What Are Some Of The Best Story-Rich Games?

[albertnothlit]

Hi all! 

 

   I just ran out of things to play *carefully ignoring the pile of Steam sale uninstalled games on my account* and I'd like to get ideas for what to play next. Most of all, I love a good storyline while playing. I'm thinking something immersive and multifaceted like Mass Effect, or short yet unforgettable like Portal. What do you guys like? Which games made you go, wow, that story blew my mind?

 

-Albert

[MrM]

The original Knights of the Old Republic game (KOTOR). Its actually an app now that you can play on your smart phone. It had a WAY better storyline than the Star Wars Prequels and it introduced us to a character that is second only to Darth Vader as being beloved by Star Wars fans.

 

It was perhaps the best game I've ever played.

[C. When]

If you like JRPGs, Tales of Symphonia and Tales of the Abyss are really good and most of the games in the series have interesting stories. The most recent one, Tales of Zesteria, has a pc version. I don't know if the PC ports for the others are any good though.  As for short games, have you tried Stanley parable? It has interesting and quirky stories. If you want weird and short, I recommend Jazzpunk. If you like point and click games, the Deponia series has a decent and funny story.

[Dayne Mora]

"Child of Light" -- It's a turn-based rpg.  Has a nice story, and is written is loose iambic pentameter.  There's also this cool adventure/puzzle game called "Contrast," where you play at a kid's imaginary friend and get to jump in and out of a 2-D shadow version of the world.  It was too platformy for me to play.  You've probably already player "Witcher" and "Dragon Age", otherwise, I'd recommend those. 

[Aceinthehole]

If you haven't played the gears of war series thats a great one. You can skip brotherhood and just play the first 3, the fourth is even on the way. To me they were some of the most fun I've ever had in a story

[Krista]

Dragon Age: Origins

Dragon Age: Inquisition

 

I can play those for ages... I'm a story-first sort of player anyway, so I'll never really be too immersed in gaming. 

 

It took my awhile to get into Mass Effect, but after a few times playing them I find the story to be growing on me. Especially towards the end of Mass Effect 2 and into 3.

 

To Ace: My younger brother made me play Gears of War with him... and I remember that one scaring the hell out of me and causing my brother to laugh his ass off... I'm sure it is a nice story, but mercy I don't think my 30 year old heart can take it.. lol. 

Edited June 21, 2016 by Krista

[Alex]

The Witcher series is MADE for anyone with a love for backstory and lore!

The Dragon age series has a nice story, and retains a lot of the wonderful lores as well!

The Mass Effect series is by far my favorite, plus Jeniffer Hale voices the female protagonist. :blush:

The original Knights of the Old Republic, and Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (II with the much needed restoration mod) allow to experience Star Wars (Expanded Universe/Legends) Through the eyes of two characters that you create, and run through the Galaxy with.

The original Bioshock, while being an FPS has certain RPG elements, and such a rich and wonderful story and atmosphere that I still replay it all the time!

The Last of Us is an excellent homage to story telling, while being along the lines of a survival horror third person shooter.

[Dayne Mora]

Witcher is based on a series of stories, you can actually find the titles among the books you pick up in the third game.  There's also a tv series.

[MythOfHappiness]

Life is Strange for sure (probably one of the best choice based games out there) and if you're in a walking simulator kinda mood Gone Home is amazing, as is the significantly lighter Firewatch. These are all on Steam and absolutely worthy of a look-see if you like story base games.

[Dylan]

Skyrim and Fallout are two of my favorites, but I'm sure you've played those. Like MythOfHappiness said, Life is Strange and Gone Home are both really cool games as well. I LOVED The Walking Dead by Telltale Games, both season 1 and 2, really any game by Telltale Games (Game of Thrones was great too) and also The Last of Us.

 

If I think of any more I'll make sure to post them here

[Myr]

I love Mass Effect series, Dragon Age series, the MMO Star Wars The Old Republic, I hear The Witcher is great.

[Valkyrie]

I recently played a couple of games that I thought had a great storyline.  Adam Wolfe Flames of TIme and Adam Wolfe Blood of Eternity.  They are comprised of two 'acts' each and each act builds off the previous one.  I didn't think the puzzles were particularly challenging, but I liked the interactive nature of the gameplay and enjoyed the story.  

[Lux Apollo]

The Fire Emblem series is pretty good with story, especially the ones that come in pairs - 4&5, 6&7, 9&10, 11&12. The latest two on 3DS are not bad in terms of story, but I think the quality has gone down a notch. You have to like the SRPG genre, though. I know that isn't everyone's boat. The characters can get pretty well fleshed out, even when you have a large cast, through the support conversation system.

[cloverreef]

Best were already mentioned (Dragon age, elder scrolls, witcher, etc.) But I just skimmed so I don't know if anyone mentioned Dishonored or Thief. Gameplays a little different, but I love the atmosphere of those games. If you don't mind older JRPGs, those tales ones are excellent, and I really liked the older Star Ocean games. Oh! And Suikoden! Helluva series. 

[BDANR]

Fire Emblem and the Tales Series are def two RPGS that I usually like the stories of.  If you like Tactical/Strategy RPGS, Final Fantasy Tactics for the PSOne is probably one of my favorite storylines of all time. I've been shocked, sad, even moved while going through the story. If it's story is anything like other Final Fantasy games, I should probably try playing those :P.

 

If you like Adventure games with a blend of mystery and law, the Phoenix Wright series on the DS has a good, very engaging storyline. I eventually sold the games, but sometimes I would watch the game on Youtube just to go through the storyline again.

