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Mutliplayer games are a ton of fun and it’s a great time getting online with friends to go through a campaign or battle against other players. However, sometimes it’s nice sitting back and enjoying a game with a focus around a storyline which usually is based around single-player. If you’re looking to get lost in a thrilling video game storyline in 2021 then you may want to keep tabs on these video games. Make sure to check back often as we’ll continue to monitor this page and add more games as they are unveiled.
Disclaimer Update: Unknown 9: Awakening, Everwild, Open Roads, Oxenfree II: Lost Signals, Goodbye Volcano High, As Dusk Falls, and Fable were removed due to delays.
#14 Scrapnaut
- Developer: SpiffyBit
- Publisher: RockGame SA
- Platforms: PC
- Release: September 15, 2021
- Co-op: Online
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
Scrapnaut is a survival game that you can play online with up to four players. In this game, players are dropped onto land where you’re forced into surviving. This means gathering resources, building up a base, exploring the area, fighting off enemies, and tending to the farmland. The more resources you collect, the more you can upgrade your base. However, hostile enemies could very well storm your area, which means more battling along with gathering more resources to enhance your base further. It might be a bit repetitive, but this game did recently launch into the marketplace, so you might find some new updates coming out to provide more content further.
#13 The Magnificent Trufflepigs
- Developer: Thunkd
- Publisher: AMC Games
- Platforms: PC, NS
- Release: June 2, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
The Magnificent Trufflepigs is a story based around a young woman named Beth. As a young girl, Beth discovered a valuable old earring that made her quite the local celebrity. However, over the years, Beth could never pinpoint the matching earring. Now, as Beth prepares her final weeks before vacating the old farmland, Beth seeks to find this missing earring to reclaim the adventure she started as a young girl. Players will be taking the role of Adam, a young man who teams up with Beth to scavenge the earring using a metal detector. Of course, throughout the journey, we’ll dive a bit more into the life of Beth with a series of narrative choices. In many ways, the game plays out like Firewatch as your direct means of talking with Beth is through the walkie-talkie and instant messaging.
#12 Lost in Random
- Developer: Zoink
- Publisher: Electronic Arts
- Platforms: PC, NS, PS4, PS5, XBO, X/S
- Release: September 10, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
Lost in Random is a bit of a unique action-adventure game. In this title, players are thrown into an alternative world where a dice roll will determine their fate. Set within the Kingdom of Random, everyone at 12 must roll the dreaded black dice. Players in this game are taking on the role of a young girl named Even who finds that the Wicked queen of Random abducted her sister Odd. To get her sister back, Even must trek through the different realms of this giant game board world. Players will be lugging around dice to progress through the game, but to power the dice, you’ll need to feed it energy. This is done by battling enemies and knocking them down with a slingshot which will cause them to drop energy cubes. From there, you’ll switch around to a card battling system to defeat the enemies and progress forward.
#11 Mineko’s Night Market
- Developer: Meowza Games
- Publisher: Humble Bundle
- Platforms: PC, PS4, XBO, NS
- Release: 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
Mineko’s Night Market is a cutesy adventure game centered around Japanese culture. In this game, players are taking the role of a curious little girl named Mineko who had just moved into the local island town. In this town, the locals worship a cat god known as the Sun Cat, although surprisingly, the cat had made several appearances around the town. This has sparked Mineko on a grand adventure to find out what’s going on. There’s a series of tasks to complete, quests to take on, and gathering resources to craft. Unfortunately, we don’t have a specific release date for this game outside of sometime this year. As a result, we might not see Mineko’s Night Market until sometime in 2022.
#10 Eastward
- Developer: Pixpil
- Publisher: Chucklefish
- Platforms: PC, NS
- Release: September 16, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
Eastward is a new indie title that just launched into the marketplace. This indie game will capture your attention from the visuals alone. The bright pixelated world looks quite stunning. Meanwhile, the narrative tells a story of the world being overtaken by a virus. With humanity at an all-time low, what was left of humankind has resorted to living in towns deep below the earth’s surface. Our story will follow two individuals, a young girl named Sam and a man named John, who decides to uproot from their home and search for what the topside has to offer. Players will switch between the characters for combat along with solving environmental puzzles. Traveling in this world through the cross-country railway will also allow players to stop into different towns and environments in this grand adventure.
#9 Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin
- Developer: Capcom, Marvelous
- Publisher: Capcom
- Platforms: PC, NS
- Release: July 9, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
If you enjoyed the first Monster Hunter Stories for the Nintendo 3DS, then you might want to check into its sequel. This is a bit of a different style Monster Hunter game than the past franchise. With this game, you’ll have a turn-based battle system rather than an action RPG-style gameplay. In this particular installment, players are stepping into the role of the grandson to legendary Rider, Red. Here you’re setting out on an adventure to figure out why Rathalos have disappeared from the world. Fortunately, you’re not alone, as you’ll encounter a Wyverian girl named Ena who entrusts you with a Rathalos egg. Again, it’s certainly not the same Monster Hunter game from the previous installments if you’re new to the Monster Hunter Stories series. Still, it’s a title we think is well worth checking into if you want a twist to the existing combat system.
#8 The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles
- Developer: Capcom
- Publisher: Capcom
- Platforms: PC, PS4, NS
- Release: July 27, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles is a game that takes place before the mainline installments before it. Instead of taking the role of Phoenix Wright, players will step into the shoes of Ryunosuke Naruhodo, an ancestor during the 19th century. While the period may be different, the gameplay is overall the same. Players will have a series of cases to go through. This means gathering evidence, talking with witnesses, piecing together the story, and presenting your findings within the actual court case trial. If you enjoyed the previous games, then this is a title not to miss out on.
