Emergent Narrative and Affect

Abstract

The battle was not going well. Our team was pinned down by two enemy sniper squads. After a few failed attempts at re-capturing an objective we had lost to the enemy, I decided to go on a solo mission in a desperate attempt at turning the tide of battle. I took a long route around the edge of the battlefield, deploying smoke grenades in open areas to mask my flanking manoeuvre. Red dots flashed on my mini-map, indicating a multitude of enemies close to me. My heart racing I made my way stealthily behind enemy lines. I spotted a crane in the middle of a large construction site with a vantage point on the two sniper squads. I ran from cover to cover and made my way up the ladder, fearing I would be spotted and shot; all the effort going to waste. I made it to the top and took out my binoculars, tagging enemies where I could see them. Then I pulled out my sniper rifle, and both me and my avatar took a deep breath in. I aimed, accounting for the distance and pressed the trigger. Headshot. My sights shifted left and spotted another sniper. Another headshot. Four more went down, before word got out and the other targets I had marked disappeared into cover. Then the loud crack of an AK47 made me jump out of my seat. A red dot flashed on the mini-map, right at my position. I looked down and just a few metres away at ground level an enemy trooper was crouched behind a container firing. Without thinking I stood up, backed up a few metres, then sprinted down the crane rigging and jumped off the edge, opening my chute at the last minute for a few seconds, and landing right behind the enemy soldier, knifing him in the back and running off into the building site.