Your best Story in games in the last decade.

[Rob2K19]

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep (and Final Mix)
Kingdom Hearts X [chi] series
Some parts of Kingdom Hearts 3.
Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth (and Hacker's Memory)
NieR series.
Gunvolt 1, 2 (especially 2), THE OUT OF GUNVOLT
BlazBlue series (Xblaze included).
Dangan Ronpa series.

Off the top of my head.

 

[Arithmetician]

Sony has really nailed storytelling this decade, with first the Last of Us and then God of War absolutely raising the bar compared to what came before.

Horizon really doesn't match up to those two games storytelling-wise (the acting is okay, and the cinematography is not a priority), but it has a fantastic story that's one of the best I've ever seen. The log entries are so we'll crafted, and the idea of Aloy discover the audience's world is fantastic, as it gives you a great sense of anticipation for what's to come.

Hellblade also definitely on a level of its own in storytelling. Hellblade 2 will be crazy.

 

[filterfilter]

Life is Strange for something heartwarming and pure, Detroit: Become Human for something cinematic and epic

 

[Pinco]

SOMA

 

[Strings]

Virtue's Last Reward is easily my number 1 here:

So, so, sooooo good. Both conceptually and in terms of execution. Remembering things that haven't happened yet is such a fab story engine.

 

[MDSVeritas]

Just played through The Beginner's Guide and that would certainly be up there, masterful use of the medium to toy with player expectations. Certainly one of the best character studies I've seen in a game

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I would certainly out this up there as well. The story it tells is so unusually and interestingly conveyed, and it's so human in such a tragic and relatable way.

The entire segment of narration just before the epilogue is incredible and utterly heartbreaking.

 

[Jasper]

Sony has really nailed storytelling this decade, with first the Last of Us and then God of War absolutely raising the bar compared to what came before.

Horizon really doesn't match up to those two games storytelling-wise (the acting is okay, and the cinematography is not a priority), but it has a fantastic story that's one of the best I've ever seen. The log entries are so we'll crafted, and the idea of Aloy discover the audience's world is fantastic, as it gives you a great sense of anticipation for what's to come.

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You summed up my feelings concerning GoW and Horizon pretty clearly! GoW and ND's games are great at presenting a solid story, but the one in Horizon was actually the one that'll stick with me most.

But even within sci-fi stories, I actually think I like Quantum Break's a little better. I know I'm in the minority there.

Life is Strange (and its prequel!) is probably my favourite overall. The Banner Saga comes close, and I haven't even seen it mentioned here, sadly.

Wandersong is one of the most unlikely games to have a good story, but it truly does. People should really, really play it.

 

[Deleted member 8861]

I think it'd end up being The House In Fata Morgana. Nothing gripped me emotionally like that game did, and for so long at that.

It has one problematic element in its story, which frustrates me to no end because I want to express my love for this game with no reservations whatsoever, and can't. That's the only flaw in the game too, everything else works perfectly in tandem in my eyes.

The runner up would be Virtue's Last Reward. There will never again be a game that appeals to my interests and my feelings so directly-- if it weren't for the catastrophe that is Zero Time Dilemma, VLR would've probably still been my favorite game of all time, flaws be damned.

As for non-VN games... I think I have to hand it to NieR Automata. I do have my qualms with the story -large segments of B and C- but the setting is incredible (and I generally hate open world games), and the ending is the best I have ever experienced in a game...

 

[Another]

Last of Us and God of War are raising the bar? Oo

IHNMAIMS and Planescape: Torment were released in the 90s.

 

[Bradford]

Disco Elysium is a massive standout.

Otherwise, I'll list a few.

• Pathologic
• Pathologic 2
• Soma
• Virginia
• What Remains of Edith Finch
• Firewatch
• Soulsborne
• Night in the Woods
• Control
• Life is Strange
• Before the Storm
• Life is Strange 2
• Nier/Automata

Thanks all the stuff that I still think about on a regular basis.

 

[Fanto]

Am I the only person on this forum who has played Danganronpa or what?

