Games with the best dialog?
polycounter lvl 17
I've been watching quite a few movies lately, and always appreciate a well done script, particularly great dialog. Some of the best movies provide great scenes when any number of characters face off, conveying emotion, moving the story along, portraying a character's intentions, so on and so forth. The speaking parts and the acting that accompanies that talking is what lands so many stars the fat awards, the acclaim, the notoriety, etc.
When it comes to games I would argue it is one of the most neglected parts of storytelling, or in the case of games being played by one outside of the country the game was made, can lose the effect intended when storytelling through talking between characters. Many triple A titles may offer the best in gameplay, graphics, and spiffy cutting edge tech, sell millions. But theres too many of these that outright butcher scenes of dialog, whether during gameplay, or cutscenes.
What games in your opinion, have the best dialog?
When it comes to games I would argue it is one of the most neglected parts of storytelling, or in the case of games being played by one outside of the country the game was made, can lose the effect intended when storytelling through talking between characters. Many triple A titles may offer the best in gameplay, graphics, and spiffy cutting edge tech, sell millions. But theres too many of these that outright butcher scenes of dialog, whether during gameplay, or cutscenes.
What games in your opinion, have the best dialog?
Replies
The entire game played like an amazing novel, in which you could mutilate your body for extra XP and items. It's an oldie, but a goodie. If you see it in a bargain bin ever, don't pass it up, for your own good.
Gordon Freeman's lines are pretty profound if I may say so myself.
[/ QUOTE ]
For a guy that never says anything, he speaks volumes...
Half-Life has great interactive story but dialog with NPC's is always your standard, "ouch! quit it" "pick that up" or long explanations that ended with "no time! Here take this and go".
I'm biased but I do like some aspects of our Nancy Drew games. I like interrogating people, the layered dialog and the fact that you don't always have a clear bad guy so you don't know who is feeding you a line of bull that leads to your death.
Games like Monkey Island, Alone in the Dark, The Dig, Sam & Max, BioForge, even old text adventure games like The Black Cauldron, When games where animated novels that inspired people with a story, not an animated destruct-O'-fest that pushed one aspect of a game so hard for so long. Charater interaction today isn't about advancing the story its about sitting thru it so they'll give you a new weapon or finally walk slowly over to the door and unlock it. The old games had destruction but it wasn't the only button you mashed. I guess it requires too much effort for the perceived ADD-riddled, swiss cheese headed youth. Heres an idea, maybe if we didn't make games that pandered to the ADD we would have more kinds that could focus.
Gamer: This guy was like talking, and I couldn't hit him with my shovel so I turned it off.
DevA: Did you hear that he turned it off, quick purge all dialog and choices from the game.
Gamer: I just wanna hit things with my shovel, I'm totally one dimensional and don't like 'thinking' I don't do that all day at school why would I do that at home!? I mean come on my parents didn't raise me the TV did.
DevB: Did you get that?
DevA: He likes watching instead of thinking ok anything else?
DevB: Do you think we should talk to another one?
DevA: Oh no one is enough, besides people are all the same right? [in a whispered voice] I can't stand being in the same room as the TV generation. They actually suck the smart out of your head.
DevB: OH GOD MY BIG BRAIN ITS SHRINKING TO NORMAL SIZE! GET IT OUT OF HERE QUICK! WHY DID YOU BRING THAT IN HERE?! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MANY BUGS WE WILL HAVE NOW!?
DevA: Relax thats your ego shrinking... They do that too. Come on lets go sit in your Ferrari read some reviews we paid for and tell each other how awesome we are.
Voted Best Game No One Played
Adventure game with excellent dialog and characters, great visuals.
Pyschonauts
No One Lives Forever
No One Lives Forever 2.
not just awesome writing, but well delivered-excellent actors.
Sam and Max Hit the Road
And I second the NOLF suggetsions, they had some great dialogue
Dreamfall: The Longest Journey
Voted Best Game No One Played
Adventure game with excellent dialog and characters, great visuals.
[/ QUOTE ]
I read the title and thought of this game
(completely shocked no one mentioned it already)
Callo: Aren't you going to wait for the reinforcements?
Ashley: I am the reinforcements.
Dreamfall: The Longest Journey
Voted Best Game No One Played
Adventure game with excellent dialog and characters, great visuals.
[/ QUOTE ]
That was an excellent game. Looks like we'll have a to wait a while for the finale though. Even if it had a satisfying ending, holy fuck what a cliffhanger you get left on.
"You know the difference between you and the you five minutes ago? The you five minutes ago, had five minutes to live."
"I WILL KILL YOU. WITH DEATH."
Fallout....Ron Pearlman intro is classic...I hope the next game isnt a steaming pile of garbage
[/ QUOTE ]
Agreed...Fallout had a kind of dark, edgy humor that would be hard to duplicate. If Bethesda doesnt tread carefully in who they hire as writers, they stand to fail miserably.
Im afraid theyre gonna try to just plug the game into the oblivion engine with it's corpse NPCs and severe lack of gratuitous death animations.
Starcontrol 2 (the urquan masters).
... where the hell are my cds?
Kotor 1
Fallout 1 and 2
MGS
whats with all the irish dudes too
Max Payne
(completely shocked no one mentioned it already)
[/ QUOTE ]
Me too. I only played through Max Payne 1 and 2 quite recently but I was very impressed by the dialog and the graphic novel style they used to tell the story. A few times I found myself fighting off sleep for a few hours so I could finish a level and find out what happens next in the story. Pretty impressive too considering the vintage of the games.
(BTW, that second baby blood trail dream level is a royal PAYNE in the ass.) *Punches self in the kidney*
But I have to say the unsung hero here is Giants: Citizen Kabuto, a great mix of humor and style, what else can you expect from a former old school Lucasarts team?
[/ QUOTE ]
I think they're ex-Shiny's, actually. But yeah, Giants was a fantastic game, too bad the ending was a lil' bit rushed. Meccaryn campaign was great though.
though that was strange because in the end they bra'd her up in the final US release.
Grim Fandango
Lucasarts adventure games had some gems too (Monkey Island, DotT, etc.)
"What we have here is a failure to coagulate!"
What about Blizzard games? Those things usually have pages of dialogue...per character.
[/ QUOTE ]
Eh. I'm not exactly bowled over by such intricate lines as:
"U R NOT PREPERRED"
-caseyjones
I hate search engine dialog systems. and I also hate the "press continue button to read more story" type dialog systems, wait did i just call that a system?
my vote goes to Fallout 1 and 2 and Planescape Torment.
The MGS series, great dialog and voice acting
[/ QUOTE ]
thread over