Games where your choices impact the story
Are your choices in games actually meaningful? What we mean by this is that the games actually take into account how you choose to play your characters and adjust the game accordingly. All choices have consequences. It’s difficult to make those choices matter, but there are titles that don’t just pretend that your choices have meaning.
Whether you’re trying to save everyone in a zombie apocalypse, being hunted by a serial killer, or just trying to make the best choice at the local tavern, there are games that make your choices matter. To narrow down what we mean by “games that matter”, we’re going to be looking at titles that don’t just adjust the story to make your choices seem more important. Instead, your choices impact character survival and the ending you unlock.
These games all have some of the best story and gameplay out there, so you won’t be disappointed with any of these choices.
Game of Thrones
In Game of Thrones, your choices impact character survival. If you choose to execute a character, they might run away and, eventually, end up causing trouble for you later. If you spare them, they might help you in difficult situations. The main story still plays out the same way, but your small choices matter when it comes to the characters.
The Quarry
The Quarry is a horror story that also makes your choices affect the outcome. In this game, you’re trapped on an island with a deranged killer who has tortured and killed everyone else. Your main goal is to try to stay alive for as long as possible, but your choices can lead to deaths. If you get too close to a character, they might attack you, and there’s nothing you can do about it.
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead is a classic example of games that matter in terms of story. Multiple seasons of difficult decisions that impact survival in a zombie apocalypse. The first season caused a lot of controversy because of how it ended, but players were left with no doubt that their decisions were the reason for the outcome.
Divinity: Original Sin 2
Divinity: Original Sin 2 is a deep RPG game that allows you to heavily customize your protagonist. You can change their race, class, and appearance, but that’s just the start. As you play the game, you can make choices that impact the overall experience. For example, take the first mission in the game. You can try to rescue a local noble, or you can go fishing instead. If you go fishing, the mission will be much easier, but you’ll miss out on an important character.
Quests are like a choose-your-own-adventure book, with multiple ways to achieve your goal, but you can also make choices that affect the overall outcome. If you choose to rescue the noble, you are captured and forced to fight a group of bad guys. If you go fishing, you’ll escape the encounter and end up on a different questline.
Chrono Trigger
There are a lot of games out there with multiple endings, and you might think that they don’t really matter because there are multiple options for how you get there, but this is not the case. Chrono Trigger is a classic RPG game where different actions lead to various outcomes.
In this time-travel RPG, you can do a number of things to ensure that the world doesn’t end – you just have to make multiple playthroughs. Each of the game’s many endings is a reflection of your choices, and you can even unlock new quests on further playthroughs.
As Dusk Falls
As Dusk Falls is an interactive novel that heavily influences the main storyline. Every chapter of As Dusk Falls is a new scene, and you can make choices that impact every scene. For example, in chapter one, you’re on a beach with a character called Eva. You can choose to help her or not. If you don’t help her, she’ll be killed by a shark, but you’ll miss out on her services.
Nier: Automata
Nier: Automata is a game that has multiple playthroughs with different endings based on your actions. You can play through the game as a pacifist, or you can be aggressive and kill enemies whenever you can. Your level of honor impacts how others perceive you, and if you change the world, the ending will reflect that.
Red Dead Redemption 2
Red Dead Redemption 2 is similar to Nier in that the way you behave impacts how others see you – and they’re not just talking about your honor. If you decide to help someone out, they might repay you with a favor later, but they might also want to take advantage of you. The way you play the game has an impact on the way others see you, and this has an impact on the ending.
Prey: Mooncrash
Prey: Mooncrash is a standalone expansion for Prey, and it also has multiple endings. You’re trapped on a space station with a dangerous alien threat, and you need to find a way off the station. There are multiple ways to solve the problem, but whatever you choose to do, someone has to pay the price.
Life Is Strange: True Colors
Life Is Strange: True Colors sees you using your supernatural abilities to uncover secrets and make impactful decisions. You can return to the different areas at any time, so you can make changes to the past if you want to.
Heavy Rain
Heavy Rain is an interactive thriller game that sees you solving the mystery of the Origami Killer. You have to make difficult decisions that can lead to multiple endings. Will you sacrifice a character to catch the killer? What would you do to save your son?
Mass Effect 3
Mass Effect 3 is the climax of the Mass Effect trilogy. In the final installment, you have to shape the outcome of the war against The Reapers. Your decisions throughout the series have an impact on how the war ends. Will you side with the Krogan to win the war? Or will you make other choices?
The Stanley Parable
The Stanley Parable is a first-person game that sees you following or defying the narrator’s instructions. You can make choices that completely alter the game, and you’ll end up with multiple endings.
The Outer Worlds
The Outer Worlds is a sci-fi RPG that sees you heavily impacting the in-game world. You can make decisions that end relationships and even change the game’s ending.
