Throughout my life, certain stories have changed how I think about characters, worlds, conflict, and storytelling as a whole. These stories came from television, movies, video games, anime, books, and comics. Each one taught me something different about how a story can create memorable characters, build a believable world, and keep an audience invested.
LOST is about the survivors of the fictional Oceanic Flight 815 after they crash on a mysterious island in the Pacific. At first, the story feels like a survival drama, but it slowly becomes something much larger as the characters discover strange locations, a hidden society, and a supernatural force connected to the island.
One of LOST’s greatest strengths is its diverse cast of characters. The show spends entire episodes exploring who these people were before the crash through flashbacks, which helps the audience understand how their pasts affect the choices they make on the island.
This story is one of my favorites because it showed me how mystery can pull an audience in, but character development is what makes people stay invested. It also showed me how a setting, like the Island, can become almost like a character of its own.
The Lord of the Rings, both as a book series and as a film trilogy, tells the story of Frodo Baggins and the Fellowship as they attempt to destroy the One Ring before Sauron can use it to conquer Middle-earth.
The story takes place in one of the most carefully designed fantasy settings ever created. Middle-earth is filled with different cultures, kingdoms, languages, histories, creatures, and conflicts that make the world feel like it existed long before the main characters entered it.
The Lord of the Rings helped shape the way I think about worldbuilding. It showed me that the world itself matters. If Mount Doom were easy to reach, Frodo’s journey would not feel as dangerous or meaningful. The land, the factions, and the history all make the story feel bigger and more believable.
Pokémon Gold and Silver takes place in the Johto region. The player begins as a young trainer starting their own journey, traveling from town to town, catching and training Pokémon, battling Gym Leaders, facing Team Rocket, and eventually working toward becoming the Pokémon Champion.
What made this game memorable for me was that it was one of my first experiences interacting with a fictional world instead of only watching one. I saw the world through the eyes of my trainer, met different types of characters, and shaped my adventure through the Pokémon I chose to bring with me.
This game showed me how interactive storytelling can make a story feel personal. Even though many players experience the same world, the team you build and the path you take make the journey feel like your own.
Star Trek: The Next Generation follows Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the USS Enterprise as they explore deep space, encounter new civilizations, and deal with political, scientific, and moral problems.
Most episodes tell their own story, with the crew discovering new species, strange worlds, unusual governments, or ethical problems that do not always have simple answers. The show uses science fiction to explore issues that still connect to real life.
This series showed me that fiction can be a powerful way to discuss real-world ideas. Even in a hopeful future, stories about morality, prejudice, leadership, war, technology, and what it means to be human are still possible and meaningful.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine takes a different approach to the Star Trek formula by setting most of the story on a space station. Instead of traveling from planet to planet, the characters remain in one place while different cultures, governments, religions, and conflicts come to them.
What makes this series memorable to me is that the characters often face situations where there is no perfect answer. The show deals heavily with war, politics, religion, and survival. Captain Sisko also breaks the mold by doing what he believes is right, even when the path is morally complicated.
Over time, Deep Space Nine develops into a large ongoing story centered around the Dominion War. It showed me how long-term storytelling can build character growth, consequences, and tension across an entire series.
Peter Jackson’s King Kong follows a desperate filmmaker who takes his crew to the legendary Skull Island to shoot a movie. Once they arrive, they discover a dangerous lost world filled with prehistoric creatures and a massive ape named Kong.
The story begins as an adventure, but after Ann Darrow is taken by Kong, it becomes a rescue mission and then slowly turns into a tragedy. The audience starts by seeing Kong as a monster, but the story gradually changes how we understand him.
This movie left an impact on me because Kong may look like the monster, but he is not the real monster of the story. The real monster is human greed, shown through Carl Denham’s obsession with turning Kong into a spectacle. It showed me how perspective can change the way an audience sees a character.
Dragon Ball Z follows Goku, Gohan, Piccolo, Krillin, Vegeta, and the rest of the Z Fighters as they face powerful enemies who threaten Earth and the universe. The series is built around major conflicts, intense battles, and characters constantly pushing beyond their limits.
One of my favorite parts of the show is the character growth. Gohan begins the series as a young child during the conflict with Raditz, but he is forced to mature quickly because the fate of the world often depends on him and the people around him.
Dragon Ball Z influenced me because of its long-term character progression. Even when characters lose, when hope seems gone, or when the odds are impossible, the story keeps finding ways to show growth, perseverance, and the belief that things can still turn around.
Mass Effect 1-3 follows Commander Shepard and the crew of the Normandy as they travel across the galaxy to stop the threat of the Geth and the Reapers. The series is filled with alien civilizations, governments, conflicts, cultures, and moral choices.
One of my favorite elements of the series is the dialogue system and how player choices can affect relationships, missions, and future events. The story makes the player feel responsible for the characters and the larger outcome of the galaxy.
Mass Effect showed me how powerful interactive storytelling can be when choices have consequences. The crew of the Normandy feels personal because the player spends time with them, earns their loyalty, and sometimes has to live with difficult decisions.
Skyrim is one of my favorite games because of its large fantasy setting and the story it builds around civil war, ancient legends, political conflict, and the return of dragons. The player learns that they are Dragonborn, someone capable of absorbing dragon souls and using powerful Shouts in the dragon language.
Although the main story is strong, the biggest draw for me is the amount of detail in the world. Cities, villages, camps, ruins, and wilderness areas all have unique characters, dialogue, quests, and encounters that make the world feel alive.
Skyrim showed me how worldbuilding can encourage players to take control of their own stories. Some of the most memorable moments come from exploration, side quests, random encounters, and the character you decide to become.
The Boys takes place in a world where superheroes are real, but many of them are corrupt, blinded by greed and power, and protected by a corporation that cares more about profit and public image than people’s safety.
The series takes the superhero genre and presents it from a darker perspective. Instead of treating superheroes as automatic symbols of hope, it asks what could happen if people with extreme power were influenced by fame, money, politics, media, and corporate control.
The Boys is one of my favorite TV shows and graphic novels because it shows how a familiar genre can be completely changed by reversing expectations. It also shows how satire can exaggerate fictional situations while still exploring real issues involving fame, media, corruption, and power.
Looking back at these ten stories, I can see that I am drawn to detailed worlds, memorable characters, mystery, exploration, moral conflict, and long-term character development.
These stories also taught me that storytelling does not have to be something the audience only watches or reads. In games, storytelling can become interactive, allowing the audience to participate, make choices, and shape the experience. These stories helped shape the types of worlds, characters, and conflicts I enjoy today.