59 réponses à ce sujet

[o Ventus]

A friend of mine and I were talking about the Elder Scrolls, and we both came to the conclusion that while the lore is really expansive and huge, it's kind of boring and not very interesting. Personally, the higher fantasy elements are the better parts for me. The daedra, aedra, and all of the other cosmic mumbo-jumbo is more fun to read (for me, anyway) than anything having to do with the Thalmor or the Empire.

 

Anyway, what are some really good game universes that have really interesting lore and background story? It doesn't even need to be confined to games, since a lot of books, movie franchises, and TV shows have hugely expansive universes as well.

 

As far as fantasy goes, I rather like Dragon Age, Warcraft, and the Witcher's backgrounds (though I'm much more familiar with the first 2). I also really like Mass Effect, Bioshock, and Fallout, as far as sci-fi is concerned. I remember back when I was in middle school and when I was bored, I would go to the WoW wiki site and just kill time by reading up on the major characters. I still kind of do that now with other series.

[Liamv2]

The Ar tonelico series has some of my favorite lore ever and is usually my first answer for stuff like this. 4 fully functional languages. Hnnngh.

[SlottsMachine]

inb4 Crusty.

 

In terms of world building and secondary story System Shock 2 is fantastic. In fact a major plot twist surrounds a previously thought to be filler story about two lovers trying to reunite and get the hell out of Dodge. 

[KotorEffect3]

My favorite Lore Franchises would have to be TES (games aren't great at storytelling but the Lore in TES is really cool and is part of the draw for me).  Dragon Age, love trying to figure out exactly what the hell happened when the Magisters breached the Golden City.  Mass Effect is obvious, reapers, protheans, leviathans, current cycle races, all good stuff.  I am still new to Witcher Lore having played TW2 a couple of times and currently playing TW3.  The good stuff is probably in the books that franchise is based off of.  I friggin love the lore from the Kotor to TOR era of Star Wars.  I find it in many ways more interesting than the lore from the era that the movies take place in.

[Gravisanimi]

The Ar tonelico series has some of my favorite lore ever and is usually my first answer for stuff like this. 4 fully functional languages. Hnnngh.

Different dialects of one of the languages too.

So great.

[Simfam]

One aspect about the lore in TES, whether intentional or not, is how conflicting it is.

 

You'll have one book telling you one thing and another telling you something else.

 

I think that's great and mimics our own world-history and its foundation of unreliable sources.

[The Love Runner]

That frustrating feeling when a franchise BETRAYS THE LOOOOOOORRRRRRREEEEEEE!!!!

[Rawgrim]

The lore is vital, and it is vital that the games don't break it. Think of the lore as the framework for the story. If it is full of cracks and whatever it falls apart.

[Jorji Costava]

In response to the OP:

 

I'm probably the last person to ask about this, because I'm exactly not the kind of player who investigates every nook and cranny of a game's lore, checks for inconsistencies, etc., but if you're comfortable with games that have a fairly tongue-in-cheek tone, I'd say that Star Control's lore and backstory (excepting Star Control 3) is as good as anything out there. In addition to being pretty awesome in its own right, it was inarguably a major inspiration for Mass Effect. The Ur-Quan Masters, a PC port of the 3DO version of Star Control 2, is available as freeware.

[o Ventus]

Didn't realize it but Ventus has been on a roll with dope threads. Could be hope for Off Topic yet. As long as Bunz and Eternal Phoenix keep their activity to nonexistent

 

I just think of things that interest me, really.

[Voxr]

A lot of people do. They share stupid interests though. 

 

As for the thread, let it be known that Kingdom Hearts has some of the most BS lore in gaming. Unnecessarily convoluted beyond belief spread across 10 different platforms with 8 games over 13 years. 

This. This times three times eight plus six and add another four zeros to it. I honestly don't know how people can get behind the "story" of these games when it's a narrative cluster ****. 

[A Crusty Knight Of Colour]

>mfw OP doesn't even achieve CHIM

Spoiler

On a serious note I'll post some spergy tl;drs on games with lore I like and why once I'm home.

[Seraphim24]

In response to the OP:

 

I'm probably the last person to ask about this, because I'm exactly not the kind of player who investigates every nook and cranny of a game's lore, checks for inconsistencies, etc., but if you're comfortable with games that have a fairly tongue-in-cheek tone, I'd say that Star Control's lore and backstory (excepting Star Control 3) is as good as anything out there. In addition to being pretty awesome in its own right, it was inarguably a major inspiration for Mass Effect. The Ur-Quan Masters, a PC port of the 3DO version of Star Control 2, is available as freeware.

 

Someone else who knows Star Control! I remember when I first played Mass Effect and I was all oh! Star Control!

 

Anyway sorry I don't really have much to say on this topic outside of that.

[Voxr]

I'm invested in some of the character journeys at this point because the overarching narrative is some utter nonsense. 

That's more than I can say. I played the first one and never was interested in the others. Then a few years later a friend "tried to explain" the story and rest of the games. He got about 1/4th the way through 2 before I told him to stop. 

 

And it's funny too because as much as the nonsensical narrative direction scares me away from them. There's also a part of me that wants to get into them as well. But then I think about the overly convoluted plots and that part of me is thrown into submission.

 

I keep telling myself one of these days. But deep down I know it'll never happen......

[Br3admax]

As for the thread, let it be known that Kingdom Hearts has some of the most BS lore in gaming. Unnecessarily convoluted beyond belief spread across 10 different platforms with 8 games over 13 years. 

Nah there's a ton of stuff that makes sense in KH:

 

Friendship>genetics. Watch out in a world without paternity tests.

Friendship>death. Even when you die, you'll be reborn through friendship. Even when you leave existence. 

Friendship>the laws of physics. ******, friendship let me run up a ****** skyscraper. Like ignoring the fact that I can run up a wall, let alone building, at all, but to the top of a skyscraper. Friendship was my Gatorade.

 

And that's about the gist of everything that doesn't give a headache. I guess there wasn't a ton after all. 

[Simfam]

I can't tell if you're making fun of them for that.

 

Well take Tolkien, for instance.

 

One aspect of what makes his lore so great isn't that its extensive, but because he has so many different versions of the same story all with slight variations from the other.

 

IIRC, the Unfinished Tales did have an A, B and C version of the assault at Dol Goldur? Or was it an attack on Mirkwood in general? Sorry, it's been years.

 

It's the same with TES lore.

 

It's not the best thing in the world, and I'm pretty sure they aren't doing it intentionally.

 

I just think its pretty neat and creates the right sort of atmosphere for an open world RPG.

[L. Han]

You need the more basic and mundane stuff to appreciate the 'higher' stuff more. Elder Scrolls might not be the best example, but they do it there as well.

[PhroXenGold]

I'm with Simfam on this - inconsistent lore can be a great thing, when the inconsistency is a matter of the source of the lore being written as falible as opposed to the writers messing stuff up. If you learn some aspect of the lore from someone in game telling you about it, or finding an in-game book about it, it shouldn't be a matter of automatically taking that source to be gospel, nor should all such sources on the same subject agree. I mean, look at our history - pick up two different books on pretty much any topic, and they'll disagree on at least some aspects - whether through interpresting things differently, having access to different information, or straight up deliberate distorting of facts. Even when it comes down to first hand accounts, they usually don't have perfect agreement on what happened.

 

When the inconsistency is a matter of the writers either not remembering or not caring about what they previously wrote, then, yes, that is poor worldbuilding. But intentionally inconsistent and falible lore makes the world feel more believable.