdy. How she plays the game, all evil or all honorable, can reveal a lot about her personality. What character class she chooses to play can say a lot about her, dreams and desires. You can also be contrasting her epic deeds in the game versus her mundane life in the real world.

I agree. Personally, I always play LoL as a bottom support. I try like crazy to keep my teammates alive. When I play w my brothers I'm always reminded how competitive and vicious they can be (as gamers). They literally lead me into ambushes & use me as bait to distract the other side or to annoy me. (Not so noble.)

If you have a couple hours to spare I very highly recommend watching the movie "BenX" (on Netflix which makes it convenient for those of us w non-European regional DVD players). I don't want to give away too much but it's about an autistic young man who (obviously) has a difficult time relating to people in reality but thrives in gaming. The film is pretty unique from anything else I've ever seen (one of my personal favorites). Sometimes it switches back and forth b/n his games, his real life experiences, and him coping with reality by imagining himself in the game/as his character.

I really like the idea of showing more about your character based on how and why they game rather than just that they do. IMO the more focus you can place on these factors the more meaningful it will become to your story.

I'm much less familiar w WoW but I'm assuming it functions similarly to other games (w free range options & goals- right?). Does your character go for OP or support/healing? Does she play w strangers or friends? For competition or fun?

I think it won't feel "cheap" to the reader if you clue them into the fact that it's a game (at least w/in the first 5 pages) ...

 

[TheCatholicCrow]

Looked it up on Amazon - it's actually a Region 1 DVD (US & Canada). I assumed that because it's in Flemish it'd be a Region 2 disc.

 

[Philip Overby]

I personally don't like "fake out" stories, but that's me. I guess it goes back to Super Mario 2 being all a dream. That really pissed me off when I was a kid. But the suggestion to drop hints that it's a game will make it more satisfying to the reader at the end if you go with that way. Just little things that seem off in a regular fantasy world, if that makes sense. ("Ah, I thought you were dead," she said. "I saw a giant boar trample you." "Not the first time that's happened," he said.) It also depends on if the main character acts like they would in a game or acting like they would in real life (if it were a fantasy world.)

So I'm all for the idea if you drop little clever hints and it ends up being a game. If it plays out just like a regular fantasy story and it was just a game all along, then I wouldn't be as satisfied with that ending.