Friday, August 16, 2013

Video Games

I enjoy playing video games, although I wouldn't call myself a hardcore gamer. Most of my gaming time happens when the kids are around, so we tend to stick to the tamer (no "MA" rated-games), Nintendo-centric fare.

My favorite games are the ones with strong stories behind them. Some of them are so well-written that, to me, they're even better from a narrative standpoint than a lot of the books and movies that are out there. A writer looking for some inspiration could very well find it in some of these games. Here are a few of my favorites:

Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon


Once I got used to the relatively slower pace of this game, I really enjoyed it. A haunting dystopian tale about a teenage boy searching for companionship in a post-apocalyptic world.

Okami


Visually striking with lots of humor, heart and action, this game has one of the best endings I've ever experienced. You can also acquire a couple of special attack moves that are both hilarious and awesome (if you've played this game, then you know what I'm talking about).

The Legend of Zelda


Of course, right? Twilight Princess is probably my favorite entry in this series, although they're all so good it's hard to choose.

The Last Story


My daughter and I were skeptical about this one at first (the trailers looked cluttered and over-the-top-RPGish), but I took a chance on it and boy, am I glad I did. A very epic game. The only problem is, if you call your game "The Last Story," then what do you call the sequel? "The Last Last Story"?

Super Paper Mario


No, I'm not kidding. Despite what Mario's creator says about wanting to keep the plots of Mario games to a minimum, this one actually has a very rich and detailed story full of drama, romance and twists. Apparently Seth Gordon even wanted to make a movie out of it (yes, I know the track record of movies based on video games, but still).

I'm sure there are a lot more that I haven't played yet, so if you have any suggestions, let me know...

No comments:

Post a Comment