Favourite Video Game Storylines by Year
by Jag85 | created - 01 Jun 2012 | updated - 23 Jan 2013 | Public- Genres
- Movies or TV
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1. Gun Fight (1975 Video Game)
Action, Western
A multi-directional shooter arcade game in which two players take the role of two cowboys engaged in a gun duel. Both cowboys carry no more than six bullets during each round of the duel, a... See full summary »
Votes: 30
2. Fonz (1976 Video Game)
Sport
Play as Fonzie in his own arcade game in which he engages in a motorcycle race depicted in a black and white 3-D third-person perspective racing game. In order to win a race, the player ... See full summary »
Votes: 11
4. Space Invaders (1978 Video Game)
K-A | Action, Sci-Fi
Commonly considered as one of the most influential video games of all time, the goal is to defeat wave after wave of descending aliens with a horizontally moving laser cannon to earn as many points as possible.
Votes: 931
6. Pac-Man (1980 Video Game)
E | Family, Fantasy
Navigate Pac-Man through a maze escaping ghosts and eating Pac-Dots.
Votes: 2,411
7. Donkey Kong (1981 Video Game)
E | Action
Arcade video game and the first in the "Donkey Kong" series in which Jumpman (later retconned to be Mario) runs and jumps on platforms and climbs ladders to ascend a construction site and rescue Pauline from a giant gorilla, Donkey Kong.
Director: Shigeru Miyamoto
Votes: 2,163
8. Ultima II: Revenge of the Enchantress (1982 Video Game)
Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Sowing the seeds of evil in every man's soul.
Votes: 43
9. Cliff Hanger (1983 Video Game)
Action, Adventure
You control a lovable thief through various dangers to rescue a damsel in distress from a villainous count.
Star: Frank Welker
Votes: 49
10. Hokkaidô rensa satsujin: Ohôtsuku ni kiyu (1984 Video Game)
Adventure
In Yuji Horii's follow-up to The Portopia Serial Murder Case, you once again play as a Tokyo police detective charged with solving a mysterious murder. This time, your initial investigation... See full summary »
11. Pôtopia renzoku satsujin jiken (1985 Video Game)
The president of Loan Yamakin is found dead in his mansion. After his bodyguard and his are interviewed, it becomes clear that he had died in a locked room. Was he murdered by someone, or did he commit suicide?
Votes: 8
12. Dragon Warrior (1986 Video Game)
Action, Adventure, Fantasy
A knight becomes entrusted with the impossible mission to rescue the abducted Princess Gwaelin and vanquish the Dragonlord.
Director: Koichi Nakamura
Votes: 278
13. Metal Gear (1987 Video Game)
E | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
After Gray Fox, FOX-HOUND's best agent, goes missing, rookie Solid Snake is sent to the South African fortress "Outer Heaven" to rescue him from terrorists armed with a nuclear-equipped bipedal tank.
Director: Hideo Kojima | Star: Dennis Falt
Votes: 1,439
14. Snatcher (1988 Video Game)
T | Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Set in the mid-21st century, Gillian Seed and his trusty robot sidekick Metal Gear investigate the mysterious infiltration of deadly snatchers into the general population of Neo Kobe City.
Directors: Hideo Kojima, Shinya Inoue, Yoshinori Sasaki | Stars: Yûsaku Yara, Mami Koyama, Kikuko Inoue, Kaneto Shiozawa
Votes: 267
15. Phantasy Star II (1989 Video Game)
Adventure, Sci-Fi
Somewhere in the deep vastness of space, within the Andromeda Galaxy lies the Algol Star System floating like a dust fleck in a sunbeam. Around the parent star, Algol, whirl its three ... See full summary »
Director: Chienshi
Votes: 114
16. Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake (1990 Video Game)
E | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Solid Snake has retired from FOX-HOUND, but is called back to active duty to infiltrate the heavily armed nation "Zanzibar Land" and rescue a kidnapped inventor.
Director: Hideo Kojima
Votes: 1,227
17. Final Fantasy IV (1991 Video Game)
Unrated | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
A dark knight questions the ruthless actions of his king and undergoes a quest to redeem himself and save the world.
