TWP Awards 08: Best Story

It is becoming more and more apparent to game developers that people actually enjoy their games more if you give the players a reason for them shooting people in the face. And 2008 has had some pretty good stories, but one stood out above them all - miles above.

Winner: Bioshock (PS3)
If you haven't played Bioshock yet, irrelevant of platform, then you really are missing out. And its a testament to those who made the game that I don't even want to talk about the plot of the game that much - it has such great twists and turns that I'd prefer everyone to discover it for themselves. I managed to avoid spoilers all the way up to playing the game myself, and it paid off: the atmosphere and narrative created in the world of Rapture really are spectacular.

Runner Up: Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3)
Whilst MGS4 has been hailed elsewhere for its supposedly incredible story, we found that in fact, the convoluted story-lines and ridiculously long cutscenes made us just lose track of - and interest in - what was going on.

Runner Up: Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3)
I'll admit that this GTA does storytelling better than before, but the dingy setting tied with the monotonous plot proves that you need an interesting environment (such as Rapture or Vice City) to be able to tell an intriguing story in a game.

Runner Up: Resistance 2 (PS3)
Resistance 2's place as runner up here is a little unfair as we have yet to play the majority of the game, but in the transition from R1's narrated storytelling and silent hero to R2's overdramatic cutscenes and talkative main character (and also separately the move from quirky Britain to America), the Resistance series has unfortunately lost some of its charm.