[Acid07]

Bioware is fairly consistent in making good stories in their RPGs.  The character development of ME2 is still some of my favorite in all video games (I've heard Andromeda was lackluster but haven't played).  Their narratives throughout the Dragon Age series have been entertaining as well, especially incorporating elements of prior games (Inquisition was a great game to kick off the new console generation).  Breaking away from RPGs, the Modern Warfare series had a surprisingly interesting story arc over 3 games (COD4, MW2, MW3), which was probably the most attached I became to a story in a pure FPS.  Gears of War really built the story & characters over the series, but I always felt the gameplay was slightly clunky.  

[Myr]

On 8/6/2017 at 11:06 AM, Acid07 said:

(I've heard Andromeda was lackluster but haven't played)

Overall, I enjoyed Andromeda, but they had some issues.  I found it to be sort of like Mass Effect 1, but opposite.  ME1 was spot on for story, but the playing mechanics were clunky.  Andromeda, the playing mechanics were nailed, but the story was not as good as I'm used to from Bioware.  But that's the mighty high bar. It wasn't a wonderful story, but it was good.

[Acid07]

28 minutes ago, Myr said:

Overall, I enjoyed Andromeda, but they had some issues.  I found it to be sort of like Mass Effect 1, but opposite.  ME1 was spot on for story, but the playing mechanics were clunky.  Andromeda, the playing mechanics were nailed, but the story was not as good as I'm used to from Bioware.  But that's the mighty high bar. It wasn't a wonderful story, but it was good.

I still haven't played it, but I did buy it.  It'll probably be the next game I play (unless I put it off for long enough that Destiny 2 becomes my active game).  They did have a great story in ME1.  I think I felt more attached to ME2, but the original was a great story (being older console did limit its replay interest though).  Overall Bioware has done some great work in the modern RPG era.  KOTOR will always be one of my favorites (but I refuse to play the MMO version).  Curious what their next project will be after Anthem...

[Brayon]

59 minutes ago, Acid07 said:

KOTOR will always be one of my favorites (but I refuse to play the MMO version).

I'm an avid Star Wars: The Old Republica fan, and can say that it is a great MMO, and full of rich stories. The Jedi Knight and Imperial Agent story lines are by far the best. Plus, the two story expansions Knights of the Fallen Empire, and Knights of the Eternal Throne are fantastic. If you KOTOR I and II, you'll like the MMO version. But like all MMOs, it's who you play with that makes or breaks the game.

[Myr]

I do like SWTOR. I just don't have time to line up my time to play with subscription time.  All too often I play games in bursts.  Too much work going on.

[Acid07]

19 minutes ago, BHopper2 said:

I'm an avid Star Wars: The Old Republica fan, and can say that it is a great MMO, and full of rich stories. The Jedi Knight and Imperial Agent story lines are by far the best. Plus, the two story expansions Knights of the Fallen Empire, and Knights of the Eternal Throne are fantastic. If you KOTOR I and II, you'll like the MMO version. But like all MMOs, it's who you play with that makes or breaks the game.

I've always been a huge fan of Star Wars, especially the story arcs outside of the cinematic universe.  The video games written by Drew Karpyshyn (KOTOR & KOTOR II, and non-Star Wars games in Mass Effect & Mass Effect 2) have been favorites of mine (I also enjoyed his books in the Star Wars Universe).  It's also part of what gives me some hope for Anthem, as he's one of the writers.  Most of the time, I avoid playing MMOs.  I have a bit of an addictive personality at times, so I try to keep myself from diving into them.  It's not whether or not I'll enjoy it that concerns me.  It's how far down the rabbit hole I'll lose myself haha.  

[Brayon]

23 minutes ago, Myr said:

I do like SWTOR. I just don't have time to line up my time to play with subscription time.  All too often I play games in bursts.  Too much work going on.

Yeah, I go back and forth between Subscription and the Preferred Status FTP. Still get my Cartel Coins from having the Authenticator.

20 minutes ago, Acid07 said:

I have a bit of an addictive personality at times, so I try to keep myself from diving into them.  It's not whether or not I'll enjoy it that concerns me.  It's how far down the rabbit hole I'll lose myself haha.  

I can completely understand that. I get a little obsessive over things at times too.

 

 

One thing that I recently found out. Disney has Canonized KOTOR, and SW:TOR, via the show Star Wars Rebels. Elements from the three games have appeared on the show, and all are considered canon in the Disney Star Wars Universe now.

[Raphael Farmer]

I don't know how original this is going to sound but I've been blown away by Final Fantasy, Dragon Age, Mass Effect and the Tales of series. They have great stories and I always enjoy playing RPGs, whether Western or Japanese.

 

There's a new game (old if you are a PC gamer) coming out soon called Pillars of Eternity and it is a story-heavy game. 

 

I can't wait for more RPGs to come out. Definitely my favourite genre of games.

 

Otherwise, the Uncharted series does not disappoint when it comes to characterisation or story.

[Wesley8890]

A game that has a great story to me is Akira Toriyamas Chrono Trigger. It comes from the visionary mind of Dragon Ball's creator. Also the Darksiders franchise is another great one.

[Brayon]

2 minutes ago, Wesley8890 said:

A game that has a great story to me is Akira Toriyamas Chrono Trigger. It comes from the visionary mind of Dragon Ball's creator. Also the Darksiders franchise is another great one.

I loved Chrono Cross.