The best writer in RPGs is...

[Kahr]

Damn breast-feeding reptilian-people!

 

[Sjukob]

You can't simply ignore the great lore of the morrowind

Go fuck yourself !

 

[groke]

You can't simply ignore the great lore of the morrowind

It is impossible to totally avoid lore in Morrowind.

 

[an Administrator]

You can't simply ignore the great lore of the morrowind

Go fuck yourself !

No.You.

 

[HoboForEternity]

i have a feeling that Bethesda doesnt even understand how deep and rich the world of TES is.

same with me too. let's see what unique culture and locations and characters they ruined in TES VI

 

[laclongquan]

Nope~ I do read secondary text in morrowind. Yawn-inducing stuffs, it really is~

On the other hand, even the item description of PST is great~

 

[Lilura]

Morrowind lorefags are some of the worst.

Vamp Bloodlines' writing hit a sweet spot; it wasn't long-winded like PS:T can be.

 

[Jaesun]

Vamp Bloodlines' writing hit a sweet spot

THAT is very true

 

[Lilura]

Indeed, one of the rare RPGs in which I actually bothered to read every word.

 

[A user named cat]

Who wrote the first Two Worlds game? Yeah, whoever is responsible for "that" should be voted number 1 here. Forsooth, verily!

 

[Lyric Suite]

I tried reading the in game books in Morrowind once. They were so dreadful they made me give up on the game altogether. I don't know anything about the lore but the writing in the actual game was beyond shit.

 

[Roguey]

Kirkbride is a primadonna ponce who extorts website owners when they don't give in to his demands http://www.rpgcodex.net/forums/index.php?threads/interview-critical-of-bethesda-rubbed-out.10403/

 

[Severian Silk]

A good RPG is like a book for me. I don't see why you can't compare them.

A game like Homeworld on the other hand is like a movie. Maybe because of the action?

 

[CyberWhale]

"Fantasy, for us, is a knight on horseback running around and killing things." - Todd Howard

 

[an Administrator]

 

[laclongquan]

Morrowind lorefag is somewhat deaf and blind on that topic, I give up on trying to persuade of them of its quality years ago.

 

[thesheeep]

Neal Hallford and Michael Stackpole are not so bad either.

What a wasted opportunity for a "your mom" joke.

 

[Perkel]

Morrowind lorefags are some of the worst.

Vamp Bloodlines' writing hit a sweet spot; it wasn't long-winded like PS:T can be.

yeah i think this is one of the best cases where skill of writting took game to another level and not writting + setting like in case of PST.

Though PST is notch above as complete package.

 

[Maggot]

I don't think Kirkbride's a very good writer. Trial of Vivec and C0DA are terrible. The former was just forum RP but I hate his shitty mary sue character.

 

[Endemic]

Colin McComb deserves some credit for PS:T as well.

 

[Excidium II]

Morrowind lorefags are some of the worst.

Vamp Bloodlines' writing hit a sweet spot; it wasn't long-winded like PS:T can be.

yeah i think this is one of the best cases where skill of writting took game to another level and not writting + setting like in case of PST.

My impression of Bloodlines is the opposite. The writing is mediocre and mostly carried by good VA that gives the characters some personality above their shallow stereotypes.

 

[DeepOcean]

Best writer for video games is J.R.R. Tolkien.

 

[Sordid MCA/Prosper Hybryd]

Potentially, Chris Bateman. While his writing in Kult: Heretic Kingdoms was just p. good, his writing in Discworld Noir (not CRPG though) was exceptionally great.

Also, Neal Hallford.

Spoiler

And MCA, obviously.

 

[Melan]

In the "outsider genius" corner, nobody writes AD&Dish purple prose like David W. Bradley (except maybe Cleve?). Lots of ellipses and overwrought turns of phrase, but the magic is there. It is philosophical, funny, and mysterious. Just as I was looking for sample texts, I found this outstanding blog post, which basically makes the same case I wanted to. Highlights:

Bradley’s prose is distinctive, with all the positives and negatives that suggests. Often overwrought, it’s also nonetheless evocative and possessed of a certain wan, avuncular humor alongside its philosophical brooding.

