7 Most Complicated Video Game Stories Absolutely Nobody Understands

There are times when going the extra mile in video game storytelling heeds rich results. Other times not so much. And that’s when we’re left confused.

Stories in games are usually meant to serve and help the gameplay with an engaging narrative that gives the player and incentive to keep going. But something games often lose sight of is having their stories make sense to begin with. Whether it’s an abundance of exposition, too many subplots, or straight up contradictions to its own rules, some games just don’t take a moment to step back and actually review everything that’s happened so far.

However, this doesn’t mean that the game is bad. Even if it’s impossible to deny that understanding what’s happening in between the gameplay is a job all on its own. No, it’s when games go too far with their complex narratives that problems start to arise. Stories so complicated even the most diehard fans have a hard time comprehending what happens. So much so that part of their message gets lost along the way. And these games in specific are the games that stand out the most.

Starting off, simply understanding the continuity of the Fire Emblem franchise is difficult enough. Of the thirteen games in the series, only Sacred Stones, Three Houses, and Fates serve as standalone titles. Every other entry is somehow connected to another with no consistency to be seen.

But Blazing Blade is special in this regard. This was the first game to come out of Japan and the prequel to the never localised Binding Blade. It’s also one of the most difficult to comprehend.

The story is told across static scenes with mountains of exposition heavy dialogue, making all sense of narrative drama non-existent and each event into something nearly impossible to process when all you have on screen are a few character sprites.

And this is without mentioning the story itself, which mainly consists of characters spending their time talking about murder plots and organisations that want to take over the world. And yet, we’re never shown anything. Everything is just verbally explained. Combine this with the amount of characters introduce and subplots opened, and you’ll quickly find yourself lost and confused most of the time - something that in turn makes the emotional moments stale and boring.

While Lyn, Eliwood, and Hector are still beloved characters from the Fire Emblem franchise, the same can’t be said about its convoluted narrative.