Scorpias Lair - About Those Stories

Dhruin

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Scorpia has taken a look at the 15 Best Video Game Stories Ever we reported recently from GamesRadar and noticed all of them (according to Scorpia) use pre-created characters. She goes on to muse about the importance of this in creating a good story:
Some games may allow for a diverging of the plot - usually between good and evil - but the story itself is about the particular person. And to me, that is a flaw, something that takes a little bit of the edge off the playing experience.
Hey, I’ve liked the stories in a number of games I’ve done. However, as I wrote way back in I Gotta Be Me, there is a feeling of apartness when I’m running a character given by the game. No way do I ever think of it as me, be the person male or female.
Planescape: Torment had a great story. It would have been a good novel. But I didn’t like Nameless, and I didn’t much enjoy maneuvering him through the game. I could never imagine myself being him, for one thing.
Fallout 2 is on that list, and while I don't think FO2 would be on my list of best stories, it has a full chargen unless you count being a descendent of the original Vault Dweller as "pre-created". Anyway, agree or disagree? What games had great stories and do you need a preset protagonist?
More information.
 
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The fact that Starcraft was not on that list is a travesty; though, admittedly, I'm not sure what I would have cut to add it in. I remember playing it and, often, thinking, "The writing in this is better than most novels being printed today." Watching Kerrigan hatch from that chrysalis was down-right creepy.
 
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The fact that Starcraft was not on that list is a travesty; though, admittedly, I'm not sure what I would have cut to add it in. I remember playing it and, often, thinking, "The writing in this is better than most novels being printed today." Watching Kerrigan hatch from that chrysalis was down-right creepy.


I couldn't agree more. While most RTS games aren't very strong in the story department, Starcraft's story was simply incredible. That story alone will be the reason I buy Starcraft 2.



Other thoughts....


GTA: San Andreas has no business being on that list.

I thought it was strange for them to include Fallout 2 over Fallout 1.

Portal was a great choice, definitely deserving.

Planescape goes without saying....

....not so sure about KotOR though.

Great to see Final Fantasy VI on there, definitely one of the best stories ever for a console game.



*Edit* Just want to add that I have mixed feelings about Bioshock being on the list. While I enjoyed the game and thought it had a great story, I'm not sure if I'd consider it among the best of all time. I think most people would agree that either of the System Shock games could have been more deserving.
 
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Not only did SS have a great story, but how it was told was highly original for a game!!
 
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A good list, although I agree GTA should not be present. Also, I really like the long story through the HoMM/MM universe (King Roland & Co through the lands of Erathia, Enroth and Jadame). However, for that story to be included in the list, they'd have to take a dozen games and add-ons in as one game.
 
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What games had great stories and do you need a preset protagonist?

Half Life
System Shock 2
Ultima 6
Bioshock
Diablo
Planescape Torment
Sentinel Worlds I
Wasteland

In no particular order and some of these may not have had great stories but they made an irreversible impact on me so they must be included.

A preset protagonist is not necessary but many great stories in gaming happen to have one.
 
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The cut-scenes of the third Realms of Arcania game were made with having the preset party in mind, so to say.
It was optimized for them.
 
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I'd agree that games with preset protagonists tend to have advantages in the stories they present. Although the level of background for the protagonists in the listed games actually spans quite a range. Games like KOtOR and the Witcher are largely enjoayble because of the way the story interacts with the character assigned to you, and those are great games becasue of it.
However, to me the "stories" that came about through somewhat emergent gameplay in sandbox games like Daggerfall and Morrowind are more dear, although they are less spectacular and mostly not worthy as stories per se: But they are exclusively mine, a result of my decisions, the game mechanics, chance; they result from an interactive world.
 
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