Director: Hironobu Sakaguchi
Votes: 1,899
18. Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride (1992 Video Game)
Adventure, Fantasy
The hero of this game is the son of a brave warrior named Papas. It appears that his mother died just after giving birth to him, and his father took him on a long journey when he was a ... See full summary »
Director: Manabu Yamana
Votes: 151
19. Lunar: The Silver Star (1992 Video Game)
MA-13 | Action, Adventure, Comedy
From the village of Burg, a teenager named Alex sets out to become the fabled guardian of the goddess Althena...the Dragonmaster. Along with his girlfriend Luna, and several friends they ... See full summary »
Director: Yoichi Miyaji | Stars: Kikuko Inoue, Rokurô Naya, Kôichi Kitamura, Rei Sakuma
Votes: 193
20. Secret of Mana (1993 Video Game)
E10+ | Action, Adventure, Drama
The story of a boy who pulls out a rusty sword and is banished from Potos. He meets a girl and a Sprite. Together, they journey to gather 8 Mana seeds to save the Mana tree and stop Thanatos and his empire from taking over the world.
Director: Kôichi Ishii
Votes: 693
21. Lunar: Eternal Blue (1994 Video Game)
K-A | Action, Adventure, Comedy
When long-time friends Hiro and Ruby discover a strange visitor from another world, they find themselves on a long journey to find the goddess Althena and stop the mad godlike Zophar from ... See full summary »
Director: Hiroyuki Koyama | Stars: Hikaru Midorikawa, Chisa Yokoyama, Kumiko Nishihara, Aya Hisakawa
Votes: 154
22. Final Fantasy VI (1994 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
A mysterious woman joins a group of mercenaries in order to find out about her destiny and means of saving the world from an evil madman.
Directors: Hiroyuki Itô, Yoshinori Kitase
Votes: 3,535
23. Chrono Trigger (1995 Video Game)
E | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Crono, a young boy, is thrust to adventure by destiny to destroy an oncoming threat that will destroy the world in 1999.
Directors: Yoshinori Kitase, Akihiko Matsui, Takashi Tokita, Nao Ito
Votes: 3,307
24. YU-NO: A Girl Who Chants Love at the Bound of This World (1996 Video Game)
M | Adventure, Mystery, Romance
Following the death of his father, Takuya Arima discovers through his father's notes that there may be more to this world than he could have ever imagined.
Stars: Takeshi Aono, Takuya Eguchi, Aya Endô, Keiji Fujiwara
Votes: 28
25. Final Fantasy VII (1997 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
A former soldier from an evil company joins a mercenary clan to fight the company he once served.
Directors: Yoshinori Kitase, Yasushi Matsumura, Masato Yagi
Votes: 11,342
26. Alundra (1997 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
Alundra has been called to a troubled village after being plagued visions,where great evil lies there waiting.
Director: Yasuhiro Ohori
Votes: 139
27. Xenogears (1998 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
Young warrior and artist Fei Fong Wong sets off on a journey that tests his faith as well as courage as he is suddenly thrown into a battle where no one is who they seem.
Director: Tetsuya Takahashi | Stars: Hikaru Midorikawa, Tomokazu Seki, Yumi Tôma, Hideyuki Tanaka
Votes: 777
28. Suikoden II (1998 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
Three years after the Gate Rune War, the 108 Stars of Destiny once again gather to protect the City-State of Jowston from the invading Kingdom of Highland, led by the demonic Luca Blight.
Director: Yoshitaka Murayama
Votes: 465
29. Chrono Cross (1999 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
For Serge, the truth is all too disturbing when he stumbles into another dimension, a dimension where he is long dead. Now the fate of two worlds hangs in the balance and Serge is the only hope.
Director: Masato Kato
Votes: 990
30. Final Fantasy VIII (1999 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
A group of students at a military academy rescue a mysterious girl, who some say is the sorceress who wants to govern the universe.
Director: Yoshinori Kitase
Votes: 6,460
31. Dragon Valor (2000 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Dragons are the stuff of ancient legend, strange magical creatures whose scaly skin and evil eyes would strike terror into the hearts of the bravest men. Since ancient times humanity has ... See full summary »
Votes: 13
32. Vagrant Story (2000 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
Valendia is a land that had undergone civil war, the end of which had birthed the parliament and several organizations to control the balance of power. Ashley Riot is a Riskbreaker, an ... See full summary »
Director: Yasumi Matsuno
Votes: 397
33. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2001 Video Game)
M | Action, Adventure, Drama
Two years after the death of Solid Snake, a rookie FOX-HOUND agent, on his first mission, infiltrates an offshore decontamination facility to rescue the President.
