Role-playing games often present players with significant moral quandaries, but the most impactful choices are those that resonate on a personal level, according to PC Gamer's Fraser Brown. While games like Mass Effect offer galaxy-spanning decisions, these often lack the emotional weight of more intimate dilemmas.
Brown points to Disco Elysium as a prime example of how deeply personal choices can affect players. The game forces players to confront a character's past trauma, and the decision to either acknowledge or ignore this past is presented as a difficult and consequential one. This effectiveness stems from its relatability; even without experiencing similar hardships, players can understand the character's struggle to forget painful memories and the regret that follows self-destructive actions.
While relationship drama is fertile ground for such choices, it's rarely executed with the nuance found in Brown's preferred examples. He criticizes common RPG tropes, such as forcing players to choose between the life or death of a character who may be otherwise unlikable, as a cheap method of eliciting emotional investment.
The Witcher 3's approach to Geralt's romantic entanglements is highlighted as a more successful execution. The game allows for indecision, a rare but poignant option in video games. Brown recounts his own struggle with Geralt's relationships, torn between the passionate but toxic dynamic with Yennefer and the seemingly happier, safer option with Triss. His inability to commit led to a bittersweet outcome, where Geralt's own actions hindered his potential happiness, a conclusion that felt fitting for the character.
This column invites readers to share their own most challenging RPG decisions in the comments.