Day 21 – Game with the best story
Immersive story seems to be the newest selling point for video games. While sexy graphics still reign supreme in the marketing of AAA titles, story seems to be catching up quickly.
Clearly I’m not the biggest fan of this story excess trend. So then what to choose for best story? Though it took some digging, I eventually landed on Myst.
I have never been so willingly immersed in a story as I was playing this game. It is part mystery, part exploration, and part puzzle solving. But what makes the story so darn brilliant is that you have to go look for it!! And each new bit of story you uncover is just enough to keep it interesting.
The story is so subtly revealed and brilliantly woven into the world that it doesn’t feel like a story game, which is incredible as the entire game is really about trying to uncover the story itself.
The only recent game that I felt came close, with its subtle use of story, is Portal. There are no cut scenes, no quest texts to read, no character dialogue trees, and yet just enough bits of story are revealed to give the player a delectably enticing peek into what might have happened.
What is really so fabulous about this story delivery, is that it allows for my participation and actually requires some thinking on my part. I get to use my own imagination to fill in the blanks. Then again I am a sucker for mysteries. =D
Oh and for anyone interested in experiencing Myst, I found that it was recently released for the iPhone!! Yes I downloaded it and am now playing it, again. Still awesome.
Tags: 30 days of video games, adoration, iphone, puzzle, story
August 22nd, 2012 at 12:03 pm
Dia… wait no. I thought long and hard on this one but really couldn’t come up with a better answer than Dragon Age 2. I really liked the long story arc over the course of several years of Hawke’s career and the development of the erstwhile Champion of Kirkwall. It’s not the best game, but I enjoyed what was at the time, a sidelight from the storyline of Dragon Age: Origins.
But I think Myst was a better choice.
August 22nd, 2012 at 12:31 pm
Dragon Age is another game I havn’t played. That an Assassins Creed are two games that everyone seems to be gagga over.
Nice to hear that the story is good. =D
August 22nd, 2012 at 5:14 pm
Dragon Age I actually never got really far in. I did not like the combat very much, I felt like you had to have a certain party or certain skills. I should give another go because Alistair = DREAMY.
Dragon Age 2 was great. Nice little mix of combat & story with plenty of adult humor and Isabella trying to get Avelline to stick her thumb up her husband’s ass. Loved it.
August 24th, 2012 at 5:50 pm
You have to read between the lines but I think I just heard someone tell me to go play Dragon Age 2.
August 24th, 2012 at 9:48 pm
^ What he said. =D