StoryScan: Weak Points Notable Weaknesses in Individual Game Stories Chrono Cross:Plot Chrono Cross’s story struggles to get off the ground due to a lack of goals, stakes, and urgency. DEATHLOOP:Endings An incurious protagonist punts DEATHLOOP’s key questions to its endings. Death Stranding: Pacing Heavy use of exposition and disparate chapter lengths cripple Death Stranding’s narrative pacing. Far Cry 5:Character Far Cry 5’s use of a silent protagonist hamstrings the development of the other characters. Final Fantasy VIII:Setup and Payoff Final Fantasy VIII’s most infamous plot twist is a failure of both setup and payoff. Mother 3:Pacing Although Mother 3 is a much-loved cult classic, its irregular structure, perspective switches, and time skips result in an inconsistent pace. Octopath Traveler:Setup and Payoff The disconnect between setup and payoff in Primrose’s portion of Octopath Traveler leads to a stale, repetitive story with nothing new to say. Persona 5:Structure Persona 5 has all the elements of a strong story, but a bloated third act keeps it from reaching its full potential. Postal 4:Dialogue Budget constraints and dated jokes lead to luckluster dialogue in Postal 4. Resident Evil: Dialogue Resident Evil has a lot of positive qualities, but its infamous dialogue leaves something to be desired. Silent Hill 4: The Room: Character A flat protagonist limits the effectiveness of the horror in Silent Hill 4: The Room. The 3rd Birthday: Plot Combining amnesia and time travel gives us a story with no goals, stakes, or urgency. To the Moon: Tension To the Moon tells a compelling story, but too many false mysteries strain the audience’s credulity. Return to StoryScan