/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.23138087]

Are there any video games with actually interesting and novel stories? I'm posting this here instead of /v/ because they unironically think picrel is a mind-blowing story. Please post some recommendations.

[Anonymous No.23138089]

>>23138087
DS kicks ass

[Anonymous No.23138093]

/lit/ - Bing Bing Wahoo and other manchild hobbies

[Anonymous No.23138128]

They're older now, but I always liked the stories behind Half-Life and Deus Ex...the original games, not the sequels.

[Anonymous No.23138180]

DS does have an interesting and novel story. That doesn't mean it's necessarily "well written". That's kind of a misunderstanding people have about Kojima. His work is well directed, and artistically interesting, but it's also kind of retarded bullshit if you're just going by the nuts and bolts of what happens in the plot, and the actual character dialogue.

Anyway, play Hypnospace Outlaw. Legitimately a really good example of a form of story telling that can only really be a video game.

And if you want something that's well written on the level of a Pixar movie, Tim Schafer games. Psychonauts and Grim Fandango, primarily.

If you like William Gibson novels, Cyberpunk 2077 pretty much is just a Gibson novel. Maybe actually better, from a writing perspective, since Gibson's writing maybe leers a little too hard into stupidity at times.

If you're looking for something with like "philosophical depth", I dunno. A lot of games would like to be that game, but most of them are just kind of pretentious and dumb. See: Spec Ops The Line.
Maybe play Pikmin. That's pretty good.

[Anonymous No.23138188]

>>23138087
Phantom Brave

[Anonymous No.23138197]

>>23138087
No and there won't be one, the work required to make a full 20-100hour long video game with interesting mechanics AND a novel story (and ofc intersection of the mechanics and story) are just massive asks. Before Your Eyes is as close as you can get until the future arrives.

[Anonymous No.23138209]

>>23138087
Look into Syberia series

[Anonymous No.23138212]

>>23138180
> A lot of games would like to be that game, but most of them are just kind of pretentious and dumb.

gaymers on reddit think Nier Automata is a mindbending work of philosophy because there's a character named Jean-Paul who says esence precedes existence and another is named Pascal ('s wager)

[Anonymous No.23138213]

>>23138197
I just find that an incredibly bizarre thing to say. There are TV shows that kept an interesting story going for that length of time.
Plus, a game doesn't have to be 20-100 hours. It can be literally any length, and some of the best games ever are sub-five hours.

[Anonymous No.23138214]

>>23138212
sounds exactly like how weebs react to philosophy references in visual novels.

[Anonymous No.23138219]

>>23138212
Yeah, and the Nier games are sick. They have cool visuals, good music, etc.
Are they "profound" though? No, not really. I don't know where that perception is coming from.

[Anonymous No.23138297]

>>23138219
Nier Automata is in the top 5 of most well written video games, but compared to great literature it's maybe a solid 7/10. Definitely worth playing though. I'd also recommend Pathologic 2 and Cultist Simulator, although that one doesn't have a real story and is just a bunch of micro fiction.

[Anonymous No.23138319]

>>23138297
Oh, and also Disco Elysium. That one is basically a choose-your-own-adventure novel in video game form with how much text it has.

[Anonymous No.23138340]

>>23138087
I mean, I liked the Witcher 3 once I started taking it on its own terms. The main story actually impresses me far less than the side quests, some of which have a level of detail that is astounding, given that there's no guarantee the player will even trigger them. Obviously, the games continue on from a set of books. I can't speak for their quality, but I generally don't care for fantasy novels, and I still really liked the game.

[Anonymous No.23138343]

>>23138319
>tranny elysium

[Anonymous No.23138344]

Wrong board

[Anonymous No.23138360]

>>23138087
>ITT: Insecure /lit/ sophomores posturing that they're too cool for video games EXCEPT this one game that's kinda good but it has problems don't get me wrong I'm not a pleb like the Redditors lol I read Nabokov and Joyce trust me I'll finish Blood Meridian any day now
I know philosophy Ph.Ds who love Kojima, Nier, etc. Grow up and be sincere about what you like. I myself was a philosophy major and am a Kojima fan.

