The Last Of Us (2013)

The concept of the Hero’s Journey (also called the Monomyth) has served as a narrative framework for many generations. First codified by Joseph Campbell in 1949, the 17 stages of The Hero’s Journey usually surround the events of one or more characters that go through an adventure, face a set of crises, and return home changed or transformed. While sometimes seen as clichéd, such stories captivate the human mind and we almost always seem invariably drawn to such plots. The structure is seen throughout Hollywood blockbusters and New York Times bestsellers. In the realm of interactive narratives, it is not uncommon to see the Hero’s Journey being used as the backbone for the narrative of a game to rest upon. This structure inherently allows for better player immersion and as such, is preferred by game developers when creating narrative-heavy gameplay. By allowing the player to be a part of the journey in parallel to the main character, the monomyth becomes better at providing the player with a sense of completion and satisfaction when the narrative is resolved at the end of the game.

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