Snake Story: Exploring Game Mechanics for Mixed-Initiative Co-creative Storytelling Games
<|reference_start|>Snake Story: Exploring Game Mechanics for Mixed-Initiative Co-creative Storytelling Games: Mixed-initiative co-creative storytelling games have existed for some time as a way to merge storytelling with play. However, modern mixed-initiative co-creative storytelling games predominantly prioritize story creation over gameplay mechanics, which might not resonate with all players. As such, there is untapped potential for creating mixed-initiative games with more complex mechanics in which players can engage with both co-creation and gameplay goals. To explore the potential of more prominent gameplay in mixed-initiative co-creative storytelling games, we created Snake Story, a variation of the classic Snake game featuring a human-AI co-writing element. To explore how players interact with the mixed-initiative game, we conducted a qualitative playtest with 11 participants. Analysis of both think-aloud and interview data revealed that players' strategies and experiences were affected by their perception of Snake Story as either a collaborative tool, a traditional game, or a combination of both. Based on these findings, we present design considerations for future development in mixed-initiative co-creative gaming.<|reference_end|>
@article{yang2024snake,
    title={Snake Story: Exploring Game Mechanics for Mixed-Initiative Co-creative
  Storytelling Games},
    author={Daijin Yang, Erica Kleinman, Giovanni Maria Troiano, Elina
  Tochilnikova, Casper Harteveld},
    journal={arXiv preprint arXiv:2404.07901},
    year={2024},
    doi={10.1145/3649921.3649996},
    archivePrefix={arXiv},
    eprint={2404.07901},
    primaryClass={cs.HC}
}