instory
A short, catchy word for a long-overdue genre: story-first games with little to no actual gameplay. Think Disco Elysium, Firewatch, SOMA, The Invincible, or Vampire: The Masquerade – Coteries of New York. They’re instories — interactive stories with just enough game to click “next.”
Books are dying. People still love stories, but now they want to walk through them, talk to them, be them. That’s where instories come in.
Subgenres include:
— noir instory: Chain-smokes regret.
— horror instory: You are the flashlight.
— instory drama: Your only weapon is a sigh.
Books are dying. People still love stories, but now they want to walk through them, talk to them, be them. That’s where instories come in.
Subgenres include:
— noir instory: Chain-smokes regret.
— horror instory: You are the flashlight.
— instory drama: Your only weapon is a sigh.
“The devs behind Disco Elysium just dropped a new instory. You play as a trenchcoat looking for meaning. But first — a cigarette.”
“In the new instory from the SOMA team, you’re a microwave with uploaded consciousness trying to remember what humans taste like.”
“The creators of The Invincible made an instory where literally nothing happens. You don't even walk. It’s beautiful. It’s nothing. It’s beautifully nothing.”
“In the new instory from the SOMA team, you’re a microwave with uploaded consciousness trying to remember what humans taste like.”
“The creators of The Invincible made an instory where literally nothing happens. You don't even walk. It’s beautiful. It’s nothing. It’s beautifully nothing.”
Words you can keep
