10 games where you can talk your way out of anything.

[Falcon] A lot of games
force a lot of stuff on you.

The story calls for events, right?

Well, sometimes a smooth
tongue can avoid the worst.

Hi folks, it’s Falcon,
and today on Gameranx,

10 games where you can talk
your way out of anything.

At number 10 is “Deus
Ex: Human Revolution”.

The “Deus Ex” series is renowned

for a level of freedom
that they give players,

you know, to do everything in the game.

But in the original game,

there actually weren’t
a lot of opportunities

to talk your way out of a situation.

If you wanted to be
non-violent in that game,

your options were usually
just avoid encounters

and try to end things
using non-lethal weapons.

“Human Revolution” expanded
those options significantly.

They gave players more ways
to resolve problems socially

rather than just with
violence or subterfuge.

And these new dialogue challenges made it

so that some of the most
climactic events of the game

could basically boil
down to conversations.

They’re like boss battles
where you’re fighting

not with weapons but with words.

You know, not as cool.

No, I’m joking. These
are actually really fun.

– Your refusal to help me is
getting in the way of justice.

– Wait, wait. I never meant to imply that.

I wasn’t interested in
seeing justice done.

– [Falcon] I mean there’s obviously

also still regular boss battles

and there’s a lot of combat in the game

that’s mostly unavoidable, so
it’s not a perfect example,

but there’s large chunks of the game

where you can literally just
use the right dialogue choices

and it’ll reward you for
taking the non-lethal option

over a violent one as well.

At number nine is the

“Hitman World of Assassination” trilogy.

It’s not an PPG and there’s
no dialogue options,

but when you think about it,

talking is a massive part
of the “Hitman” series,

especially the recent trilogy,

and it really lets Agent 47
practice his gift of gab.

There’s a lot of situations
where your best option

to get close to a target involves talking,

and a lot of the time

these are also the most amusing
opportunities in the game,

like the bank mission where you
pretend to be a new employee

or the suburbs level where
you pretend to be a realtor.

There’s even an entire level
about literally just talking,

the murder mystery house from “Hitman 3”.

In that stage, most of your opportunities

to take out your target

involve pretending to
be a private detective.

Anytime Agent 47 gets to
talk in these games is fun.

Every line from the guy is just
dripping with deadpan humor.

– Follow you to the bathroom,
drown you. Terrible accident.

– Gruesome!

– [Falcon] Talking your way to a target

is hardly the only way to finish a mission

in a “Hitman” game,

but a lot of the time
it’s easily the funniest.

At number eight is “Fallout”
1, 2 and “New Vegas”.

Let’s just lump

all the Black Isle and Obsidian
“Fallout” games together

for this one, ’cause
they’re all about that.

The first two “Fallout”
games are especially good

for letting you talk your
way out of a situation,

but “New Vegas” is no slouch either.

They’re not games where you can avoid

every single instance of combat,

but there’s a lot of situations
where combat can be avoided

just by picking words correctly.

Comparing all three,

“New Vegas” is probably
the worst about it,

but it’s still better

than the Bethesda-developed
“Fallout” games.

There’s a lot of unavoidable
combat in “New Vegas”,

but if you invest your social
skills, it’s gonna pay off.

The original “Fallout”
games are some of the best

when it comes to talking your
way out of a problem though.

I mean, in the first game alone,

you can talk your way into
the bad guy’s main base,

talk your way past
multiple levels of guards,

and even talk the bad guy
himself out of his evil scheme.

Like, you can basically get
through the entire final dungeon

without getting into any combat.

It’s tricky, but it’s possible.

Those original games

do look pretty crude by today’s standards,

but if you’re willing to get past that,

the amount of options you’re
given for actual role-playing

are still some of the
best in the business.

At number seven is “Disco Elysium”.

This one’s a bit of a cheat

because the vast majority of the options

you get for talking rather than combat.

So like, yeah, but still this
weird as hell detective RPG

puts you into the head of a cop

waking up after a huge bender.

There’s voices in his
head telling what to do.