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I've played the first one, and I'm like maybe 3/4 through the second one, already own the third. It is a great series with great stories and characters, definitely up there for me even though I haven't played them all yet.

 

[Mechaplum]

Nier+Automata takes the cake for me, followed by Planescape: Torment. Then Xenogears just managed to squeak into third place despite its heavy handed gnosticism. Finally, Yakuza 0.

Coincidentally, all four(five) are my top GOATs. I think about these games constantly.

 

[LavitzSlambert]

I haven't played a lot of the big names but I'd be surprised if anything could match Nier Automata. That game is a masterpiece in storytelling and atmosphere.

 

[Musubi]

Nier Automata and Life is Strange.

 

[tomofthepops]

 

[Phendrift]

NieR A

Also Fire Emblem Three Houses. That one has a pretty great story that was acclaimed. Surprised I don't see more mentions

 

[Kurtikeya]

Just played through The Beginner's Guide and that would certainly be up there, masterful use of the medium to toy with player expectations. Certainly one of the best character studies I've seen in a game

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I'm so happy this got mentioned.

 

[jamoku]

Dark Souls
Bloodborne
Soma
Yakuza 0
The Last Guardian

Seeing the replies makes me a bit bummed out I never played Nier

 

[Pankratous]

Last decade is difficult and I guess it's the typical TLoU answer, but H:ZD had an absolutely incredible story as well which is definitely worth mentioning.

 

[Wollan]

Horizon Zero Dawn has a great story. The pacing of the main campaign and the emotional impact of it is nigh on perfect. There are several mouth-agape moments to surprise you and the lore is seriously grimdark. It's almost overwhelming how comprehensive and neatly tied together it is considering it stretches from the ancient past to the distant post-apocalypse future. Major subjects range from science vs religion to gender roles and several levels of motherhood. On top of this you have all the different tribal houses and how they differ from each other and the history amongst them. I like how this sci-fi game is set in a real-world USA in the far future yet the tone is very much set within ancient Inca & native-american societies. The title of the game actually makes perfect sense in the end and the story also manages, against all odds, to create legitimacy for having armed robot dinosaurs.

 

[Dennis8K]

Off the top of my head:

The Last of Us
Mass Effect
The Witcher 2

 

[CannonFodder52]

That said, my personal story of the decade would have to be Deadly Premonition and I'm not sorry 😂

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Don't be sorry. Deadly Premonition is incredible. It's my game of the decade.

 

[TYRANITARR]

Cool thanks to this thread I now know about SOMA. it's on steam sale for $5! Bought. Never heard of it before this.

 

[ieo]

To the Moon. No game has ever wrecked me the way this one did.

Honorable mentions to Rakuen, the first Nier, and 999.

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To the Moon is killer

 

[TYRANITARR]

My favorites are Virtues Last Reward, all the Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney series, and Xenoblade Chronicles 1 (I think that was 2010).

But the BEST has to be Steins;Gate. LOVE that game's story, so satisfying an ending!

 

[DJtal]

To appreciate a story I need to feel the connection. Normally I don't gives a shit about stories in videogames (I'm the type that bash the button to skip it), but Death Stranding got me on a personal level.
I was expecting Yu to close Shenmue, but no he choosed to continue with his delusion "de grandeur", I'm done with Shenmue.

 

[Uthred]

I loved Disco Elysium. But it was really the character and dialogue that was strong. The actual narrative, and the plot, were fairly pedestrian.

I'd probably give the nod to Nier. If you're including visual novels then Steins;Gate (though I suppose technically its 2009).

 

[DJtal]

Disco Elysium is a massive standout.

Otherwise, I'll list a few.

• Pathologic
• Pathologic 2
• Soma
• Virginia
• Soulsborne
• Night in the Woods
• Control
• Life is Strange
• Before the Storm
• Life is Strange 2
• Nier/Automata

Thanks all the stuff that I still think about on a regular basis.

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I forgot those. Man what a roller coaster of emotion. If you want to tell a story in a video game don't use movies or books format, create your own.

