One of the best things about fiction is that it allows us to imagine impossible places. Buildings that defy gravity, trees that eclipse the skie𓂃s, landscapes that refuse to obey logic - these can all exist without issue. More than any other medium, video games let you live in these worlds, in these pixelated countries.
While some video games place you in nameless nations with only the vaguest descriptors, others give you lands of substance and interest. Places with their own political machinations, cultures, and customsꦗ. Some may mirror reality, so closely they may as well exist, while others are utterly alien to us - and maybe have dragons.
8 🐼Mushroom Kingdom - Super Mario
Ruled by Princess Peach, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Super Mario's Mushroom Kingdom is a land inhabited by Toads, full of inexplicably large plumbing and, well, mushrooms. What's the government like, and what policies does Peach enact? No one knows, but who cares about that stuff when there are mushrooms that make you tall?
The Mushroom Kingdom is vast and encompasses every kind of biome you can think of. The only constant, from game to game, is Peach's Castle, situated in Toad Town. The economy of the Mushroom Kingdom must be strong, though, because those coins are accepted anywhere and everywhere.
7 Toussaint - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 𝓡
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Witcher 3's Toussaint is technically a duchy, but it is largely self-governing and had been independent until its annexation, and therefore it counts. Of all the countries, provinces, and city-states you visit in The Witcher, Toussaint feels the most like a fairy tale. If you're knowledgeable about the origin of many beloved fables, that does not guarantee a pleasant experience.
Still, if you were forced to choose one place to visit in the world of The Witcher, Toussaint seems the most outwardly inviting. Even when it's overrun with vampires of all shapes and sizes, you'll be willing to 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:spend countless hours roaming the vibrant countrysides, when you're not actively engaging in the main quest. Besides, at least you know Regis is cool.
6 ꦉ Tamriel - The Elder Scrolꦆls
Tamriel is a massive empire that spans the entire continent and serves as the setting for 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Elder Scrolls. You're likely very familiar with some of its provinces - Skyrim, Cyrodiil and Morrowind. However, each province is a nation itself, with its own unique customs, culture, people and geography.
While Skyrim is likely the most well-known of the provinces, Morrowind is by far the most interesting and most immersive. It feels the most divorced from reality, with flora and fauna that don't just feel fantastical but alien. It's not a good place, though it is an interesting one.
5 Lordra🤪n - Dark Souls
Lordran, the kingdom in which the first 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Dark Souls is set, is little more than the ashes of former glory. At its best, it offers you beautiful cathedrals and an eve♔r-lasting sunset, covering the world in a warm glow. And then, at its worst, it gives tunnels of decay, of twisted creatures forever doomed to wander a hostile world from which even death is not an escape.
Of course, while Lordran has its fair share of intrigue, especially where its royal (or divine) family is concerned, it's not as if you can quickly look into the actual politics of the kingdom. People may try to usurp others or play political games, but you can't go up to Ornstein and ask what his tax situation was. It might be a fascinating kingdom, but you can't reasonably say you'd want to live there.
4 𒊎 Hyruꦆle - The Legend Of Zelda
Sometimes, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Legend of Zelda's Hyrule is overgrown and fertile, a land that knows pain but pushes forward regardless. And then, sometimes, it's at the bottom of the sea, hidden from the lands above so that all its secrets may slumber in unending peace. Still, you can always count on one thing: that Hyrule will be threatened by some great and terrible being that Link will set out to stop.
More than Nintendo's other flagship kingdom in Mario, Hyrule seems more like a confederation of lands than a nation that revolves around one central area. Each province appears self-governed - it makes sense, considering Hyrule's diverse population, including Zora, Gorons, Rito, Gerudo and Koroks, Hylians, and humans.
3 Orlais - Dragoജn Age
Court intrigue abounds in this France-inspired nation in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Dragon Age. While Ferelden is where you spend most of your time throughout the series, Orlais' gloss makes it irresistible. Ferelden makes sense, in its way - it seems like a pretty straightforward feudal state, with a king and queen and all that fun fantasy stuff. Orlais, though? Orlais is an entirely different beast.
That's not to say it's a better one. In Orlais, you find the markings of an Exalted March waged against the elves in their adopted homeland, The Dales. Courtly games, ones you will be forced to participate in, hide the vile underbelly of this overly extravagant nation. Much like the fancy Orlesians you meet, this country, too, wears a mask.
2 🍸 Graznavia - This War Of Mine
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:This War of Mine is a haunting experience that bleeds into✅ your soul. In it, you take control of a small group of survivors in a dilapidated shelter as they try to wait out the escalating civil war. You scavenge by night, finding only scraps of helpful material - unless you want to ignore your morality and become a thief.
The reality of the war is hazy to you - though it's fair to say that Graznavia is not a good place. Snippets of information point to the government being an oppressive force, especially against certain ethnic groups. Graznavia may be fictional, but its portrayal of the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:harrowing results of conflict and war feels entirely too real.
1 🗹 Arstotzka - Papers, Please
The lands of Arstotzka are a mystery to you - the only thing you know is your little customs booth. You will never leave this tiny, smothering building or see anything beyond the barbed wire fence and armed guards, with concrete stretching in every direction instead of grass. 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Papers, Please doesn't need you to know anything about the country you are "protecting" through your bureaucratic job - it just requires you to work.
What you do know about Artotzka is all centred around that job. You know that people are trying desperately to get in, and there is unrest in tꦉhe nations surrounding you. Security is ramping up due to civil unrest and perceived international threats. And you know that you are just one person whose sole purpose is to stamp papers. Glory to Arstotzka.