Most serious or gritty games

[Kiju]

If you want serious games, STALKER or Penumbra gets my vote.

Don't forget to add Metro 2033 to that mix. Linear or not, it's pretty bleak.

 

[Squidwogdog]

If you want serious games, STALKER or Penumbra gets my vote.

Pretty much this, have only played Penumbra Overture though

 

[thenamelessloser]

The entirety of the Dawn of War series is so GRIMDARK serious that it gets depressing at times.

Wait, hold on. Dawn of War? Depressing? It's so dark/generally over the top that I assumed 40k is an elaborate self-parody. Found most of it hilarious, in any case. The orks helped.

Lessee... serious games that have yet to be mentioned? Let me throw in a vote for Planescape: Torment, then. Is it silly? Yes. Frequently. It's a very serious game with silly moments, basically. Let me put it this way - the protagonist wants to do two things: Find out who he is, and die. Think about that for a bit.

Most serious/gritty game I know, though? Tough call, but I'd have to say Imperishable Night. May want to look into it on Youtube or something.

Spoilers for Planecape: Torment-

Spoiler

I do not think The Nameless one wants to die but that he wants hwat is missing. But if he gains back what he is missing he dies. It isn't the actual death he wants but the thing he wants will result in death in other words.

While that's a pretty good point,

Spoiler

I'm almost certain that he mentions a few times that he's tired of being immortal. He either wants death, or the ability to die.

Incidentally, Iji is another very, very good game for this (and excellent in any case). Deals with war, death, repercussions of being the average army-slaughtering protagonist, etc.

Also you get a rocket shotgun.

Spoiler for Planescape: Torment-

Spoiler

It isn't just death otherwise getting killed by the lady of pain or committing suicide with the blade of immortal would get a real ending. I think it is more he is just lacking mortality whatever that is and without it he is empty and causes suffering to others existence. I'm not sure if I ever had to choose a piece of dialogue saying I wanted death for the sake of death in the game besides maybe the ending.

 

[Rikdyou]

If you want serious games, STALKER or Penumbra gets my vote.

STALKER's pretty gritty. Haven't heard of Penumbra...

What do you mean by serious or gritty? A game that takes serious subject matter serious? In that case, I'd call something like Bioshock incredibly serious and gritty. Or does it require that shell-shocked dirt-strewn landscape that so many war games have given us?

Penumbra is from the same people that brought Amnesia, shits scary yo. Also very gritty scenery.

Penumbra and amnesia is some scary shit.

 

[voetballeeuw]

Brothers in Arms, is pretty bleak. Definitely gritty.

 

[Teeth Kicker]

I've been all over Amnesia: The Dark Descent lately. And let me tell you, there is not one moment so far in the game that can give me a chuckle or sense of peace or some emotion that isn't filled with negativity.

 

[Twilight_guy]

Gears of war... um... yeah I'm not even going to comment on that...

I don't see a lot of serious games really. The inherent notion of games as a fantasy and escape from seriousness tends to dampen games that delve into serious subject matter. At best you get a smattering of real depth between long stretches of shooting dudes in the face like in Bioshock. I can't really name a serious one off the top of my head... maybe some experimental indie game.

 

[SHIFTYMACO]

Hitman!
Your not fighting for a cause!
Your not fighting to feed your ego!
Your killing because your bred to do so!
And why not get paid for it!

 

[Cogwheel]

Spoiler for Planescape: Torment-

Spoiler

It isn't just death otherwise getting killed by the lady of pain or committing suicide with the blade of immortal would get a real ending. I think it is more he is just lacking mortality whatever that is and without it he is empty and causes suffering to others existence. I'm not sure if I ever had to choose a piece of dialogue saying I wanted death for the sake of death in the game besides maybe the ending.

Ah. Sorry, I guess I wasn't quite clear on that.

Spoiler

He wants both, as I said before (and apparently worded poorly, sorry about that). He wants answers/his identity AND death. Just one (death, that is) would be much easier to get, but by itself, it's not good enough. A better way to put it, I suppose, would be that he's seeking closure: Something which, yes, includes dying in this particular case. But not in an "oops I got killed" sort of way as much as "okay, everything's sorted out, I know what happened, now I can die."

Still, it's really a matter of personal interpretation, I suppose.

 

[thenamelessloser]

Spoiler for Planescape: Torment-

Spoiler

It isn't just death otherwise getting killed by the lady of pain or committing suicide with the blade of immortal would get a real ending. I think it is more he is just lacking mortality whatever that is and without it he is empty and causes suffering to others existence. I'm not sure if I ever had to choose a piece of dialogue saying I wanted death for the sake of death in the game besides maybe the ending.

Ah. Sorry, I guess I wasn't quite clear on that.

Spoiler

He wants both, as I said before (and apparently worded poorly, sorry about that). He wants answers/his identity AND death. Just one (death, that is) would be much easier to get, but by itself, it's not good enough. A better way to put it, I suppose, would be that he's seeking closure: Something which, yes, includes dying in this particular case. But not in an "oops I got killed" sort of way as much as "okay, everything's sorted out, I know what happened, now I can die."

Still, it's really a matter of personal interpretation, I suppose.

spoiler for planescape: torment

Spoiler

That makes sense considering the thing he lacks is mortality itself.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

STALKER, as mentioned before is pretty damn serious.
Devil May Cry 2 also had an air of "srs god damn bsns", there were no breaks for humour at all, just gritty "demons kill everything" sort of gag, largely why it wasn't well received.

The entirety of the Dawn of War series is so GRIMDARK serious that it gets depressing at times.
Then there's stuff like Bioshock, Metal Gear Solid and the like.

I tend not to count things like Gears of War purely because the whole over the top macho element is so laugh-inducing for me that I find it hard to take it seriously.

DOW isn't too dark. I mean, it did give us this. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbRGg3e1b68]

So my vote goes to Painkiller. What's that? Painkiller didn't have a story? Oh, then my vote goes to Fahrenheit I guess. Despite it being filled with narm. [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Narm]

 

[Chewster]

I don't understand what it is you're trying to say. You're saying Gears of War isn't supposed to be serious, but it is anyway?

I think that if you're going to make a game gritty and dark, you had better pull it off well, otherwise people will end up laughing, and there is nothing worse than being misread, especially when it comes to storytelling.

 

[Spinozaad]

Games like Gears of War aren't serious, or mature, or anything other than a prepubescent's fantasy/idea of violence.

A serious game? I'd say the first Metal Gear Solid, before the sequels brought the fauxlosophy and conspiracy bullshit to inane levels.

 

[Aeterna]

I'd say Condemned if u want gritty, Batman Arkham Asylum is pretty gritty and awesome too, and Bioshock definitely