[JemyM]

The topic is controversial and will more than likely get some flames on a board I know is dominated by oldschool gamers. I got the flamesuit on so try me. :cool:

Here I will focus on some First-Person Shooters that actually delivers a well written story, well written NPC's, nice twists and a good atmosphere. The purpose is to show that while the genré is often forgetable, there are some shiny gems worth playing for them who thinks FPS's are for braindead people. Ironically, several of the following got weak sales thanks to not fitting well with twitchhappy actiongamers.

Alien VS Predator 2 (2001)
Main Characters: Corporal Andrew "Frosty" Harrison, the Predator, The Alien
Noteable Characters: Dr. Eisenberg, head researcher of the LV-1201 facility, General Vasili Rykov, head of the mercenaries assigned to defend LV-1201, The Empress, the Xenomorph queen
Story: AVP2 tells a unconventional story about three "heroes" who would probably be bitter enemies against eachother but they all share the same foe. The events intervene and takes place at pretty much the same time. The story is fairly complex to give without giving away spoilers but all three heroes will battle LV-1201 and their corrupt leaders.

Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth (2006)
Main Character: Jack Walters, private detective
Noteable Characters: Many characters taken from H.P. Lovecraft's novels, most noteworthy Obed Marsh
Story: Based heavily on H.P. Lovecraft's short novel Shadow Over Innsmouth, also borrowing elements from The Shadow Out Of Time. The game tells the story of Jack Walters who are hired to a manor house in Boston, Massachussetts to deal with a cult calling themselves Fellowship of the Yith. Something there happens that are so terrible to Jack's mind that he ends up several years in Arkham Assylum. The real story begins 7 years later in Innsmouth, a run-down, underpopulated and extremely xenophobic New England port town, shut off from the rest of the world. Here Jack is sent to deal with a robbery of a certain Brian Burnham, but Jack is going to find so much more, including the truth about his own past.

Call of Juarez (2006) (Added by Moriendor)
Main characters: Reverend Ray and Billy
Noteable characters: dto
Story: The young and impulsive Billy flees his family ranch after a violent bust-up with his stepfather. Billy roams the length and breadth of America; two years pass, then Billy decides to go home. The day of his return, gunshots are heard at the ranch from as far away as the neighboring town. One of the town’s inhabitants informs the Reverend Ray, the brother of Billy’s stepfather. At the farm, the Pastor discovers the bodies of his brother and wife and then spots Billy, bloodied whip in hand, standing by a wall daubed with the words ‘’Call of Juarez’’, written in blood. The young man notices the Reverend and flees in a panic.
Ray was well aware of the quarrels between his brother and Billy and figures out that the stepson must have killed the couple in a fit of anger. He vows to avenge the death of his brother and sister in law, and sets out in pursuit of Billy. In the course of his pitiless chase, he chooses to become once more what he was several years previously: a fearsome and bloodthirsty killer.
The specialty of CoJ is that you play hunter and hunted alternately.
JemyM comments: I have not played this myself.

Clive Barker´s Undying (2001)
Main Character: Patrick Galloway, adventurer of the paranormal
Noteable Characters: Jeremiah Covenant, Patrick's old war buddy and his siblings, Lizbeth, Aaron, Bethany and Ambrose
Story: The game begins with Patrick receiving a letter from his old war buddy Jeremiah Covenant. Upon arrival (Ireland) Jeremiah explainss that his family have a dark secret. As children the siblings performed a dark ritual and now at adult age they have fallen to madness and eventually death, all except Jeremiah. The siblings have however woke up from the grave and are now haunting the huge family mansion as well as it's surroundings. Patrick as an experienced ghost hunter sets of to deal with the problem. The story is progressed throughout spooky stages, cutscenes, books and notes that you find along the way.

Deus Ex (2002)
Main Character: J.C Denton, a NANO augmented UNATCO agent
Noteable characters: Deus Ex also tells the story of Paul Denton, J.C's brother, but Deus Ex really have more characters and organisations that can be listed in short.
Story: Deus Ex begins in a cyberpunk society, plagued by a virus known as "Gray Death". Because of the rarity of the cure the nation is in turmoil and several terrorist organisations such as the National Secessionist Force plagues the people and the government. A special anti-terrorist organisation is founded under the United States, fighting a war on terror. The story features many twists and turns and the game won several prices for prices for Best Storyline.

