Summary
Someopen-world gamesstruggle to tell a compelling character-focused narrative. With so much freedom on offer, it can be difficult for players to focus on the main story, and just as difficult for developers to make the main story worth focusing on.
Some games excel at this. Many of the most compelling narratives in recent gaming history have come from open-world games, from the tragic decline ofArthur Morgan and the Van Der Lindegang inRed Dead Redemption 2to the complex power struggle inFallout: New Vegas. These games take a more inspiring approach, however, depicting characters who come into their own as heroes bigger than themselves.
TheiconicTheElder Scrolls 5: Skyrimcasts fans as the Dragonborn, a figure of legend who has inherited the incredible power to absorb the souls of slain dragons and channel them into mystical Shouts. This mythical power catapults the Dragonborn into the spotlight in a region wracked by war and calamity.
The player gets to guide their custom Dragonborn on the path to destiny, making allegiances, ending the war, and eventually taking their place in the annals of Skyrim legend. This carries the player’s character quite a way from the infamous execution that almost claims them at the beginning of the game.
Like the rest of the franchise,Assassin’s Creed Odysseytakes players to a real-life historical era; in this case, the Peloponnesian War. As one of two playable characters, players must embark on a quest across Ancient Greece as they unravel a sinister plot concerning their chosen assassin’s family.
In trueAssassin’s Creedfashion, the plot escalates pretty sharply as the franchise’s supernatural elements make themselves known. Throughout it all, the Eagle Bearer’s journey from humble mercenary to legendary hero anchors the experience.
The sprawling open world of Night City is a hive of corruption, poverty, and strife. Regardless of which origin players choose for their version of V inCyberpunk 2077, they will, by necessity, develop a very loose relationship with the laws and morality of their surroundings.
As V struggles to recover from a heist gone horribly wrong and an implant that’s slowly killing them, they’ll be forced to make connections with multiple people throughout the city, and in doing so, make deep, serious bonds, some of which can even become romantic. Watching V transition from a bitter, desperate criminal to someone with deep personal connections is a remarkably touching story that can play out in a myriad of different ways.
Yakuza: Like A Dragon, the seventh main entry in theYakuza/Like a Dragonseries, represents a major departure from the previous games, both in itsshift to turn-based RPG combatand its introduction of a new main protagonist, Ichiban Kasuga. This charming, optimistic middle-aged Yakuza member finds himself knocked to the bottom rung of society after shouldering the blame for a murder he didn’t commit, then finding his clan collapsed when he gets out of jail.
In his quest to uncover the truth of what happened while he was in prison, Ichiban makes friends and learns about the contentious circumstances surrounding his new home in Yokohama. Ichiban’s enthusiastic charm and genuine attempts to change his city for the better make him a deeply lovable character to follow, and his journey to expose the corruption at Yokohama’s heart makes him a true hero.
The illustriousMarvel’s Spider-Mandiffered somewhat from traditional depictions of iconic wall-crawler Peter Parker by showing a Spider-Man just past his prime, who was already well-established as an experienced and seasoned superhero. The spin-off that followed,Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, introduced Miles Morales as a new Spider-Man, coming into his own in Peter Parker’s illustrious shadow.
As hisnew home in Harlem is threatenedby rampaging criminal gangs and sinister, militaristic tech companies alike, Miles must master his newfound spider powers and make sacrifices in order to become the hero his neighborhood needs. His journey is as intense as it is inspiring, and firmly sets him apart from Peter Parker while showing why he is just as worthy of wearing the spider-suit.
Horizon Zero Dawnfeatures a truly mysterious post-apocalypse, overrun with vegetation and strange mechanical creatures. The main character, Aloy, is a member of one of several primitive tribes that have repopulated the world, but she’s been ostracized and exiled for unknown reasons.
When sinister cultists attack, Aloy must rise to save her tribe, and the world itself, from their machinations, discovering the origins of the apocalypse and her own life in the process. Along the way, she develops from an outcast to a truly mythical hero renowned across the land.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wildstarts with Link’s failure. After Calamity Ganon’s forces overwhelm the hero and his allies, the world is plunged into 100 years of devastation. Link awakens, broken and amnesiac, into a shattered world.
Over the course of the game, Link must prove himself once more as the hero he is destined to be. As he journeys to liberate the land from Calamity Ganon’s influence, he regains his memories and aids people in need throughout Hyrule, once again rising to the level of legendary hero and saving Hyrule as he was destined to.
Ghost of Tsushimastars Jin Sakai, one of the sole surviving samurai after a vicious battle with occupying Mongol forces. In hisquest to repel the invaders, Jin gradually forsakes his samurai code, turning to dishonorable tactics and heinous crimes to get the upper hand in the conflict.
The narrative of the game is propelled by the decisions Jin makes in his bloody quest. As he crosses more and more lines, however, he also forges bonds and friendships with people across the island of Tsushima and learns that there are things more important than rigorously following a code of honor. Jin loses much in his journey to become the Ghost of Tsushima, but he gains a lot as well.
