There's a chance you'll end up thinking of it as an "awkwardly written, pretentious cringefest" as well but Killer 7 might be my favourite story in video games. Period.
A night in the woods. It looks like a kids game but its more a slice of life in a Post-Recession Rust Belt town in Northeastern US. Not much of a plot to speak of but a lot of good character interaction and little side stories to seek out and find. It just doesn't come across as mature in the screenshots because it looks like South Park where everyone is a furry.
It does have some politics in there that's somewhat inherent in the setting of living in a post-recession rust belt town which isn't anything controversial but might rub some people the wrong way.
Building on your affinity for L.A. Noire, I'd say play Mafia (and to a much lesser extent, play Mafia 2)- two PC games that should run fine on your rig with an excellent cast of relatable characters inhabiting a complex and morally ambiguous story, involving organised crime as seen by those embedded within it, the average guys drawn in to it, and the law enforcement viewing it from the outside. Personally I'd rate Mafia 1's story higher than L.A. Noire, but of course I'll leave you to form your own opinion.
Since your focus is on story, I'll assume you're above dismissing games based on graphics, so I'll recommend older titles that have shined in storytelling as well. Titles like the Lucasarts point-and-click adventures, Star Control 2 (which has a fantastic story that fans of Mass Effect really should check out), Deus Ex games (but especially the 1st) Brothers in Arms, Bully, Crimson Skies (PC), and stuff like that.
I'd also recommend Mount & Blade Warband, not for its storyline (it has no rigid storyline) but for having a world with so many organic systems to it that as you move through the game it feels like a crafted storyline, only it's you that defines what goal that story is heading towards.
Does Deus Ex hold up though? I remember completely digging it and loving Deus Ex when I played it but I was the perfect age for that kinda story and subject matter honestly. I'm pretty sure it'll still be an entertaining yarn today but I'm guessing it wouldn't hold up as intelligently-written.
Does Deus Ex hold up though? I remember completely digging it and loving Deus Ex when I played it but I was the perfect age for that kinda story and subject matter honestly. I'm pretty sure it'll still be an entertaining yarn today but I'm guessing it wouldn't hold up as intelligently-written.
I have zero-interest in conspiracy theories in the real world, and played the first Deus Ex for the very first time in 2013, and was completely immersed in the story.
So yeah, I don't think you've got too much to worry about it holding up today, from a narrative perspective.
Before you say anything - yes, I've made a thread like this a couple of years ago. You can probably still find it if you look hard enough. The thing is, I got off the wrong foot back then and want to try again, this time knowing exactly what I'm after and why I like the writing in the games I'm going to mention. I really hope you'll be willing to help me out once again.
As the title mentions, I'm looking for games with truly mature and intelligently-written story. What I mean by that is a type of story that tackles tough, controversial subjects and themes, and does it well. Topics that often aren't even mentioned, let alone given the spotlight, due to video games' role as entertainment and a form of escapism. Topics such as darker sides of the human psyche, consequences of actions resulting from people acting on those impulses, and deep analysis of ethics and morality of such actions.
Execution is key here. I'm not going to lie - I have incredibly high standards regarding storytelling (which is both a blessing and a curse), so I'm not willing to give out participation awards. A lot of games over the recent and not so recent years, such as The Last of Us, Life is Strange, David Cage's games, or the Metal Gear Solid series have attempted to bring maturity into gaming, with the result pretty much always being an awkwardly-written pretentious cringefest, that instead of making me think, made me roll my eyes. Here's my personal list of games that actually managed to achieve truly mature writing and have my eternal respect for it. In the spoilers I've written reasons why I think so. Some of them might spoil the story of the game itself.
- Silent Hill 2
An extremely well-executed exploration (in quite the literal sense) of the mind of a man troubled by his past, analyzing his deeds and reasons for doing them, bit by bit, using deep, intricate symbolism, where every little detail matters, to depict both his grief and his guilt.
- Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
A really in-depth analysis of someone, whose life revolves around repressed memories; their struggles and how it affects them as a person.
- Telltale's The Walking Dead Season 1
People's desperate struggle to stay alive in desperate times. A great portrayal of what people are capable of doing for their survival and how much the definition of "survival" can vary from person to person, depending on the circumstances.
- NieR
A fascinating tale about what exactly it means to be human, as well as a brilliant deconstruction of the JRPG and shonen genres, with the main character turning from a heroic young boy (going by the story of Replicant here; Gestalt is pretty much non-canon to me) to a jaded, sociopathic young man because over the years he gets to know human nature more and more and realizes becoming like them is the only way to save the ones he loves the most.
- L.A. Noire
An excellent critique of Hollywood, destroying its idealized image of the place where dreams come true, by revealing its darker side - rampant corruption, abuse of power, and everyone stopping at nothing to reach success.
Those are my top 5 picks. Based on that, what would you recommend I should play? It can be any genre and any year. Visual Novels I'm also willing to give a chance if you can find me something exceptionally good.
The preferred platform is PC, but I also have a bunch of older consoles: a PS1, a PS2, a PSP, a DS, and a Gamecube. Obviously my next stop should be the other Yoko Taro games, but I'd love to see if I have any other options because it's honestly kind of sad knowing I pretty much only have one game left to play (because at the moment I don't have either a PS3 to play Drakengard 3, or a PC powerful enough to play NieR: Automata).
Here are my PC's specs. It's pretty crap by today's standards, but I'm sure some less demanding games are going to be able to run on it:
- AMD Athlon II X4 @2.8GHz
- 4GB RAM
- Radeon HD 7770 1GB
- Windows 7
If you have any questions that would help you understand what I'm after better, feel free to ask. Thanks in advance for the help.
Comsidering the lack of respect writers and game fans afford each other and the job itself being somewhere between intern and help desk operator in terms of agency respect and stature then aside from the odd autuer title you are shit out of luck friend. Return thy discerning eyes and refined palate to literature where it will be better served.
I think what constitutes 'intelligently' written is open to debate. I thought the story of Red Dead 2 was pretty intelligent, but I like David Cage and The Last of Us so what do I know. Have you thought about trying an old game like the Blade Runner one? That story really stuck with me.
I haven't played those games. I meant the actual Blade Runner game from 1997. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blade_Runner_(1997_video_game), which has a completely different storyline from the film.
A night in the woods. It looks like a kids game but its more a slice of life in a Post-Recession Rust Belt town in Northeastern US. Not much of a plot to speak of but a lot of good character interaction and little side stories to seek out and find. It just doesn't come across as mature in the screenshots because it looks like South Park where everyone is a furry.
It does have some politics in there that's somewhat inherent in the setting of living in a post-recession rust belt town which isn't anything controversial but might rub some people the wrong way.
I think what constitutes 'intelligently' written is open to debate. I thought the story of Red Dead 2 was pretty intelligent, but I like David Cage and The Last of Us so what do I know. Have you thought about trying an old game like the Blade Runner one? That story really stuck with me.
I haven't played those games. I meant the actual Blade Runner game from 1997. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blade_Runner_(1997_video_game), which has a completely different storyline from the film.
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
