https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwlnCn2EB9o

• Primarily used to tell a story from before you got to a space
• Can also tell a story of what happened since you last visited a space
• Can also be used to direct gameplay by teaching, informing and navigating the player and more

The wider picture of using environmental storytelling

• The traditional definition of environmental storytelling is the most high level and most granular part of using the environment to tell a story. These small stories need to work with the location they are set in and the world that location is a part of.
• High level - small stories being told through a specific part of the environment like individual objects, people, etc
• Mid level/level design - the small stories fit into the wider location and location including its purpose, architecture, layout, atmosphere, style, etc
• Low level/worldbuilding - these locations are part of the key aspects of the story such as history, organisations, themes, rules, etc

Using the environment to convey an emotion in the immediate story, instead of an external story

• The environment can also tell stories about the player themselves
• It can be used to convey an emotion that the player should be feeling and therefore tell part of the story of the character the player is occupying
• Bioware level designer Dave Felton talked about two tools they used:
  • Emotion charts: break the level down into sections, decide what theme should be conveyed in each section, and decide which emotion the player should be feeling for that section
  • Intensity charts: You can also apply a desired intensity to each section. This can be checked and adjusted based on playtesting where players will describe how intense they found each section.

The environment can help define how the player takes on the role of their character

• This is primarily done by game mechanics that can reward or punish a player for their actions
• But the environment along with the stories and emotions it creates can influence a players actions without any need to tangible mechanics