[Anonymous No.23138363]

>>23138360
Wrong board

[Anonymous No.23138378]

>>23138087
Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri

[Anonymous No.23138385]

>>23138087
>>23138087
>they unironically think picrel is a mind-blowing story.
Haven't played it but I have no doubt it is based on Kojima's earlier work.
https://www.deltaheadtranslation.com/MGS2/

[Anonymous No.23138388]

>>23138385
>is based
Forgot a comma there.

[Anonymous No.23138392]

>>23138087
Try Disco Elysium. Maybe Bloodborne, maybe Silent Hill 2.

[Anonymous No.23138498]

>>23138180
This is a good post.
Never heard of Hypnospace Outlaw. I think will have to give it a try.

[Anonymous No.23138568]

Bioshock is the best one I can think of. I've enjoyed some RPGs but they are so long and pointless that it's hard for me to suggest it as something for someone else to play, like I think final fantasy XIV is the best one of those "what is the meaning of life" genre fantasy stories, but it's packaged inside of an activity that demands many 100s of hours of your attention.

[Anonymous No.23138612]

Video Game writing is about integrated experiences
Video Game writing is not 'read a book, do some gameplay, repeat'
Kojimbo shit, From shit, Spec Ops, Pathologic, all those CRPGS and CRPGequivalents, procedural story games ala rimworld dorffort or kenshi, even shit like dota 2 create 'stories' well within the medium's strengths. What you may be looking for are visual novels

[Anonymous No.23138821]

>>23138087
Shin Megami Tensei 3 Nocturne is a game where the world goes back to its "fetus" state, before being born. Through the game you are a kid that has to travel the destroyed world while fighting mythical creatures like angels, demons, ghouls, minotaurs, etc. from all different mythologies and religions of the world (You also need to convince monsters to join your team, like in pokemon for example). Through the game this kid will find different characters that, using their philosophies, want to shape the form of the new world that will born. Depending on your actions, you have 6 different endings. Also, at the end you fight YHVH.
It's not only /lit/ because the story includes phiilosophical views, its also because every single monster comes from mythology or religion, both things that are heavily connected to ancient literature. Also, the scenarios are very weird, at the point that they are like weird dreams or like subrealistic literature (picrel)
Did I mention you fight YHVH?

[sage No.23138858]

>>23138087
I played hundreds if not more than one thousand games and I can tell you no game teaches nor tells anything worthwile. No matter how deep they might seem, it is all Gnosticism repackaged over and over. The only stories that were halfway thought provoking were in Red Dead Redemption, Metal Gear Solid 2, Metal Gear Solid V and Deus Ex. Some Japanese games seem interesting in their stories but all of them use blatant Masonic/Satanic/Kabbalistic imagery and retell the same story of Gnosticism over and over, like most of Japanese anime.

If you have an autistic knowledge of all pagan religions and Christendom and symbolism, most games can look interesting because you understand the hidden indended messages most gaymers are too stupid and illiterate to see.

[Anonymous No.23138876]

>>23138858
>Satanic

[Anonymous No.23138881]

rain world

[sage No.23138883]

>>23138876
Yes, where are my manners? Killing the demiurge with Satan in Persona 5 is totally not Satanic. Forgive me my trespasses.

[Anonymous No.23138884]

>>23138858
>no game teaches nor tells anything worthwile
This is untrue. I learned a lot from edutainment games as a kid. (But I see you are actually only referring to stories.)

[sage No.23138886]

>>23138884
I don't count them as games as understood properly.

[Anonymous No.23138887]

>>23138087

planescape:torment

[Anonymous No.23138892]

>>23138883
>Killing the demiurge with Satan in Persona 5 is totally not Satanic
yes? There's no formalized meaning of Satanic, you're not refering to some 'Satanic doctrine' like LaVey and are just shitposting because Christianity is being treated as a myth.

