These rankings are based on a direct vote put out to DualShockers’ 100+ contributors, writers, and editors, not our individual reviews.
Storytelling is the ultimate equaliser — a well-written game is instantly memorable, irrespective of its other moving parts. The strength of the narrative is why a debut indie like Dredge is a more engaging experience than a bland triple-A shooter like Immortals of Aveum.
Thankfully, every game on our DualShockers Definitives end-of-year top narratives list is the best of both worlds: a fantastic core experience combined with engaging writing.
10 Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical
Whodunnit?
What more apt way to kick off a list of best narratives than with a visual novel? Stray Gods is a modern take on Greek mythology and likely the only ever fully voice-acted musical game. To make matters even more intriguing, Stray Gods sees protagonist Grace attempting to solve a gripping murder mystery that takes her from the dizzying heights of Olympus to the underbelly of Hades.
Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical Review – An Olympian Feat Of Storytelling
From legendary writer David Gaider comes a new musical murder mystery featuring Greek gods eking out an existence in the realm of mortals.
It’s a masterfully crafted tale from the mind of Dragon Age writer David Gaider, who made the most of the opportunity to flex his creative muscles. Stray Gods has all the traits of an alluring murder mystery, and yet still goes above and beyond what you’d expect narratively. The ensemble cast is full of voice-acting royalty who reward us with no shortage of extraordinary performances. I never thought I’d be on the edge of my seat during a musical number, but here we are. Stray Gods earned a 9.5 from DualShockers.
Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical
- Developer
- Summerfall Studios
- Release
- August 10, 2023
9 Venba
Tamil Excellence
In a world where games require a massive time commitment from their players, a brief but meaningful experience like Venba should be celebrated. Venba is a cooking game that takes the oft-related concepts of food and immigration and combines them to tell an emotional tale of culture and assimilation. In the same vein as Unpacking, the gameplay is a vehicle for exploring the human experience.
Venba is a cooking game that takes the oft-related concepts of food and immigration and combines them to tell an emotional tale of culture and assimilation
The eponymous Venba is from Tamil Nadu, an Indian state. After moving to Canada with her husband, Venba uses cooking as a means of expression, connecting her new life to her old. Venba is inspired by creative director Abhi’s experience as a second-generation immigrant and brings a narrative voice to a feeling many can surely relate to.
8 Starfield
The Secrets Of The Stars
In a curious break from character, Starfield accomplished the opposite of what we’ve come to expect from Bethesda. Traditionally, Bethesda RPGs have had a weak narrative but an engaging gameplay loop that compensates for their so-so storytelling. Starfield flipped the script with an uninspiring core experience but a genuinely good narrative. The worldbuilding was more explicit than what you witness in The Elder Scrolls and the companions have surprising depth to them.
Starfield Review: An Unforgettable Space Epic
A destiny born in the stars.
The player’s journey with the famed exploration group Constellation is gripping. As you gradually discover the secrets of the universe, you’ll need to decide what to do with your newfound knowledge. Starfield earned a 9/10 from DualShockers.
7 Dredge
We Know Not What Lurks Beneath
Dredge is a fantastic example of what a debut indie studio can accomplish with the right vision. There’s instantly an engrossing mystery afoot: just what happened to the last fisherman? Nothing is spoon-fed to you in Dredge — as you embark on your first fishing expedition, everything is immediately eerie, but the reality of the danger you’re in has only been whispered about.
Dredge is an eldritch mystery done right, and everything from the art style to the soundtrack contributes to a fantastic narrative.
The storytelling in Dredge is first-rate. The mystery remains intriguing right until the game’s satisfying conclusion, with various characters revealing just enough information to keep you gripped hook, line, and sinker. Dredge is an eldritch mystery done right and everything involved from the art style to the soundtrack contributes to a fantastic narrative. It’s an idea executed to perfection.
Dredge
- Released
- March 31, 2023
- Developer(s)
- Black Salt Games
6 Final Fantasy 16
Family Feud
A hallmark of Final Fantasy is the ability to rapidly world-build, selling the player on a new setting for every entry. Final Fantasy 16 is particularly compelling in a narrative sense as the player is thrust straight into a Game of Thrones-esque political power struggle — with no shortage of intrigue, betrayal and passion operating in the background.
Final Fantasy 16 Review: A Lesson In Dominance
Clive’s Super-Sweet 16.
Final Fantasy 16 feels Shakespearean, casting Clive in the role of a tragic hero. The firstborn son has to navigate the pitfalls of his station, eventually having his entire worldview flipped and gaining new purpose. It’s a character-driven experience with Clive at the forefront, and it’s gratifying to see our sullen hero trudge on despite incredible adversity. Final Fantasy 16 is one of the legendary series’ best narratives. Final Fantasy 16 earned a 9/10 from DualShockers.
