Looking for a well written story

[goestoeleven]

Jumping on the Planescape: Torment bandwagon. And Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines. Then get the player patch. Everyone I've convinced on Bloodlines has thanked me.

I'm with you. Planescape: Torment wins hands down in best writing, though it loses a couple of points for being just that, writing. The only other games I've spent more time reading in are text adventures. But Really, it's a fantastic game, if only to show that RPGs ARE actually capable of originality.

Also there with you on Vampire: Bloodlines. I actually just finished my first playthrough earlier today, so I have a pretty fresh opinion. If you can get around the fact that the game is, essentially unfinished, and is therefore very rough and unbalanced in places, then for God's sake go play it. Despite it's issues, it is one of the best RPGs I've ever played. It deeply immerses you in the vampiric underbelly of Los Angeles and constantly throws well-written and interesting characters and situations at you. And the choices in the game aren't between straight evil and straight good. You're forced to examine the tragedy of vampirism (VERY Anne Rice) which is that, well, you're a monster, no doubt about it. But how you balance your humanity and your monstrous nature is up to you, and is very, very compelling.

Deus Ex has a fantastic story that manages to weave together ludicrous conspiracy theories into something fascinating and suspenseful. It also has incredible gameplay and atmosphere, so there's that.

System Shock 2 has aged extremely well. Bioshock was great, but my money goes to SS2.

If you've got a 360, do yourself a favor and check out Mass Effect. It's an RPG, but it's really something special. Very much along the lines of KOTOR and Planescape in terms of great dialogue, plot, and characters. And hey! The action's really good too.

 

[The Madman]

I'm with those above me, Planescape: Torment and Vampire - The Masquerade: Bloodlines are two games you simply can't go wrong with.

Planescape: Torment has an amazing and extremely unique storyline and setting that's sure to draw you in once the initial 'What the hell is going on' wears off. Most interestingly is that Planescape actually touches on some sensitive and deep subjects that most games wouldn't dare go near, similarly it does it with such skill that the writting even compares favorably against most books. Definently a must play is story is what yer after!

Vampire: Bloodlines is a much more recent game that personally I find interesting less because of the story and more because of the characters and setting, both done with extreme skill. It really just sucks you into the setting and the great dialogue and voice acting brings the characters to life.

Another game worth mentioning is the expansion pack for Neverwinter Nights 2. The original games campaign is typical fantasy fare, but the expansion pack: Mask of the Betrayer, has got a really nice Planescape style vibe to it and a surprisingly intricate plot. Made by Obsidian, alot of which are ex Black Isle guys (The ones who made Planescape) it's nice to see them finally hitting stride after a few rough starts like the super buggy and unfinished kotor2 and the somewhat dissapointing and bland original NWN2.

 

[neems]

If you think HL2 has you jumping through hoops, then you'll love the install / protection for Bioshock - the hoops are smeared in burning dog shit.

I wouldn't say that HL2 has a great story - what it does have is great presentation. Sometimes an average story told fantastically well can trump a fantastic story told poorly.

 

[GregorV]

If you've got a 360, do yourself a favor and check out Mass Effect. It's an RPG, but it's really something special. Very much along the lines of KOTOR and Planescape in terms of great dialogue, plot, and characters. And hey! The action's really good too.

I absolutely agree, Mass Effect is not to be missed if great story and dialogue are what you are after. Still, it is an RPG in a way that, you have to play it a lot like an RPG and do a fair bit of side quests in order to level up for the main game. Otherwise some fights might become quite frustrating and I believe rushing through the main story is the reason why many reviewers don't like the fighting system (which is very very much fun in my opinion).

 

[sergeantz]

Also there with you on Vampire: Bloodlines. I actually just finished my first playthrough earlier today, so I have a pretty fresh opinion. If you can get around the fact that the game is, essentially unfinished, and is therefore very rough and unbalanced in places, then for God's sake go play it. Despite it's issues, it is one of the best RPGs I've ever played. It deeply immerses you in the vampiric underbelly of Los Angeles and constantly throws well-written and interesting characters and situations at you. And the choices in the game aren't between straight evil and straight good. You're forced to examine the tragedy of vampirism (VERY Anne Rice) which is that, well, you're a monster, no doubt about it. But how you balance your humanity and your monstrous nature is up to you, and is very, very compelling.

I'm sort of interested in this game, but how Anne Rice is it. I tried to read Lestat in the past, and it was one of the only books I couldn't get through. I enjoyed the general concept, but the execution was rambling and pretentious.

 

[PurpleRain]

I couldn't get into Half life. I certainly won't be buying the second one for PC when I'm forced to jump through hoops to prove I don't own the game illegally.

Well I don't see how you couldn't enjoy HL. It has everything you're looking for.

-Originality. We all know what this is.
-Well-written and voiced dialog that's also heavily balanced (no long winded 'The Longest Journey schlock)
-Isn't an RPG (either Western or Eastern) unless not remotely pretentious. The only one I've enjoyed in over 5 years was Disgaea: Hour of Darkness because it was funny and daring.
- Doesn't have to be dialog or story heavy as such so long as it's impacting to a great level. E.G. Ico didn't have much of a story per-se, but a lot was 'silently said' through visuals.
-I don't mind what genre or what it's about so long as if it's the best of the best.
-Age of game is not a factor, nor system

So why look further. Half Life 2 is like sex is to masterbating in the gamming world. Shutup, I went there, I used that metaphor.

