Pedagogical video game environments have the potential to be immersive instruments through which students can develop critical thinking skills and interact with content in greater depth and sophistication than typically afforded by classroom instruction. In these settings, narrative is frequently employed to contextualize the player's actions, and is often used to communicate vital information. However, such environments can be complex in nature, containing high element interactivity arising from non-intuitive game controls.

The present research study explored how educational gaming environments can be designed to not only leverage narrative as a cognitive aid, but do so in a way that caters to both experienced and novice game-playing students. Using a 3 x 2 factorial design, the effects of Narrative (present vs. not present) were studied within the context of three different types of Game-Orientation Training (pre-game, in-game, or none)—each of which were designed to scaffold the player on how to move and interact in the environment. Participants were randomly assigned to one of six treatments consisting of a 3-D educational video game that offered instruction on electrical devices and circuits. The effects of narrative and game-orientation training were evaluated in terms of in-game performance of educational tasks, the amount of instructional guidance sought, posttest performance in recalling and transferring learned content, narrative awareness, and player attitude.

Results indicated that students in the narrative treatment groups were significantly more efficient in their employment of instructional constructs when completing in-game tasks compared to those in the non-narrative groups who tended more toward trial and error. Additionally, students in the narrative groups exhibited significantly greater levels of enjoyment for the game. Although not statistically significant, trends indicated that participants in the narrative treatments performed better on the posttest, took less time to complete the game, and perceived reduced levels of intrinsic cognitive load while playing the game compared to those in the non-narrative groups.

Overall, this study served as a launching point for future research into how narrative and training can serve to enhance learning and performance in educational games.