Stories in Video Games
Video Games, since their initial start, have gotten extremely popular. In 2022, the global video game industry made $184.4 BILLION dollars, while the film industry made $26 billion (according to Forbes). Obviously, from the data, the video game industry is far surpassing film, and most likely novels.
Despite this fact, most people seem to recognize video games as “for kids” or think everyone who plays video games play exclusively Fortnite. They couldn’t be farther from the truth. In fact, video games, or at least most of them, embrace their immersion. That’s what makes them so attractive, you’re making memories in the fictional worlds instead of simply observing them.
So, today I will be going through what I believe to be some of the best video game stories out there. Visual Novels will not be included because, well, I don’t think of them as video games, and I simply don’t know of any. Let’s hop in!
Games covered:
Silent Hill 2 (Remake)
Undertale & Deltarune
Fallout (Series)
... and maybe a bonus.
(Note: list not in any particular order, so this is not a ranking, merely stories I found fit to cover).
Silent Hill 2 (Remake)
In my dreams I see that town... Silent Hill...
Release Date: 2001 (Original) 2024 (Remake)
Developer: Konami (Original) Bloober Team (Remake)
Spoilers: Yes
(DISCLAIMER: Silent Hill 2 contains themes of depression, suicide, and child abuse)
“The Shining” of the video game industry, Silent Hill 2 is about a man searching for his dead wife in Silent Hill after receiving a letter from her. Upon arriving at Silent Hill, he faces unknowable horrors such as “Pyramid Head.” While at first this game may seem like the typical “oh man a haunted town, spooky,” it evolves the genre into the aspect of psychological horror.
James Sunderland (the main character) starts by meeting a strange girl named Angela Orosco who tells him how to get to Silent Hill, while warning him that the town is dangerous. He goes in anyway and soon faces the Lying Figures and Mannequins. Through the town, he meets lost souls like Eddie (also representing James’ violent nature) and Maria (who is almost like a mirror of Mary, James’ wife). While most of the characters have a bad ending, Angela going into the flames and Eddie getting consumed and losing a fight with James, James ends up finding his demon: his causing of his wife’s death.
In the end, if he is consumed by the darkness or let free, is up to you.
After playing, it becomes more and more clearly the horrors of Silent Hill are very personalized. Everything James faces is a manifestation of things from his past.
For example:
Pyramid Head represents James’ want to be punished for causing his wife’s death.
The Lying Figures represent James’ feeling of confinement.
The Mannequins represent his denial of what he has done.
As you see, all the monsters in Silent Hill are his monsters. Other characters see different manifestations. For example, Angela constantly sees flames and fire (or at least it’s implied).
Now I also want to say that if you want to play the game or look up scenes from it, I highly recommending seeking the 2024 remake, as the original has some... goofy moments, as with the pizza scene which is removed in the remake.
I finally want to mention the soundtrack, composed by Akira Yamaoka. Especially the fantastic “White Noise”.
So if you are interested, it’s time to set your bags to Silent Hill, Maine.
Similar Media:
The Shining
Resident Evil
Undertale & Deltarune
Despite everything, it’s still you.
Release Date: 2015
Developer: Toby Fox
Spoilers: Not really, unless you want a blind playthrough.
Now to a lighter game, Undertale! Despite its old looking graphics, Undertale was released relatively recently in 2015 (as stated above). Undertale is an RPG about a child falling down into an underground world of monsters.
According to the games intro, long ago two races, humans and monsters, lived in peace, until humans attacked without warning (due to fear of monsters attacking first). After a long battle, humans won and sealed the monsters underground with a spell.
The whole theme of the game is morality. The actions you do will have consequences, unlike traditional RPGs. In the beginning of the game, Toriel teaches you the game’s mechanics (without breaking the fourth wall, unlike Flowey). Never once does she mention attacking, only solving disputes peacefully, yet almost everyone on their first playthrough picks “attack,” destroying the dummy out of habit.
That should tell you a lot.
The rest of the game builds on this moral dilemma, should you be pacifist, neutral, or genocidal. It’s up to you. Though, I would pick the pacifist route first. ;)
The story is a nice blend of comedy (while most of it is internet humor), philosophy, and fantasy. I personally like the main story and not genocide’s 4th wall breaking story.
You know the game is good when even the Pope played it: here
This story you have to see for yourself, I’ve already said too much!
Let’s move on to DELTARUNE!
DELTARUNE is another RPG, that may be have the same characters (Sans, Napstablook, Toriel, among others return), but it’s a completely different universe. So, everything that happens in Undertale, including the intro, should be ignored in this story.
