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Journals / Intermedia International e-Journal / 2026 / Cilt: 13 Sayı: 24

Expanding Network Narrative: The Impact of Social Networks on Meaning Construction in Cinematic Digital Games - The Analysis of Detroit: Become Human

Ağ Anlatıyı Genişletmek: Sinematik Dijital Oyunlarda Sosyal Ağların Anlam İnşasına Etkisi Üzerine Detroit: Become Human İncelemesi

Berkan Şahin Keleş(BEYKENT ÜNİVERSİTESİ)0000-0001-5288-1872
Gözde Sunal(ISTANBUL COMMERCE UNIVERSITY)0000-0002-9535-5714
Pages
262–283
Publication Date
2026-06-30
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

The study concludes with a proposed “Digital-Social Network Narrative Model” that integrates formal network structure with social network content.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

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Objective & Hypothesis:This study questions why player comments and collective meaning-making processes generated on social networks should be considered in the analysis of network narrative structures in cinematic digital games.
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Key Findings & Data:To address this gap in the literature, player comments on the game Detroit: Become Human (Quantic Dream, 2018) on the Steam platform were analyzed using the Constructivist Grounded Theory method.
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Conclusion & Impact:The study concludes with a proposed “Digital-Social Network Narrative Model” that integrates formal network structure with social network content.
🔬Design:Review & Systematic Survey
📍Scope:2018 Verileri
⚙️Variables:Ağ Anlatı · Dijital Oyunlar · Yapılandırmacı Gömülü Kuram

Abstract

This study questions why player comments and collective meaning-making processes generated on social networks should be considered in the analysis of network narrative structures in cinematic digital games. The dominant formal network narrative analysis examples encountered in the literature treat the narrative as a structural framework through nodes, edges, and paths. However, these studies encountered during the review process fall short of explaining how the player experiences this structure, how they emotionally appropriate it, and how they transform it on social networks. To address this gap in the literature, player comments on the game Detroit: Become Human (Quantic Dream, 2018) on the Steam platform were analyzed using the Constructivist Grounded Theory method. Systematic coding of 75 user comments revealed that players shaped the narrative around five main categories: Narrative Appropriation and Emotional Investment, Interface and System Intervention in the Narrative, Collective Narrative Positioning, Desire to Fill and Complete the Narrative Gap, and Post-Narrative Lasting Impact. These categories empirically reveal the shortcomings of formal network narrative analysis in explaining player experience. More importantly, however, they demonstrate that the inclusion of social network data in network narrative analyses is a methodological necessity. The study concludes with a proposed “Digital-Social Network Narrative Model” that integrates formal network structure with social network content.

Özet

Bu çalışma, sinematik dijital oyunlardaki ağ anlatı yapılarının analizinde, sosyal ağlarda üretilen oyuncu yorumlarının ve kolektif anlam inşa süreçlerinin neden hesaba katılması gerektiğini sorgulamaktadır. Literatürde karşılaşılan ve hâkim olan biçimsel ağ anlatı analizi örnekleri anlatıyı düğümler, kenarlar ve yollar üzerinden yapısal bir çerçeve olarak ele almaktadır. Ancak tarama esnasında karşılaşılan bu çalışmalar oyuncunun bu yapıyı nasıl deneyimlediğini, duygusal olarak nasıl sahiplendiğini ve sosyal ağlarda nasıl dönüştürdüğünü açıklamakta yetersiz kalmaktadır. Literatürdeki bu boşluğu gidermek amacıyla, Detroit: Become Human (Quantic Dream, 2018) oyununa dair Steam platformundaki oyuncu yorumları, Yapılandırmacı Gömülü Kuram yöntemiyle analiz edilmiştir. 75 kullanıcı yorumunun sistematik kodlaması sonucunda, oyuncuların anlatıyı beş ana kategori etrafında şekillendirdiği tespit edilmiştir: Anlatısal Sahiplenme ve Duygusal Yatırım, Arayüz ve Sistemin Anlatıya Müdahalesi, Kolektif Anlatı Konumlandırması, Anlatı Boşluğunu Doldurma ve Tamamlama Arzusu, Anlatı Sonrası Kalıcı Etki. Bu kategoriler, biçimsel ağ anlatı analizinin oyuncu deneyimini açıklamakta yetersiz kaldığı noktaları ampirik olarak ortaya koymaktadır. Fakat daha önemlisi, ağ anlatı çözümlemelerine sosyal ağ verilerinin dahil edilmesinin metodolojik bir zorunluluk olduğunu göstermektedir. Çalışma, biçimsel ağ yapısı ile sosyal ağ içeriklerini bütünleştiren “Dijital-Sosyal Ağ Anlatı Modeli” önerisiyle sonuçlanmaktadır.

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Cite This Article

Keleş, B. Ş., Sunal, G. (2026). Expanding Network Narrative: The Impact of Social Networks on Meaning Construction in Cinematic Digital Games - The Analysis of Detroit: Become Human. Intermedia International e-Journal, Cilt: 13 Sayı: 24, 262–283. https://doi.org/10.56133/intermedia.1936971

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