Director: Hideo Kojima | Stars: David Hayter, Quinton Flynn, Christopher Randolph, Lara Cody
Votes: 9,229
34. Shadow of Destiny (2001 Video Game)
T | Action, Horror, Mystery
A young man, his name is Eike Kusch, walks out of a coffee shop somewhere in Europe and gets stabbed in the back by an unknown person. But he is not dead. He wakes up in a bizarre room and ... See full summary »
Stars: Scott Keck, Jeanne Hartmann, Julie Parker, Jim Singer
Votes: 183
35. Ever 17: The Out of Infinity (2002 Video Game)
T | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
No one who came to the high tech underwater theme park LeMU on May 1st, 2017 were expecting anything out of the ordinary. None of the seven young people who found themselves deep underwater... See full summary »
Director: Takumi Nakazawa | Stars: Yu Asakawa, Toshitaka Hirano, Sôichirô Hoshi, Rie Kanda
Votes: 57
36. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (I) (2003 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
A young prince with expert fighting skills acquires the Dagger of Time, and unknowingly releases the powerful Sands of Time with it. Now he is trapped in a palace with sand creatures and must undo the unfortunate deed he has done.
Stars: Yuri Lowenthal, Joanna Wasick, Barry Dennen, William Frederick Knight
Votes: 5,441
37. Drakengard (2003 Video Game)
M | Action, Adventure, Drama
A tragic story about Caim, a knight, whose parents were killed by the evil Empire. During the battle as he fights off the Empire's knights, Caim is badly injured from an enemy attack and as... See full summary »
Director: Yoko Taro | Stars: Pîtâ, Toshiaki Karasawa, Eriko Hatsune, Kôichi Yamadera
Votes: 170
38. Clannad (2004 Video Game)
T | Drama, Fantasy
Clannad follows the story of Tomoya Okazaki, a Highschool student living in a fictional Japanese town, struggling to find his place in this world. The plot branches of as he encounters and ... See full summary »
Director: Jun Maeda | Stars: Mai Nakahara, Kikuko Inoue, Ryôtarô Okiayu, Daisuke Sakaguchi
Votes: 126
39. Prince of Persia: Warrior Within (2004 Video Game)
M | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
A proud yet innocent prince is being chased by The Dahaka (Guardian of Time) as a consequence of his actions. He seeks aid from The Empress of Time to escape from the notion that he cannot change his fate.
Directors: Keith Arem, Mo Davoudian, Richard M Dumont, David Jankowski, Felix Rocque | Stars: Monica Bellucci, Claudia Besso, Thor Bishopric, Mark Camacho
Votes: 4,190
40. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (2005 Video Game)
M | Action, Adventure, Drama
Enhanced version of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2004) with many added features; such as the free range camera, new camouflage outfits, bonus levels and a theater mode.
Director: Hideo Kojima | Stars: David Hayter, Suzetta Miñet, Jim Piddock, Heather Halley
Votes: 2,748
41. Yakuza (2005 Video Game)
M | Action, Crime, Drama
After Kiryu Kazuma takes the blame for the murder of its leader, he is sent to prison. Ten years later he learns that the criminal underworld is searching for 10 billion yen that has been stolen from the Tojo clan.
Directors: Hiroyuki Sakamoto, Ryuta Ueda | Stars: Takaya Kuroda, Darryl Kurylo, Rie Kugimiya, Michael Rosenbaum
Votes: 535
42. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (2006 Video Game)
M | Action, Adventure, Drama
In 1970, six years after the events of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2004), Snake has to fight against his own unit, FOX, which has turned renegade and captured a nuclear base in South America.
