I finally got to see the box of Balders Gate 2 about two months ago st a local game store. Even though it a used game and a classic roleplaying game. The price tag was still $39.00. I was like. No way how cool, but dang that much for a used game? lol Bummer. and sadly I didn't get it.

HALO CE believe it or not. the character was truely anonymous at that point so you could put yourself in his suit. plus the game had amazing pace that helped maintain immersion. it is an excellent example of how to use music to sustain pace,

I'd agree, but his anonymity is ruined by his many action movie one liners. Immersion really works best if its the players character who stays silent entirely, even if you know what they vaguely look like. What Master chief says," I know where I'm going" and I (the player) am completely lost, it makes me hate him, and ruins the immersion. Makes me wanna jump of a cliff and say "I know where you're going now, dumbass".

Half-Life and Portal do this very well. Never try to tell the player what they are supposed to feel or think. That's how you win with immersion.

On subject, has anyone found themselves immersed well in an RTS game? I'd like to see if anyone has pulled off a good immersive RTS before. Sounds likes a challenge though.

I finally got to see the box of Balders Gate 2 about two months ago st a local game store. Even though it a used game and a classic roleplaying game. The price tag was still $39.00. I was like. No way how cool, but dang that much for a used game? lol Bummer. and sadly I didn't get it.

Gog.com has it on the cheap.

All these have already been said, but are my picks as well:


Myst series (particularly the first and Riven. For everything. This is an exceptional series.)
Morrowind (For the fantastical world that seemed full, deep, and original)
Deus Ex (For making me feel guilty about killing)
Half-Life 2 (mostly for the spectacular facial and human animation and voice acting. Still shames many AAA games being released today.)

Other worthy immersive games:
Syberia
I want to put Planescape: Torment on this list, but my save files got corrupted so often I never got very far in the game.
Braid (because few games really get you to think in a world with fundamentally different rules)

Without any kind of justification: Deus Ex and System Shock 1+2. The Marine campaign in Alien versus Perdator was also pretty intense, but the other parts of the game were a little weak.

[color="#000000"][font="Tahoma"]I'd say the Myst series, Morrowwind/Oblivion and when I was twelve I loved to play Pokemon Yellow. Back then it was really easy to immerse myself in this game and just play it for hours.[/font]

[color="#000000"][font="Tahoma"]Myst was great storywise and the atmosphere totally makes up for the lack of great graphics.[/font]

[color="#000000"][font="Tahoma"]Strategy games harder to be immersive, in my opinion. I guess it also has to do with the fact that the PoV is different, playing God makes it harder to identify yourself with.[/font]
[color="#000000"][font="Tahoma"] Though I must say playing Civ IV against friends can also be quite immersive, last time I totally forgot about lunch until 6 pm [/font]

The first two games in Thief-series. Great audio, game world, and minimal HUD. Perhaps the odd devices in the second game, and hearing your own character talking, lower the immersion a bit, but that's nothing major.

Put high quality headphones on, and turn out the lights... so far, nothing beats Thief.

(1) Dungeon Master. On the Atari ST. First of its kind. Even more immersive than the first Wizardry game.
(2) The Civilization games. Played into the wee hours by accident just too many times.

StarCraft 1 campaign mode. Quite surprising since I played a lot of RPGs which should be my first pick, still, the first thing that pops up in my mind is that RTS. The before mission briefings were extremely immersive, also some of these characters appearing during a mission.

There are two ways I define immersion: Environmental, where a game creates a unique atmosphere and takes you on a journey; and then play mechanics where you are absorbed in the interactive experience of the game.

Syndicate - Loved the concept, loved the game play, amazing what Bullfrog could do with a 4-bit palette. The music was great, too.

Dungeon Keeper - Another brilliant Bullfrog game.

Stalker - As far as environmental setting is concerned, quite difficult to beat.

Thief series - another vote from me.

Deus Ex - classic, I replayed it not long ago.

Doom 3 - I'm a sucker for dark ambient drones.

Chronicles of Riddick series - quite good for a prison game.

One of the most immersive games I have ever played was, without a doubt in my mind, Condemned: Criminal Origins.


In all honesty, I suppose it was a pretty straightforward game and the story did get more than a little weird at the end. Still, it really nailed the first person experience for me. I felt like a detective in a fucked up situation. I felt like a normal guy who was vulnerable and just barely making it by throughout the entire fiasco. I know the game's sequel got really into the combat and created this entire system for combo attacks and whatnot, but there was something about the rawness of the first game that really got me. I had a gun, as a member of law enforcement would, but the ammo was just sparse enough that the game didn't turn into just another shooter (i.e., FEAR) but also didn't render the idea of a gun to be useless or unworthy. There was this desperate feeling that the game portrayed incredibly well, particularly when you would hear and just barely see the outline of a crazed homeless man running at you. Ripping a 2x4 off the wall to defend myself, I didn't feel calm or collected. I felt scared. Sure, I couldn't perform incredibly accurate attacks with the piece of wood, but it felt right to just swing my impromptu weapon at the attacker. In real life, stumbling through a dark, abandoned building, I know that I wouldn't be some calculated killing machine. I'd be alone, desperate, and lashing out wildly at anything that came to close.

I was in high school when I played this game, but it gave me nightmares a few times in the following weeks after beating it and I could hardly look at the shadows in my dark home the same way again. I can't help but feel all the more impressed by this game because it was a launch title, something that had to stumble onto the shelves with little to no experience with brand new hardware. Definitely one of my favorite experiences I've had in this medium.