Summary
One of the factors that separates gaming from other popular forms of entertainment like film is that gaming, generally speaking, puts players in the shoes of the main character. Today, many games expand upon the idea of the player truly being in control of the protagonist by giving them a vast range of choices and decisions to make that will alter the direction of the story. This certainly isn’t a new feature of gaming, as it was the key selling point of numerous80s and 90s graphic adventures.
However, it’s fair to say that the choices in many games today are far more expansive than ever before, and the popularity ofgames where the player’s choices matterhas led to significantly more games being available to choose from. Unfortunately, the popularity ofdecision-based gameshas meant that many developers and publishers have tried to shoehorn decision-making into their games despite the choices having little to no impact on the direction of the story. Thankfully, there are numerous games where decision-making isn’t just a gimmick but a key, in-depth feature.
Updated August 02, 2025, by Mara Cowley:Choice-based gamesremain a popular option among gamers, especially those who are fans of RPGs or point-and-click adventures. These games allow players to feel as though they have true player agency within the game and its world, directly interacting with it, and influencing the coutcome. While there are many games where players' decisions don’t have too much sway, there are plenty ofdecision-based gamesthat provide players with ways to change how the story unfolds. This article already included some of thebest choice-based gamesout there, but there are still many more that deserve to be hailed as such.
Even those who aren’t fans of horror know the movie series calledSaw, and its killer Jigsaw, who places victims in deadly traps that require sacrifice to escape from. As with any popular movie,Sawreceived a video game adaptation, and one that was pretty good at the time.
Players control Tapp after the events of the first movie, as the detective is saved and kidnapped, and placed in an asylum where Tapp will face a cornucopia of different and grisly trials, saving other victims on his way. At the game’s end, players are given a choice that will greatly affect the ending they receive: escape the traps with the others, or pursue the killer, both with drastically different outcomes.
The game developers at Sierraare responsible for many great point-and-click adventure games, such asGabriel KnightandKing’s Quest. The fifth entry into the latter series introduces players to protagonist Graham after his castle is engulfed by a magically conjured whirlwind before it vanishes. Only King Graham is the one left behind, as he was outside the castle when it occurred. He sets off on a quest to find the wizard responsible and return the castle and all his family.
While exploring the world, players might encounter a cat hunting a mouse. Unless the player has the foresight to intervene, the game becomes unwinnable. This is an excellent example of the players' actions — or lack thereof — having the most impact on the game, as it may see the game end prematurely.
Telltale Games prides themselveson choice-driven games. They confront players with decisions they must make quickly, as well as providing dialogue choices to allow them to address other characters as they wish.Batman: The Enemy Withinis one such game, letting players control the Caped Crusader as he does what Batman does best: protecting the people of Gotham.
Many famous villains make their appearance in this game, but the dark stars of this show are Joker and Harley. Their relationship is inverted so that Harley is the manipulative mastermind, and Joker is the one manipulated. But the player can also have a hand in shaping the Joker’s character. Depending on how they choose to treat him, the player either makes him become a vigilante, or turns him into a villain.
In the role of Rook, it is up to the player to stop the Gods from enacting their plans to spread the Blight over the world, which would end all life as it is known. On their quest to do so, they will travel to many different locations, meet many different people, and, of course, be met with different choices, such as decided the fate NPCs, and how they speak to them.
Decisions made, such as the fate of the Mayor in D’Meta’s Crossing, will have consequences that players won’t know about until they are further in the game. Smaller choices, such as which dialogue options they pick, will even have influences on future dialogue with that same character. The result is a game where players truly feel that their choices are being taken into account.
Even back in the mid 90s, developers such asSquare Enixallowed players to have a hand in how their game plays out by presenting choices that could have a major impact on the story. This is no more true than with one of their most beloved RPGs of all time,Chrono Trigger.
The game’s story will take players and their companions through several different eras on their quest to save the world as they know it. And with time travel stories, there are always consequences for meddling with the timeline. Choices that the player makes can change how the narrative unfolds , which is an impressive amount of freedom considering the game’s age.
Fable 2was perhaps the most heralded title in the series, and it is clear to see why. It oozed charisma, character, and took players on a whirlwind story in order to save the lands from the evil powers of Lucien, the man who killed their older sister when they were both poor orphans living on the streets.
Players will be presented with choices throughoutFable 2, and the well-implemented morality system gives their decisions weight and can alter how their character looks. There are three possible endings to Sparrow’s adventure, and what choice the player makes will determine what ending they receive. It certainly isn’t an easy choice to make, and most players will go through multiple playthroughs just so they can experience everythingFable 2has to offer.
In a game that perhaps rings a bit too true to reality, the Earth has become unlivable, leading to a group of colonists taking a spaceship through a wormhole tocolonize a habitable planet. The player character falls into a coma and awakens to see their new home on Vertumna 4.
I Was A Teenage Exocolonistplayers have great agency with their character; they are able to customize them, select their childhood friend, and pick traits that can have an impact on their game. As the plot spans multiple years of the protagonist’s life, the player chooses what activities they partake in as time passes, and some of these activities can even spell death for their colonists. The choices in this game are not to be underestimated, as they can have some of the biggest impacts seen in choice-based games.
Army medic Jonathan Reid returns to his home in London after his time in the war, only to be welcomed back into the arms of death. He awakens in a mound of corpses and must learn to temper his thirst as he upholds the hippocratic oath even in death.
However, it is up to the players if they want to resist the hunger for blood. There are many humans that players are free to feed on to grow more powerful, but this choice will have consequences. If enough humans are drained, the district becomes dangerous, and Jonathan Reid loses just a little of himself, which is reflected in the ending. Alternatively,Vampyrplayers can ignore the beast inside and choose to remain an ally and protector of the people.
One might think that acity builder gamesuch asFrostpunkcouldn’t qualify as a choice-based game, but they would be wrong. Along with the gameplay of creating cities, constructions, and advancing technology to protect habitations and inhabitants from the bitter cold, smart choices and resource-managing all play a big part in this game and require smart thinking on the player’s side.
Players will also be challenged to certain moral choices throughout the game that can have serious consequences for their settlements. Making the wrong choice could cost several lives, but what makes these choices even more impactful is the fact none of them are easy. Players might even be forced to make a few suffer for the betterment of many.
Road 96takes players on a tour through the fictional nation known as Petria, an authoritarian place nearing a new election that could shake the political landscape. A group of hitchhiking teenagers are attempting to escape across the border without being caught by border patrol. Each failure results in the player taking control of one of the other teens, with the decisions made during their subsequent run referenced in this new one.
There are more decisions to be made outside a player’s escape attempts, such as interacting with various NPCs and engaging in mini-games to learn more about them and the world at large. One’s choices inRoad 96have the potential to shape the future of an entire nation.
