Top 10 video game tie-in books

Video games offer some spectacular narrative experiences, but every once in a while, a game’s story needs a little bit more room to breathe, and some stories find that through novelizations.

Some of my favorite video game franchises hide their coolest story moments in tie-in novels and short stories. Because of that, I long ago started exploring literature attached to my favorite games. Changing mediums is always a risk, but it turns out that some video game novels are actually pretty spectacular in and of themselves.

Halo: Contact Harvest

The Halo series is surprisingly full of great novels and short stories. Books like The Fall of Reach and Ghosts of Onyx give some interesting insight into the Spartan program and describe humanity’s darkest moment in the Covenant war, but my personal favorite is Contact Harvest by Joseph Staten. The book explores a side character, Sergeant Major Avery Johnson, someone I wanted more of in the games, and weaves a compelling story about the very beginning of the war. This is a must-read for any Halo fan.

Diablo: The Sin War

It’s easy enough to get through an entire Diablo game without absorbing much of the story. The series has some dense lore, and it can be a little hard to see through all the blood and particle effects. If you’ve ever wondered about what’s happening in the background of Sanctuary, then there’s no better place to start with The Sin War. The trilogy is written by Richard A. Knaak, and it explores the war between good and evil as it was thousands of years before the first game. The first book, Birthright, is a great introduction to the fascinating lore of the Diablo universe.

The Infernal City

There are only so many times you can replay The Elder Scrolls games while waiting for Bethesda to finish its next installment. Luckily, when your patience wears thin, there’s The Infernal City by Greg Keyes. The book is set along the coast of the Black Marsh 40 years after the events of Oblivion. A floating city named Umbriel arrives above the land, and the chaos that ensues pulls in people from all walks of life, including the prince of Tamriel himself.

Deus Ex: Icarus Effect

I had a blast playing through Deus Ex: Human Revolution for the first time, but when I finished my playthrough, I felt like I’d only scratched the surface of the game’s world. Of course, there are other Deus Ex games to play that have incredible stories of their own, but the novel Deus Ex: Icarus Effect by James Swallow ties directly into the story of Human Revolution. It’s a prequel that, like all the best cyberpunk stories, combines elements of the hard-boiled detective genre with the plotting and paranoia of a YouTube conspiracy video. 

Mass Effect: Revelation

It makes perfect sense that Mass Effect would get a novel tie-in, and Mass Effect: Revelation by Drew Karpyshyn is actually just the first book in a four-part series. Mass Effect sets up the exact kind of epic sci-fi universe that leaves room for authors to shape as they tell their own stories. Revelation takes place before the original game and focuses on Lieutenant David Anderson. While telling his story, the book expands the game’s worldbuilding and introduces a few new wrinkles to the overall lore. 

BioShock: Rapture

Prequels are where many video game tie-in books seem to shine, and BioShock: Rapture is no exception. Written by John Shirley, the book examines the history of the titular city and tells how Andrew Ryan came to found his underwater utopia. Rapture makes a perfect companion to the first game, as it answers some lingering questions about the citizens of Ryan’s city and gives us a window into the collapse that took place before Jack’s plane fell out of the sky at the beginning of BioShock. 

Splinter Cell

Unsurprisingly, fantasy and sci-fi games tend to get the most tie-in novel, but they aren’t the only genres that get in on the fun. Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell by David Michaels was published just two years after the original game debuted, and it tells an original story starring Sam Fisher. This time around Fisher is hunting down a clandestine terrorist group called The Shadows and the arms dealers supplying them, but at the very same time, The Shadows are hunting and killing the other members of Fisher’s organization, Third Echelon. 

EVE: The Empryrean Age

The community that plays EVE has a huge impact on how the game’s story unfolds, but the lore that’s already been established for the EVE universe is well worth exploring on its own. Eve: The Empyrean Age by Tony Gonzales is a spacefaring sci-fi story about political intrigue, escaped clones, corporate revolutions, and humanity’s expansion through the stars. Even if you don’t have the patience or free time to commit to playing EVE, The Empyrean Age is still well worth a read. 

The Myst Reader

I need to make a confession. I’ve never been able to finish playing through Myst. The puzzles have always confounded me, and every time I’ve tried, I’ve found myself quickly losing interest in the game. Despite that, the story has always intrigued me, and The Myst Reader is a collection of three books that explore the backstory of the game and give me, as a non-player, exactly the kind of experience I want. Get ready for an engaging series of adventures following the Atrus family and their world-hopping magic Art. 

Warcraft: War of the Ancients: The Well of Eternity

Just like with Diablo: The Sin Wars, Richard A. Knaak collaborated with Blizzard to write The Well of Eternity. The book is the first of a trilogy set in the World of Warcraft universe, and it’s perfect for WoW heads or for anyone who’s a fan of great high fantasy books. A magical rift sends a dragon mage, human wizard, and orc warrior 3,000 years into the past. Together, they have the chance to forever alter the course of a conflict called The War of the Ancients, but they may die, or destroy the world itself, in the process.