intellectually challenging games/anime (story wise)
- Thread starter thenuminator
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I agree with the Phoenix Wright games, I'm just playing the first one now, and it's really fun once you get a chain of evidence and stuff going, but some of the testimonies you have to find contradictions too are just brainbursting...also, I agree with Phoenix Wright...I really had this guy:Magnatek said:
Damn you, von Karma!!
Sorry for this, but it was nothing but a shoddy, ham-fisted retelling of Frankenstein with High School Harem tropes starring a bunch of naked teenage girls with superpowers. Far shallower and emotionally weaker than it's source material.jonnosferatu said:
Nothing I've ever seen can come close to Ghost in the Shell (any of it's incarnations) in terms of anime. It also manages to raise these questions without insulting the audience's intelligence and painstakingly explaining every minute detail, something the MGS games fail hard at.
Bioshock comes close, though, as does Deus Ex. What can I say, I'm a sucker for transhumanist stuff.
It seems I've taught this forum well.IcemanFreeze said:I agree with the Phoenix Wright games, I'm just playing the first one now, and it's really fun once you get a chain of evidence and stuff going, but some of the testimonies you have to find contradictions too are just brainbursting...also, I agree with Phoenix Wright...I really had this guy:Magnatek said:
Damn you, von Karma!!
Yeah, Phoenix Wright, /thread. There's just so many moments in that series you're gonna think "Oh SNAP!" in your mind, if not at something that happened automatically in a cutscene, then to something you figured out on your own without any prompting (and thus used it to screw over the bad guy)
Something that actually happens in the Phoenix Wright series: (paraphrased)
Judge: All right. Let's see. The defendant is accused of murder in the first degree. The defendant had prepared surgical gloves before coming to the scene of the murder, and killed a DETECTIVE in cold blood; making this a very serious crime against the police department. There was a highly trustworthy eyewitness to the crime, who could not have possibly committed the crime herself. This eyewitness very directly SAW the accused STAB the victim in the chest with a knife. Not another person was seen at the scene until the police arrive. And finally, the accused has under examination, and without any pressure, given a full confession to committing the murder. Defending the accused is...Mr. Phoenix Wright. Your opening statement?
Judge: Well, this case certainly has taken a strange series of turns...but I think we can safely declare the defendant....
--NOT GUILTY--
Intellectually challenging!? Do you want a riddle? There are very few, decent, game stories. Most "good" stories are usually built around interesting characters, but the plot is generally...generic. Not in a bad way, they're usually just more personal, like a story of how I went to store to buy milk, only replace store with a fortress, buy with save, and milk with princess. I personally have enjoyed the adventure of Jack Walters from Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth, in which a detective investigates a simple disappearance that later escalates to much more malevolent conspiracy.
If you want something with multi-threaded motifs, read a book: just type "top novels" on Google, pick something that looks interesting, and make a visit to your local library.
If you want something with multi-threaded motifs, read a book: just type "top novels" on Google, pick something that looks interesting, and make a visit to your local library.
Games: Intelligent Qube. Doesn't get more intellectually challenging than that without being virtual chess. Heck of a lot of fun, too. Good luck finding a copy, though.
Anime: The ol' standby, Gundam Wing. The story was so much richer than what I was expecting. Don't let the clips you've seen fool you; yeah, there's plenty of action, but this isn't your standard brainless slugfest mecha anime. This is of a higher class, and it shows.
If that doesn't float your boat, how about wading out of the anime pool for a bit and giving The Venture Bros. a try? Just because it's an American show on Adult Swim doesn't mean it's not excellent. It starts off kind of slow, but towards the end of Season One and the start of Season Two, it becomes the perfect storm of action, espionage, mystery and, of course, comedy. You're seriously missing out.
Anime: The ol' standby, Gundam Wing. The story was so much richer than what I was expecting. Don't let the clips you've seen fool you; yeah, there's plenty of action, but this isn't your standard brainless slugfest mecha anime. This is of a higher class, and it shows.
If that doesn't float your boat, how about wading out of the anime pool for a bit and giving The Venture Bros. a try? Just because it's an American show on Adult Swim doesn't mean it's not excellent. It starts off kind of slow, but towards the end of Season One and the start of Season Two, it becomes the perfect storm of action, espionage, mystery and, of course, comedy. You're seriously missing out.
Indeed. It's one big deconstruction of its predecessor (which you should have played beforehand) and the concept of the video game. It even tries to teach you Meme theory. Beside all that, it's still an excellent stealth game. You should definately give it a shot.Crapster said:
Errr....