And even basic actions

like getting a tie off of a ceiling fan

can be just disastrous.

It’s a game where you’re not taking damage

from getting shot or beaten
up, at least most of the time.

You’re more likely to get
hurt trying to climb a tree

or failing a conversation check

and then you’re killed
in a violent conflict.

It’s a game where you can
potentially talk your way

out of a tough situation,

but you’re as likely to make
things worse with your talking.

Sometimes your big mouth is
more likely to get you killed

than to help you.

Believe me, I know all about that, hah.

I mean I’m obviously not dead,

but I’ve, hmm, we don’t need
to talk about that right now.

“Disco Elysium” though,

it’s a pretty unusual and interesting game

that I think deserves all
the attention it gets.

And while it’s not exactly
in the spirit of the list

because it doesn’t have a
lot of combat mechanics,

it’s still an RPG, you
can still get killed,

and you can still talk your way out of it.

In fact, it’s usually the correct option.

At number six is “Undertale”.

This indie favorite is, you
know, well known at this point,

but it’s worth mentioning
for a list like this

’cause it’s one of the
few JRPG-inspired games

that lets you get through
without, you know,

throwing a single punch,
much less other things.

Known for its tagline of the friendly RPG

where nobody has to die,

this game gives you the option
of sparing enemies in combat

rather than killing them.

That’s the feature that makes
this game really stand out.

It’s possible to go
through the entire game

without killing anyone,
not even the bosses.

You do have the option
to fight them normally,

but if you’d rather show
mercy, that’s available.

If you’re a genocidal
freak, there is an actual,

you know, genocide run option.

Kill everything, why not?

But to spare enemies,

you have to do something
to make them like you,

which is sometimes simple,

but sometimes involves
solving a small puzzle

using the act command.

It sounds basic,

but the game does a lot
to mix these things up

and every single enemy has
their own unique methods

to tame them, I guess.

In most games, you talk to avoid combat.

Well, in “Undertale”
you talk to end a fight

that’s already started,

which is kind of weird but like
it also makes perfect sense

in the context of the game.

And it’s great.

Honestly, it’s really an
interesting way of handling combat

and there’s nothing else quite like it.

At number five is “Shadowrun: Hong Kong”.

The recent trilogy of “Shadowrun” games

by Harebrained Schemes

started off pretty light
on the PPG mechanics.

In the first game, “Shadowrun Returns”,

you’re pretty much just doing
a linear selection of missions

with a lot of combat.

But the third game,
“Shadowrun: Hong Kong”,

the social skills are almost
as powerful as the combat ones.

This isn’t a game

where combat’s completely
avoidable per se,

but there’s a lot you can do to avoid

with the proper application
of social skills.

Most missions can be completed

without having to fire a shot.

Not all of them, most though.

That seems a bit

like it might make the
game a little too simple,

but keep in mind

there’s like a lot of
social skills in this game,

so you really have to invest in them

if you want to talk your way through

a lot of these missions.

And when combat becomes unavoidable,

you’re kind of at a serious disadvantage

for focusing on that.

Still, for what’s a fairly small RPG,

the amount of dialogue options

and different ways the game gives you

to talk your way out of
combat, really impressive.

At number four is “Planescape: Torment”.

This absolute classic from 1999

is one of the most unusual

and thought-provoking RPGs of all time.

There’s a good reason it is
highly regarded for its writing.

Now, the combat isn’t quite as well liked,

but that’s okay, ’cause if
you play your cards right,

you really don’t have to do combat at all.

Almost every single
plot-critical combat encounter

can be avoided either through stealth

or by saying the right things.

As far as I can tell,

there’s really only two
or four characters total

you absolutely have to fight,

and even then you don’t have to kill them

if you don’t want to.

This game was a major
inspiration for “Disco Elysium”,

because most of the story

is told through dialogue
rather than fighting

and that’s probably why
Elysium cut combat entirely,

’cause seriously, it’s the talking parts

that people like about this game.

The fighting stuff just
isn’t really that interesting

or at least as interesting, I guess.