F.E.A.R (2005) (Added by Moriendor)
Main character: F.E.A.R point man
Noteable characters: Alma, Paxton Fettel, Harlan Wade, Norton Mapes
Story: The player is a part of F.E.A.R, a secret special ops unit of the U.S. government specialized in dealing with paranormal threats. At the beginning of the game, the player witnesses how a man called Paxton Fettel is taking command of a batallion of telepathically controlled clone supersoldiers and how Fettel's army seizes control of the Armacham Technolgy Corporation (ATC) structure, killing all its occupants. F.E.A.R's mission is to track down and eliminate Fettel. For more or full info on the story check here at Wikipedia.
JemyM comments: F.E.A.R is a horror game with alot of scary scenes and alot of atmosphere with a dark and gruesome story. I was personally distanced from the story due to the prescence of the "Replica Soldiers" who you are forced to fight throughout the entire game. Theese soldiers do not seem to have anything to do with the rest of the story and there are far too many of them based on the explanation why they are there. A storytelling technique Moriendor did not mention is that F.E.A.R use answering machines that can be used to play up messages, usually among people who talked to eachother before things went sour (similar to System Shock 2). This helps to flesh out the story.

No One Lives Forever 1 (2000) & 2 (2002)
Main Character: Cate Archer, scottish spy
Noteable characters: The entire gallery of NOLF is memorable, including the villians. Following the story of Armstrong, the scottish villian is as fun as following Cate Archer herself.
Story: In the year of 1960, in a homage to classic spy movies/books, UNITY, a secret organisation, works against the terrorist organisation known as H.A.R.M. The main character, a female ex-thief who struggle with old male prejudice, resembles Emma Peel from The Avengers. NOLF1 packs one of the greatest end twists of all time, which gave birth to NOLF2. The game won several Game of the year prices, including Computer Games Magazine, Computer Gaming World, PC Gamer and Gamespy.

System Shock 2 (1999)
Main Character: A military recruit
Noteable characters: Dr. Janice Polito, the survivor, the mystical Shodan, XERXES the computer on the Von Braun spaceship
Story: In System Shock 2, the player takes the role of a military recruit hired to protect security on the spaceship Von Braun's maiden voyage. He is awakened from cryo sleep just after something strange happened with the ship. Rather quickly he discovers that something is seriously wrong. The events that have taken place on Von Braun is told through various discs, letters, e-mails and journals which other passengers have left by.

The Jedi Knight Series (Outcast/Academy in Particular)
Main Character: Kyle Katarn, Jedi Knight
Noteable Characters: Jan Ors, Kyle's friend and ally, several villians and famous characters from the movies
Story: Three games were made with Kyle Katarn as the main character and two have him present as a supporting character. In Dark Forces, Kyle work under Mon Mothma, dealing with the Dark Trooper Project. The real story about Kyle do not begin until Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II though, where Kyle learns of his true heritage. Morgan Katarn, his father, once helped the Jedi Rahn to close off the Valley of the Jedi, a resting place for Jedi who became one with the force. In Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith, Kyle only acts as the trainer for Mara Jade. In Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, Kyle have resigned as a Jedi when Jan Ors are taken prisoner and even killed. Kyle sets off across the galaxy to bring the Dark Jedi Desann to Justice but must first relearn his forcepowers to stand a chance. Finally in Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy Kyle takes the role of a master of the main character, Jaden Korr. A force prodigy.

Vampire: Bloodlines (2004)
Main Character: A fresh new vampire
Noteable Characters: Bloodlines contains many interesting characters with their own motives, such as the powerhungry leader Sebastian LaCroix, Smiling Jack the Anarch who act as your mentor, and the sexy malkavian Jeanette with her sister Therese
Story: Vampire Bloodlines tells the story of a fresh new vampire in Los Angeles. Famous places like Santa Monica, Hollywood and Chinatown are parts of the game. The new vampire are torn between competing organisations of vampires such as the Camarilla, the Anarchs, Sabbat and the Kuei-Jin. Beyond finding your space in the city, a major part of the plot surrounds a mystical sarcophagus that all factions wants to get their hands on, with different beliefs of what it might contain. Some say it contains an ancient vampire that, if consumed (drinking it's blood), would give the consumer godlike powers.

[insane_cobra]

Most first-person shooters nowadays are high on atmosphere and background story, even if they don't have plots worth remembering.

[Lucien21]

I wouldn't strictly call Deus Ex or System Shock 2 FPS.

They are more FP-RPG's

[Lucien21]

Half Life 2 has pretty decent characters and storyline.

[insane_cobra]

Both Half-Life games do. Some more games worth mentioning: The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay, Halo (yes, Halo has quite an atmosphere and a decent heroic story), Shogo: Mobile Armor Division, Strife, Terminator: Future Shock, Realms of the Haunting, Marathon, ZPC, The Wheel of Time, XIII...

[JemyM]

Originally Posted by Lucien21

Half Life 2 has pretty decent characters and storyline.

