10 Games That Proved Storytelling in Gaming Is High Art (Yea, We Said It)

For too long, video games were dismissed as digital playgrounds for button mashers and basement dwellers. But we know better. Today, video games are one of the most powerful storytelling mediums on the planet—and some of the best stories of the 21st century didn’t come from HBO or Netflix. They came from our consoles.

From emotionally devastating indies to world-shattering epics, these games didn’t just entertain—they evoked, educated, and evolved the way we experience narrative. They are, without question, art.

Let’s give them their flowers.

1. The Last of Us (Part I & II)

Genre: Action-adventure / Drama

Why it hits: A masterclass in character development, moral ambiguity, and emotional gut-punches.

When Ellie whispers, “I’m still waiting for my turn,” the weight of survivor’s guilt and love crushes you like a wrecking ball. The Last of Us isn’t just a zombie survival story—it’s Shakespeare with clickers. Naughty Dog built characters we loved, then dared us to hate them. And somehow, it made us feel like monsters in the process.

2. Red Dead Redemption 2

Genre: Western / Open-world

Why it hits: A slow-burning tragedy of loyalty, loss, and legacy.

Arthur Morgan’s journey from cold-hearted outlaw to reflective anti-hero is one of gaming’s greatest character arcs. This is an epic painted with the brush of a poet. You don’t just play Red Dead 2—you live it, and its final hours will stick to your soul like dust on a saddle.

3. Undertale

Genre: Indie RPG

Why it hits: Quirky, subversive, and emotional in a way you never saw coming.

At first glance, it’s a retro-styled RPG. But Undertale breaks every rule of traditional storytelling: the game remembers what you do, judges you for it, and subverts morality systems with a wink and a knife. It’s satire, horror, comedy, and heartbreak, all in 8-bit glory.

4. Disco Elysium

Genre: Isometric RPG

Why it hits: A noir fever dream of identity, ideology, and failure.

You’re not solving a murder in Disco Elysium—you’re unpacking your own psyche. The internal monologue mechanics and philosophical branching paths create a story that feels literary, strange, and deeply personal. It's like True Detective written by Dostoyevsky… if he was high on amphetamines.

5. Celeste

Genre: Platformer / Indie

Why it hits: Mental health, self-doubt, and triumph through struggle.

Yes, it’s a game about climbing a mountain. But it’s also a raw, honest look at depression and anxiety. Every jump, every retry, every fall is metaphorical. It’s you vs. yourself—and when you reach the summit, the tears are real.

6. Life is Strange

Genre: Episodic Adventure

Why it hits: Teenage angst meets time travel and real-world consequences.

Max and Chloe’s story is quiet, emotional, and devastating. The choices feel small at first, then spiral into a story about grief, friendship, and fate. This game made players cry over butterfly effects before Everything Everywhere All At Once even existed.

7. NieR: Automata

Genre: Action RPG

Why it hits: Existentialism, nihilism, and beauty in the void.

You play as androids fighting machines, but NieR: Automata makes you question the point of it all—until it breaks the fourth wall and rewrites the rules of narrative. It’s not just a story; it’s a conversation with the player about what stories mean.

8. Telltale’s The Walking Dead (Season 1)

Genre: Episodic Adventure

Why it hits: Choice, consequence, and that damn final scene.

Lee and Clementine redefined found-family in video games. Every choice you make feels like it matters because the game makes it matter. And that ending? Legendary. You can’t talk about emotional storytelling in games without mentioning Telltale’s The Walking Dead.

9. What Remains of Edith Finch

Genre: Narrative Exploration

Why it hits: A poetic and haunting meditation on death and memory.

You explore the stories of each member of the Finch family, knowing they’re all doomed—and yet, it never feels exploitative. Every death is stylized, unique, and deeply human. It’s a love letter to the power of short stories in an interactive format.

10. Mass Effect Trilogy

Genre: Sci-Fi RPG🎭

Why it hits: Space opera meets moral philosophy and squad goals.

The choices you make, the loyalty you earn, the lives you save (or don’t)—they all shape your Shepard. Mass Effect proved that games could tell stories with nuance, heartbreak, and complexity across multiple entries. Romancing Garrus was just a bonus.

Final Save Point:

Gaming isn’t just “art”—it’s a revolutionary form of it. These titles didn’t just tell great stories, they invited you to live them. They challenged our morality, made us cry, laugh, rage, and reflect. And they proved that stories don’t need to be passive—they can be playable, and that’s powerful.

So, which game story broke you the hardest?

Hit us up in the comments—we want to know what had your controller slick with tears.