The greatest videogame microplots

[CIT]

What are your favorites of economical storytelling from the golden days of videogames?

RULE: The actual story in the game can't be more than three lines long.

I'll go first:

"These girls have all been kidnapped by this fat toad! Go get them back and clean up the streets while you'ra at it!"
- Crime Fighters

"The Alien Wars begin! 'It's time for revenge.' 'Let's attack aggressively.'"
- Contra III

"Rampant ninja related crimes these days... Whitehouse is not the exception... 'President Ronnie has been kidnapped by the ninjas. Are you a bad enough dude to rescue Ronnie?'"
- Bad Dudes Vs. Dragon Ninja

[EinhanderZwei]

'BLAST OFF AND STRIKE THE EVIL BYDO EMPIRE'

[Udderdude]

AVOID MISSING BALL FOR HIGH SCORE

[BIL]

"Prison breakers? On my day-off?!"

"Well, let's go for a kill time."

[CIT]

AVOID MISSING BALL FOR HIGH SCORE

Those are instructions not a plot.

"Prison breakers? On my day-off?!"

"Well, let's go for a kill time."

Haha, yeah, that's a great one. "Shucks!"

[GaijinPunch]

Whatever stroy they created around Arkanoid... I couldn't dream one up if I tried.

[CIT]

You wanna share it with us?

[BulletMagnet]

A more recent example, but IIRC the "story" for Trizeal was stated as something like "the story exists...in you!" - i.e. "we couldn't be bothered to actually come up with one, so use your imagination."

[Udderdude]

AVOID MISSING BALL FOR HIGH SCORE

Those are instructions not a plot.

Lies.

[Ruldra]

The plot of Surprise Attack consists of a terrorist group taking over a moon base and then somehow they'll conquer Earth if not stopped.

[ncp]

I COMMAND YOU TO RISE FROM YOUR GRAVE AND RESCUE MY DAUGHTER

"WISE FWOM YOUR GWABE"

[BIL]

[Stormwatch]

"This is coming to you from Aviation Radio Station. The year is 2045. Who thought of this? I don't know! But it's a crazy tournament of cool battles in the sky. Aviation Battle Championships begin! Proud warriors of the world's skies gather in hopes of winning the prize!" -- Propeller Arena

[Ed Oscuro]

I think the "giving up already?" sequence from Ninja Kid 2 is not only one of the shortest "microplots" in a straightforward game (it's like half a minute with two possible outcomes), but one of the greatest. You have to either climb or bounce up the walls of a well (silly primitive flat and vertical UPL stage designs) to the top to get to an exit - or you can just choose to fail at the bottom. Ninja Kid's sprite if he gives up is very expressive.

[EinhanderZwei]

'You will see the creation of new lives' (c) G Darius
'Mom... Dad... Sis... Please be careful' (c) Midnight Resistance

[saucykobold]

"The era and time of this story is unknown. After the mothership 'Arkanoid' was destroyed, a spacecraft 'Vaus' scrambled away from it. But only to be trapped in space warped by someone........"
- Arkanoid

Many economical game openings don't use any text. Ghosts'n Goblins and Nekketsu Kouha Kunio-kun are two great examples.

[Herr Schatten]

'BLAST OFF AND STRIKE THE EVIL BYDO EMPIRE'

Winner.

[dpful]

REST 30

[Stormwatch]

"WILL HELP YOU!" - Kid Niki Radical Ninja

[Dragoforce]

"A real long time ago, in the peasant kingdom of Peasantry, some people lived... in fear. You are Rather Dashing, a peasant wearing short pants, who returns from vacation to find his thatched-roof cottage BURNINATED! You swear revenge and embark on an incredible journey to vanquish Trogdor once and for all."

[Zeether]

WHAT IS THIS PLACE

KEEP YOUR EYES PEELED

[spadgy]

This is a great, great thread CIT! Some amazing submissions already.

From the Moon Cresta flyer:

"Red alert! Scramble scramble invasion force alien has entered our galaxy"

An even more rudimentary plot in Progress:

"We must defeat the enemy!"

Is that a plot? I think so, as it sets the scene of what's happening. There's a protagonist, antagonist, motive and act.

And this last one is a bit long for the 'micro' criteria, but I love the way the Cadilla's and Dinosaurs' plot cuts down (and messes up!) the language it uses to set the stage:

"In the future where human and dinosaurs live together in harmony some bad guys appeared and began to mess up the nature balance and slaughter the dinosaurs. The dinosaurs get scared and rampaged, the world is in total confusion. "They must be stopped. I'll crush them!""

[Ed Oscuro]

WHAT IS THIS PLACE

KEEP YOUR EYES PEELED

Nothing "micro" about that.

[Skykid]

"Prison breakers? On my day-off?!"

"Well, let's go for a kill time."

Aww, beat me to it. That one's legendary.

[Icarus]

THANK YOU MARIO!
BUT OUR PRINCESS IS IN ANOTHER CASTLE!

[EinhanderZwei]

THANK YOU MARIO!
BUT OUR PRINCESS IS IN ANOTHER CASTLE!

Winner. #2

[Ed Oscuro]

I like "OH!! DAISY!!" and Mario staring dumbfounded as an enemy slowly hops off-screen.

[bkk]

[Skykid]

"ARE YOU READY FOR THE BATTLES?"

Zed Blade.

[Dragoforce]

"ARE YOU READY FOR THE BATTLES?"

Zed Blade.

Arrived?