Which video games have the best plot?

[Colorful Arty]

I'm curious to hear if people have played video games with particularly good storylines or plots. I'll start.

Three games that I think have truly amazing stories are Mother 3, Ghost Trick, and To the Moon. These are three very different games with phenomenal stories I still think about today. To the Moon in particular feels more like a movie or a book than a video game.

[nin10doadict]

The Phoenix Wright games come to mind, though I've never actually played them myself.

[Nessy]

Three games that I think have truly amazing stories are Mother 3, Ghost Trick, and To the Moon.

I haven't played Mother 3, but I've seen others play it and even though I didn't understand the dialogue (because it's in Japanese and the game does not have an official release in the US to my knowledge) I still understood everything that was happening and... wow, what an emotional roller coaster.

End Game Spoiler

Especially that Masked Man plot twist at the end.

Personally, a video game I played recently (last year) that I think had an amazing plot was Undertale. What the game doesn't have in overworld graphics, it makes up for in its gameplay and storytelling. I found it incredibly unique and original and I definitely recommend it even if you're not a fan of RPG games.

Game Spoilers

First off, the game knows its a game and there's one specific character that calls you out directly on every little thing you do in the game whether good or bad. This, along with the mythology of souls and determination, allowed for a lot of storytelling depending on how you acted in the game. If you were neutral and you killed some monsters you got a small part of a larger story, if you spared all monsters you got a major (and emotional ) part of the story, and if you went out of your way to kill every monster then you got a creepy, more ambiguous side of the story. It's a lot deeper and complex than one would think at first, and you just start piecing it all together the more you talk to monsters, check random things, and perform different actions.

By the way, do not look up the Soulless True Pacifist ending. Trust me...

[Proxima]

Deadly Rooms of Death. It's hard for me to explain just what is so wonderful about it without spoiling huge chunks, so I'll just say that it starts off pretty slowly -- Journey to Rooted Hold only dishes out small chunks of story in between large puzzle levels -- but by the final instalment, The Second Sky, it's really involving and even though the puzzles have gotten much harder, you keep being drawn to complete them just so you can find out where the story is going.

[mobius]

-Portal. I'm surprised I'm the firs to mention this one. It Starts simple and orthodox/cliche you might say then slowly leads you to realizing there's a big twist.

-Myst. 3 books have been written based on the games which says something, I've read all three and they're quite good in themselves too. Part of the goal of each game is uncovering the plot and figuring the story out, which usually has a twist in the end.

-Half Life. a bit cliche in the beginning (disaster at a science facility leads to people running for their lives from monsters) but then leads to some interesting twists and turns, especially in the sequels. G-Man's one of my favorite characters. Unsurprisingly made by the same people who made Portal.

-Dark Souls. The story is really told well and at your own pace. There are no cut scenes that interrupt gameplay. You read and listen about the story through talking to characters. You can dictate how it unfolds based on what you do. Again it seems like a cliche RPG where you're a hero who needs to save the world but then you realize there's a lot more going on. Almost every character is really dynamic and heartwarming. The voice acting and dialogue is truly memorable. Which is impressive because there's really not all that much when you think about it.
Honestly I wish they'd make a HBO series (similar to Game of Thrones (which I don't watch btw)) out of this game.

other mentions: "Broken Age" looks to have a very interesting story. I haven't played it myself but I've seen a little of it.

[Nessy]

-Portal. I'm surprised I'm the firs to mention this one. It Starts simple and orthodox/cliche you might say then slowly leads you to realizing there's a big twist.

I completely forgot about that game, and yes I agree. It's a perfect example of silent storytelling: there is narration but you're the one that pieces together the truth through exploring the environment and paying attention to little details here and there.

[Forestidia86]

For me it's probably "Primordia". It plays in a postapocalyptic setting where only intelligent robots seem to populate the world. The main character is therefore a robot as well.
Granted if you think too long about it there seem to be some plot holes in the background story but the game felt very atmospheric to me. I think the story is characterized by the intermingling of the allusions to the past with the current storyline.

[BBP]

The Gabriel Knight series and Grim Fandango!

[SQron188]

One that immediately comes to my mind would be Silent Hill 2.

[Colorful Arty]

I must second nin10doadict's statement on the Ace Attorney series: all of them are amazing games with captivating stories, but the one with the best-crafted story would be Ace Attorney Investigations 2: prosecutor's path. Unfortunately, that was one of the games that wasn't localized.

If you have interest in the series, I very strongly recommend it!