I also heard that recent archaelogic excavations have found some evidence that supports that Half-Life 2 actually have a story. I personally believe this is based on wishful thinking more than actual proof however. Had Morgan Freeman not been a mute and a sad excuse of a "scientist" he would probably been able to add his voice to the subject. For now "Dog" remains the only contradiction to my theory that HL2 is little more than a 100% linear, soulless excuse for shooting speechless soldiers and zombies.

[JemyM]

Originally Posted by insane_cobra

Both Half-Life games do. Some more games worth mentioning: The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay, Halo (yes, Halo has quite an atmosphere and a decent heroic story), Shogo: Mobile Armor Division, Strife, Terminator: Future Shock, Realms of the Haunting, Marathon, ZPC, The Wheel of Time, XIII...

While I have a few other FPS favorites they fell off the list because the story wasnt as complex and memorable. Games like The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay and Far Cry for example. And I also enjoyed Serious Sam just because it was hillarious.

Halo had a decent story but it was completely drenched in repetitive fights that felt too long in comparision to the games actual content. Nice epic final level from an actiongamers point of view though but nothing I would recommend a non-action gamer.

I havent played Shogo, Strife, Terminator, Realms of the Haunting, Marathon, ZPC, The Wheel of Time or XIII myself. Will give them a look later.

[Dasilva]

The Jedi Knight series' story is HUGE to me, I love the whole Jedi Knight series, they had such great cinematics & Story (Dark Forces) and gameplay & Graphics (Outcast & Academy)

I actually hate anything star wars thats related to the actual movies, but Jedi Knights' story is so great to me, Kotor 1 & 2 coming in second. No other Star Wars game has interested me.

[JemyM]

Originally Posted by Dasilva

The Jedi Knight series' story is HUGE to me, I love the whole Jedi Knight series, they had such great cinematics & Story (Dark Forces) and gameplay & Graphics (Outcast & Academy)
I actually hate anything star wars thats related to the actual movies, but Jedi Knights' story is so great to me, Kotor 1 & 2 coming in second. No other Star Wars game has interested me.

Jedi Knight is probably the only moviebased Star Wars game I have played that blends together with the movies without loosing depth/story.

KOTOR takes place in a different era and I agree with pretty much everyone who said it's a legendary game.

I did enjoy Republic Commando though, even if it's probably the shortest FPS I have ever played. It's not as good as the Jedi Knight series but it had enough to be enjoyable. I found it cool that the developers actually took commando/swat training while they were developing the game.

[insane_cobra]

Originally Posted by JemyM

I also heard that recent archaelogic excavations have found some evidence that supports that Half-Life 2 actually have a story. I personally believe this is based on wishful thinking more than actual proof however. Had Morgan Freeman not been a mute and a sad excuse of a "scientist" he would probably been able to add his voice to the subject. For now "Dog" remains the only contradiction to my theory that HL2 is little more than a 100% linear, soulless excuse for shooting speechless soldiers and zombies.

Um, no. Half-Life games have a tremendously rich backstory, it's just not laid out on a silver platter.

While I have a few other FPS favorites they fell off the list because the story wasnt as complex and memorable. Games like The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay and Far Cry for example. And I also enjoyed Serious Sam just because it was hillarious.

A matter of taste. I don't think Jedi Academy's story was that good, for instance, but its lack of quality doesn't negate the fact that it's there.

[Dasilva]

Originally Posted by insane_cobra

Um, no. Half-Life games have a tremendously rich backstory, it's just not laid out on a silver platter.

A matter of taste. I don't think Jedi Academy's story was that good, for instance, but its lack of quality doesn't negate the fact that it's there.

I think Jedi Outcast was the best story wise with love, revenge, save the galaxy etc. Kyle Katarn was just a cool character.

[JemyM]

Originally Posted by insane_cobra

Um, no. Half-Life games have a tremendously rich backstory, it's just not laid out on a silver platter.

I have seen teenage girls writing long essays why a really bad teenage comedy have so much depth that it changed their lives. They connect dots that just isnt there. That website (which I have seen and read before) is the same. It connects dots that isnt there, trying to create something that doesnt exist. Frankly the webmaster have put down MORE EFFORT on the story than Valve ever did, and all he really do is standing up and attempt to apologize for Valve's lack of storywriters.

The only reason people are confused with the story is that there really isnt any told. There is a setting, but there is no story. There isnt really any untold secret here that you need exceptional intelligence to spot, although if you want, appearently, you can invent it.

Comparing Half Life 2 to, for example, Knights of the Old Republic or Deus Ex, is just an insult to storywriting as a profession.

[MdaG]

Originally Posted by JemyM

I have seen teenage girls writing long essays why a really bad teenage comedy have so much depth that it changed their lives. They connect dots that just isnt there. That website (which I have seen and read before) is the same. It connects dots that isnt there, trying to create something that doesnt exist. Frankly the webmaster have put down MORE EFFORT on the story than Valve ever did, and all he really do is standing up and attempt to apologize for Valve's lack of storywriters.

