The question of how it is games and narrative intersect is a particularly contentious one, especially within the field of game studies (Juul, 2001; Frasca, 2003; Pearce, 2005; Murray, 2005). This “divisive question” (Jenkins, 2004, p. 118) sits at the heart of the ludology/narratology debate that continues to recur among game studies scholars, a debate that seeks to define the specific relationship between video games and narrative—a debate that inspired Zimmerman (2004) to ask, “But what would it mean to take a closer look at games and stories?” (p. 154). Zimmerman’s question highlights the ways game studies scholars interrogate the intersection of games and stories as well as how this intersection informs the study and development of games. From the early days of cybertext and the ergodic debates to Ian Bogost (2017) recently claiming narrative is unnecessary, the question of how games function with and around narrative continues to haunt the field of game studies and the industry itself.
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