Best/Favourite Stories in a Game?
- Thread starter Gaz-L
- Start date
Ace Combat 5 is certainly the one where the story is presented most obviously, but I'd say Ace Combat 4 does story better, if only for it's completely unique piont of view (the player character and those around him don't even feature in the story segments, the "story" is actually about your enemy, you know what you've been doing, you've been doing it.
Ace Combat 6 tries the same thing, but I think it had slightly too many POV characters to sustain it effectively. Could have done with restricting it to one or two, probably Melissa and Voychek.
Ace Combat 6 tries the same thing, but I think it had slightly too many POV characters to sustain it effectively. Could have done with restricting it to one or two, probably Melissa and Voychek.
Must say i've never been much of a fan of the half life series stories. Gameplay always beat the story in half life. Plus the fact the narrative is all "stylish" as in none at all, especially in the first game.
Whereas some games the story makes up for gameplay short comings. No particular order.
Fire Emblem on the GBA - Good solid hero story with great gameplay and rpg elements.
KOTOR series - Thought Obsidian had a stronger story in number 2 than Bioware ... but experiencing the twist in the story from KOTOR 1 for the first time is awesome. Personally never saw it coming lol. Bring on number 3.
Deus Ex - Story maybe a cross-stitch of conspiracty cliche's, but what a cross-stitch! Only shooter i replay regularly.
Metal Gear Series - Number 2 was my favorite just because it was the first game i've played that felt like a hollywood blockbuster ... in a good way.
Mass Effect - Yeah its new but its got so much potential for expanding in the sequels.
Max Payne 2 - Yes max it'd be good to have infinate ammo, but i totally agree id rather mona lol Bit like Metal Gear 2 in its movie sort of feel. For a guy who shoots hundreds of people, he is one endearing character. I felt sorry for him when even a sex chat operator wouldnt just talk to him.
Whereas some games the story makes up for gameplay short comings. No particular order.
Fire Emblem on the GBA - Good solid hero story with great gameplay and rpg elements.
KOTOR series - Thought Obsidian had a stronger story in number 2 than Bioware ... but experiencing the twist in the story from KOTOR 1 for the first time is awesome. Personally never saw it coming lol. Bring on number 3.
Deus Ex - Story maybe a cross-stitch of conspiracty cliche's, but what a cross-stitch! Only shooter i replay regularly.
Metal Gear Series - Number 2 was my favorite just because it was the first game i've played that felt like a hollywood blockbuster ... in a good way.
Mass Effect - Yeah its new but its got so much potential for expanding in the sequels.
Max Payne 2 - Yes max it'd be good to have infinate ammo, but i totally agree id rather mona lol Bit like Metal Gear 2 in its movie sort of feel. For a guy who shoots hundreds of people, he is one endearing character. I felt sorry for him when even a sex chat operator wouldnt just talk to him.
Grim Fandango. The best story ever told in a game, without a doubt. The final act of that game was utterly brilliant. When Manny's story finally comes full circle near the end game it gave me chills.
Day of the Tentacle and Full Throttle are also huge favorites of mine. All of the Lucasarts adventures from the mid-to-late 90's really deserve a mention.
Portal was absolutely incredible. I was enjoying a pretty sweet puzzle game with a dash of clever dark dialog, but then that first "behind the walls" moment occurred and just blew me away.
Knights of the Old Republic was hands-down the best of the BioWare game stories in my mind, with the best story twist in Star Wars, let alone in a game. Baldur's Gate 2 and Hordes of the Underdark were good too.
For best storytelling through mood and atmosphere, I'd nominate both BioShock and X-Com. X-Com still kinda freaks me out when played in a dark room, and the flavor text in its UFOPedia is awesome.
Starcraft, Beyond Good & Evil, Psychonauts, Kyrandia 2, Monkey Island...
Day of the Tentacle and Full Throttle are also huge favorites of mine. All of the Lucasarts adventures from the mid-to-late 90's really deserve a mention.
Portal was absolutely incredible. I was enjoying a pretty sweet puzzle game with a dash of clever dark dialog, but then that first "behind the walls" moment occurred and just blew me away.
Knights of the Old Republic was hands-down the best of the BioWare game stories in my mind, with the best story twist in Star Wars, let alone in a game. Baldur's Gate 2 and Hordes of the Underdark were good too.
For best storytelling through mood and atmosphere, I'd nominate both BioShock and X-Com. X-Com still kinda freaks me out when played in a dark room, and the flavor text in its UFOPedia is awesome.
Starcraft, Beyond Good & Evil, Psychonauts, Kyrandia 2, Monkey Island...
games already mentioned that i love in no order:
Monkey Island
Indiana Jones and the fate of atlantis
Planescape: Torment (awesome!!)
