UPDATE: God of War Ragnarok won Best Narrative at The Game Awards 2022!
Video games may not have exactly begun as a great storytelling medium, but modern gaming certainly allows for some incredible narrative experiences. Putting the player in control of a character emphasizes the emotions that their protagonist goes through. As technology has developed, the cinematic ability of video games has increased hugely, with characters looking more realistic than ever. That makes this year’sGame Awardsmore competitive than ever.
With narratives being such a key part of gaming nowadays then, this means that there are a lot of incredible video game stories out there. The challenge of this year’sGame Awards ceremonyis to try and narrow those great stories into a short list of nominees, and then to pick out a winner from that selection. This year, some huge titles are in the Best Narrative nominees, includingImmortality, Horizon Forbidden West, Elden Ring, God of War: Ragnarok,andA Plague Tale: Requiem.
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Immortality
Coming from Sam Barlow, best known forHer StoryandTellingLies,Immortalityrapidly rose to prominenceas it gained some incredibly high review scores, which mostly praised its narrative. The game revolves around full-motion video in which players must find the truth behind the disappearance of model-turned-actress Marissa Marcel. This unique style of gameplay earnedImmortalitya fair amount of nods from this year’s Game Awards, which also includes a nomination for the Best Performance category.
Horizon Forbidden West
There are a lot of things that stand out about Guerrilla’sHorizongames. The world is vibrant and inviting yet filled with dangerous machines and dark secrets. Thevisuals ofHorizon Forbidden Westcan be stunning at times and the combat is varied and engaging enough to keep players coming back. However, both games also have a deeply intriguing story, withHorizon Forbidden Westbuilding on its predecessor’s narrative in a novel way.
WhileHorizon Zero Dawnwas an introduction to Aloy and the world she lives in, the groundwork has been set by the timeHorizon Forbidden Westtakes place, meaning there’s a lot more freedom as most players will already know what’s going on with the post-apocalyptic setting. Also,Horizon Forbidden Westgives a lot more player choicewhen it comes to narrative this time around, giving fans more control over how they deal with the characters they meet and the impact they have on the story.
Elden Ring
In the past, a criticism that existed aroundFromSoftware’s Soulsborne franchisewas that it didn’t present the players with a key narrative. There was a goal to accomplish, but a lot of the interesting lore and narrative elements were up to the player to find. WithElden Ring, the narrative still isn’t slapped directly in front of the player, but FromSoftware has done a great deal to craft a world that warrants and rewards exploring, alongside providing questlines that could be the basis for a whole game on their own.
DespiteElden Ring’sstory not being experienced in a traditional way, the game still gives players a great narrative journey as they tell their own tale of how they reach the Elden Throne. With a worldcrafted by Hidetaka Miyazaki and fantasy author George R.R. Martin, the lore ofElden Ringcould fill its own novel series. Through both the background lore and the narrative journey of a Tarnished becoming Elden Lord,Elden Ringearns its spot among the Best Narrative nominees.
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God of War: Ragnarok
2018’sGod of Warshowed Kratos in a different light from the god fans knew from the series' past entries. As a soft reboot of the franchise that began Kratos' Norse saga, the game managed to tell a well-crafted story of a father struggling to keep his son safe in a hostile world.God of War: Ragnarok’snarrative builds on its predecessor, raising the stakes to include the iconic Aesir gods that were only hinted at in the past, such as Odin and Thor.
With the apocalypse of Norse myth in its title, it’s clear thatGod of War: Ragnarokis going to be a fast-paced experience from the get-go. However, it doesn’t manage to overwhelm the player with its action, balancing it with moments of quiet that are only enhanced by theperformances of Christopher Judge and Sunny Suljic. Even before its release, fans were anticipatingGod of War: Ragnarokwould live up to the hype, so it makes sense for it to be nominated for a lot of awards this year, including Best Narrative.
A Plague Tale: Requiem
While there are some interesting gameplay elements inA Plague Tale: Requiem, including Amicia’s crossbow and a greater focus on Hugo’s rat powers, it’s fairly clear the main focus of Asobo’s latest release is in its story. Picking up a few months afterthe events ofA Plague Tale: Innocence, Amicia and Hugo’s search for safety continues as they attempt to avoid both the swarms of rats invading medieval France and plenty of human enemies.
A lot of thepraiseA Plague Tale: Requiemhas receivedconcerns the twists and turns its narrative takes over the course of the game. Despite Asobo stating there currently wasn’t a sequel in the works, the events ofRequiemhave only left fans wanting more, meaning it could be on its way to a win at this year’s Game Awards ceremony.
Final Prediction
While this category is packed with competition, and any gamer who wants a gripping narrative should give all of these a go, the title that seems as if it’s going to stand tall isGod of War: Ragnarok. Considering the immense popularity of the game, and how it has managed to exceed expectations in a lot of ways, many are expectingGod of War: Ragnarokto sweep The Game Awards 2022.
Of course, there is the chance an upset will take place, and in other categories,God of War: Ragnarokmight not be able to match the achievement of other titles, but in its narrative Kratos' latest journey is hugely impressive, leaving an unforgettable impact on a lot of reviewers and fans. Therefore, it becomes difficult to seeanother game beatingGod of War: Ragnarokin the Best Narrative category.
