RTS Games With a Good Story?

[Judgement101]

I guess Age of Mythology has a decent story if you don't mind it just being a fake chapter from The Iliad at best and a total abomination and desicration of Greek, Egyptian, and Norse mythology at worst.

 

[Aetherlblade]

Tomorrow I start my teaching job. One of the classes I'm insanely excited to be teaching is Video Games as Literature (the study of video games as a storytelling medium). I have a pretty good setup for the course, I think, but I have one friend who constantly laments the fact that I have no RTS games in the course. The reason I didn't include any is pretty simple; I have never (in my admittedly limited experience with the genre) played an RTS with a story worth studying in a literature course. Not even close. I've barely ever even heard story mentioned in relation to the genre; with very few exceptions, the mechanics and strategy seem to be all that matter.

But I certainly would be interested to see if there is an exception to this perceived rule. So then, Escapists, tell me: are there any RTS games with genuinely interesting storylines, interesting characters, and thematic depth?

Homeworld, Homeworld 1 and 2 have argueable the best story line any RTS has ever had.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrW4jkQdmjI

On youtube, if you'd just check the cutscenes you would get a decent idea as well, if you dont have the time to play it.

 

[BlindTom]

The Homeworld series is the battlestar galactica reboot except done earlier and better. Lots of exodus imagery etc. It's good stuff and you can really tell the level designers stepped back and let the writers do whatever they wanted. Some of the levels play like shit.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Homeworld 1/2 and Myth 1/2 would be my candidates. The Blizzard titles have very pulpy and entertaining stories, but I wouldn't call them particularly "good".

 

[Aetherlblade]

Warcraft III and Frozen Throne, obviously. Heard good things about Homeworld,too (not that I ever played it).
And Age of Empires I and II do not really have a good story, but their campaigns are definitely fun.

personally, while I liked the games, I find that the story line is very basic and bland. It's not very original at any rate. Still does it job right, I guess.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

Command & Conquer series (but not number 4) had a cool story to it, and to a lesser extent the Red Alert spin off series.

 

[Muspelheim]

I'd suggest World in Conflict. While it does hit a few silly notes, it's a very nice attempt at getting the feeling across. It's set in 1989, and follows the scenario that the Soviet Union demands aid from the west due to the economic collapse. When they recieve none, they invade Berlin. And everything hits the fan from there.

While it gets a bit ridiculous at times (One mission has you, the soviet player, defending a quarry near Murmansk from NATO infiltrators. Who can somehow send wave after wave of heavy battletanks at you. Somehow), it's a fairly nice story, and a fun game as well.

 

[R1ou]

Battle Realms, Even though it didn't age really well (Graphics looks like ass) the writing is superb.

 

[Bostur]

But I certainly would be interested to see if there is an exception to this perceived rule. So then, Escapists, tell me: are there any RTS games with genuinely interesting storylines, interesting characters, and thematic depth?

From a video game perspective a lot of the classic RTS games have that. Starcraft, WC3, several of the C&C games. From a litterature perspective video games generally don't come with that kind of storytelling. There are a few exceptions but that often makes them bad games due to linearity.

The storytelling is so dependant on what the players put into it, that an external point of view will miss most of it.

From an analytic perspective even the best storytelling of any game will struggle to reach the quality of the average action movie.

 

[Naeras]

WC3 and Starcraft have been mentioned, but specifically why they're interesting compared to other genres is pretty cool. One of the things about games is that player success is necessary for story progression. The fact that you're playing opposing factions in turn makes it possible to have the stories have their ups and downs without having to resort to gimmicks or random stuff outside of player control: if you want the good guys to struggle, then let's start the evil campaign and make the player massacre the good guys!

Another thing is the fact that the stories in the expansion packs of both games happen after "THE BIG CLIMACTIC BATTLE", and covers what happens to the characters and factions after the dust has settled. Those stories are way more interesting than the pre-expansion stories for that reason, even though they all end in cliffhangers.

Also, Jaina Proudmoore and Sarah Kerrigan are both amongst the cooler female protagonists I can think of in a video game, even though they're both just one amongst several protagonists.

 

[Naeras]

From a video game perspective a lot of the classic RTS games have that. Starcraft, WC3, several of the C&C games. From a litterature perspective video games generally don't come with that kind of storytelling. There are a few exceptions but that often makes them bad games due to linearity.

The storytelling is so dependant on what the players put into it, that an external point of view will miss most of it.

From an analytic perspective even the best storytelling of any game will struggle to reach the quality of the average action movie.

I was going to say "Bastion called and would like to talk with you". Then I remembered about 15 other good games that tell stories that are either on par with good storytelling in other media, or tell stories that you couldn't actually tell in other media.

Gameplay or story don't exclude each others; in fact, they should complement each other if possible. Finding examples of that isn't hard.

 

[AverageExtraordinair]

Red Alert 2 , easily the best RTS story ever written

 

[Antari]

Tomorrow I start my teaching job. One of the classes I'm insanely excited to be teaching is Video Games as Literature (the study of video games as a storytelling medium). I have a pretty good setup for the course, I think, but I have one friend who constantly laments the fact that I have no RTS games in the course. The reason I didn't include any is pretty simple; I have never (in my admittedly limited experience with the genre) played an RTS with a story worth studying in a literature course. Not even close. I've barely ever even heard story mentioned in relation to the genre; with very few exceptions, the mechanics and strategy seem to be all that matter.