Below is one relatively simple example, preceding an encounter with a king the player has been seeking in a multi-level dungeon:

Shadows dance upon the walls of the dark and gloomy cathedral, and emptiness pervades the chamber deep within every crevice…

Faded tapestries, illuminated by the candlelight, depict scenes of warring tribes and victorious battles, and you glimmer that these represent eras of history now long passed…

Once this masterful stateroom was no doubt a bustle of activity, filled with endless politics and head-rolling decisions.

Now, only the lone figure silhouetted upon the distant throne, somber, forlorn, staring out as if pondering thoughts a million miles away, breaks through the depression which so clouds this desolate, desperate arena…

In other places, text is simply used to cap an encounter in a tonally fitting manner. After killing a great sea monster the player heard about much earlier in the game (from a man who failed to slay it):

In the blood-filled waters the leviathan carcass slips back to the depths, a gruesome end to the monsterous legend…

There’ll be no trophy to adorn any marina’s walls, and perhaps this too is how it should be…

After all, real myths are hard to come by…

However one may feel about the quality of the prose (and I confess, I enjoy it despite its faults), he’s clearly providing an atmosphere and pushing at themes the game wouldn’t otherwise convey. Even a game with an unlimited budget for art, sound, and cinematics couldn’t convey Bradley’s ideas so elegantly–an attempt to remake Wizardry VII in the more cinematic style ofDragon Age or Skyrim would fail utterly. The textual element is essential–not a crutch for a game without the technological or budgetary resources to do more, but a key part of the design and vision for a thoughtful, ambitious, occasionally self-deprecating work.

There’s a strong trend of worldbuilding in post-Tolkien fantasy–settings with laboriously crafted histories and geographies that audiences are meant to enjoy learning as they go. This is especially true in the video game world, with its many Dungeons & Dragons-inspired universes. Implied settings are regaining a level of respectability, but are more common in action games than in full-fledged RPGs–I can’t recall the last RPG I played in which as little of the setting was ever revealed as in Wizardry VII.

Wizardry VII wants to talk about big ideas and it’s not shy about it. Aside from the stylized monologues (which, as in the example above, often meander around questions of existence), it’s not far into the game that the player meets “the Spirit of Life, and the spirit that unites all creation and destruction”–on a sub-quest, no less. The “maps” the player must collect (text pieces which primarily serve as clues to some of the games nastier puzzles) are formulated as spiritual and philosophical treatises on life’s journey. The true nature of the game’s ultimate artifact, too, is in line with Wizardry VII‘s interests.

In a more grounded game–in a less enigmatic, dreamlike setting, or a game where voice acting and extensive cinematics rendered characters with startling realism–Wizardry VII‘s fantasy of ideas could easily come across as pompous and overblown. But with the unique support of Bradley’s prose and careful worldbuilding that prioritizes atmosphere above fact, it’s the charming core of a game that often feels more Lewis Carroll than George R. R. Martin.

I mentioned above that I’d come back to the fact that Wizardry VII is largely one man’s vision, and I suspect Bradley’s overwhelming presence is vital to making the game’s fantasy of ideas function. There’s a sincerity and a consistency to the themes Bradley explores that would likely be difficult to maintain in a game created (or written!) by a staff of hundreds. When you privilege theme above character, you must be prepared to treat thematic consistency with the same reverence many writers hold for characters–but getting a group of creators on the same page regarding a character can be much easier than doing the same with a grand philosophical notion.

And that's why David W. Bradley is among the great RPG writers. Would not be surprised if he turned out to be a 'Thal Übermensch.

 

[Sjukob]

My impression of Bloodlines is the opposite. The writing is mediocre and mostly carried by good VA that gives the characters some personality above their shallow stereotypes.

I agree . Protagonist's lines were especially bad , I felt like I was playing a redneck .