amok: A story is what it is about, plot is the timeline in which it takes place, the order of the events. So they are seperate
LootHunter: How can they be separate if the plot is literally the timeline of the story events? It's like saying that form of the cup is not a part of the cup's design.
you choped out "but interconnected" there... and you are getting into the form and content discussion. the most used example here is that you can have a jug of water. The water is the content (the story). Water is water. However, you can have many different jugs, which is the form (the plot). So yes, you can have many different jugs of water, but between then the water is the same. So you separet them into water and jugs, and you can look at both seperaty. but to have a jug of water you need the interconnection of both. So the answer here is yes and no. They are seperate, but interconnected in ways that you can not seperate them witthout destroying the meaning.
amok: Ludo-narrative dissonance is when the story and the gamplay are 'telling' different and oppositional things.
If the player can play the game and ignore the story, then there is no dissonance, the story just dont matter.
LootHunter: Actually, there is dissonance. Just, as you've said, player can play the game and ignore the story, thus ignoring the dissonance.
This needs some more distinct nuanses. Dissonance is a very specific term, which broadly speaking measn out of harmoy, contradictory or lack of agreement. So when you just say "ignore" this is way to broad to talk about dissonacne. Yes, when you have ludo-narrative dissonance it does mean that if a player want to continue playing the game they need to reject either the story or the gampleay. You can not ignore the gameplay and continue the game, therefore the playe need to reject the story. (rejecting the gameplay means playing a different game) So there is a very clear process here.
However, this does not happen in all cases where a player ignores the story, only those where the story and the game play mechanics are conflict with each other. There may be numerous other reason why a player ignores the story (not interested, boring story, just want to play etc), which has nothing to do with ludo-narrative dissonace, which is very specific term.
amok: For example if you are playing as a female archiologist, but all you do is killing endangerd animals, break old vases and destroy old ruins. There is a dissonance between the story and the actions of the game. Or if you are a goody-two-shoes characer out to save the world, but all you do is shoot people in the face.
LootHunter: These examples have nothing to do with ludo-narrative dissonance. There are movies with those exact narratives without any "ludo" part to dissonance with.
the dissonace here is that an areologist will do what they can to preserve old things, not tear them down and shoot them with guns. A goody-two-shoes character will care about people, try to protect them and solve problems non-violently, not kill them by the thousands without blinking. It all comes down to how the characters are presented and 'told', and what they do in the game. In those movies, the characters usually have backstories that explains the actions, and - more importantly - you are then just taken on for the ride, not expected to controll and act out their actions.