But I certainly would be interested to see if there is an exception to this perceived rule. So then, Escapists, tell me: are there any RTS games with genuinely interesting storylines, interesting characters, and thematic depth?

If you want to go back to genesis, look towards Dune 2, most of the other good series such as Homeworld already have mentions.

 

[Stuntcrab]

Red Alert 2 , easily the best RTS story ever written

Agreed, I love Command and Conquer (till EA fucked it up at Kanes Wrath it was downhill from there)

 

[Bostur]

Not an RTS game, but maybe the second best alternative.

Alpha Centauri has an interesting way of merging story with the gameplay. Quite unusual for a turn-based strategy game.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sid_Meier%27s_Alpha_Centauri

 

[Joseph Harrison]

I'd suggest World in Conflict. While it does hit a few silly notes, it's a very nice attempt at getting the feeling across. It's set in 1989, and follows the scenario that the Soviet Union demands aid from the west due to the economic collapse. When they recieve none, they invade Berlin. And everything hits the fan from there.

While it gets a bit ridiculous at times (One mission has you, the soviet player, defending a quarry near Murmansk from NATO infiltrators. Who can somehow send wave after wave of heavy battletanks at you. Somehow), it's a fairly nice story, and a fun game as well.

I'd have to agree with this its the only RTS game I know that I actually felt had a good story after I completed it. Most RTS' seem just to drag you from location to location giving you the most minimalist reason to play a game against the AI before bringing you to the next location.

 

[wabbbit]

Age of Mythology. It has a significantly longer campaign than any other "Age of" games over one major campaign - unlike the others which have a few smaller ones.

Really enjoyable story that has some fantastic missions involving Pandora's Box, The underworld, Anubis and Trojan Horses.

 

[Thaius]

Genuinely interesting storylines, interesting characters and thematic depth? I personally wouldn't be able to think of too many games fitting those criteria, never mind an RTS-game.

Oh, there are plenty of games fitting the criteria. Many of the best I can't use in the class (be it due to an M-rating since this is a high school class, or because system exclusivity makes them too inaccessible), but they certainly exist. Sure, most video games suck from an artistic standpoint, but so do most films. And books. And stageplays. It's just how art works. We'll be studying things like Beyond Good and Evil as a highly symbolic allegory, Lost Odyssey as an exploration of family, and the way that the differences in RPGs from Japan and the west expresses the cultural differences in design and artistic sensibilities. There is plenty there. For that matter, the games included are a mere fraction of the ones involved in my original designs for the course; it was whittled down for time and ease of accessibility. Point being, there's plenty. I just haven't seen any RTS games that qualify, but there are some good suggestions here.

From a video game perspective a lot of the classic RTS games have that. Starcraft, WC3, several of the C&C games. From a litterature perspective video games generally don't come with that kind of storytelling. There are a few exceptions but that often makes them bad games due to linearity.

The storytelling is so dependant on what the players put into it, that an external point of view will miss most of it.

From an analytic perspective even the best storytelling of any game will struggle to reach the quality of the average action movie.

The whole point of games is that they require input so to have a pre-written story may seem counter to the medium itself.

Now because the story is generated through gameplay it wont have the storylines, chars and thematic depth, but I think it is worth bringing into your mix just for it having a more "game" approach to storytelling.

I'll have to disagree on this note. You both seem to be talking about the concept of emergent storytelling, which is a valid concept (and is studied near the end of the first semester of this course), but is in no way the only--or even most important--way in which video games effectively tell their stories.

You're taking an approach to video games as an art form that essentially excludes any sort of art that isn't specifically centered around interaction. But interaction isn't the only thing video games can do, it's just the unique thing of which they alone are capable. If you center a medium's entire artistic merit around it's unique properties at the expense of others, suddenly a film should be judged by its visuals alone, and dialogue would be viewed as entirely extraneous. Animation would be about nothing more than how unrealistic and surreal it can look, regardless of story or writing (which would automatically put Ren and Stimpy as inarguably artistically superior to anything Pixar has ever made). It really doesn't work.

When it comes down to it, as much as I love the "pure interaction" type of storytelling you are talking about here, and as much as I do enjoy a game that gives me a high level of interactive freedom, the best uses of interactivity I've ever seen are placed within a linear narrative in order to heighten its impact. If you haven't yet, play Bioshock, then look up some articles specifically regarding the way it played with player control during the big plot twist reveal. That was absolutely brilliant interactive storytelling. The guy I quote below mentions Bastion, which features a sequence near the end that Yahtzee praised for good interactive storytelling (and with good reason; it really is a powerful scene). And the aforementioned Beyond Good and Evil has a final boss that is nothing short of genius in terms of having the protagonist's psyche reflected in the gameplay itself. Interactivity and linearity are in no way mutually exclusive; the best interaction on an artistic level is often that which uses the player's involvement to increase the impact and emotional/intellectual depth of the story.

I was going to say "Bastion called and would like to talk with you". Then I remembered about 15 other good games that tell stories that are either on par with good storytelling in other media, or tell stories that you couldn't actually tell in other media.

Gameplay or story don't exclude each others; in fact, they should complement each other if possible. Finding examples of that isn't hard.

See, this guy gets it. Also, Bastion is in the second semester of the course. Because it's amazing (not to mention easily accessible on both Windows and Mac).