 

[stevesan]

how about you go read a book. you'll have much more luck there.

 

[Terramax]

Planescape Torment. If you forget all D&D ever taught you about cosmology, and pretend it's all unique, rather than a doddering pile of mismatched backgrounds and ideas staggering under it's own weight, it's awesome.

I never play these kinds of games. I did have Lodus War on the Dreamcast, Silver & Diablo for PC but that?s about as close as I?ve gotten.

In which case this may be a good start.

Because you have no bounds. You can kill and do what ever you want when ever you want to whoever you want. There is a bit of a story but you can point up your middle finger to it and say "Screw you Mr Storyline, I'm killing children and stray dogs with my cattleprod."

I understand it's a good game for that reason but I'm looking for games with a great, original story.

Zelda: Ocarina of Time is a good game, but it's not so for its story (I expect some spamming for that, but that's what I think).

hey what about deus ex, a nice merging of conspiracy theories.

Tried that but it keeps crashing when I play it on Metaboli. The demo was screwed as well. I'll try again as I am keen to play this. Maybe the sold out software version sorts these issues out(?)

I'm so dissapointed that none of you has mentioned Grim Fandango.

Because I wrote ?Pretty much all Tim Schafer games? on my list

Here?s hoping Brutal Legend is more original than it looks.

Disgaea 2 had a great story, just like the original.

BLAH! The sequel was terrible. They threw out all the originality, wit and personality of the first and replaced it with the standard JRPG crumbs.

Jump through hoops? All you have to do is enter a CD-key and wait for it to fully update. you don't even have to put the CD in the drive. not sure what hoops you're referring to.

I've been told you have to sign up to the internet and hand out personal details regarding your pc information in order to play?

Alas, I don?t like sci-fi plots. I'd give Bioshock the chance though, as it appears to have some much needed 'originality', but I am aware of the hoops through that as well (hoping Metaboli will get it at some point) and maybe Deus Ex for its freedom of choice.


I want to lay down another rule I should have at the beginning. No pretentious sci-fi/ Star Wars or medievil/ LotR games. I thought people would pick this up with the 'originality' tag, but maybe not.

I really admire stories with uniqueness or putting a spin on things, which is why I?m interest in Planescape and not all the other games in its genre, and why I will avoid Bioware games at all costs, although I won't go into detail in case of offending several people. I?ll just say I?ve seen them in action, and I don?t like them.

how about you go read a book. you'll have much more luck there.

I enjoy a great game for being eclectic of sounds, visuals, 'art', story and giving out a greater sense of freedom and interaction than other mediums. And if I were looking for a book, I?d not have put this thread up in the first place.


I understand I?m kinda on a whim here asking for a good story on a forum like this, as it's pretty obvious this site is more akin to FPS/ RPG gamers, genres where its more acceptable to have a game devoid of a good story, considering there?re so many in the market, to the games I play and listed above.

So far I've got Planescape and System Shock 2 in my sights (all though a little more elaboration what SS2 has with its story would be good).

I've also been recommended Bloodlines on other forums so at some point I'll bite the bullet with this, despite the clichéd Vampire thing.

I've also noticed all the games listed so far are considered more 'mature' games. I?m open to those which some may call otherwise i.e. is Okami that great?

 

[PurpleRain]

Because you have no bounds. You can kill and do what ever you want when ever you want to whoever you want. There is a bit of a story but you can point up your middle finger to it and say "Screw you Mr Storyline, I'm killing children and stray dogs with my cattleprod."

I understand it's a good game for that reason but I'm looking for games with a great, original story.

Well.. you lived in a vault like many other people to survive a nuclear fallout. The world basically went to hell and everone broke out into WW3. So anyway, that all sizzled over with everyone up shit creck armed to the teeth. Safe in your vault your water chip breaks down and it's up to you to venture out into the wasteland to battle unknown enemies to save your vault. But you stumble onto a dark and evil ploy... dum dum dum! (Fade to black)

 

[Terramax]

If I can't get hold of Planescape Torment fast enough I'll order it.

 

[qaqa1]

Though this is an RPG, If you enjoy storyline and very good humor get Skies of Arcadia for the Game Cube Or dreamcast As it is easily in the top 5 funniest games ive ever played and first or second for actualy RPG type play as its very free roaming though keeps you on a set path.