Baldur's Gate 1 and 2
Morrowind (1000000x better than oblivion, morrowind's story was epic, long, and interesting, the exact opposite of oblivion)
Longest Journey/dreamfall
STAR CONTROL 2!! already mentioned but is probably my #1 game of all time.
Grim Fandango
and my addition:
Space Quest 3 and 4
Monkey Island
Indiana Jones and the fate of atlantis
Planescape: Torment (awesome!!)
Baldur's Gate 1 and 2
Morrowind (1000000x better than oblivion, morrowind's story was epic, long, and interesting, the exact opposite of oblivion)
Longest Journey/dreamfall
STAR CONTROL 2!! already mentioned but is probably my #1 game of all time.
Grim Fandango
and my addition:
Space Quest 3 and 4
Fallout: Let out from your vault to find the world is royaly screwed. On your mission to find the water chip you stumble on an army planning to wipe out all human life!
HalfLife 1, 2 and all the episodes and expansions: A scientist lets loose an alien race (well a whole bunch of 'em actually) onto our planet. Was it acidental, or planned? He escapes due to a mistorious figure then let out again when Breen and the combine have taken over the planet. He rises up to save us all... or does he?
StarCraft: Zerg against Protoss against mankind. An epic spacve battle ending up so far in a bitter defeat. Damnit! Why cancel StartCraft Ghost!
Dead Rising: terrorists set loose zombies onto America. But one man dressed as a teddy in an army suit, who I have dubbed, Sgt Teddy, can stand up to the zombie tide and win the day! Or not.
Halo: Just kidding.
Bioshock: Underwater city of Rapture infested with mutant humans. Time for you to put your hero boots on and kill the evil bastard... or is he?
HalfLife 1, 2 and all the episodes and expansions: A scientist lets loose an alien race (well a whole bunch of 'em actually) onto our planet. Was it acidental, or planned? He escapes due to a mistorious figure then let out again when Breen and the combine have taken over the planet. He rises up to save us all... or does he?
StarCraft: Zerg against Protoss against mankind. An epic spacve battle ending up so far in a bitter defeat. Damnit! Why cancel StartCraft Ghost!
Dead Rising: terrorists set loose zombies onto America. But one man dressed as a teddy in an army suit, who I have dubbed, Sgt Teddy, can stand up to the zombie tide and win the day! Or not.
Halo: Just kidding.
Bioshock: Underwater city of Rapture infested with mutant humans. Time for you to put your hero boots on and kill the evil bastard... or is he?
I can't say much about the ones that've already been mentioned. Planescape: Torment, Baldur's Gate, the Thief series, The Longest Journey, etc! All excellent!
There is one I'd like to point out though, an under-appreciated and fairly new game with an excellent storyline in it that HASN'T been mentioned yet. The expansion to Neverwinter Nights 2, Mask of the Betrayer! Although the original games main campaign was lacking story-wise, I've gotta say, Mask of the Betrayer was amazing and easily the closest thing to Planescape: Torment since, well, Planescape: Torment.
I just know alot of people, myself included, were pretty dissapointed with the original campaign in Neverwinter Nights 2. Luckily I gave Mask of the Betrayer a try and was extremely impressed and I'd suggest other people give it a shot too, if you enjoy a good epic story you wont be dissapointed.
There is one I'd like to point out though, an under-appreciated and fairly new game with an excellent storyline in it that HASN'T been mentioned yet. The expansion to Neverwinter Nights 2, Mask of the Betrayer! Although the original games main campaign was lacking story-wise, I've gotta say, Mask of the Betrayer was amazing and easily the closest thing to Planescape: Torment since, well, Planescape: Torment.
I just know alot of people, myself included, were pretty dissapointed with the original campaign in Neverwinter Nights 2. Luckily I gave Mask of the Betrayer a try and was extremely impressed and I'd suggest other people give it a shot too, if you enjoy a good epic story you wont be dissapointed.
Heh, I registered just to comment on this.
off the top of my head:
*Final Fantasy Tactics - dark, political, and friggin' EVERYONE dies!
*Earthbound - cool, funny, and original.
*Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne - better choices than most games' "good path or evil path?"
*Persona 2 - good characters, well-paced layers of conspiracy.. until the cheesy end.
*Fallout 1 & 2 - sweet atmosphere, great dialogue, super funny.
*Breath of Fire 3 - dark and tragic.. big bad is not as bad as the "good" guys.
*Okami - long without getting tedious, tons of style, awesome ending.
*Tales of the Abyss - good character development, less cliche than symphonia.