Deltarune is about a human named Kris living in a town with other monsters (seems the humans didn’t attack in this universe). In chapter 1, Kris and Susie (a bully monster who ends up being a friend) find a “dark world” in the school storage closet, and end up forming a team with Ralsie, a prince from the Dark, to face off against foes like Chaos King (Chapter 1), Queen (Chapter 2), Tenna (Chapter 3), and The Titan (Chapter 4).
Chapters 1, 2 and most of 3 are comedic, but Chapter 4 seems to be taking a darker turn, with the Church dark world and the stakes being raised a bar.
The game has a lot more to offer, but spoilers be spoilers.
The game poses many mysteries, like the disappearance of Dess before the events of the game, and the Kris/Player relationship. We don’t have to wait long though, as Chapter 5 releases next year and I’m sure the final two chapters will follow soon...
You can play the first two chapters for free, but if you want to see where the story goes, I recommend diving into the full version.
Both Undertale and Deltarune both take advantage of video games in such a way, it may be impossible to adapt them in another format. With Undertale’s modern game commentary and Deltarune’s almost 90s group of kids story (Sorta like Goonies, but not really. Has more of that 90s feel), these are fantastic.
Similar Media:
Earthbound
OFF
Spirited Away (maybe...)
Fallout (Series)
War. War never changes.
Series began: 1997
Developer: Interplay (1, 2, and Tactics) Bethesda (3-onward)
Spoilers: No
Well, they ended up setting the world on fire.
The Fallout series has one of the most captivating, innovative, and imaginary (not in the pleasant way) stories in all of post-apocalyptic stories.
Fallout takes place in a post nuclear wasteland with a retro futuristic 50s vibe. The complete story would take its own five Substack posts, so I’m going to focus on the general idea. Most games you play as a vault dweller with a mission, be it saving their lost child, delivering a letter, or finding a water chip. “Vault Dwellers” are people who signed up to join a Vault Tec vault if the bombs dropped (which they did).
Fallout has world building that reaches incredible heights. If you delve deep enough, you could find the history of every company (including healing items you would think twice about), the backstory of every vault, and the mother to every brother’s uncle out there (maybe I’m exaggerating little).
Point is, Fallout contains what I think is the most in depth fictional world out there, rivaling only JRR Tolkien’s Middle Earth.
One downside of the games is I feel the first 3 have a sense of dread that the new ones don’t have. Fallout 1 had horror elements and really showed the terrible nature of thermal nuclear destruction. Meanwhile, Fallout 4 and the TV Series, while good, have more so embraced the funnier 50s aesthetic.
Sure, it separates it from Mad Max, but is the end of the world that funny? I guess Stanley Kubrick thought so.
Similar Media:
Dr. Strangelove
A Boy and his Dog (personally haven’t watched this, and the description is weird, but it was an original inspiration)
Fallout Amazon TV Series
The Book of Eli
BONUS:
Ghost of Tsushima
A Samurai Knows How To Apply The Right Amount Of Force – Too Little And You Lose Respect, Too Much And You Lose Opportunity.
Release Date: 2020
Developer: Sucker Punch Productions
Spoilers: No.
A good old Samurai story. Ghost of Tsushima (as I will refer to as GOT) takes place in 1274, as the first mongol invasion takes place. You play as Jin Sakai as he tries to stop the mongols and avenge his uncle. You might also like “THE LAST SAMURAI”.
Red Dead Redemption 2
John Made It. He’s The Only One. Rest Of Us… No. But I Tried. In The End, I Did.
Release Date: 2018
Developer: Rockstar
Spoilers: No.
A classic cowboy story about Arthur Morgan, a member of a cowboy gang, on the run during the decline of the Wild West. You may also like “The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly”.
This Substack post was mostly to let people know about these games rather than to review them. More of a “top picks” than anything. I hope I got at least one person to see these stories who otherwise wouldn’t have.
If you are interested in any of these, here are some additional links:
Silent Hill 2 Remake
Wikipedia page here
Buy game here
Undertale
Wikipedia page here
Buy game here
Deltarune
Wikipedia page here
Buy game here
Fallout
Wikipedia page here
Watch the Amazon adaptation here
Also, I recommend playing the games first if you are interested, as fan content can be massively misleading.
If you want me to make an actual review on any of these games, subscribe and comment below! See you in the next one!
Love this! "You’re making memories in the fictional worlds instead of simply observing them" - I love this about video games. There are so many with great stories!