Best Plot / Atmosphere

casualsax3 · Post by **casualsax3** » Sun May 25, 2008 5:39 pm

So I'm again looking for gems I may have missed, from a different angle this time.
Most games are playable these days, but the stories just don't keep me interested. What are some of your favorite plots, why, etc?

Favorite stories for me include:
Xenogears
Xenosaga (I was excellent, II sucked, III saved the series thankfully)
Chrono
Final Fantasy Tactics
Final Fantasy VII

Other games that have enough style, atmosphere, or personality to keep me hooked:
Ico
Shadow of the Colossus
Skies of Arcadia
Disgaea
Beyond Oasis

neo_bahamut1985 · Post by **neo_bahamut1985** » Sun May 25, 2008 6:55 pm

Wait, there's a Xenosaga III now? Heck, I never played any of them. But games that have good stories (IMHO) -

*Chrono Trigger (the whole time paradox thing is cool)
*Breath of Fire series (Well, you play a spikey, blue-haired teenager who turns into a dragon! what more can I say?)
*FFV, VI, VII, IX and X (no FFX-2 because it sucked; bad music/bad plot)
*Earthbound (you're a buncha kids who use baseball bats/frying pans/yo-yos and save the world from invading aliens; not to mention humurous
dialogue!)
*Splinter Cell (1,2 and 3) (interrogating terrorists and pistol-whipping in the dark has never been more enjoyable!)

Louis Cypher · Post by **Louis Cypher** » Sun May 25, 2008 7:06 pm

Live-A-Live is the best of all worlds plzkthx.

Aaron · Post by **Aaron** » Sun May 25, 2008 7:31 pm

Metroid Prime.

ReRuss · Post by **ReRuss** » Sun May 25, 2008 7:59 pm

Earthbound
Chrono Trigger
KOTOR

I.S.T. · Post by **I.S.T.** » Sun May 25, 2008 9:48 pm

neo_bahamut1985 wrote:Wait, there's a Xenosaga III now? Heck, I never played any of them.

Do yourself a favor. Play 1 and pretend 2 and 3 do not exist.

Joe Camacho · Post by **Joe Camacho** » Sun May 25, 2008 10:01 pm

I really liked Second Sight, and Geist, they are quick games with, in my opinion, good plots, you can buy them for like 5 dollars each, or you can rent them and finish them in a weekend.

Also I liked the Baten Kaitos stories, even if they might be a bit corny.

Post by **Agozer** » Sun May 25, 2008 10:14 pm

Grandia II
Magna Carta: Tears of Blood

Mark57Raider · Post by **Mark57Raider** » Mon May 26, 2008 2:45 am

Bard's Tale
Radiata Stories (even if it is a bit easy)
Wild arms 2
Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana (you've got a mad scientist bent on destroying the world with Amalgam)

darkbenny · Post by **darkbenny** » Mon May 26, 2008 5:59 am

ReRuss wrote:Earthbound
Chrono Trigger
KOTOR

Some of my all time favs plot-wise.

Nice taste ReRuss

sweener2001 · Post by **sweener2001** » Mon May 26, 2008 7:01 am

anything from bioware

Gil_Hamilton · Post by **Gil_Hamilton** » Mon May 26, 2008 8:07 am

Agozer wrote:Grandia II

Don't forget the original.

Lunar 2.
SegaCD, preferably. It's just better.

LUCIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!

(C'mon, there's only so many convergent plot elements you can do before it becomes derivative. It's not that I didn't LIKE Grandia 2, but it really felt like I'd played it before.)

Now that I've gotten the obligatory entry out of the way...

I recommend Parasite Eve.

I.S.T. · Post by **I.S.T.** » Mon May 26, 2008 9:18 am

A note about that: Its' plot is very cheaty, and the dialog wasn't translated very well(Played it recently for the first time in like 8 years.).

l3v3l · Post by **l3v3l** » Mon May 26, 2008 12:31 pm

Zelda III - ALttP
CT
SoM
Mystic Quest Legend
Zelda - OoT

casualsax3 · Post by **casualsax3** » Mon May 26, 2008 6:22 pm

I.S.T. wrote:
neo_bahamut1985 wrote:Wait, there's a Xenosaga III now? Heck, I never played any of them.
Do yourself a favor. Play 1 and pretend 2 and 3 do not exist.

I'd recommend playing 1, watching the cutscenes from 2, and then playing 3.

Neo Kaiser · Post by **Neo Kaiser** » Mon May 26, 2008 7:08 pm

Shadow Hearts 1 and 2.
Tales of Symphonia.