Grim Fandango(Funny game, Hard though)

 

[dan_the_manatee]

I'd vote for System Shock 2 and Bioshock too.
Bioshock's not exactly made easier for the 360: if you play for the Brass Balls, it makes it pretty damned tough.
Sure it dispensed with some of the inventory management (which I quite liked) and the class specialisation (which I really liked) and the weapon degradation (which annoyed me. Five shots form a shotgun and it's done. There's not that many moving parts on them!), but it kept the atmosphere, and quality storytelling that SS2 had; and I think the art design in Bioshock is far superior (quality of graphics aside; SS2 is just a spaceship. No points for originality there).
I believe there are unofficial patches for SS2 that improve the quality of some of the textures to make some the graphics date a little better. Regardless of graphics quality, everyone deserves to see a protocol droid doing the macarena at least once.
Vampire the Masquerade is a fantstic game too. that's recieved a lot of user-made patches that unlock items and unbug quests; you can basicaly have a Director's Cut VtM now! the story in that game is actually superb; it might not be obvious but it's actually part of a larger story arc. The game's plot is referred to by a number of White Wolf's novels (The Vampire Clan Novels, now bound as the Fall of Atlanta, Eye of Gehenna, Bloody September and End Games; and the Gehenna novel). It's a pretty fantastic sotry, and the cross referencing of events between game and book is amazing. Events in the book are shown on the TV in your vampire's apartment...
Plus, VTM has got some good replayability. the different clans play very differently, to the point where Malkavians have entirely different dialog (including with inanimate objects).

 

[Melaisis]

hey what about deus ex, a nice merging of conspiracy theories.

Tried that but it keeps crashing when I play it on Metaboli. The demo was screwed as well. I'll try again as I am keen to play this. Maybe the sold out software version sorts these issues out(?)

Get it (and its sequel) straight from Steam? Runs like a baby's bottom on all new systems.

 

[dan_the_manatee]

Where can I get Fallout from? I've never played it, and have gamer-guilt.
I'm running Vista, btw.

 

[Divinegon]

Here's my sugestion, although you don't want RPGs, I find it somewhat deviant from the normal standard we find now and then:

Persona 3

It has a good battle system, well smart enough AI, usually doesn't need that much grinding and most important, and it goes to what you asked, it has a story I enjoy very much. Not only that but there is a very good character development. You have about 8-10 main characters and only one is the good guy just because it's what every ordinary good guy in a JRPG does, and he's not even the character you control. Also, with exception to mostly one character (You'll find two or three more, but it won't be as bad for several reasons), there's some great English voice acting.

Of course it has it's peeves here and there, but I found it a very enjoyable game overall. On a last note, that game lasted me more than a 100 game hours, I believe. And I could very well replay it to find some new stuff. Although they're not essential, it almost makes you feel like retrying the game.

Plus, it never gets boring shooting yourself in the head to invoke spiritual deities.

I suggest it.

 

[goestoeleven]

I'm sort of interested in this game, but how Anne Rice is it. I tried to read Lestat in the past, and it was one of the only books I couldn't get through. I enjoyed the general concept, but the execution was rambling and pretentious.

I couldn't finish The Vampire Lestat either. The Rice influence is pretty obvious in Bloodlines (and the Vampire: The Masquerade setting as a whole), as the story revolves around the protagonist as a vampire and struggling with the reality of having become a monster and making his way in the labyrinth of vampire society. The 'rules' of vampirism are pretty much exactly what Rice laid down in Interview with the Vampire (garlic and crosses don't do shit, but watch out for fire!).

Let's just say that I'm a fan of the Rice vampire mythology, but not of the books (though I love Interview). It's the mythology and the gothic tragedy that the game is influenced by, and gets right. So I wouldn't worry too much.

 

[Terramax]

Though this is an RPG, If you enjoy storyline and very good humor get Skies of Arcadia for the Game Cube Or dreamcast As it is easily in the top 5 funniest games ive ever played and first or second for actualy RPG type play as its very free roaming though keeps you on a set path.

I owned it for the Dreamcast. I lost interest at a bit where the gang go through some sewers and come out of the middle of an arena/ colosseum and fight someone. I can't say I remember it being even remotely funny (although the bit at the colosseum where one of them rugby tackles an enemy to the ground, I do remember that bit vividly

 

[LisaB1138]

Wow. No one has mentioned Beyond Good and Evil?

Also God of War (not necessarily the sequel.)

Although the stories are not completely fleshed out (told like legends from memory) Ico and Shadow of the Colossus should be mentioned.

I also enjoy Devil May Cry 3, although that is really because of the Dante/Vergil relationship.

 

[Terramax]

Beyond Good and Evil felt forced and contrived. Didn't feel natural. Especially as they held their main influence to high over their shoulder. I did enjoy it BTW, but I wouldn't list it in the 'greatest stories in gaming'.

I don't know what to say about God of War. I would have hardly thought a hack and slash would have a good, original story, although Sword of Berserk was a really good storyteller.

I sorta talked about Ico, but indeed Ico is up there. Shadow of the Colossus I'm not so sure about. It's a great game, but it doesn't really tell much at all. I might as well as have created my own ending.

Are there any emotional stories out there? Beyond Good and Evil is a good start and it is original. But surely there's a more obscure version of Silent Hill 2 or Broken Sword out there?

 

[goestoeleven]

This might not be up your alley, but there is a whole community of avid interactive fiction (text adventure) creators and fans active to this day. Some of the stuff they've created is absolutely brilliant.

For a great emotional story, check out Photopia by Adam Cadre: http://adamcadre.ac/if.html

His other games are good too, but Photopia is far and away the greatest.