Games and books have a lot in common. They can be tools for learning, as well as avenues for entertainment (See the game/app Zombies, Run! for an example of a game that also motivates people to stay active). They can be physical and digital. And sometimes the lines between them can even be blurred.
Because of all these similarities, there are a lot of book and game issues that overlap. For example, game developers worry about piracy, just as book publishers do. One game publisher, Paradox, tackled the piracy issue by “offering a superior service to piracy,” according to Kotaku. They did this by offering periodic free updates to the game.
The startup Product Hunt works with their active community to discuss and vote up product recommendations. Fortune reported that the company started with a games vertical, and then more recently launched a books vertical, aiming “to become the Oprah Book Club of Silicon Valley.” And they’re not the only company to mix games and books. In 2013, Nintendo 3DS opened up an ebookstore.
But the biggest thing games and books have in common is that they are storytelling mediums. Sure, they use different approaches. For some great examples of games with strong stories, read The Guardian’s “The first great works of digital literature are already being written,” where the author cites 10 examples of games that play with experimental literature, heavy themes of mortality, and more.
Have any examples of powerful stories told via games? Please share in the comments!
