Recommending Story-first games

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Discussion Reviews (8)
Vasin

Vasin

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Nov 20, 2018
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So I finished Mythos, after last having played it back when it was only 3 episodes.

I... can't quite say it met my expectations. The writing is the same as it has been, but the whole story sort of gave me this "promo issue for a series" thing, sort of like a comic book where there's just a lot of hits, winks and nudges towards larger things in universe, but not much *actually* happens plot wise and none of the characters have any meaningful development (that I noticed). Episodes 1-2 are setup, episode 3-4 is just bumbling about with a twist that uproots the entire plot and 5 is 90% fake endings.

And the endings, well the fake ones annoyed me for 2 reasons - it was a colossal waste of time (but that's really up to dev on what they spend it on) and more importantly, I didn't see *any* indication of the guilt of the actual culprit, to the point I skipped almost 1/3 of the ending thinking it was another fake one. It's not really a true mystery when you get no clues to actually solving it and are just along for the ride. Adding the dart toss option felt somewhat like lampshading the quality of writing where none of the options there really made sense.

So, it works as a setup for a better story in the world, but I do wish book 2 gets some *actual* plot and character conflict and development that isn't off-screen.
 
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Tlaero

Tlaero

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Nov 24, 2018
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Vasin said:
It's not really a true mystery when you get no clues to actually solving it and are just along for the ride.
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I haven't played Mythos, so I don't have a horse in this race. But this line makes me think of Agatha Christie, who was infamous for writing Mysteries that you couldn't solve because she gave her detective critical information that you didn't get.

Tlaero
 
Vasin

Vasin

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Nov 20, 2018
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Tlaero said:
I haven't played Mythos, so I don't have a horse in this race. But this line makes me think of Agatha Christie, who was infamous for writing Mysteries that you couldn't solve because she gave her detective critical information that you didn't get.

Tlaero
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Yeah I totally see what you're saying, but in this case it wasn't even that characters had some kind of information that the player didn't have, it was more like they just made a wild guess and it just happened to be correct. Or rather, you're presented with more than 10 options and eventually you whittle it down to the correct one.

A lot of the details that the game gives you end up being nothing but fluff exposition and there's nothing that I noticed that can be considered as a conclusive *hint* in favour of villain being who they are. (Overall worldbuilding is great though. It's a game that's worth checking out imo)

I would be completely fine with having a guess at the villain and finding out I was wrong, but it was more like nobody had any motive or reason that wasn't extremely far fetched or equally unlikely.

Also I don't think it's quite fair to compare books and interactive fiction in that regard. A very infamous example of egregious misdirect that comes to my mind when dealing with mystery in interactive fiction is "Heavy Rain", a "Saw" like kindapping story where you literally control the serial killer and can see his thoughts yet somehow they appear completely normal to you just to avoid spoiling the plot sooner.
 
kotte

kotte

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Feb 11, 2018
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Vasin said:
And the endings, well the fake ones annoyed me
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While I am a lot more positive than you are when it comes to ther earlier episodes (I still believe Mythos stands out as a quality product), i was also disappointed with the endings. Throwing in a bunch of fake endings made it feel like it wasn't real. "Didn't like this ending? Try that one!" It's breaking the fourth wall in a way that removes my emotional connection to the characters in the story.

Going Agatha Christie on us, with a solution that we couldn't have known as readers, was no issue to me, though. I'm fine with Mr Poirot explaining the murder to me, as long as the journey up to that point has been enjoyable.
 
jufot

jufot

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May 15, 2021
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Vasin said:
And the endings, well the fake ones annoyed me for 2 reasons - it was a colossal waste of time (but that's really up to dev on what they spend it on) and more importantly, I didn't see *any* indication of the guilt of the actual culprit, to the point I skipped almost 1/3 of the ending thinking it was another fake one. It's not really a true mystery when you get no clues to actually solving it and are just along for the ride. Adding the dart toss option felt somewhat like lampshading the quality of writing where none of the options there really made sense.
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This was a very disappointing end to a previous favourite of mine. When the last chapter ended with the corkboard where everyone could legitimately be a suspect, I was really excited. Finally, someone who could write a proper whodunnit that couldn't be meta-gamed.

Well... Turns out, all the meta-gaming rules still apply:
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And there you go. You have the culprit without bothering with any of the clues, none of which pointed to Cecil anyway.

I skipped more than half of the "endings" and I struggle to understand spending more than a year on an update where 90% of it is narratively irrelevant "hahaha jokes, memes!" fluffery. And after all that, it doesn't resolve anything and just leaves it up in the air for a sequel.

Oh, well...
 
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Lynava

Lynava

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Nov 1, 2020
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jufot said:
I'm interested in games where the story takes precedence over everything else. My personal criteria are:

  • Well-designed, internally consistent, coherent story with a beginning and an end - i.e. no games where the devs make shit up as they go along.
  • Characters that are actual human beings, with lives, personalities and interests outside the MC.
  • Sex scenes should serve the plot, not vice versa. If there is no story-relevant reason for a scene, it shouldn't be there.
  • No Engrish. Non-native speakers are fine (I am one), but the dev should at least use Grammarly or LanguageTool.
  • No cheap tropes (e.g. every woman lusts after the MC's magical dick).
Also, since some people clearly can't play nice and/or are seriously disturbed, here are some additional criteria for this thread. Please don't bring up any such games.
  • No sexualization of minors. No games that have - or should have - loli/shota tags.
  • No non-consensual sexual violence intended for titillation.
Make a comment if you can think of others that fit the criteria. We're a friendly bunch here :)

Games I've already played that - IMHO - mostly fit the above criteria, in alphabetical order: (last updated March 2025)
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Maybe should remove abandoned games from the list ?
 
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jufot

jufot

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May 15, 2021
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Lynava said:
By the way I'm surprised Heart Of The Woods isn't on the list
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Only games I've played, enjoyed, and think that match the criteria are added to the list. I haven't played this one, but from a quick look, it seems to be a fluffy/cutesy anime romance, which isn't usually my thing.

I'm glad you liked it, though! People make lots of great recommendations on this thread, the list doesn't really matter all that much :)
 
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5.00 star(s) 8 Votes