Summary
Certain video game genres tend to become associated with particular storytelling trademarks, and no genre is more guilty of this than theRPG. Many of these titles take place in grand, sprawling worlds, rich withoriginal lore. Each society, character, and monster has its own story, and many RPGs will go out of their way to tell fans all about them.
Learning thelore of the world in an RPGcan be a deeply rewarding task for interested fans. Discovering in-game writing or consulting a glossary can help players get immersed in their world, and maybe even start to anticipate some of the consequences of the decisions they’re making.These RPGs have a vast wealth of readable lorewaiting to be discovered by curious fans.
The overwhelmingly grim world ofDarkest Dungeonis full of horrifying eldritch monsters and cursed wretches intent on plunging all of humanity into darkness. As the heir of the titular doomed estate, theplayer must fight an uphill battleto stem the tide of evil by any means necessary.
While exploring the game’s many ruins and dungeons, players will often find letters and journals left behind by adventurers who came and perished before. These tidbits expand the bloody history of the estate while also providing hints on how to gain the upper hand against certain monsters.
TheDark Soulstrilogy has always had an unconventional approach to storytelling. Instead of relying on dialogue and cutscenes to establish the story, these games lean hard on environmental storytelling, letting level and boss design weave a powerful tale of downfall and tragedy without bogging fans down in too many semantics.
However, there’s still a massive amount of lore to be uncovered. The most common delivery method for worldbuilding in theDark Soulsgames is through item descriptions; these blurbs will often impart vital tidbits about the history of the world.Dark Souls 3,as the culmination of the decaying cycle that forms the basis of the games, has some of thejuiciest bits of lorewaiting to be discovered, letting players know why the Age of Fire is about to die, possibly forever.
The Elder Scrollsseries takes place in a vast and complex fantasy world, with a long and intricate history of gods and warfare. While each game’s plot is largely self-contained, they also build on the rich history of what came before. There are few better ways thatSkyrimplayers can feel more immersed in this rich, living world than through its vast library of books.
There are more than 300 books scattered throughout the world ofSkyrim. These range from fictional stories set on the planet of Nirn to in-lore histories written about the world’s long and storied past. The speculative nature of many of these histories, as well as the fact that some of them openly contradict each other, makesSkyrimfeel like it takes place in a living world, and it helps players feel like they could truly make history themselves.
The originalWitchernovels created a rich fantasy realm, with creatures and adventures inspired by established folklore with a decidedly grim dark fantasy twist.The Witcher 3gives fans a chance to step into this rich and complex world for themselves and learn about the various political figures and monsters that populate it.
The Witcher 3has an extensive lore glossary so that fans can stay on top of what’s going on in the world around them, and so they can truly understand the monsters that they’re hunting. Of course, fans who really want to read moreWitcherlore also have a full series of fantasy novels to turn to in order to fully immerse themselves in this realm.
Baldur’s Gate 3, like its predecessors, is set in the Forgotten Realms, one of the foremost settings in therich history ofDungeons & Dragons. Ever since it was created by Ed Greenwood in the 60s, the Forgotten Realms has played host to countless novels, video games, and, of course,D&Dcampaigns.
Baldur’s Gate 3pays worthy homage to this time-honored realm. Players can find more than a thousand books throughout the game, each of which contains lore about the world or the characters that fans will find themselves interacting with. Some of these books trigger new quests and opportunities for adventure, but most of them simply flesh out this intricate and well-established fantasy realm.
BioWare’s illustrious fantasy franchise began in 2009 withDragon Age: Origins, which served as an introduction to the world of Thedas and the existential threat posed by the monstrous Darkspawn. In addition to these sinister threats, players must also contend with the societal problems plaguing the realm, namely the conflict between mages and the Chantry that seeks to control them.
This complex and multilayered dark fantasy world is described and explained by an extensive codex that the player will build up throughout their adventure. Thecodex has entries on characters, creatures, culture, history, and even religion, making sure diligent players are never out of the loop as they journey to rescue the land of Ferelden.
Avowedshares its setting with the two priorPillars of Eternitygames, both weighty RPGs in their own right. This means that Obsidian’s fantasy RPG franchise has built up quite a bit of lore. Luckily for prospectiveAvowedplayers, the game has a clever system to keep them grounded and informed about the state of the world.
In addition to the traditional fantasy codex, relevant lore entries can be referenced in themiddle of dialogue with NPCs. Certain key phrases will be highlighted, allowing fans to cross-reference the lore index with the push of a button. This means players are never lost when it comes to lore, even when they’re in the middle of a conversation.
Metaphor: ReFantaziois much more of a high fantasy experience than Atlus' typical RPGs. The fictional realm of Euchronia is full of exotic fantasy peoples and terrifying eldritch monsters. The way society functions in this realm parallels many of the problems that plague the real world, a strange connection that makes more sense the deeper fans get into this mysterious game.
However, in spite of the game’s overt connection to the real world, the realm of Euchronia still has a lot of lore for players to uncover. The world’s long and mysterious history can be pieced together by players with the help of the game’s thorough lore glossary, which gives info on characters, realms, and monsters as they progress.
FromSoftware’s shift to open-world forElden Ringchanged a lot about the Soulsborne formula, but not the developer’s esoteric approach to lore and worldbuilding. Fans will still have to rely onenvironmental storytelling and cryptic dialogueto piece together the story of The Lands Between, but if they really want to delve into the history of the realm, they can also read up on their item descriptions.
With countless weapons, armor pieces, and consumable items scattered throughout the vast open world, players have a lot of secrets to uncover. Piecing together the story of what happened to the many gods and heroes of this dark fantasy realm across several bits of flavor text is an engrossing way to engage with the game’s world, leading to a more archaeological approach to lore than most games can manage.
BioWare’s illustrious trilogy of space RPGs presents a thrilling tale of galactic warfare, with impactful moments taking place on a massive scale and an interpersonal one. The Milky Way galaxy as it exists inMass Effectis a turbulent and complicated one, fraught with conflict and rivalry, and Commander Shepard must somehow unite these disparate peoples in order to save them from the apocalyptic Reapers.
Players are aided in this great task by the trilogy’s extensive lore codex. This encyclopedia goes into exhaustive detail on not only the major alien species and their societies, but the socioeconomic history of the galaxy, specific military units within the armies of certain governments, and even specific forms of technology used by ships and soldiers throughout the galaxy. If the lore ofMass Effectappeals to a player, it’s very easy for them to become an expert.