[sage No.23138900]

>>23138892
Satanic is everything anti-Christian, everything that is upside down, everything that is the inversion agenda. Formalized blah blah, shut the fuck up, you pseudo-intellectual nigger.

[Anonymous No.23138903]

>>23138363
Wrong site

[Anonymous No.23138904]

>>23138900
>everything that is upside down
damn no wonder Saint Peter ain't calling anyone's name

[sage No.23138913]

>>23138904
You are a filthy blasphemer and I bet you are that fucking kike calling himself a "Cainite Gnostic". Rot in hell you piece of shit.

[Anonymous No.23138916]

>>23138913
>Cainite Gnostic
a what lmao damn my post really turned your frown UPSIDE DOWN

[Anonymous No.23138935]

>>23138881
correct answer

[Anonymous No.23139048]

>>23138180
>Cyberpunk 2077
Genuinely surprised how much I'm enjoying this game. Neo is a cool guy that isn't afraid of nothing.

[Anonymous No.23140154]

>>23138087
Death Stranding is unironically a masterpiece and you got filtered so hard you had to crawl to another board to validate your dumbass opinion and you got the exact opposite instead.

It is genuinely fantastic. Even for a video game.

[Anonymous No.23140205]

>>23138087
Go into Kojima's interviews for influence recs. VIRUS by KOMATSU is a major death stranding influence. Probably 10 billion days 100 Billion Nights or whatever it's called (kind of Evangeliony). For wacky but compelling, get the Library of America Phillip K. Dick complete novels. For esoteric WW2 history (the philosophers were a thing, if not as extensive), try Thomas Mahl's Desperate Deception, and Atomic Spy, by Greenspan.

>>23138180
Co-writer's responsible for more than half of what was compelling and deep politics in MGS1. The rest are carrying baggage from Kojima never getting out from under the shadow of wanting to do other projects, but either his team not quite being up to handling it themselves or the company having to stick with it for the bottom line.

>>23140154
Stripping back everything to the core bullshit game mechanics used as filler in every other monetized out the ass non-tent game with the fetch quests in a way that served the story and deliveries with asynchronous coop was pretty cool. It's a supremely cozy game that's gorgeous just to be in.

[Anonymous No.23140222]

>>23138087
The Dig was cool.
You Only Live Once short but sweet. (game came out before the dumb acro)
t. boomer with a 486

[Anonymous No.23140225]

>>23140205
Dang that pic is good. Saved.

[Anonymous No.23140254]

>>23140154
>Death Stranding is unironically a masterpiece
Why? No, seriously.

[Anonymous No.23140270]

>>23140254
It's great!

[Anonymous No.23140278]

>>23138087
I liked Portal and Portal 2. I hadn't read Beckett when I played those games, but in hindsight their storytelling definitely reminds me of his works, especially his plays Waiting for Godot and Endgame. Not unlike said absurdist plays those games don't really have stories in the traditional sense, but I thought that their atmosphere, dialogue, humor and thematic content were very good. Obviously they're not as thematically rich and beautiful as the works of Beckett, but I found them much more interesting and engaging than most games I've played.

[Anonymous No.23140311]

Where video games excel is in backstory and worldbuilding. You can examine details, talk to side-characters, spend time in environments, etc. This is how you get things like lore essays that are actually somewhat interesting desu. I can't think of a single video game whose main plot is mind-blowingly gripping.

FromSoft's approach to this is interesting in that it invites you to piece it all together from small fragments. But fanboys cannot comprehend that it's the acting of piecing the story together that is fun - the story itself is piss weak.

Other than that you could try Deus Ex, KOTOR 2, Vagrant Story, Legend of Mana.

[Anonymous No.23140511]

>>23140311
Good post.
If you want a game with FromSoft's approach but also an actual story to accompany it, then I recommend Black Souls.

[Anonymous No.23140669]

>>23140511
Damn, that looks like some shit writing straight out of a Royal Road progression fantasy story.

