ABSTRACT
Basic Differences The most important difference between fi lms and games is that, in games, the viewer clearly controls the camera and/or its movement. A theatrical fi lm is linear and is watched passively; the viewer does not have control of its progression (except for simple linear operations like pause and rewind). Games are generally nonlinear, meaning that they will be slightly different every time. Even games that have linear levels can be different each time because of the freedom of movement the viewer/player has and the accumulation of all of the random factors, such as artifi cial intelligence (AI)-driven character movements or other players’ actions. Films are more predictable to make because the various steps of creation, from script to storyboard to previs to fi nal shot process for the entire fi lm, will end up as expected-in general. Games have so many unknowns and variables that typically the fi nal result is quite different from the original concept. Everything is refi ned to enhance the fun factor and is in a constant state of fl ux and fi ne-tuning until the very last second.
