The narrative structure of mass effect 3 and its potential as an ESL teaching and learning tool in narrative writing

Abstract

Video games have become a big part of a student’s life. With the influence of massively marketed commercial games, teachers can no longer ignore the role it plays in the student’s overall development. This research seeks to examine the nature of narrative structure which is present in commercial video games and link it to the narrative which is typically employed during the teaching and learning of narrative writing and of the English language in general. The game writers may or may not be aware that the narrative structure they applied in their game script are being subconsciously absorbed by players to develop narrative writing structures of their own. Therefore this research aims to: (i) examine the narrative structures used in the Mass Effect 3 video game, (ii) to identify the similarities and differences of Mass Effect 3's narrative structure and conventional narrative structures and (iii) to examine the suitability of video games to used as a teaching tool in an ESL classroom. This research utilized a qualitative research design which uses a structural analysis method as well as a survey using questionnaire with the players and developers. This research was done using the Sony PlayStation 3 gaming console and Bioware Inc’s Mass Effect 3 video game. The findings from the research showed that the Mass Effect 3 video game fulfills the narrative criteria and that the narrative structure used in the Mass Effect 3 video game closely resembles the narrative theories of film as well as the video game industry. The game uses a unique triple-climax feature and giving players the freedom of choice in its narrative to create an interactive, immersive experience. In addition, positive feedback was obtained from the gamers with regards to the story of Mass Effect 3 helping them in their learning of narrative writing due to the immersive and relaxing nature of the Mass Effect 3 video game. From the results of this research, English teachers will be able to tap into the vii educational potential of commercial video games to further enrich their writing class. It challenges ESL teachers to break out of their traditional methodologies and use commercial video games as a tool to make the students’ learning experience more interesting and meaningful by supplementing in-class lessons with video games.