A lot of the games we know and love are well-written pieces of fantasy or science fiction. Whether it be the sweeping scale of the Final Fantasy games or even the FPS goodness that is the Half-Life series, games are emerging as another medium for valid artistic expression.

You cannot, however, make a good game without an ample story to immerse players in it. The International Game Developers Association, or IGDA, has come out with a new book to help inspire and teach a new breed of literary talent: writers for video games.

"Game Writing: Narrative Skills for Videogames" talks about the field of game writing from the point of view of real game writers, showing you the difference of writing for the gaming medium to other media, as well as teaching you how to write appropriately within the context of video games.

It should prove to be an entertaining read, not only for writers who want to get into the field of game writing, but also for the insight it offers into the creative process of game-making.

So before going out to buy the book, you might want to check out the review first and excerpts from the first chapter. Keep checking QJ though, as we'll provide news of the latest IGDA book releases when we have them.