5 The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Hyrule Comes To Life
I was initially skeptical of a direct sequel to Breath of the Wild — I mean, we defeated Ganon, the princess is saved and Hyrule is happy, right? So, I was pleasantly surprised to see the direction that Tears of the Kingdom took with its narrative. Link is once again thrust into an exotic world but with enough familiar faces to give the impression that time has ticked slowly onward in his absence.
A welcome shift in Tears of the Kingdom is just how many characters you can interact with in comparison to the game’s predecessor.
A welcome shift in Tears of the Kingdom is just how many characters you can interact with in comparison to the game’s predecessor. In combination with this new character-packed direction, Tears of the Kingdom has all the same Legend of Zelda story beats we’ve come to know and love — time travel, the Master Sword, unspeakable evil and capitalist Gorons. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom earned a 10/10 from DualShockers.
4 Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Dogtown Got You Down?
Good old-fashioned robust expansions have become a dying breed in recent years but thankfully, Phantom Liberty bucks this trend. V has been thrown unwillingly into another storm of violence and political chaos. The narrative is centered around two figures, Solomon Reed and Songbird, both agents of the New United States.
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty Review: Less Is More
An essential expansion with the size of a modern triple-A game for half the price.
Using a feud between two characters as the main vehicle for advancing the plot is a classic storytelling technique and one that works quite well in Phantom Liberty. This is in no small part due to the fantastic performances of the actors playing the major characters. Phantom Liberty also gives us an ending for V — an apt way to cap off Cyberpunk 2077’s revival story. Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty earned a 9/10 from DualShockers.
3 Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Symbiotic Protagonists
Third place on our best narrative list with 29% of the vote is Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. It’s always a tricky prospect adapting such a beloved and ubiquitous IP. Sure, you can leverage the characters that your players already know but you have to find ways to keep things fresh — without completely disrespecting the source material.
Put simply, it’s a quintessential Spider-Man story and Insomniac have done an excellent job maximising every aspect of it.
Spider-Man 2 has the rare bonus of having not one but two cherished protagonists, allowing for some narrative flexibility. It’s a twist on a classic Spider-Man story — there’s one of the big bads that everyone wants to see, there’s the minor villain appearances that players always enjoy and there are two lovable main characters navigating their personal and ‘professional’ lives. Put simply, it’s a quintessential Spider-Man story and Insomniac have done an excellent job maximising every aspect of it. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 earned a 10/10 from DualShockers.
2 Alan Wake 2
Not A Lake But An Ocean Of Narrative Brilliance
Alan Wake 2 was a very close runner-up on this list, pulling in 56% of the vote. The dual protagonists of Saga Anderson and the eponymous Alan Wake work on two sides of reality to save the town of Bright Falls from the rising activity of pure evil. Alan Wake 2 is a narrative masterwork — the kind of experience that elevates video games as vehicles for storytelling.
Alan Wake 2 Review: Remedying The Past
Alan Wake 2 marks a fantastic high point in the survival horror genre.
Alan Wake 2’s storytelling is asynchronous, fascinating and gripping. It’s a mystery but not a predictable one, leaving the player with no idea of how the plot would conclude. Remedy uses numerous fiction genres to tell their story, from surrealism to neo-noir. It’s a real creative feat and exactly what I’d expect from the mind of Sam Lake. Alan Wake himself couldn’t write a game as compelling as Alan Wake 2. Alan Wake 2 earned a 9.4 from DualShockers.
1 Baldur’s Gate 3
A Tale The Sword Coast Won’t Forget
With an incredible 61% of the vote, Baldur’s Gate 3 is our best narrative of 2023. There were so many directions that Larian could have gone—Sword Coast is infinitely adaptable after all—and it was an inspired choice by Larian to allow the game’s characters to dominate its narrative. Create a world-threatening event and task a band of rogues with solving it — a classic high-fantasy hook. Baldur’s Gate 3’s characters and writing are so singular that the plot doesn’t feel derivative at all.
It’s the interactions with your companions, the pseudo-social aspect of Baldur’s Gate 3 that brings so much life to this story.
A consistent antagonist anchors together three distinct acts, with the introduction of minor antagonists and alternate motivations keeping you absorbed throughout. It can’t be overstated how crucial the character work is to Baldur’s Gate 3’s narrative — your party is crucial. It’s the interactions with your companions, the pseudo-social aspect of Baldur’s Gate 3, that brings so much life to this story. Baldur’s Gate 3 earned a 10/10 from DualShockers.
DualShockers Definitives: 10 Best Video Game Characters Of 2023
2023 had a plethora of interesting and engaging characters. This list breaks down the ones we’re never going to forget.
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