I should add Hellblade Senua, that was something.

 

[Beth Cyra]

Fire Emblem 3 Houses Silver Snow Route was a ton of fun and while it really needed more Rhea/Flayn/Seteth interactions I still found myself glued to it from start to finish.

Starlight Vega - Indie Vishal Novel that has amazing characters and storyline.

 

[GameChanger]

Portal 2, The Last of Us and God of War come to mind. I love character driven stories in video games. I am not sure how people enjoy generic ass plots in games like the Witcher 3 or even Mass Effect 2. Both games had some interesting side narratives though.

 

[Bedameister]

Life is Strange closely followed by RDR2

 

[Flevance]

Umineko.. actually, the best in the entire history of gaming

 

[Dogui]

Too many games with a lot of stories, really hard to decide.

In terms of uniqueness, Lisa the Painful is completely nuts. Incredible plot and setting, nothing in a videogame disturbed me more. It's a good contender.

In terms of caring about the world and characters, it's hard to beat Trails stuff. Zero + Ao no Kiseki has probably the story that i care the most of the decade. Tho i played them this year and maybe there's an huge recency bias from my part.

First Nier and To the Moon are worth mentioning as well, i suppose.

Also really liked Tales of Berseria.

Xenoblade have a lot of great twists. That one in the end of Mechonis is pure craziness.

Hard to think in a decisive best story. It would probably depend on my mood. Probably forgot stuff.

Probably Lisa wins best story but Crossbell Trails is the favorite.

 

[Maximum Spider]

 

[Garchia3.0]

Disco Elysium is a massive standout.

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I might check that out as it's sitting in my backlog :O

 

[jsnepo]

Uncharted 4 with the whole marriage thing. That hit me hard.

 

[Chettlar]

Eh. If they worked in the content from the Grimoire book I'd agree. A lot of stuff is off-screen.

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What's there is incredible. The way they

Spoiler

use the gameplay and quests and setting to give you this feeling of normalcy only to rip it away from you, especially your daughter and change the tone of everything, giving quests sometimes more grim seriously tones while trying to keep that same sense of community established in the beginning.

really sells the story they are trying to sell.

The grimoire stuff just makes it even better, but what there is awesome and well told not just with the writing and sometimes cheesy dialogue, but with the gameplay and setting.

 

[callamp]

Best use of the medium:

What Remains of Edith Finch

Traditional story:

Witcher 3 + DLC
Witcher 2
Life is Strange
The Walking Dead - Season 1
Quantum Break

LiS and Edith were the most emotional games. Just brutal. Witcher 3 has about half a dozen plot lines that are top tier.

 

[Funkallero]

I'd say God of War 2018.
It's a simple story but dialog delivery, pacing and encounters makes it one of the richest experience story telling wise this gen.

I would add Bloodborne for the lore.

 

[DoubleTake]

Bloodborne's story and lore still fucks me up thinking about it all these years later.

Honorable mention goes to God of War, Hellblade, and Nier Automata

 

[Kupo Kupopo]

Mafia 3 had a great story with an amazing cast, the voice acting was next level. I will keep shouting from the highest rooftops, that game was a truly underrated gem this generation.

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yes!!!...

for me, the last of us. it's story, characters, & pacing are about as perfectly realized as any in any medium, & i'll be amazed if the sequel is even half as effective...

 

[Deleted member 49319]

I am all of a sudden reminded of this article.

Video Games Are Better Without Stories

Film, television, and literature all tell them better. So why are games still obsessed with narrative?

www.theatlantic.com

 

[addik]

Hot take: I honestly can't take your opinion if you did not list down What Remains of Edith Finch. What a great way to utilize the video game medium, puts the anthology genre into the video game medium, has actually interesting stories, and an eerie atmosphere to boot.

Ghost Trick is another amazing game with a great story. It's sad that the game remains niche and is barely even mentioned in this thread.

+1 to on the Nier series, and I think people have already talked about why.

