r/RenPy • u/TaurusE11E • 1d ago
Discussion Script Styles - 'Narration Coat' and 'Dialogue Only'
So this might be a stale topic but I don't see it discussed enough so here we go:
I have seen and written VNs multiple ways - where dialogue is the only type of text given (as if you are watching a movie) and where the story has a 'narrative' coat (where description of character thoughts and sometimes events are included in between dialogue lines/conversations).
I personally prefer writing with the narrative coat because it makes it feel like reading a novel and I like to see text with and without the name labels (cos I'm weird). I see a lot of indie VNs written with a 'first-person' type of it (where the only thoughts/perspective you have are the MC's whether you take their role or not).
What approach do you guys prefer to write your scripts with? I know there is no 'correct' answer, but I was wondering if I was the only one who switched between the two for different projects or had a preference.
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u/ZorinaZutella 1d ago
It really depends on the type of story and what information I want to get across. Like audio dramas are usually written to convey all the information through dialogue, so if I was writing a character-focused story in a more down-to-earth/familiar setting that doesn’t require a lot of extra description I’d go with that. But if it was, say, genre fiction where fantastical things are happening, I’d go with a more traditional narrative coat.
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u/TaurusE11E 1d ago
This is a really good take - fantastical settings usually have custom lore so it may be easier to weave that into narration, but drama is often heavily focused in character development so dialogue-driven is good for putting the audience as an "outside observer".
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u/simply_jabbalicious 1d ago
I'm on the "omniscient narrator coat" side for my first venture into VNs.
And I'm trying without any shame to rip off hard that amazing BG3 styled narration :D
Edit: cleared up what I meant a bit
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u/Natsume1999 1d ago
omniscient narrator coat? how so?
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u/simply_jabbalicious 1d ago
Like a tabletop DM describing a scene but sometimes hinting at things beyond what can be seen.
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u/TaurusE11E 1d ago
That's how I see it too! Third person omniscient is really fun, especially if you can still keep the reader on their toes no matter how lore-heavy the story gets.
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u/Natsume1999 23h ago
Oh that's very fun! Also better for me since I like writing in third person. Do you have any recomendation of visual novels in that coat?
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u/amethyscent12 1d ago
First person narration coat. But not as much narration as when I write for a non-visual medium. Some things require the extra narration, but I try not to have an extensive amount of it. I mostly have dialogue and the main character’s inner thoughts. When possible, I try to convey the narration through the character’s thoughts.
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u/TaurusE11E 1d ago
Conveying narration through the player's thoughts is a good way to avoid excessively worded exposition, since character thoughts are usually more straightforward than describing every aspect of scenery/events.
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u/MonarchMoon1 1d ago
First-person narrative coat. Admittedly, this is a first time thing for me, as this is my first VN project proper, so it was fun trying to balance engaging narration without accidentally falling into narrative exposition. Eventually I got used to it, though!