The Five-Act Structure

Arcade games use storytelling through background, dialog text, and cutscenes to develop the narrative of a game. One narrative structure that can be used in game development is the five-act structure:

Introduction
Conflict
Climax
Consequences
Resolution

After developing the overall story for the game, the designer works to translate the story into code. This involves introducing the story and characters in Act 1, designing the gameplay for Acts 2 & 3, and planning win/loss conditions that will determine how Acts 4 & 5 play out.