*Phantasy Star 4 - in retrospect not that great, but the cutscenes were swell back then.
..yeah, I'm an RPG guy. Oh well.
off the top of my head:
*Final Fantasy Tactics - dark, political, and friggin' EVERYONE dies!
*Earthbound - cool, funny, and original.
*Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne - better choices than most games' "good path or evil path?"
*Persona 2 - good characters, well-paced layers of conspiracy.. until the cheesy end.
*Fallout 1 & 2 - sweet atmosphere, great dialogue, super funny.
*Breath of Fire 3 - dark and tragic.. big bad is not as bad as the "good" guys.
*Okami - long without getting tedious, tons of style, awesome ending.
*Tales of the Abyss - good character development, less cliche than symphonia.
*Phantasy Star 4 - in retrospect not that great, but the cutscenes were swell back then.
..yeah, I'm an RPG guy. Oh well.
Oh yeah, Baldur's gate. God I hated the last boss. But yeah, the story was so much more supiriour to the 2nd one.The Madman said:
The second one I still think is a better overall game, but yeah, Baldur's Gate 1 had a more interesting storyline. The foreshadowing of your characters heritage early throughout the game, the elaborate plot to create an economic disaster through manipulation of the iron supplies and the genuinly creepy segment where you find yourself facing dopplegangers of characters you've met throughout the game intermingled with real characters. Just what's real and what isn't? Extremely well done.PurpleRain said:
And Sarevok ain't that hard! He's basically a high level hasted warrior that's immune to magic. Best way to beat him is just to keep summoning hordes of creatures till he eventually goes down from the sheer numbers... actually trying to take him on face to face though is suicide considering yer level in the game. He hits like a truck while your character is still waving his little +1 sword and boasting about how he killed alot of kobolds! Not exactely a fair fight, and he's not even alone.
Vagrant Story:
Hands down the coolest storytelling out there. it's what MGS would be like if set in a medieval fantasy setting instead. Extremely cool and well-defined characters and a story so full of backstabbing and plotting you'll need to spend some time unscrewing your brain after playing it. At the same time it doesn't push every tidbit of the story into you face, and there's plenty of room for personal interpretation. I almost enjoyed arguing over it on message boards more than I did playing it. Only thing lacking is actually som really good voice acting to go with it.
Final Fantasy Tactics:
Written by the same person if I'm not mistanken. Also really cool, running a lot on the same kind of themes, but on a much larger scale. I like the feeling that you're part of something much bigger, instead of being the focus of the worlds single most important event as is usual.
MGS:
Has to have a mention. Especially excellent storytelling. Can't really decide which one I like best though, but I think 3. It didn't feel quite as way out there as the other ones. Best example of a movie being shown in the form of a game.
Legacy of Kain:
While MGS is a movie, LoK is a stage performance. There are hardly any action scenes at all in the storytelling, everything is just the characters talking, often holding long monologues about the current state of affairs. I love it. The excellent voice acting does a lot to bring it to the level it's at. It's important to view all the games as one big story, as it's really nice how everything gets more and more tied together the farther the story progresses. Several twists that I did not see coming.
Xenogears:
Almost too much story here, but that makes it really cool. You are loaded with forty tons of storytelling, but you still feel like there's enough for 5 games, 3 movies and 7 books to follow. I like the political aspect and the take on religion that they use.
Tales of the Abyss:
A bit under the other ones, but I love the game so much that I had to mention it. It mainly stands on the fact that every singles character is incredibly interesting. While some parts of the story gets too sappy/old/whatever, it was overall a more interesting experience than most rpgs of late, certainly far more so than the older tales. Also, unrelated, but Best Battle System Ever!
Honorable mention for Baldur's Gate. I'm not a big fan of that kind of storytelling, but BG pulled it off quite well. Second mention for Suikoden 2. I really don't like the silent protagonist thing, but S2 is probably the only game where I really didn't care that much about it. Once again, I like that the story is only a small part of world events, and it's not even for sure that it would be best if the side you are on wins.
Hands down the coolest storytelling out there. it's what MGS would be like if set in a medieval fantasy setting instead. Extremely cool and well-defined characters and a story so full of backstabbing and plotting you'll need to spend some time unscrewing your brain after playing it. At the same time it doesn't push every tidbit of the story into you face, and there's plenty of room for personal interpretation. I almost enjoyed arguing over it on message boards more than I did playing it. Only thing lacking is actually som really good voice acting to go with it.
Final Fantasy Tactics:
Written by the same person if I'm not mistanken. Also really cool, running a lot on the same kind of themes, but on a much larger scale. I like the feeling that you're part of something much bigger, instead of being the focus of the worlds single most important event as is usual.
