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[Sosokrates]

My recent favourites are RDR2, TLOU2 and Fallout 4.

Some of my older ones are resident evil 2, half life 1+2, and bioshock infinite.

What are some games where your main motivation to play was its gripping story?

 

[Nankatsu]

Yakuza series for me. It will always be my top narrative franchise.

It manages to be wild, mature and emotionally when it needs to be.

But you don't play Yakuza only for the narrative - the overall package is extremely good.

 

[Mister Wolf]

Cant be topped.

 

[Beer Baelly]

 

[Con-Z-epT]

Soma

This one really stuck with me over the years. So much that i still think about it from time to time even today. Not that other movies or games haven't tried to tell something similar but Soma executed this incredible well with its world building. The story just escalates perfectly and when you reach the final conclusion of it your are just completely blown away of how it affects you. A must play in my eyes.

 

[Punished Miku]

FFXIII trilogy
FFXI
Silent Hill 2
Castlevania Lords of Shadow
Mass Effect 1-2
KOTOR I-II
Prince of Persia 2008

Honestly I dont really play many games for their story. Its usually a secondary bonus at most.

 

[Midn1ght]

TLOU and The Walking Dead games are some of my favorite.

Horizon Zero Dawn was a nice surprise recently, didn't expect to enjoy the story so much.

 

[TheInfamousKira]

Final Fantasy VII, and the entire Compilation (fight me) are pretty great to me. It's what initially got me into RPGs and story heavy games, it has that 90's anime feel. Midgar is a pretty insanely realized cyberpunk world, with people living in metal shacks with beat up furniture and overstuffed ash trays while a big monitor above their heads dictates what the president of the government is doing in his fucking skyscraper 200 meters above their heads. Every character has a side arc, Cloud's history, the villain is really second fiddle to a much more powerful villain thing, just so much cool shit going on.

The Last of Us, Part I
I can't say much about this that hasn't been said elsewhere and in more detail. Really convincing acting, really personal tale, characters who make realistic foils to one another, and great character arcs with an apocalyptic dystopia backdrop used in a pretty original wag.

Metal Gear, the whole thing
It's crazy, anime, up it's own ass, and detailed to an obnoxious, out of it's way degree. Great moments from the original MSX title to MGSV.

 

[Cryio]

Legacy of Kain
Prince of Persia - Sands of Time trilogy
The Witcher
Mass Effect

 

[Bragr]

Yakuza series for me. It will always be my top narrative franchise.

It manages to be wild, mature and emotionally when it needs to be.

But you don't play Yakuza only for the narrative - the overall package is extremely good.

Always though the opposite, the combat is way too tedious, the city feels dead, bad pacing, but the story is so cool that it's worth playing because of it.

 

[arvfab]

Shadow of the Colossus
Grim Fandango
FF7&10
TLOU1&2
RE1&2

 

[Punished Miku]

Shadow of the Colossus
Grim Fandango
FF7&10
TLOU1&2
RE1&2

FFX is a good one. And multiple RE games.

 

[synchronicity]

My favorite game stories tend to fall in the "less-is-more" school of narrative, so unsurprisingly Ueada's trilogy of games is near the top for me. I prefer for there to remain a sense of mystery, without all questions being answered. It gives my imagination some place to go.

The original Silent Hill trilogy also comes to mind as well as SMT: Nocturne, Killer 7, Fran Bow...things like that.

In terms of more exposition-heavy, conventional narratives, I really loved the story in Binary Domain, the original God of War trilogy, Deus Ex, to name a few.

 

[kyliethicc]

The Last of Us
The Last of Us Part II
God of War
Red Dead Redemption 2
Knack 2

 

[Fuz]

I need to be unexpected again: Monkey Island.

The Secret World has one of the best writing I've ever seen in gaming, but I won't say it's the "story" per se.
Daggerfall. The main story is nothing special, however all the stories around it, the political games and the ties to the lore makes it a masterpiece for the ages.
The Witcher. The first one especially had a fantastic story and development, which sadly could be easily ruined by bugs mixing up part of the stories if you don't follow the intended paths.
The Longest Journey was also great.
I have the memory of a goldfish with alzheimer and need to think more about what impressed me.