This'll take a while.
I guess puzzle games can be quite intellectually challneging, particularly Portal, which has the kind of humour not everyone gets.
This'll take a while.
I guess puzzle games can be quite intellectually challneging, particularly Portal, which has the kind of humour not everyone gets.
Very, very little stuff is actually intellectually challenging. Especially Japanese stuff, which is far too prone to putting style over substance and, ahem, recycling themes so hard that it makes Hollywood blush.thenuminator said:
It also doesn't help that most of the anime/manga fandom can't differentialed between "deep, complex storytelling" and "really violent and humorless".
What, no mention of Planescape Torment? For shame people. What other game can you make someone disappear by creating a logical argument that makes them believe they don't exist?
Edit: (And in the time it took me to post the wall of text, someone did mention it.
)
Seriously though, while it will be difficult to track down a copy and get it to work on XP, it's well worth the effort. The setting is amazingly developed and is quite far removed from classic dungeon crawlers. There's a breadth of philosophical factions in games and many NPCs have their own set of motivations, logic and beliefs which they subscribe to. The best outcomes for quests come from non-violent and intelligent solutions.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 is in similar vain (the lead writer and director also made Planescape Torment) save it deals with exploring the lightside and darkside and doing a bit of deconstruction. Only problem is that the game is buggy which can be off-putting and is somewhat incomplete. Still, worth a look if you're into Star Wars. Or you could just read the Let's Play guide.
http://fromearth.net/LetsPlay/KOTOR%202/index.html
Deus Ex has a great cyberpunk plot and lots of details which will reward those who like to explore and read everything. Also good for conspiracy theories.
As for anime, well, I guess it depends on how far along the spectrum you want to go. Like others have said, Ghost in the Shell is a very good choice. Look up Seinen anime, which is the sort of serious anime subset you seem to be wanting. Kara No Kyokai is another I recommend. Very good, very moody supernatural anime.
Edit: (And in the time it took me to post the wall of text, someone did mention it.
)Seriously though, while it will be difficult to track down a copy and get it to work on XP, it's well worth the effort. The setting is amazingly developed and is quite far removed from classic dungeon crawlers. There's a breadth of philosophical factions in games and many NPCs have their own set of motivations, logic and beliefs which they subscribe to. The best outcomes for quests come from non-violent and intelligent solutions.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 is in similar vain (the lead writer and director also made Planescape Torment) save it deals with exploring the lightside and darkside and doing a bit of deconstruction. Only problem is that the game is buggy which can be off-putting and is somewhat incomplete. Still, worth a look if you're into Star Wars. Or you could just read the Let's Play guide.
http://fromearth.net/LetsPlay/KOTOR%202/index.html
Deus Ex has a great cyberpunk plot and lots of details which will reward those who like to explore and read everything. Also good for conspiracy theories.
As for anime, well, I guess it depends on how far along the spectrum you want to go. Like others have said, Ghost in the Shell is a very good choice. Look up Seinen anime, which is the sort of serious anime subset you seem to be wanting. Kara No Kyokai is another I recommend. Very good, very moody supernatural anime.
Anime: Big O. I'm serious. You have to watch both seasons, but there's some screwed up stuff going on in there. It's got a very confusing ending, but it also kind of touches on induviduality and stuff. It's kind of a soft thinking anime, though, so you get a good dose of giant robots and thought provoking stuff, just not quite as much as Evangelion.
Ghost in the Shell, the series and the Movies, are both very thinking animes.
Lain is brainrape, enjoy!
Games:
Hmm...I dunno. Alot of rpgs will have more of what you're looking for. Shadow of the Colossus will at least teach you how to spell the word, but also carries a feeling of depth without having more then a few lines of dialogue.
Ghost in the Shell, the series and the Movies, are both very thinking animes.
Lain is brainrape, enjoy!
Games:
Hmm...I dunno. Alot of rpgs will have more of what you're looking for. Shadow of the Colossus will at least teach you how to spell the word, but also carries a feeling of depth without having more then a few lines of dialogue.
Hitman: Blood Money
The gameplay is pretty much what you might expect (kill people as professionally (or not) as possible).
But the way the story is presented between the gameplay is quite engrossing.
The gameplay is pretty much what you might expect (kill people as professionally (or not) as possible).
But the way the story is presented between the gameplay is quite engrossing.