The only reason people are confused with the story is that there really isnt any told. There is a setting, but there is no story.

Comparing Half Life 2 to, for example, Knights of the Old Republic or Deus Ex, is just an insult to storywriting as a profession.

Interesting point. I've only played the first game and I never got all the touches described on that page.

[JemyM]

Originally Posted by MdaG

Interesting point. I've only played the first game and I never got all the touches described on that page.

Half-Life 1 was actually a well made game, for it's time. It was the first shooter that hired a professional writer for the plot. It delivered the story in a satisfying manner. It had many places where the story suddenly escalated and felt more important. Ofcourse, there are many games since that went far beyond HL1.

What Half-Life 2 have, is a setting. A gloomy and depressive setting of a oppressed people trying to rebel against unknown forces. This along with the beautiful scenery gives HL2 a nice atmosphere. But there is no story. It's a bit like playing Oblivion without quests or NPC's. Nice to watch but after the fifth-tenth turn that looks the same as the old one, with the same nameless enemies, the game gets repetitive and boring.

[Dasilva]

I think people fergot that HL2 is not a RPG. Its still to date the most beatiful and well made game of all time for me, Episode 1 is just as good. I think Oblivion has its amazingly huge share of flaws, yet I still love that game too. The main storyline in Oblivion is good but nothing amazing, but was utterly unimpressed by its ultimately anti-climatic ending. Oblivion has a seriously bad ending after the entire months I've been wondering the lovely land, its just bleh to me. The Side Quests were much more interesting.

[JemyM]

Originally Posted by Dasilva

I think people fergot that HL2 is not a RPG. Its still to date the most beatiful and well made game of all time for me, Episode 1 is just as good. I think Oblivion has its amazingly huge share of flaws, yet I still love that game too. The main storyline in Oblivion is good but nothing amazing, but was utterly unimpressed by its ultimately anti-climatic ending. Oblivion has a seriously bad ending after the entire months I've been wondering the lovely land, its just bleh to me. The Side Quests were much more interesting.

The likeness I was going for was "beautiful but empty". I am personally not a great fan of Oblivion, but it looks good. Gamewise im more impressed by RPG's like Gothic, Divine Divinity and Fallout 2 if I want to have a non-linear rpg.

[Owskie]

Halo , how could anyone say Halo... one of the worst games in history, argue with me if you will... i dont care, its a simplistic game with not much too it.
Compared to half life, there was nothing innovative about it, yet thats all people could talk about, the innovative halo...

[Dasilva]

Originally Posted by Owskie

Halo , how could anyone say Halo... one of the worst games in history, argue with me if you will... i dont care, its a simplistic game with not much too it.
Compared to half life, there was nothing innovative about it, yet thats all people could talk about, the innovative halo...

Then people argue its the greatest FPS of all time..... for the Xbox.

HL2 for Xbox is more fun than Halo.

[JemyM]

Originally Posted by Owskie

Halo , how could anyone say Halo... one of the worst games in history, argue with me if you will... i dont care, its a simplistic game with not much too it.
Compared to half life, there was nothing innovative about it, yet thats all people could talk about, the innovative halo...

Controlling a squad and vehicles was ahead of it's time, but beyond that the game was repetitive. The story was decent but based on the content the game could have been chopped down to 3/4 without loosing anything of value. The library was so repetitive that it actually made me angry.
The final level was pretty epic though.

[samIamsad]

Originally Posted by JemyM

What Half-Life 2 have, is a setting. A gloomy and depressive setting of a oppressed people trying to rebel against unknown forces. This along with the beautiful scenery gives HL2 a nice atmosphere. But there is no story.

There's no bucketload of text to read and no two billion lines of dialogues to passively sit through.... and that's a bad thing?

Just saying, once I thought the same as you, but as a game contending a narrative of sorts HL2 does a good job. There's quite a bit of subtle stuff going on while you're exploring your environment, and then there are the scripted sequences. "Story" isn't just only static content a designer came up with. Dialogue, scripted events, etc. That's the stuff static mediums are dealing with. Especially not in a game. The less a game relies on content like that, the more powerful it can be. As a gaming experience. Game. The word says it all.

And let's not forget the fact ( ) that plot in games is like plot in p0rn.

Originally Posted by Lucien

I wouldn't strictly call Deus Ex or System Shock 2 FPS.

They are more FP-RPG's

I dunno, Luci, shouldn't that be more like RPG-FPS-kinda Adventurous-Sneakers™?


Deus Ex (left), System Shock 2 (right). Awww.