| dc.description.abstract | In this thesis, I argue that the audio-driven experience of playing a tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) is central to defining transmedia storytelling entries based on TTRPGs. Traditionally, transmedia storytelling has been defined by narrative cohesion across entries (Jenkins, 2006). However, this becomes problematic with media like TTRPGs, which are inherently designed for narrative divergence. I propose that it is the experience, the meta-layer beneath the narrative, that should define transmedia storytelling.
Each medium brings its own affordances, constraints, expectations, and conventions that must be negotiated to create a meaningful, mediated expression of the original experience. To illustrate this, I examine the role-playing video game Baldur’s Gate 3 (BG3) and its source material, Dungeons & Dragons (D&D). This analysis draws from (ludo)musicology research, sound studies, game studies, and transmedia theory, as music and sound function procedurally to convince the player of the video game’s transmedial connection to its TTRPG origin.
Using an autoethnographic approach, I investigate the soundscape of BG3 in relation to that of tabletop D&D. I show that through procedural rhetoric (Bogost, 2007), the game emulates the tabletop experience in a mediatized way that aligns with both the video game format and the social, sonic environment of the tabletop D&D experience.
D&D is a communication-heavy, multiplayer experience where the Game Master (GM) serves as the narrator giving access to the storyworld, filtering the story through narrative design. BG3 mirrors this through environmental storytelling and audio-driven narrative design, such as directing the player via sonic cues. Meta-actions, metacognition (Leon & Lipuma, 2024), and verbal descriptions are translated into user interface elements, sound effects, and human speech. Fellow players at the tabletop are replaced by companions who react to player choices and express distinct goals. Finally, the plesiochronal nature of music in tabletop D&D is echoed in BG3 through sparse synchronization, emphasizing key events. | |