[Anonymous No.23140727]

>>23138197
Midwit poster

Go play (or watch) the legacy of kain series

[Anonymous No.23140744]

>>23140154
Kojima dickriders actually believe this and refuse to see the faults of death strandings storytelling kek.

[Anonymous No.23140770]

>>23138343
>bot response

[Anonymous No.23140777]

the story is alright, but i find the writing of this to be very enticing and entertaining. extremely frustrating as an actual game though.

[Anonymous No.23140809]

>>23138087
Video games are a childish pursuit

[Anonymous No.23140811]

>>23140669
If that's considered shit writing by their standards maybe I'll check that website out, thanks.

[Anonymous No.23140816]

>>23138087
Life is Strange

[Anonymous No.23140826]

>>23140511
fucking lol. cool nu-metal lyrics bro

[Anonymous No.23140870]

>>23138087
The idea of a "good story" in videogames is completely different from what makes a good story in a book. Video games are inherently interactive so the gameplay needs to have synthesis with the narrative details of what is happening. There are many video games with good writing, sure. There are plenty of video games with good gameplay, of course. But video game developers need to understand that attempting to tell a conventionally "good" story often conflicts with the metafictional nature of a video game. You need to abandon your conventions of storytelling when approaching this question.

[Anonymous No.23141104]

I liked metro (based on an actual novel afaik), gothic and cyberpunk 2077

[Anonymous No.23141124]

Nope. And if you know what's good for you you would stop playing video games. The medium is a psyop.

[Anonymous No.23141152]

>>23140870
fucking THANK YOU

[Anonymous No.23141157]

>>23140870
based knower. video games fail completely as video games when they try to be a film or a book INSIDE of a video game. it makes no sense to structure a video game like this. i would recommend the video game Pathologic if you are looking for a decent synthesis of gameplay and story, but the gameplay might not be everyones cup of tea.

[Anonymous No.23141162]

>>23141124
how is it a any more a psyop than most flicks and books out there? most media in general is shite.

[Anonymous No.23141169]

>>23140278
Portal is a fun little experience, but the sequel absolutely jumped the shark in terms of writing. The levels and puzzles are great, but the writing and humour are unbearable in 2. It's like the devs took the memes a little bit too seriously.

[Anonymous No.23141217]

>>23138087
Yakuza series

[Anonymous No.23141237]

>>23138087
Here you go:
>Planescape: Torment
>NWN2: Mask of the Betrayer
>KotOR 2
These are probably the peak of vidya writing.

Some games, like Deus Ex (2000), Fallout (1997), Dark Sun (1993), Homeworld (1999), Arcanum (2000), among others, have interesting and novel premises, but not the same level of writing as the first 3 I mentioned (though not bad). You might want to check Xenogears (1998) as well, if you're into/can endure weebshit.

[Anonymous No.23141243]

>>23141237
Redpill me on neverwinter nights, how should I get into the series?

[Anonymous No.23141259]

>>23140870
this, i particularly liked daggerfall for how it blended story and gameplay, the story by itself would be a mostly generic whodunnit with a large twist but combined with the detective work on the part of the player, supplimental info hidden around and the justifications it provides for dungeon crawling it really gets you in on the action.

[Anonymous No.23141278]

Mass Effect 2's story is roughly at the level of an okay sci-fi show, but by video game standards it's a 10/10.

[Anonymous No.23141281]

>>23141243
By getting NWN1 and play the "A Dance with Rogues" mod. You'll be into a threat. Picrel, your PC is the one lying on the floor.
Here's a russian expat jootube grifter's demonstration / """"video essay"""" of it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAKwOAC1wEs

Non-meme answer: It depends. If you're a storyfag (and if you're posting here then you probably are), just play MotB.
Its story builds on the base game (NWN2) but references to it are minimal and not explicitly required and NWN2 is not really that good of game.
If you're a minmaxer dnd build-/combatfag dungeon crawler type, I'd rather play Temple of Elemental Evil.