MGS:
Has to have a mention. Especially excellent storytelling. Can't really decide which one I like best though, but I think 3. It didn't feel quite as way out there as the other ones. Best example of a movie being shown in the form of a game.
Legacy of Kain:
While MGS is a movie, LoK is a stage performance. There are hardly any action scenes at all in the storytelling, everything is just the characters talking, often holding long monologues about the current state of affairs. I love it. The excellent voice acting does a lot to bring it to the level it's at. It's important to view all the games as one big story, as it's really nice how everything gets more and more tied together the farther the story progresses. Several twists that I did not see coming.
Xenogears:
Almost too much story here, but that makes it really cool. You are loaded with forty tons of storytelling, but you still feel like there's enough for 5 games, 3 movies and 7 books to follow. I like the political aspect and the take on religion that they use.
Tales of the Abyss:
A bit under the other ones, but I love the game so much that I had to mention it. It mainly stands on the fact that every singles character is incredibly interesting. While some parts of the story gets too sappy/old/whatever, it was overall a more interesting experience than most rpgs of late, certainly far more so than the older tales. Also, unrelated, but Best Battle System Ever!
Honorable mention for Baldur's Gate. I'm not a big fan of that kind of storytelling, but BG pulled it off quite well. Second mention for Suikoden 2. I really don't like the silent protagonist thing, but S2 is probably the only game where I really didn't care that much about it. Once again, I like that the story is only a small part of world events, and it's not even for sure that it would be best if the side you are on wins.
All mentioned above with some personal additions.
Somehow I got really drawn into the story of Clive Barker's Undying. So adding that to the list
I wish they polished stalker alot more, then perhaps we could see it here also but alas..
Somehow I got really drawn into the story of Clive Barker's Undying. So adding that to the list
I wish they polished stalker alot more, then perhaps we could see it here also but alas..
1.) Zelda: Twilight Princess
2.) BioShock
3.) Kingdom Hearts
Those stories were so deep that I was sad when I beat them because I would never be able to play it with the same feeling again.
2.) BioShock
3.) Kingdom Hearts
Those stories were so deep that I was sad when I beat them because I would never be able to play it with the same feeling again.
I'm surprised no one has mentioned Ultima 7. It is without a doubt the greatest story I have ever seen played out in a video game. It was made in 1992/3? so the gameplay and graphics are rather dated at this point, but the story blows everything out of the water.
Ultima 7: Best story ever!
Metal Gear Solid: There were 10 people in my dorm room who stayed awake for 18 hours straight watching the game from start to end
ICO: No game tells the story through gameplay better than ICO
Zelda, A link to the past (SNES): This story set basic story for all subsequent zeldas
Monkey Island series: Not enough comedies in gaming
QUESTION: For all those who put down The Longest Journey/Dreamfall as one of the best stories, do you mean the original TLJ and Dreamfall, or only Dreamfall? I bought the original and got bored after chapter 1. If it is really that great maybe I should take another look at it.
Ultima 7: Best story ever!
Metal Gear Solid: There were 10 people in my dorm room who stayed awake for 18 hours straight watching the game from start to end
ICO: No game tells the story through gameplay better than ICO
Zelda, A link to the past (SNES): This story set basic story for all subsequent zeldas
Monkey Island series: Not enough comedies in gaming
QUESTION: For all those who put down The Longest Journey/Dreamfall as one of the best stories, do you mean the original TLJ and Dreamfall, or only Dreamfall? I bought the original and got bored after chapter 1. If it is really that great maybe I should take another look at it.
Ah, you see I was a simple Ranger. Magic arrows just pinged straight off his armour. Yes, Number 2 is better but the first had a better story. That doppleganger part twisted my mind for a bit trying to work out who was who. Usually characters in games know whats happening at all times when even the player does not, but at this part, he was just as two faced as I was.The Madman said:
Ace Combat 5: It made me care about who I was flying with, and put a purpose behind the hordes of jets I shot down. A lot more intricate than expected.
Okami: Japanese folklore and legends spun together so well that they create a seamless world, add in interesting and memorable characters, and you have a great story driven game.
Devil May Cry 3: Classic good vs evil, enough interesting and unique faces, each with their own motives and stories make for an immersive experience.
Battlefront 2: Kind of random, but I liked seeing the perspective of the 501st legion though the Clone Wars...
Okami: Japanese folklore and legends spun together so well that they create a seamless world, add in interesting and memorable characters, and you have a great story driven game.
Devil May Cry 3: Classic good vs evil, enough interesting and unique faces, each with their own motives and stories make for an immersive experience.
Battlefront 2: Kind of random, but I liked seeing the perspective of the 501st legion though the Clone Wars...