Post by **grinvader** » Mon May 26, 2008 8:23 pm

Gil_Hamilton wrote:LUCIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ghaleon is a fucking traitor !!
*runs the hell away

l3v3l wrote:Zelda III - ALttP

Err... what ? It's a great game, but... plot ? Ok, so kidnapping Zelda might not have been that overused back then, but did you actually get a kick out of such a miserable plot ?
It doesn't have the slightest beginning of twist or anything of the sort.

My choices...
Baten Kaitos - has a nice story. The great Mizuti shall pound your face until you play it.
Never played the prequel because of NOT IN EUROPE ~#[^\fuckshithell→@]¶$~#
Alundra - You get somewhere and people start dropping like flies ! Die peons diiiie muwhahahhhaaaa*cough* Good story, although predictable, makes for very interesting environments (<3 Elene's).
Vagrant Story - none of the really obscure questions are explicitely answered even after you've trounced it 200%. Definite brainwrecking win.
Legend of Mana (Jumi scenario) - Because two-faced characters are soooo gooood. Also 'cause City of Flickering Destruction owns everything else in the same vein.
Most of the Tales series - has good stories, although predictable.

Energy Breaker - the game that makes 'level the hell up' a reality. One that rapes your face, at that. Also involves time travel and in/directly saving your own butts... but not quite like CT did it.
Chaos Seed - Why not have your soul split in pieces and having to fuse it back together for shits and giggles ? Oh wait, might as well save the world while you're at it !

juef · Post by **juef** » Mon May 26, 2008 10:12 pm

I'm quite surprised no one mentioned Deus Ex. The plot wasn't bad, and the atmosphere is incredible.

Johan_H · Post by **Johan_H** » Mon May 26, 2008 10:22 pm

I have to mention Unreal again, it's one of the most atmospheric games I've played, much helped by the fantastic soundtrack by Alexander Brandon (same guy who composed for Deus Ex BTW) among other great composers/tracker musicians/demosceners (:D)

creaothceann · Post by **creaothceann** » Mon May 26, 2008 10:27 pm

Best atmosphere:
Oddworld games
Snatcher
System Shock games
Thief games

Unreal is nice, too.

Post by **Agozer** » Mon May 26, 2008 10:37 pm

Silent Hill 2

whicker · Post by **whicker** » Mon May 26, 2008 10:52 pm

Soul Blazer - Kind of ridiculously easy at the start, but it gets 100x better. I cannot believe this was even released in the US due to the existential and religious concepts. Remember, this sat alongside such "gems" as Space Football.

Grandia's light-hearted approach really helped me in a difficult time. I won't elaborate. Ultimately it was the escapism of "adventuring", getting the hell out of town, and the optimism. Throw in music as good as or arguably better than Chrono Cross (to me) to complete the package. Also, quite good voice acting.

Uhm, as of now this game has been beat to death, but the progression and the overall atmosphere of Total Annihilation was really quite immersing.

casualsax, I only say this since you mentioned Ico, Shadow Colossus, and Skies of Arcadia... Sky Odyssey

neo_bahamut1985 · Post by **neo_bahamut1985** » Mon May 26, 2008 11:21 pm

whicker wrote:
Grandia's light-hearted approach really helped me in a difficult time. I won't elaborate. Ultimately it was the escapism of "adventuring", getting the hell out of town, and the optimism. Throw in music as good as or arguably better than Chrono Cross (to me) to complete the package.

Any music is better than Chrono Cross's music.
But yeah, Grandia I, II and III had cool storylines and music. Not Xtreme though; wasn't a fan of the soundtrack or plot (see lack of).

Gonzo · Post by **Gonzo** » Tue May 27, 2008 1:24 am

creaothceann wrote:Best atmosphere:
Oddworld games

fucking hell yeah punch in the nuts for the win

Agozer wrote:Silent Hill 2

Also awesome, but I personally preferred Silent hill 3, all the Silent Hill references made me smile.

Oh, and some of my other favorites are;

Metal Gear Solid
Metal Gear Solid 3
All The Legacy of Kain Games bar Blood Omen 2
and Super Metroid, You could argue that it doesn't have much of a story, but how the hell can you overlook it for atmosphere considering the whole bit where you first arrive on Zebes and the planet appears to be lifeless and then springs into life...one of the creepiest moments in a game ever for me(I was 8 at the time

)

FitzRoy · Post by **FitzRoy** » Tue May 27, 2008 1:46 am

Lots of the PC games I grew up with had great atmosphere: Daggerfall, Diablo, Betrayal at Krondor, Terra Nova, Little Big Adventure