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Games with powerful stories?


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I'm gonna jump on a totally different bandwagon and recommend Bioshock, if you haven't checked it out yet. I was hesitant for awhile, but I can say this: while it's not immediately apparent that the story is all that impressive, it all takes an incredible series of turns partway through. If nothing else, the game leaves you thinking, and did an incredible job of weaving in storytelling with gameplay.

As much as I want to try BioShock, I'm too scared to play it. I wish I were kidding but I don't do so well with scary stuff, lol. I actually sold my copy of Dead Space once before I completed it for that exact reason.

Beyond Good & Evil.

I love the look of the game but the camera controls feel like they were made specifically to make me hate them. I'll give it another shot though.

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Eh, powerful stories?

I mean, I like a good game story, but even the best FF plot is still a game plot. In general, game narratives can only go so far, I feel. But that doesn't mean there are plenty of game stories that aren't highly satisfying.

If you want some satisfying narratives, I'll see what I can recommend:

-Skies of Arcadia

--Mainly because it's a light-hearted game, with distinctive, enjoyable characters, a fun ship-battle system, and all in all, its narrative encapsulates that bright, adventurous, and fun quality RPGs used to have before everyone tried to copy VII's darker approach.

-Ace Attorney series

--Also fun games, each and every one of them. Still contains that "fun" atmosphere I talked about, but at the same time, over the course of the first three games you really grow to care about the main cast, and root for them through their trials and tribulations (ha ha a pun trust me play the games and you'll get it). Highly recommended for adventure game fans.

-Fallout 1

--Speaking of adventure games, this one will suck you into its post-apocalyptic world, with its charm, strong writing, and fun RPG mechanics. Definitely not some anime JRPG story to be found here! However, you might want something more "up-to-date"...

-Fallout: New Vegas

--Better than Fallout 3, I feel. It just feels like a much better experience, though it's hard to quantify that. Perhaps the setting and the characters are just a bit better in my eyes. The fact that the original crew of the first two Fallout games worked on New Vegas, as opposed to folks who developed Fallout 3. It's a great game, driving story, and great voice-acting, so it's definitely worth a run-through.

-Hotel Dusk: Secret of Room 215 (DS)

--It is more or less a visual novel with puzzles thrown in, but gosh damn, what a novel. It's almost like an old-fashioned detective story/page turner, with lots of great characters, a great mystery, and it literally drives you along into playing this game. If you can also pick up the sequel (only released in Europe), you'll probably be in for just as good of a treat. But play the original if you can.

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As much as I want to try BioShock, I'm too scared to play it. I wish I were kidding but I don't do so well with scary stuff, lol. I actually sold my copy of Dead Space once before I completed it for that exact reason.

Hmm, I wouldn't really call it scary. It might catch you by surprise once in a while, but it's generally more of a spectacle than anything. What's blood-curdling isn't fear of some boogie-man or monster, it's the fact that the Splicers have twisted themselves to the point that they have no moral compass whatsoever. Not scary so much as creepy. Anyway, up to you. Might want to check some gameplay videos to see if it lines up with what you find scary or not.

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Hmm, I wouldn't really call it scary. It might catch you by surprise once in a while, but it's generally more of a spectacle than anything. What's blood-curdling isn't fear of some boogie-man or monster, it's the fact that the Splicers have twisted themselves to the point that they have no moral compass whatsoever. Not scary so much as creepy. Anyway, up to you. Might want to check some gameplay videos to see if it lines up with what you find scary or not.

Eeh.. I found Bioshock 1 to be pleasingly disturbing but unbearably suspenseful. I was so bummed that I wussed out because the atmosphere and story were really drawing me in.

Also, Dorrie from SM64 scared the crap out of when I was 9. Just sayin'.

I'd like to second the notion about Skies of Arcadia being light-hearted fun. It has many serious moments but it really knows how to keep things optimistic instead of trying to bum you out all the time- LOOKING AT YOU, FF.

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ICO and Shadow of the Colossus both hit home for me despite how sparsely their respective storylines' details were scattered. Shadow of the Colossus was especially wonderful to complete given how it ended and ESPECIALLY what was shown in the ending credits. Neither is really an RPG, though, so...

Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean

This one has an especially wonderful storyline. It also has one of the strangest, most amazing plot twists I've ever seen.

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3

This game's story is one of only two at which I've actually cried. The game itself is, incidentally, my favorite game of all time.

Odin Sphere

This one is rather unique. The game itself is somewhat repetitive, but it does have RPG elements and you are able to play as several different characters in sequence. Each character's story interacts with all the others and creates what I believe is a pretty amazing experience.

It looks like almost every other game I'd like to have mentioned has already been mentioned, so there's that.

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Surprised nobody mentioned Vagrant Story... The plot, dialogue and gameplay were just great. It isn't very long (took me some 10 hours) but with New Game+ which unlocks all those extra goodies, you'll have at least 2 playthroughs. Just a note that the game is pretty hard if you don't get a hang of how different weapons work early on.