Director: Masahiro Yamamoto | Stars: David Hayter, David Agranov, Steve Blum, Noah Nelson
Votes: 955
43. Yakuza 2 (2006 Video Game)
M | Action, Crime, Drama
One year has passed since Kazuma Kiryu, "yakuza with the heart of gold", defeated his biggest adversary. Despite this victory, Kazuma has lost more than he had ever imagined. But events ... See full summary »
Directors: Ryuta Ueda, Toshihiro Nagoshi | Stars: Takaya Kuroda, Yû Daiki, Satoshi Tokushige, Kazuhiro Yamaji
Votes: 306
44. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (2007 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
Taking place around the events of Nibelheim outlined in Last Order: Final Fantasy VII (2005), Crisis Core focuses on Zack Fair, a member of the paramilitary organization SOLDIER, who is assigned to look for the missing soldier Genesis Rhapsodos.
Director: Hajime Tabata | Stars: Rick Gomez, Andrea Bowen, Steve Burton, Stefan Marks
Votes: 1,437
45. Fate/stay night (2004 Video Game)
Action, Adventure, Drama
After the death of his foster father, Shirou Emiya finds himself getting drawn into a duel between powerful magicians who use summoned spirits from the past called "servants" to fight over a wish granting artifact; the holy grail.
Director: Kinoko Nasu | Stars: Noriaki Sugiyama, Ayako Kawasumi, Kana Ueda, Jun'ichi Suwabe
Votes: 179
46. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (2008 Video Game)
M | Action, Adventure, Drama
When the nations of the world rely upon private military companies to fight their battles for them, renegade Liquid Ocelot emerges as the head of a potent coalition of mercenary powers. Solid Snake returns to save the world once again.
Director: Hideo Kojima | Stars: David Hayter, Josh Keaton, Peter Lurie, Paul Eiding
Votes: 11,137
47. 428: Fûsa sareta Shibuya de (2008 Video Game)
T | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
428 is a visual novel adventure game where players take part in events from the perspectives of multiple protagonists, all acting in parallel with no knowledge of each other. Set in the ... See full summary »
Directors: Takeshi Furuta, Jirô Ishii, Yasutaka Môri | Stars: Yôsuke Akimoto, Kôsei Amano, Robert Baldwin, Blake Crawford
Votes: 62
48. Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (2009 Video Game)
M | Adventure, Horror, Sci-Fi
A kidnapped college student must team up with eight other hostages to escape a sunken ship. But in doing so, he starts to unravel a sinister mystery.
Votes: 314
49. Yakuza 3 (2009 Video Game)
M | Action, Crime, Drama
Politicians are conspiring to take away Kazuma's land. A person whom Kazuma believed dead has returned, and Kazuma finds himself in the middle of a battle between organized crime divisions.
Director: Daisuke Sato | Stars: Takaya Kuroda, Tatsuya Fujiwara, Shidô Nakamura, Hiroyuki Miyasako
Votes: 714
50. Xenoblade Chronicles (2010 Video Game)
T | Action, Adventure, Drama
In a world of endless ocean, all life lives on the decaying corpses of two gigantic titans, the Bionis and Mechonis. When the army of Mechonis attacks his home, young scientist Shulk sets out for revenge.
Directors: Ko Kojima, Genki Yokota, Tetsuya Takahashi | Stars: Shintarô Asanuma, Eri Nakao, Ryô Horikawa, Eiji Miyashita
Votes: 822
51. Deadly Premonition (2010 Video Game)
M | Crime, Horror, Mystery
Eccentric FBI agent Francis York Morgan has been called in to investigate the ritualistic murder of Anna Graham in the small town of Greenvale. With every clue he finds, the surreal mystery deepens.
Director: Swery | Stars: Melissa Hutchison, Amy Provenzano, Amy Rubinate, Christiane Crawford
Votes: 549
52. Catherine (2011 Video Game)
M | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Vincent Brooks, who is being pressured into marriage by his current girlfriend, is plunged into a surreal nightmare world every time he falls asleep after having an affair with a mysterious girl named, Catherine.
Director: Katsura Hashino | Stars: Kôichi Yamadera, Kotono Mitsuishi, Miyuki Sawashiro, Takehito Koyasu
Votes: 996
53. Zero Escape Volume 2: Virtue's Last Reward (2012 Video Game)
M | Adventure, Mystery, Sci-Fi
College Student Sigma is kidnapped and taken to a underground bunker, where he is forced to play a deadly variant of the prisoners dilemma against 8 others in order to win his freedom.
Director: Valerie Arem | Stars: Chiaki Omigawa, Ali Hillis, Peggy O'Neal, Laura Bailey
Votes: 273
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