5 Environmental Storytelling Techniques Every Game Writer MUST Know

Environmental storytelling is one of the most powerful tools in game design—and one of the most immersive forms of narrative. It delivers information through the environment itself, the game’s world—without relying on other forms such as cutscenes, dialogue, or traditional exposition.

It communicates information through world design—via architecture, prop placement, lighting, spatial arrangement, audio cues, enemy/NPC positioning, among others. It shifts storytelling from a passive experience to an active one, where players uncover story through, how I like to refer to as E.O.I., exploration, observation, and interpretation.

What makes environmental storytelling distinct is how deeply it aligns with the language of games as a medium. Unlike linear forms like film or literature, environmental storytelling invites participation. It rewards curiosity, reinforces gameplay loops, and supports nonlinear worldbuilding through what some designers describe as narrative stratigraphy—the layering of cultural, historical, and emotional information into the physical space itself. When done well, the result is what we call narrative osmosis: the gradual assimilation of the story simply by being present in the space.

This approach is practical and has been successfully used in games like Dark Souls, BioShock, God of War, and Uncharted, where narrative is embedded directly into the spatial design. These games demonstrate how environmental storytelling doesn’t just support the narrative; it IS the narrative.

After analyzing some of the strongest use cases in game development, this article outlines five essential environmental storytelling techniques that every narrative designer and game writer must know, and why mastering them will turn your work into something greater.

1. LEVEL DESIGN

Environmental storytelling starts with spatial expression—how shapes, scale, and form communicate emotional tone. This is a foundational part of narrative osmosis, particularly its subtle form: how players feel about a space before they consciously understand why.

In Uncharted 4, level designer Emilia Schatz uses narrow, constrained corridors early in a level to induce pressure and anxiety. As the level progresses and the player overcomes challenges, the space opens into wide, sunlit vistas. The architecture becomes a symbolic mirror for emotional progression.

In God of War, when Atreus disappears, the path that players must follow tightens. There is fog now and dead ends start to appear. Once Kratos finds him, the fog clears and the space opens. Relief is delivered through layout.

Design Principle: Use layout and geometry to reinforce emotional tone. Let the environment reflect character psychology and narrative arcs.

2. NARRATIVE PROPS

Environmental storytelling is in small details like blood on the floor, a broken chair, a toy left behind. These moments exemplify narrative stratigraphy: environmental layers that reflect unseen events.

In Dark Souls, the Undead Dragon isn’t just a monster, it’s a symbol of decay and sorrow. Its slumped body tells the story of a once-great creature now wasting away. Miyazaki, the game’s director, rejected an earlier design to focus on this tragic feeling, so he turned the enemy into something emotional. This is an example of how visual storytelling can evoke deep emotions. Games like Fallout do the same with skeletons and debris to tell stories, a couple holding hands in a disintegrating bed or a family hiding in a bomb shelter.

Design Principle: Think like an archaeologist! Treat every asset like an artifact.

3. ITEM DESCRIPTIONS

Item descriptions are often the most direct form of blunt narrative osmosis. They supplement environmental cues with lore fragments that reward player curiosity and pattern recognition.

We can talk about Dark Souls. A robe stained with blood suggests servitude or violence. A discarded blade is an indirect indication of a fallen knight. On their own, these details mean little, but when connected, they reveal so much more. This method encourages nonlinear discovery. Players are not force-fed exposition. They build the story themselves, piece by piece, turning passive acquisition into active engagement.

Design Principle: Write item texts that imply more than they explain. They should spark questions that can only be answered through exploration.

4. ENEMY/NPC PLACEMENT

Enemy design and placement can serve as stratigraphic storytelling—a term from archaeology, where deeper layers reveal older histories. Similarly, enemy locations can reflect layers of narrative: who controls an area, what happened there, or how things have changed over time.

Sen’s Fortress in Dark Souls is a great example:

– Undead knights are former warriors who failed the trial. They mark the path of those who didn’t make it.
– Giant sentries operate traps and defenses, which suggests that the fortress was built as a deliberate test.
– Titanite demons are  intimidating foes, invaders that are physical evidence of the world’s collapse and deterioration.
– Snake warriors, also found in Seath’s lab, imply he placed them there to guard access to Anor Londo.

Each enemy group reflects a different narrative layer. 

Design Principle: Use the enemies’ placement, appearance, and behavior to show how the world works, or how it may have fallen apart.

5. SAFE ZONES

Few moments in games are more powerful than when the rules of a space change. Safe zones, like camps or checkpoints, become emotionally connected through narrative osmosis—players associate them with comfort, control, and rhythm. Taking that away creates an immediate response.

In Dark Souls, Firelink Shrine is your central hub. It’s warm, safe, familiar, until it isn’t. When you return and the bonfire is out and the firekeeper is no longer there, it’s not just a mechanical shift. It’s psychological. And suddenly, the world feels less trustworthy. This moment pushes players to investigate organically.

Design Principle: Use safe zones as narrative anchors then break them strategically to trigger players. This shock motivates them emotionally (e.g., anger, grief, urgency) and often sends them on a new quest or mystery to solve (Who did this? Why? How can I fix it?).