There’s probably somebody
out there that loves it,

but they aren’t the
majority, let’s just say.

At number three is “Among Us”.

Oh my God, we are
talking about “Among Us”,

“Amug Us”, “Amagas”.

Please do not leave any angry comments,

just take a moment to think about this one

because it actually fits
pretty well, I think.

Honestly, any social deduction
or traitor game would fit,

but “Among Us” is the most popular,

so it’s gonna be the one that we use.

“Among Us” doesn’t really
fit the traditional idea

of a game that would normally
be on a list like this,

but if it’s because you
can literally talk your way

out of anything.

The difference here is that
because it’s a multiplayer game

rather than a single-player story,

your dialogue choices aren’t just binary

right and wrong options.

It requires actual cleverness and charisma

to talk your way outta something.

We’ve all seen it

like when a traitor does
something and gets caught,

only for them to somehow convince everyone

that it was someone else.

It’s a game that requires
real-life charisma

rather than a charisma
stat to talk your way out.

But it still counts.

If anything, it’s even more impressive

when you do it in “Among Us”

because you’re not just like
picking the right option

out of a list on a predetermined
like right and wrong thing.

You’re actually interacting
with other people

and using your social skills

to talk your way outta something.

At number two is “Arcanum”, a classic RPG

and in a lot of ways the true success

for the original “Fallout” games,

even more so than the actual sequels,

because above all else,
“Arcanum” is about player choice.

Set in a fantasy world

in the middle of an industrial revolution,

“Arcanum” lets you build your character

with technology or with magic.

That’s the main focus,

but there’s a lot of other ways
to build your character too.

If you wanna be a total
diplomat, you can be,

and the game lets you bypass
huge sections of the story

if you say the right
things at the right times.

Like “Fallout”, this is a game

where even the final
boss can be talked down,

but that’s hardly the only time

you can talk your way out of a situation.

There’s still moments
where combat’s inevitable,

but almost every situation in the game

can be resolved through dialogue.

That’s not always easy.

Sometimes you really have to pay attention

to find the right clues to resolve things,

but it’s all the more rewarding

when you actually get things right.

Now, the visuals were
pretty dated back in 2001

when the game came out.

And even with a fan patch,

the game can be kind of a buggy mess.

But if you want a game that
gives you a lot of options

to talk your way out of a tough situation,

this is one of the best.

And finally at number one,
it’s “Age of Decadence”,

a brilliant indie game that
can be a little intimidating,

but if you want an RPG that’s huge

and rewards players who like
to talk their way outta stuff,

this is where you gotta go.

In most RPGs,

the path of least resistance
is typically combat.

If you wanna talk your
way out of a situation,

it can often be a little
tricky to pull off.

In this game, however, talking
is the preferred option,

’cause combat is really
hard, like super tough.

Even against a single opponent,

your chances of death are super high,

and any injury you get
can be debilitating.

So inverse to pretty much
every other RPG in existence,

this game recommends you play a character

with a lot of social skills over combat

on your first playthrough
because it’s actually way easier.

Like in terms of difficulty,

you’d much rather be a
diplomat than a warrior,

which sounds crazy in a video game,

but hey, think about real life.

Is it easier to get punched in the face

and then beat the other guy?

Or is it easier to not
get punched in the face

’cause you didn’t say something

that got you punched in the face?

Like when you think
about it, it makes sense.

It’s more realistic than other RPGs.

I would definitely rather
talk my way out of a problem

than get into a sword fight.

Like, I’m good at talking.

Like, you listen to me talk
a lot of the week, right?

There’s a reason why this is my job.

My sword-fighting skills

leave a little bit to be desired though.

You can easily play this game

for dozens of hours without
using a weapon choice.

And unlike certain other
games on this list,

there still is combat.

It’s just something you
can avoid if you want to.

This is a game that has
flown under the radar

for a very long time.

But as far as games

that let you talk your
way out of anything,

there’s nothing else quite
like “Age of Decadence”.

And that’s all for today.

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I’m Falcon, you can follow
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