Problems with the current transmedia state: Part 1

As I mentioned in my last post, transmedia storytelling is the process of telling a narrative through multiple mediums and sources; but, how effective are transmedia stories? Do they work as a form of storytelling, do they satisfy the new requirements of multi-screen audiences?

In my opinion, no, they don't - at least not yet. Transmedia storytelling is still a fairly new technique, and like with any new system or process, it takes time to work out just how it can work, and how it can function at its best. Current efforts at transmedia stories are having varied levels of success, but in my mind they aren't reaching their full potential.

I'm going to take a look at two franchises, Defiance and Halo 4, both recent forays into transmedia storytelling that highlight some of the issues with current transmedia efforts.

'Defiance' and 'Halo 4', breaking media boundaries?

Defiance, one of the first properties to be specifically pitched and created as a transmedia franchise, is a Sci-Fi TV show and online multiplayer game that takes place on a future, radically terra-formed Earth, that finds humans co-existing with an alien species.

The show is broadcast on the SyFy channel whilst the game is available across consoles and on PC. Players can watch the show, which develops the story of Defiance, and then play in that same world and meet the same characters that the TV show establishes. The way it works is that events in the show have an effect on the game world, but don't actively effect the players character or goal.

Halo 4 is a first person shooter (FPS) game, the fourth in the Halo Series of videogames. It is now accompanied by Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn, a web-series (and now full length film) available online, on DVD/Blu-Ray and on Netflix. The film acts as a precursor to events of the game, and its success has led to the creation of Halo: The TV Series, which is currently in development.

The reasoning behind both of these franchises is simple: broaden the audience of a TV show, and of a video game, by bringing the two together. Science Fiction lends itself well to transmedia because the genre itself often creates large fan-bases, and therefore the biggest opportunity for tie-in content and the biggest chance that TV fans will also be gamers, or comic book readers, or web-TV watchers. It's not surprising that Sci-Fi franchises find it easy to make the leap from traditional entity to transmedia property.

Sci-Fi Fandom, the perfect market for transmedia franchises?

My issue with this though, is that by broadening the world of a niche game or TV show you merely adopt the same audience for a different format. Sadly the figures aren't available, but realistically what percentage of Defiance's viewership will be the gamers who invest in the universe? How many non-Halo fans will choose to watch the Halo web or TV series?

Of course, creating one story through multiple mediums is the point of transmedia storytelling – my issue isn't with these franchises attempting to broaden their narrative, it's with their approach. Defiance could have become a gateway for non-gamers to 'experiment' with video games. Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn could have brought in a new audience to the Halo Series, but sadly because of their marketing and production they merely attract an audience who is already there.

One of the key ways I feel Defiance and Halo 4 have neglected the possibilities of transmedia is through their design. Take a look at the trailer for Defiance below, and also at the comparison shots of Halo 4 and Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn.

 

Similarities in the visual styles between halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn and 'Halo 4' the game.

The trailer for Defiance screams 'video game' – everything from the special effects, the character and monster design right down to the dialogue and even the format of the show (which, admittedly, is less apparent in the trailer), is designed to emulate the feel of playing a game.

The same can be said for Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn; the use of 'Heads Up Display' (HUD) shots in the film are made to copy the HUD you see whilst playing the game. The costume design, the dialogue, and again the format of the film, is all made to seem like a game.

At this stage it seems easy to criticise, but where is the solution? What can be done and why should anything be done? Well, for that you'll have to wait for my next post, in which I'll be answering those questions by giving an overview of my own ideas for a transmedia property centred on the Harry Potter universe.