I'm iffy on Horizon: Zero Dawn, but the lore was pretty amazing and was one of the reasons why I just love exploring its open world. Silent Hill: Shattered Memories was also pretty good, and that twist at the end was cleverly pulled off.

I'm actually surprised Control isn't mentioned here. I'm not sure what to make of its story yet, but its narrative is on point.

 

[Zalman]

Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective. Great setting, likeable characters, and incredible plot twists.

 

[RedGator]

As much as I feel it's a boring answer I have to say RDR2. It gets a lot of flak for the "one more job" repetition but it all felt perfectly contextual to me. The way everything develops and comes full circle is really impressive, with a high point being that gut punch in the doctors' office. I think the story telling is masterful, and unmatched by any other game so far.

I really loved both Human Revolution and Mankind Divided. Great dystopian world building. I loved Days Gone as a TV series type story, it was refreshing that Bend weren't afraid to avoid making every story beat increasingly more depressing as is usual in a post-apocalyptic setting.

Other honourable mentions: Nier Automata, INSIDE, Uncharted 4, TloU, Stealth Inc., Arkham Origins, Dishonored, God of War, Hotline Miami, Firewatch. I could go on and on if I weren't forgetting loads, of course. What a decade for games.

 

[Another]

Am I the only person on this forum who has played Danganronpa or what?

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I love D1 and D2, they're excellent VNs! I'd say the narrative is their strong suit, though, not the story itself. The story isn't that great at all, I actually find it quite dumb, if I'm being honest. Same for Zero Escape series, MGS2 and Steins;Gate: excellent narrative, passable story.

I love Bloodborne as much as the next guy but I feel like I've stepped into a bizarro universe when I see it suggested as having a great story, let alone the best of the decade. It has barely any plot. I guess one part I did like if you could consider it "story" is

Spoiler

the subplot with Iosefka.

I don't know, maybe you guys can explain what you like so much about it.

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It's jam packed with plot, what are you talking about? Do you not understand how the story is conveyed in Soulsbornes? You do realize you have to read the item descriptions to access most of the lore, right?

It's actually funny because Bloodborne is like the polar opposite of Danganronpa in the sense that it has a fantastic story wrapped up in an average narrative... at least imo, I love the lore in Bloodborne but the whole "you have to piece stuff out yourself, it's meant to be immersive" approach to the narrative, while succeding in being immersive is also bound to alienate most to the story itself since it's so reliant on you actually taking an interest and connecting the dots and filling in the blanks. I suppose it does have it's elegance considering the game is meant to be replayed over and over so in that sense it's absolutely the perfect fit for the game it's a part of, but I wouldn't say it's exactly the most compelling narrative structure when it comes to storytelling. The actualy story is a straight up unquestionable triumph, though.

 

[Arta]

Horizon Zero Dawn by far. That story is fucking amazing when you get all the details. Nothing else comes close, not even TLOU.

 

[Wink784]

For me, my favorite would still have to be The Last of Us.

It's funny, when the game first came out and people were raving, there was a minority of people who stated that it would be praised early on and then forgotten. Yet even before we knew that there would be a Part 2, people were still arguing about the ending. Not because the ending is bad but because of the morals of it. I can't recall any game in the last decade that has had such heated arguments.

Even other games with amazing stories and good endings don't ever spark quite the conversation.

To me, it's tantamount to how good The Last of Us is.

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Considered The Witcher 3 and how it depicts the realities of war while telling a well written epic fantasy tale in so many shades of grey, but ultimately I'd have to go with The Last of Us as well. I still find myself thinking about that ending from time to time and how incredibly well set up it was by everything that came before it, in the plot as well as what was communicated through gameplay. It's a stroke of genius, truly a once in a decade occurrence and to me the moment when mainstream videogames grew up.

 

[Tricky I Shadow]

- 999
- Virtue's Last Reward
- AI: The Somnium Files

You won't come across a more clever narrative with the most incredible twists in any medium.

 

[Cloud-Strife]

The Witcher 3
Horizon Zero Dawn
Mass Effect 2
The Last of Us
God of War