narrative games
Mass Effect's Choices Remain Its Greatest Success—And Greatest Failure
You choices can't change much, but they are still the most important thing in the universe.
Even 'Wholesome' Games Can (And Should!) Make You Feel Terrible
'Signs of the Sojourner' can be emotionally devastating, but you might not guess that from the way it looks.
The Cruel World of 'Nowhere Prophet' Has a Saving Grace: Hope
Striking a balance between a grim world and a hopeful message, 'Nowhere Prophet' is a roguelike deckbuilder that posits community and altruism as one of the vanguards of the future.
A Narrative Strategy Game That Confronts the Nature of Power
A lot of games are about collecting of power and resources, but 'Dust & Salt' asks how and why you want to wield them.
The Small Town Story of 'Night in the Woods' Is Even Better on a Big Screen
Infinite Fall’s examination of small-town modern life looks and plays even better on a big screen.
This Game About Domestic Abuse Helped Me Understand My Own Trauma
'Another Lost Phone' looks long and hard at what we think of as "acceptable" behavior. CW for domestic abuse.
How Games Make Me Confront the Terror of Open Spaces
'Sunless Sea' is about wonder and despair in dark places.
Why The Makers of 'Tacoma' and 'Edith Finch' Love Loneliness
Giant Sparrow and Fullbright speak to us about the decisions that lead to such lonely adventures.
What It Means When Algorithms Start Telling Stories for Us
Procedural storytelling is creating a new class of narrative within games, but the real story is in the machinery behind it.
The Next Great Setting for Video Games? Pre-Broadband Internet.
A new breed of games seek to explore the web that was.
Make Snowmen and Ponder Mortality in 'Lost Constellation'
'Lost Constellation' is a short, story-based adventure game set in the world of 'Night in the Woods'