protagonist ‘ Mae Borowski ’ - a female anthropomorphised catthat returns to her hometown ‘ Possum Springs ’ after dropping out of college . In doing so , she begins to reconnect with her old friends and decides to investigate to see if there really is a ghost in the town after a mysterious event . The main form of gameplay involves exploring the in-game town and interacting with other non-playable characters as the narrative progresses .
Both of these games are beloved for their many unique characters and identities . Also , they both allow players to make clear choices that affect the outcome of the narrative . By exploring how both of these independent games represent character identity , this essay will explore how music can affect and contribute to the construction of videogame character identities .
The Role Of Character Identity And Music In Videogames : Character identity and identification is key to getting players immersed into a videogame ’ s narrative and
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gameplay . Identification can be defined as ‘ the experiential merger ’ of the player and a character within a game ( Klimmt , et al . 2010 , p . 324 ). Through controlling and merging with the protagonist , players can actively engage with the characters in the game . When identifying with a character , players gain admiration for that character and in turn adopt their goals and emotions ( Cohen , 2001 ; Oatley , 1994 ). Thus , they can more effectively identify with the characters when compared to more traditional mediums .
Identification with a videogame character requires an ‘ extreme absorption in the text and involves an intense emotional experience ’ ( Cohen , 2001 , p . 253 ). Music is a significant component in creating an intense emotional experience that facilitates character identification . For example , within ‘ Undertale ’ ( Toby Fox , 2015 ) the engaging and upbeat music associated with the character Papyruswho is a skeleton monster that constantly challenges the human protagonist with humorous puzzles- allows
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