Lessons of the Future: The Boon and Bane of the Esoteric (Ready Player One)

In all forms of art, there are small groups of people that have and understand the information in that medium. Illustrators know painters, CG artists know animators, etc. The same applies to any interest group such as people who read comic books, play video games, watch cult films, and so on. When writing stories for animation and film, we can play to the interests of these people, but watch out, there is a boon and a bane to using esoteric language.

When using jargon that only a small group will understand, make sure that your slang language doesn’t wreck your storytelling. If used correctly, esoteric references can have a huge impact on your audience. That same language can also be confusing or add absolutely nothing to the experience of an outsider. The boon of using a reference to another work is that if your audience understands your reference (in a positive manner) they will feel more attached to your story. As if they are bonding to your story like an old friend. This can exponentially increase the entertainment value of your piece. In Ready Player One, there are loads of references to 70s and 80s games and films. One reference that was a boon for me, was the allusion to Dune. The OASIS in Ready Player One is divided into planets and Wade mentions that Arrakis is one of them. On the other hand, references can harm our storytelling or add nothing at all. A personal example of this is when Wade has to go through a couple of trials to gain the crystal key. Part of the trial was about Wade finding a whistle in a cereal box that had to do with a text-based game called Zork. I had to have a friend explain to me what it was. In the end, it was like explaining a joke, no longer effective after explained. Try to use references to get the audience on your side but not to actually tell the story.

Remember to tread easily with esoteric language but don’t forget how powerful it can be. Feed on nostalgia but avoid alienating or confusing your audience. Play to the interests of small groups in hope of catching their attention but remember not to diminish your audience size by only relating to that small demographic.