Games

PlayStation Franchises With The Most Complicated Lore

Published

3 hours ago

October 10, 2024

Christoph Rediske

Key Takeaways

Table of Contents

PlayStation franchises like The Last Of Us, God Of War, and Horizon feature intricate lore and complex narratives.
The Last Of Us explores an apocalyptic fungus outbreak, God Of War delves into Norse and Greek mythology, and Horizon depicts the fall of advanced civilization.
Ratchet & Clank incorporates time travel and alternate dimensions, while Uncharted explores real-life myths and legends.

PlayStation owns some of the most unique franchises in the gaming industry at present, continually drawing fans to their consoles and games with these experiences. Whether it be through the beloved The Last Of Us turned HBO series, or Uncharted that draws on a sense of real-life adventure, they have it all. Players have been continually flocking back to PlayStation and their franchises with each new release to appreciate the gems they keep delivering.

5:33

15 of the Best PlayStation Exclusives, Ranked by Completion Rate

These big-budget PlayStation exclusives are all critical darlings, but which of them have the highest rates of completion among those who played them?

Many of these much-loved hits have a mass of lore behind them too, entangling fans in their worlds from the get-go. Through complicated narratives that have seen many fans theorizing and wondering what’s next for the future, these offerings all have something that leaves fans digging in to uncover more. With that in mind, let’s look into some of the most captivating and complex narratives from PlayStation franchises out there.

5 The Last Of Us

An Apocalyptic Fungus Destroys Mankind

Systems

Released: June 14, 2013
OpenCritic Rating: Mighty

Since the release of The Last Of Us in 2013 and The Last Of Us Part 2 in 2020, the franchise has proven to have some of the most intricate lore out there. Telling the story of an outbreak of a mutant Cordyceps fungus spreading across the USA, the writers have carefully explored a real-life fungus in a world where it has evolved to infect humans too. That’s not all either, as one of the main characters Ellie is proven to be immune to the fungus.

Much of the story of The Last Of Us proves to be complicated in these scientific and medical details, encouraging players to truly dig in to understand what they’re seeing. Through the differing zombie types and their mutations, many inferences can be made about the world and the fungus spreading around them. Ellie’s own tragic finale in The Last Of Us: Part 1 is equally complicated, tearing apart online discussions as snippets of information leave it uncertain whether the doctors were truly capable of the procedure they were attempting to carry out.

4 God Of War

Rich Norse and Greek Mythology

God of War

Creation Year: 2005
Publisher(s): Sony Interactive Entertainment

Through its explorations of primarily Norse and Greek mythology, the God Of War franchise is one with a lot of complicated depth. After being tricked into killing his own family during battle, the protagonist Kratos, is left seeking revenge. This Spartan warrior of course succeeds, becoming the new God of War himself. But with so much anger, Kratos continues to build conflict with the other Gods and Titans around him, exploring characters like Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades.

3:57

Kratos from God of War 2 facing temple surrounded by Kratos from Ragnarok and God of War

Every God Of War Game, Ranked

One of PlayStation’s flagship franchises, Santa Monica Studio’s God of War has produced plenty of great games. Naturally, some are better than others.

The more recent games have followed along more of a Norse mythology line; however, as Kratos now lives in a realm populated by Norse Gods with his son Atreus. As they attempt to fulfill the last wishes of Kratos’s wife, by scattering her ashes from the highest peak, the pair embark on a journey filled with knowledge of heritage and new Gods including Baldur, Freya, and Thor. With so much depth to the narrative, including its ties to real-life mythology, some of God Of War is filled with inconsistencies and incredible layers that are hard to unpick at such intricate levels.

3 Ratchet & Clank

Time Travel, Alternate Dimensions and Intergalactic Adventure

Systems

Released: June 11, 2021
OpenCritic Rating: Mighty

Spanning across numerous games, the lore of Ratchet & Clank is surprisingly in-depth. Exploring science fiction themes, the game follows the adventures of Ratchet, a Lombax mechanic, and Clank, a small but intelligent robot. With dreams of exploring the galaxy, the games begin as the pair attempt to save the galaxy and stop the villain Drek’s plans.

6:34

Ratchet & Clank: All The Games, Ranked

The Ratchet & Clank series has been around for two decades and seems to withstand the test of time. Naturally, some games are better than others.

Despite its platforming nature, Ratchet & Clank embodies a lot of intricate lore, particularly through the mystery of the Lombax race. As Ratchet is believed to be the last of his kind, there’s a great amount of uncertainty about his species, forced to leave their dimension after being nearly wiped out by an evil race known as the Cragmites. With many science-fiction elements, time travel, alternative dimensions, and intergalactic travel, the lore of Ratchet & Clank finds itself more complicated than players might expect.

2 Horizon

The Fall of The Old Ones and Nature’s Battle With Technology

Systems

Released: February 18, 2022
OpenCritic Rating: Mighty

Set in the 31st century, the themes of the Horizon game series are set vastly after the fall of advanced human civilization. As the world has become populated by varying tribes that live among nature, the game tackles the threat of robotic creatures ruining this harmony. Fronted by Aloy, a young hunter from the Nora tribe, the games explore many of the rich secrets and mysteries of these machines and the fall of the “Old Ones”.

Aloy exploring around Meridian and the ruins of Maker's End in Horizon Zero Dawn

10 Lessons Horizon Zero Dawn Can Teach Players About Life

In the vast beauty of an overgrown world filled with machines, players might be surprised to find a few life lessons in Horizon Zero Dawn.

Through these remnants of advanced technology and the previous civilization scattered across the landscape, Aloy’s journey is one that feels in many ways real, touching on the very human fears of what may come in the future. It’s hard for the complicated lore to not resonate for that very reason, entangling players in its wide-spanning web of discoveries of how humanity once was at its technological peak. With so much depth, Horizon is by far one of the most interesting and complicated narratives in recent gaming history.

1 Uncharted

Adventure Through Real-Life Myths and Legends

Third-Person Shooter

Adventure

Systems

Released: May 10, 2016
OpenCritic Rating: Mighty

With so many games in the franchise, Uncharted has quite the wide-spanning lore filled with depth and secrets to uncover. Following protagonist Nathan Drake on his adventures to discover lost treasure and legendary artifacts, the games delve deep into historical secrets, references, and mythology in many unique ways. Seeped in real-life influence and folk tales, it’s hard not to be wrapped up in the intricate layers of lore the games have set up.

Rooted in real historical figures, events, and myths, while blended with fictional elements, the games take on elements like Nathan’s descendants to the famous English explorer and pirate Sir Francis Drake in a way that feels engagingly real. Through hunts for El Dorado, the fabled city of gold, the Lost City of Shangri-La, the lost city of Ubar, Henry Avery’s pirate treasure, and more, there’s plenty of complex lore tied into reality that’s worthwhile to unpack.

5:28