P.S. Also it has the best one-liner in vg history :mrgreen:

- We should wait for reinforcements!

- Reinforcements? I am the reinforcements.

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Nier has a relatively unique and powerful story, though much of its depth doesn't become clear until the second playthrough (everything takes a different light from the second playthrough onwards).

I'm also going to put in a vote towards pretty much every Tales game ever (with special emphasis on Abyss, Vesperia and Graces) - I'd say they have to be among the best JRPGs I've ever played in terms of storyline.

The Star Ocean series (excluding 4) are also pretty good from a storyline standpoint (though a lot of people complain about certain twists in TTEoT)

All the Assassin's Creed games are amazing in terms of storyline (except Revelations, Revelations is pretty unnecessary and relatively dull when compared to the others).

The Xenosaga triology also has a powerful storyline and would probably be worth checking out.

I'm sure there's more but I can't really think of anything else at the minute.

I'll finish by plugging Final Fantasy Type-0, which has a really deep and depressing storyline, though given that it's currently only in Japanese with no announced localisation and the levels of hate in the ocr thread, I don't think it'll be taken seriously as a recommendation just yet...

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Surprised nobody mentioned Vagrant Story... The plot, dialogue and gameplay were just great. It isn't very long (took me some 10 hours) but with New Game+ which unlocks all those extra goodies, you'll have at least 2 playthroughs. Just a note that the game is pretty hard if you don't get a hang of how different weapons work early on.

P.S. Also it has the best one-liner in vg history :mrgreen:

- We should wait for reinforcements!

- Reinforcements? I am the reinforcements.

I second this recommendation.

In an interview, the developers have said that they had to cut out like 55% of the plot in order to fit the entire game into one disc. In spite of that, they managed to make the story GOOD! Makes you wonder how amazing it would have been if they had enough room for everything.

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Ah yes, Deadly Premonition!

You should get that of your own volition.

So says Mr. Stewart.

All jokes aside, it's probably one of the most bonkers, off-the-wall, but ultimately captivating and satisfying game narratives to come out in recent times. Francis York Morgan (just call him York) is one of my favorite game protagonists, who, along with Gene from God Hand and Travis Touchdown from No More Heroes, really stands head-above-shoulders the rest of the generic JRPG crowd in terms of likability and originality.

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Eh, powerful stories?

I mean, I like a good game story, but even the best FF plot is still a game plot.

I don't know, considering he's playing NIER I have a tough time comparing it to any other with the exceptions being Forbidden Siren 1 & 2 as well as the Fatal Frame series.

Hell all you know at first is that you're simply a 40 year something father (20 something brother in the Japanese version) trying to raise as well as find a cure for your daughter from a devastating disease. By the time you reach the end as well as gone through every single note explaining the world itself, the disease among other things; It just suddenly cascades upon you when the realizations on everything has been discovered.

To quote a reply on /v/'s message board when some one asked about NIER, it's basically this image.

manlytears.jpg

Why exactly I won't say for the sake of not spoiling anything. I will just say I was satisfied after seeing everything it had to offer.

Forbidden Siren 1 & 2's narratives had such complexities regarding to their prospective stories its mind boggling but at the same time fun trying to piece it all together, especially since they both use the Butterfly Effect on their stories. Not everything are what they seem in those games. The games depend not only on what you do but what items/artifacts/notes ect that you find throughout the games.

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How about Super Mario Brothers? It's a game that takes place within the twisted mind of an Italian plumber as he battles bizarre creatures and sexual frustration. His fantasies include his other personality, Luigi, a taller, thinner version of himself, and an evil turtle king. Like in many dreams, the plumber imagines himself capable of great power, able to throw fire and slaughter countless enemies. And even though he dies, he is able to return and keep fighting many times as though nothing happened. As the game progresses, you delve deeper into his perverse psyche as you try to make sense of the surreal world inhabiting his mind. He conquers castle after castle, only to be told that the "princess is in another castle," symbolizing his real life struggles with impotence and rejection.

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How about Super Mario Brothers? It's a game that takes place within the twisted mind of an Italian plumber as he battles bizarre creatures and sexual frustration. His fantasies include his other personality, Luigi, a taller, thinner version of himself, and an evil turtle king. Like in many dreams, the plumber imagines himself capable of great power, able to throw fire and slaughter countless enemies. And even though he dies, he is able to return and keep fighting many times as though nothing happened. As the game progresses, you delve deeper into his perverse psyche as you try to make sense of the surreal world inhabiting his mind. He conquers castle after castle, only to be told that the "princess is in another castle," symbolizing his real life struggles with impotence and rejection.

Yeah but that's not actually what the game is about. :roll:

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Yeah but that's not actually what the game is about. :roll:

It's not? Well I'm confused then. Oh hold on, just googled it. So Mario was a communist. Guess that makes more sense than how I interpreted it.

I haven't gotten into many games with an in-depth story. There are a few exceptions, like FF8 which I thought had a great story.

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