 

[TheInfamousKira]

My favorite game stories tend to fall in the "less-is-more" school of narrative, so unsurprisingly Ueada's trilogy of games is near the top for me. I prefer for there to remain a sense of mystery, without all questions being answered. It gives my imagination some place to go.

The original Silent Hill trilogy also comes to mind as well as SMT: Nocturne, Killer 7, Fran Bow...things like that.

In terms of more exposition-heavy, conventional narratives, I really loved the story in Binary Domain, the original God of War trilogy, Deus Ex, to name a few.

The original Silent Hill games are also favorites for me. Only thing that holds them back is the fact that 2 is so different from 1 and 3. SH2 is probably the best Silent Hill game, but I find it lacks cohesion with the first and third games and it's jarring.

 

[lastmessiah]

The only ones that felt like real writers crafted it that I've encountered are LA Noire and the Rockstar games.

 

[Mozzarella]

I dont like listing random stuff without explaining but it would take me a lot of time so here you go.

- The top ones from what i played:

Planescape Torment
Suikoden 2
Nier
Witcher 3 DLCs (main game and W1 are also good but DLC is peak)
Mask of the Betrayer
Deus Ex
Legacy of Kain
SOMA
Pathologic 2
Portal 2
Arcanum

- Comes close: Second tier
Bioshock
Warcraft 3
New Vegas
Metal Gear Solid
Half Life
Mafia 2002
RDR2
Outer Wilds
Mass Effect
Baldur's Gate 2
VTMB
Final Fantasy Tactics
KOTOR
Chrono Trigger

- Game stories that i appreciate but didnt quite get to my top:
Silent Hill 2
Kingdome Come
Final Fantasy X
Final Fantasy VII
Assassin's Creed 2
The Last of Us 1
Dragon Age Origins
Max Payne
*Disco Elysium (This one in terms of writing and dialogue easily belong with the top tier, however the story itself didnt resonate with me)

- Stories that are cryptic or lackluster but i like them anyway:
Amnesia The Dark Descent
Thief 1 and Thief 2
Bloodborne

 

[eastcoastkody]

Life is Strange
Horizon Zero Dawn
God of War 2018
The Warriors

 

[Dream-Knife]

Pretty much every Xeno game (Xenogears, Xenosaga, Xenoblade(2)). SMT4 is also really good.

 

[TheMay30thMan]

Silent Hill 2
Metro Series

Hard to beat those imo

 

[poodaddy]

Legacy of Kain in general, the way everything wraps up so beautifully, is the best story in all of my gaming for my money.

Honorable mention to Suikoden II, FF XII, FF Tactics, Parasite Eve, Chrono Chross, Shin Megami Tensei 4, Xenogears, Deus Ex, Planescape Torment, Vagrant Story, and anything Yakuza.

 

[Wunray]

The Last Story
Xenoblade Chronicles
RDR 2
FF 14 SB and HW and EW
Kingdom Hearts 2
Dead Space 2
Legend of Zelda TP and OoT

 

[Fare thee well]

I feel sad that a lot of people will never do the Hearts of Stone DLC for Witcher 3. The Gaunter O Dimm story was so captivating to me. He is one of my favorite antagonists of all time now.

 

[Lupin3]

Portal series.

 

[zaanan]

Resistance: Fall Of Man
Dead Space
Halo
The Last Of Us

 

[Mozzarella]

I feel sad that a lot of people will never do the Hearts of Stone DLC for Witcher 3. The Gaunter O Dimm story was so captivating to me. He is one of my favorite antagonists of all time now.

Dialogue is a very strong part of Witcher games especially the third one, and the DLC peaks with the story, a good story told well is a huge strength, not only the story itself and its characters are interesting but the way they transform it from a plot to a movie cutscenes like this is what makes it so good, it comes with the name "StoryTelling" sometimes like the main game of W3, the story itself is rather basic, simple and not very deep or anything but when its told well with a well written dialogue that feels natural, a good presentation and acting and a good soundtrack and voice acting and directing in how you produce the cutscene itself and from which angle it creates a memorable storytelling experience.
What makes the DLCs more stronger is that in addition to that strong presentation they also have good stories and not simple or basic ones.
Gaunter is one of the best villains to me as well, he doesnt appear like a demon, or like an edgelord, or like this angry politician. He is just a simple man with a normal face, you meet him somewhere and you forget about him.
Any time this bastard is on the screen he is engaging, saying something that makes me drop everything and listen carefully to his dialogue, his music captivates it too.
Any time Gaunter is mentioned or on the screen, the word " THE DEVIL" will appear in the dialogue
If you look closely during the main game and the DLC, in a normal cutscenes unrelated, at some of them, if you stop it and look at the background you will find Gaunter Odimm either setting or working or dancing in the background, he is truly a creepy bastard.
Examples:

