The Best Video Game Story of 2021
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy
Dec. 6, 2021
The best video game stories in 2021 took us far and wide, whether it was to a sleepy Colorado town, outer space, to the past, or the inside of some messed-up minds. Over the course of this past year, we played all kinds of games, but the best stories stuck with us through to the very end.
These are our picks for the best video game story of 2021.
These are our picks for the best video game story of 2021.
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy
Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy manages to achieve something quite difficult - successfully reimagine a beloved group of characters and arguably elevate them to new heights. Eidos Montreal took the humour synonymous with the ragtag team and injected a surprisingly healthy amount of heart into a story that delicately manages to balance a universe-ending event with the personal demons haunting each member. It’s a confidently told linear tale that feels like a playable six-issue comic book run more than anything and turns out just as fun and colorful as that sounds. Oh, and there's a talking dog. That always makes a story better. - Simon Cardy
Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy manages to achieve something quite difficult - successfully reimagine a beloved group of characters and arguably elevate them to new heights. Eidos Montreal took the humour synonymous with the ragtag team and injected a surprisingly healthy amount of heart into a story that delicately manages to balance a universe-ending event with the personal demons haunting each member. It’s a confidently told linear tale that feels like a playable six-issue comic book run more than anything and turns out just as fun and colorful as that sounds. Oh, and there's a talking dog. That always makes a story better. - Simon Cardy
Psychonauts 2
The original Psychonauts had a respectable story way back in 2005, but it largely served as an introductory chapter to a larger world and grander scheme, the full scope of which of which we never got to truly see. Until now. Psychonauts 2 does a wonderful job at expanding its world by filling us in on its history – the creation of the Psychonauts, the secrets of its founding members, and the world both inside and outside the Psychonauts HQ – while also keeping the plot rooted in the mystery established at the very end of the first game: Who kidnapped Truman Zanotto? It’s a carefully crafted tale with surprising twists, big pay-offs, and a very satisfying conclusion. - Mitchell Saltzman
The original Psychonauts had a respectable story way back in 2005, but it largely served as an introductory chapter to a larger world and grander scheme, the full scope of which of which we never got to truly see. Until now. Psychonauts 2 does a wonderful job at expanding its world by filling us in on its history – the creation of the Psychonauts, the secrets of its founding members, and the world both inside and outside the Psychonauts HQ – while also keeping the plot rooted in the mystery established at the very end of the first game: Who kidnapped Truman Zanotto? It’s a carefully crafted tale with surprising twists, big pay-offs, and a very satisfying conclusion. - Mitchell Saltzman
Inscyrption
Like any great mystery, the best parts of Inscryption are its secrets - the things it doesn’t tell you outrightly on the screen but what it whispers between lines of code. Taking what can often become tired tropes if not executed properly, Inscryption takes roguelike elements, metatextual threads, and even found-footage horror recordings to engineer a twisting maze of intrigue. Around each of its corners lies a new nugget of information key to solving the mystery at hand. Never stepping over the line into becoming a full-on horror game, Inscryption seamlessly integrates its gameplay into the plot, making sure that whatever dread may be bubbling up inside you never stops you from uncovering those ever-enticing secrets. - Simon Cardy
Like any great mystery, the best parts of Inscryption are its secrets - the things it doesn’t tell you outrightly on the screen but what it whispers between lines of code. Taking what can often become tired tropes if not executed properly, Inscryption takes roguelike elements, metatextual threads, and even found-footage horror recordings to engineer a twisting maze of intrigue. Around each of its corners lies a new nugget of information key to solving the mystery at hand. Never stepping over the line into becoming a full-on horror game, Inscryption seamlessly integrates its gameplay into the plot, making sure that whatever dread may be bubbling up inside you never stops you from uncovering those ever-enticing secrets. - Simon Cardy
The Forgotten City
While many of our favorite games have a penchant for huge, world-scale plots, there’s a whole lot to be said for small, intimate plots like that of The Forgotten City. It’s a time-loop game with a small cast of characters, a limited but secret-filled city space, and an intriguing moral mystery at its heart that prompts surprisingly deep discussions and questions reminiscent of an ancient philosophy course. The Forgotten City’s tight puzzle box of a world and infinite loops give the player space and time to get to know everyone’s personality, motives, secrets, wants, and worries, all while steadily uncovering the answers to a ‘whodunnit’ where even the crime itself starts off as a mystery, and your actions determine if and how the perpetrator is ultimately stopped. All this from what originated as a Skyrim mod! - Rebekah Valentine
While many of our favorite games have a penchant for huge, world-scale plots, there’s a whole lot to be said for small, intimate plots like that of The Forgotten City. It’s a time-loop game with a small cast of characters, a limited but secret-filled city space, and an intriguing moral mystery at its heart that prompts surprisingly deep discussions and questions reminiscent of an ancient philosophy course. The Forgotten City’s tight puzzle box of a world and infinite loops give the player space and time to get to know everyone’s personality, motives, secrets, wants, and worries, all while steadily uncovering the answers to a ‘whodunnit’ where even the crime itself starts off as a mystery, and your actions determine if and how the perpetrator is ultimately stopped. All this from what originated as a Skyrim mod! - Rebekah Valentine
Life is Strange: True Colors
While there are a lot of things that make Life is Strange, as a series great, the writing and story-rich content is by far its greatest strength. Life is Strange: True Colors offers a compelling mystery story that maintains solid pacing across all five episodes. More importantly, True Colors' story is both impactful and complex where both the big and small choices matter, which is sure to keep you emotionally invested until the end. - Taylor Lyles
While there are a lot of things that make Life is Strange, as a series great, the writing and story-rich content is by far its greatest strength. Life is Strange: True Colors offers a compelling mystery story that maintains solid pacing across all five episodes. More importantly, True Colors' story is both impactful and complex where both the big and small choices matter, which is sure to keep you emotionally invested until the end. - Taylor Lyles
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