#7 Life is Strange: True colors
- Developer: Deck Nine
- Publisher: Square Enix
- Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, XBO, XSX/S
- Release: September 10, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
The Life is Strange franchise made a significant return in Life is Strange: True Colors. This comes from the development team Deck Nine who previously brought out Life is Strange: Before The Storm. In this game installment, we’re focusing on a brand new storyline and location, but again players can expect an episodic emotional journey storyline. Here we’re following Alex Chen, a young woman who finds that her brother had died in a mysterious accident. Using her supernatural power of seeing the emotional auroras from anyone she interacts with, Alex will attempt to piece together the actual events that took place leading to the circumstances of her brother’s death. Unlike the previous Life is Strange video game releases, this installment will be episodic and released entirely. This is a big change up to the game series as before, players would generally have to wait extended periods between episodes to progress the story. Now players can genuinely go at their own pace.
#6 Road 96
- Developer: Digixart
- Publisher: Digixart
- Platforms: PC, NS
- Release: August 16, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
Road 96 is an adventure game that will evolve from the player’s choices. In this title, players are venturing through a nation as they seek to find the border for an escape. However, along the way, players will be making countless decisions. There are seemingly endless options awaiting players and characters to meet as you venture towards the border. Your choices will alter the story and potentially the scenery as well. As a result, in this game, you’ll want to replay and see how the narrative could alter by making different choices in how you proceed down the road and with the characters you’ll meet.
#5 Chinatown Detective Agency
- Developer: General Interactive Co.
- Publisher: General Interactive Co., WhisperGames
- Platforms: PC, NS
- Release: 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
If you’re still craving that cyberpunk setting and vibe after CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077, then we have Chinatown Detective Agency. This is a point-and-click adventure game that is set around a detective in 2032 Singapore. Amira Darma is a private investigator who gets a new client seeking answers and justice. If you’re familiar with point-and-click adventure games, then you know that this is very much an exploration title with plenty of interactivity with the in-game environments. Players will pick up clues, figure out how they connect with the environment and have plenty of dialogue with characters. Of course, you’ll need to work your contacts and even assemble your staff to solve some mysteries when it launches sometime within this year.
#4 Sherlock Holmes Chapter One
- Developer: Frogwares
- Publisher: Frogwares
- Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, XBO, XSX/S
- Release: November 16, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
Development studio Frogwares has been around since 2000, and they have delivered several adventure games in the past. Most notably, this studio is known for the different Sherlock Holmes games, and their upcoming release is one of the more ambitious Sherlock Holmes games to date. Sherlock Holmes Chapter One is the first open-world adventure game for the developers regarding this IP. Players will be taking on the role of a young Sherlock Holmes as he goes on his first extensive investigation, which is finding out who was responsible for the death of his mother. Players will be venturing through the world seeking out clues, and it’s up to you on how you deal with any problems that may pop up, whether it’s by cunning or brute force. Likewise, players won’t find John Watson around for backup because you’re starting the game out as a young Sherlock Holmes before the two have met.
#3 Lake
- Developer: Gamious
- Publisher: Gamious, Whitethorn Digital
- Platforms: PC, XBO, NS, PS4
- Release: September 1, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
Lake is a pretty interesting title as it takes players and puts them into a mail carrier. In this game, players are taking the role of Meredith Weiss, who takes a leave from her bustling city life to help fill in as a mail carrier for her father. Returning home to Providence Oaks, Oregon, Meredith will deliver packages and interact with the townsfolk. In addition, players can interact with old friends, meet new faces, and potentially strike up a relationship. There’s plenty of choices here to make up your storyline, and when the time comes, will Meredith return to her former life or establish roots back in Providence Oaks?
#2 12 Minutes
- Developer: Luis Antonio
- Publisher: Annapurna Interactive
- Platforms: PC, XBO
- Release: August 19, 2021
- Co-op: N/A
- Competitive Multiplayer: N/A
12 Minutes is an adventure game coming from a former artist that worked at Rockstar Games and Ubisoft. The game is rather simplistic to understand, and it mimics concepts such as the film Groundhog Day or The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask in that gamers have a time loop aspect. To progress, players will be replaying a 12-minute cycle until they complete the tasks at hand. The game follows a man who learns that his wife is pregnant, but the celebration is cut short as a cop bursts into the room and accuses the wife of murder. The scuffle ends up with the wife dead, but then the game restarts, and it’s up to you to navigate the day in hopes of finding a peaceful resolution.
#1 It Takes Two
- Developer: Hazelight
- Publisher: EA
- Platforms: PS4, XBO, PC
- Release: March 26, 2021
- Co-op: Local/Online
- Competitive Multiplayer: TBA
Hazelight has a new narrative adventure game out this year, and if you’re not familiar with the studio name, you’re likely familiar with their past results. These are the folks that brought out Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons and A Way Out. Their latest video game release is It Takes Two. The story revolves around a little girl who discovers that her parents are getting a divorce. Suddenly after crafting two dolls, the parents find themselves trapped in the miniature figurines. In order to return to their normal bodies, the duo will have to work together to accomplish a series of tasks. Perhaps along the way, they’ll rekindle their relationship. Like with A Way Out, It Takes Two will require two players to go through the entire game. That means working with your secondary player to go through boss battles, solve puzzles, and platform around hazardous obstacles.