Spoiler: Gaunter

This character is something else, and the DLCs are excellent, Blood and Wine also is just as good.
I know this maybe doenst need me to sing praises for it since its praised by a lot of people and you are probably tired of it at this point but i think its deserved and i just felt like writing a post for this character specifically.

 

[R6Rider]

Misread title.

Need to think lol

 

[Goalus]

Gears of War 1-5 & Judgment & Tactics
I love that universe and soak up as much of the lore as I can. I even bought all the books even though I am not the most passionate reader.
In particular, I like that characters get older and the story & lore have now evolved across three generations of people. It's a vivid world, and I deeply hope to experience many more adventures in it and learn more about its history and secrets.

 

[The_hunter]

Soma, Kotor 1 & 2, F:NV, vampire the masquerade: bloodlines, Bloodborne, morrowind.

 

[swaffles23]

Final Fantasy XIV
Enslaved Odyssey to the West
Final Fantasy X
The Last of Us
Silent Hill 2

 

[nkarafo]

Portal 1/2 and Silent Hill 2.

Those are the only games i ever gave a damn about the story.

 

[EruditeHobo]

Final Fantasy Tactics is basically my number 1, and Xenogears is basically my number 2.

TLOU 1 & 2, Monkey Island 1 & 2, KOTOR, FF6 & 7, Warcraft 3 & WOW, Portal 2, Half-Life 2, GTA: San Andreas, Hollow Knight, and multiple LucasArts adventure games like Tentacle, Sam & Max, & Full Throttle are all on the list somewhere.

 

[StateofMajora]

I’ve always appreciated Nier Gestalt’s story even if it is a bit schizophrenic in its telling of it. And I could do without the anime cringe of emil and Kaine at times.

Majora’s Mask is a perfect example of the journey is more important than the beginning or end and it’s just beautiful. It still leaves room for interpretation and it’s just so interesting to think of the history of Termina.

I see someone mentioned enslaved odyssey to the west and I do like it although it’s a bit ridiculous at times it was surprising and had its moments. Wouldn’t say it’s great or anything but it was good enough that I got a good feeling thinking about it.

Obviously I have loved the paper mario series and to a lesser extent the mario and luigi series as the writing is always so witty and funny.

I love the Witcher series for its characters and political choices.

 

[CatLady]

Fallout 3
Halo Reach
Quantum Break
Halo Infinite
Horizon Zero Dawn
Bioshock
Mass Effect
Assassin's Creed 2 & Brotherhood
Hellblade Senua's Sacrifice

 

[Tams]

Sleeping Dogs.

The Saboteur.

Breath of the Wild is pretty good too, as is GTA: San Andreas and The Witcher 3. And RuneScape had plenty of interesting stories in it.

I guess To the Moon is touching, but eh.

Everything else has been pretty mediocre to me.

 

[Orta]

Little Nightmares 1 & 2
Hellblade

 

[Vaelka]

Yakuza series for me. It will always be my top narrative franchise.

It manages to be wild, mature and emotionally when it needs to be.

But you don't play Yakuza only for the narrative - the overall package is extremely good.

I wish there were more games like it especially from the West, not every game needs to be so freaking ultra serious at all times.
You can still tell a story and also have a sense of humor that isn't just sarcastic Marvel jokes.

 

[Fredrik]

Red Dead Redemption 2
Arthur is also my favorite protagonist.

 

[darth.shrimp]

Most of mine have already been mentioned here:

Planescape: Torment
Baldur's Gate 1&2
Grim Fandango
Bioshock
The Darksiders series
Blazblue (yes, really)
Some of the Tales games (mostly Eternia, Symphonia, or Destiny; Phantasia as well because of the plot twist that happens once you've beaten the final boss and already finished the game)