Every day we are faced with choices. These can be big, life-changing events or as simple as deciding what color shirt to wear. Choices, big and small, are one of the core aspects that make us human, a truth As Dusk Falls captures in its well-realized and branching storylines, regardless of its less gameplay-heavy design. It’s not the first game to do something like this, and it won’t be the last.
After you complete As Dusk Falls, you may find a hole in your heart in the form of story-rich games. But fear not, there are plenty of games where decision making is at the heart of the game, and even more with deeply moving plots and characters.
10 Until sunrise
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Until Dawn from Supermassive Games lives and dies (joke intended) on his “Butterfly Effect” system. This shows you how all of your choices can affect the outcome of the game – misunderstanding Ashley in a pivotal scene, and she can make you drop out.
Fortunately, Until Dawn’s characters weren’t created with realistic scenarios in mind, unlike As Dusk Falls. So if you want a decision-based game without the overly real stakes, Until Dawn is ready to pick it up.
9 Heavy rain
Heavy Rain, when first released in 2010, has been praised for its moody atmosphere and intense focus on the story. It was a central point in the early 2010 debate about whether video games could be art, like literature or movies. Heavy Rain was dark, not only in its gloomy, cloud-covered setting, but also in its content. You play as four different characters, all linked by the search for a mysterious serial killer who is being targeted by the protagonist’s son, Ethan.
It was a great success for a reason, but not without problems. If you play the game now, you may notice the violent sexualization of the female protagonist. But if you can put up with it, it’s worth playing, if only to see how far cinematic choice-based games have come in such a short time.
8 Life is strange 2
Any of the Life Is Strange games would be a great game to play after As Dusk Falls, but the atmosphere of Life Is Strange 2 is probably the closest. The story is magical realism, which is in stark contrast to As Dusk Falls, but they share similar cores: they are games about family and, more accurately, family trauma.
Sometimes Life Is Strange 2 feels like a sweet story about two brothers on a weird road trip. And sometimes it hits you in the stomach. It’s not hard to map the Holt brothers, especially Jay, and their trials through As Dusk Falls on Sean and Daniel. There’s a strange kinship between these two games that goes beyond just choice-based gameplay. But you have to see that for yourself.
7 Night in the forest
Night In The Woods is a story-focused platformer that centers on high school dropouts and cool cat Mae as she returns to her dying hometown. Despite its pleasant drawing style, this game packs a punch when it comes to emotional beats and the lingering effects of past actions and trauma. Sure, you get to play in a garage band with your high school friends. You can talk to them about their lives and try to rekindle your friendships. Meanwhile, in the shady forest, a terrifying local mystery unravels around you.
Like As Dusk Falls, Night In The Woods is about the reality of simply being and considering the actions of a former ‘you’. It may be wrapped in an almost adorable aesthetic, but make no mistake: if you want to have a lot of feelings, play Night In The Woods.
6 the quarry
In The Quarry, you take control of nine campers as they try to survive a night of horrors. Whether it surpasses its predecessor is a question only you can answer for yourself, the fact is that The Quarry is much more accessible than the PlayStation-exclusive Until Dawn.
Fortunately, for those who dislike horror, The Quarry is relatively tame, no more terrifying than some of As Dusk Falls’ more tense moments. So if you’re looking for a game that can give you all those good flowcharts, look no further than this spooky adventure at Camp Hackett. Just be ready to hear a lot of bad jokes about bears.
5 Went home
Short and sweet, Gone Home is what it sounds like – it’s about going home. It doesn’t bear much direct resemblance to As Dusk Falls, although there’s something captivating about the storytelling and focus on family secrets. There are no narrative choices to make, and no flowcharts to follow. Instead, it’s a journey of discovery and internalizing the little things that define a person.
In an odd way, Gone Home feels like a microversion of As Dusk Falls in its apparent desire to make you understand the characters you’re exploring and their motivations. As a result, Gone Home is well worth your time if you have an hour to kill.
4 Ox free
Oxenfree revolves around a girl named Alex, her stepbrother and her group of friends as they explore a deserted island and unwittingly unleash a dimension-breaking power. Oxenfree, a coming-of-age story wrapped in the banner of a supernatural thriller, plays with choice, time loops and inevitability. So if you want a little weirder in As Dusk Falls, Oxenfree has you covered.
The decision about how to treat people in Oxenfree, especially the antagonist Clarissa, is what the story focuses on — like As Dusk Falls, treating people in specific ways can lead to better or worse outcomes.
3 Detroit: Become Human
Detroit: Become Human is a frustrating game with potential and aesthetic seeping from every frame. But when it’s bad, it struggles with in-your-face metaphors that developer Quantic Dream can’t handle thoughtfully or sensitively.
Yet there is something very appealing about the setting. The way characters are woven into each other’s stories can be captivating, and there’s no denying that, even years later, it looks incredible. So if you’re willing to deal with some direct metaphors that aren’t (apparently) political at all, Detroit: Become Human can help you fill that void.
2 fire watch
Firewatch is a lonely game. It’s you alone, the vast expanse of the forest and the voice of a woman stationed at another tower crackles over the radio. After experiencing so many different characters in As Dusk Falls, it’s nice to be a lonely man.
Unlike As Dusk Falls, Firewatch doesn’t care much about your choices. The end will be what it is no matter what you said and did. Still, after a game like As Dusk Falls, where it feels like everything is always on your shoulders, a game where you’re on a set path is refreshing.
1 The Walking Dead: Season 1
Telltale Games were around long before they released The Walking Dead, but this is the game that catapulted them to mainstream success. It’s an adventure game at its core, with some quick events in it, as is to be expected when dealing with the undead. Be prepared to make many choices, some of which are very inconvenient.
As Dusk Falls may seem relatively mundane in its tragedy and choices compared to an apocalyptic setting like the one in The Walking Dead, the trauma is no less real in either game. Assuming your heart can handle it and your eyes aren’t blurry with overwhelming emotions, these two games make a surprisingly good pair.
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