Games that'll me devastated after finishing it with a good story that'll leave a long lasting impact on my life, ~$25 CAD on Steam

It might not look like it.

It might not sound like it.

But for the love of ALL THINGS NARRATIVE GAME DESIGN

Play the Titanfall 2 campaign.

You do NOT need the first game, you get all the info you need in the intro cinematic.

Go in as blind as possible.

Yes it's a shooter (and a damn good one) but it has some of the most innovative and best levels of any FPS, the campaign is short enough to be done in a long evening or over a weekend and the voice acting is amazing.

Go for it

You won't regret it.

I've heard the mass effect series is exactly that, I've started it myself and so far so good. Also it's on massive sale rn, you won't regret it I believe.

The answer is always Soma

tfym Hellblade meh?? That shit had me fucked up after finishing!

Bioshock

Cyberpunk and it's dlc,

Mass effect trilogy.

Spec ops: the line

SOMA !!!! This one will devastate you you’ll finish the game and feel like you woke up and your whole life is different. God I love soma!!!

Buddy Simulator 1984 (similar feel to the Headspace section of Omori)

The Hex

The Norwood Suite

Rakuen (and its spin-off story Mr. Saitou)

Bad End Theater

Birth

Videoverse

(None of these are really hidden gems and you might of heard of them, but most of the suggestions on this sub make very well known games like Omori seem like hidden, under-rated gems)

Less well known games: Vessels (Among Us if it was a puzzle walking simulator/visual novel, is only a dollar), Obscurant, Manglepaw

Also all of these games are fairly short and will take you at most 10 hours for one playthrough.

I don't know the price but I always indicate Nier: Automata

maybe the two Plague Tales

Just want to thank all who posted, I bugoht several games from here ;)

Prey from Arkane.

That final twist blow my mind !!!

Lisa the Painful | Fear and Hunger. Both of these stand out and I think fit the bill for what you’re looking for. Good luck!

The last of us part 2 is exactly that, but a shame it’s not PC yet though it definitely will eventually

You might like the Coffee Talk games if you liked Va-11 Hall-A. Similar type of game but different asthetic and setting.

1000xResist and definitely To the Moon, Ori series, and Celeste

The Plague tale games

Mark of the Ninja made me upset when it ended. It was a 2D banger I played years ago and it still holds up super well.

There were other 2D katana/ninja like games that took inspiration from this one. It's really good bro if you are down to stealth 2D hitman/assassin's creed-type game.

HMMMMM, I think the only other game I'd recommend is Faster than Light. I consider this more of a roleplay experience. I roleplay as a different character each launch. One being me, and my crewmates being my crewmates. Not necessarily too story based. It's a pretty simple and straight forward story but it's the journey where your story will be different every time.

What's gbna?

Honestly might sound weird, but Spider-Man had a great story and I cried at the end. The second one didn't have the same emotional impact on me, though it was still a solid game.

for straight narrative, nothing is better than disco elysium. for bizarre existential craziness go for more automata

Read Dead Redemption 2 was very good. But that's going to eat your entire budget.

Subnautica

• Inside ($3, because you like Journey and Abzu): Inside is grimmer than those two but you like some other darker stuff so it could fit the bill. It's a story entirely shown, not told, and it can hit really hard if you have a soft spot for its message.

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• Return of the Obra Dinn ($29, because you like Outer Wilds and Edith Finch): Much like the other two mentioned, Obra Dinn stays with you for how it tells its story, not the story itself. I'd lump it with these two as an exemplar of unique storytelling but like them, it has its own completely distinct approach that I still think about today. Caveat is it ekes out of your price range by a few dollars.

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• Persona 4 Golden ($18, because you like Yakuza): This really depends on whether you're open to the concept - high school social sim with RPG combat - as if you're not it's invalid, you won't be able to invest in the game's length. But if you don't mind that, P4G left me with serious heartache first time around. It captures that goofy-serious feel similarly to Yakuza, and the music absolutely slaps.

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• Beyond: Two Souls ($9, because you like Detroit Become Human): You need to be open to a fragmented plot and focus more on the moment than where you're going. If that works for you, this is seriously the diamond in Quantic Dream's catalogue.

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There's plenty more options, and you can really magnify the emotional pull as you veer into more esoteric territory (e.g. Kentucky Route Zero) but based on what you like, I think the ones above would suit what you're after.

Death Stranding when it's on sale

Witcher 3 - bad ending is still with me 10 years later.

The last of us 1 & 2 - bit of an obvious one here

Judgment - great story

Metro Exodus Gold Edition.

Mass Effect Legendary Edition. It's gotta be. The sheer journey through the world if you do everything? Unbeatable.

Death Stranding

Persona 5 Royal: Life is unfair and unjust game. What you gonna do about it? Are you going to wake up, get up, and stand up to injustice that befalls upon you and make a change? Or are you going to wish to be devoided from all chaotic elements in life and be enslaved forever to order and authority under one 'perfect' rule or guide, being 'free' from any responsibility to think or to make a change in life?

Nier Automata

Elden ring just do all quests

The Last Campfire maybe? Really sweet but heartbreaking puzzle game

Soma is amazing if you haven’t. If you don’t like scary games you can do peaceful mode just for the amazing story.

Stray left me happy sad at the end.

Definitely 1000xResist. Incredible worldbuilding and stellar writing. Rivals Disco Elysium as probably one of the most well written games ever. Don't let the silly schoolgirl anime look deter you. It is existential and will also destroy you so it checks those bonus boxes! (But also do get Disco Elysium for sure, also existential and also incredible.)

Soma | Red Dead Redemption 2 | What Remains of Edith Finch | The Walking Dead Telltale | Dying Light 1 | Days Gone | Outlast 1&2 (Devasted mentally)

Nier Automata,10 story and game play and soundtrack.

• Night in the Woods
• Disco Elysium

I recommend sheepy a short adventure its free and a fantastic game otherwise ive been having a blast with jedi fallen order

Save up for Cyberpunk

Disco Elysium is dirt cheap. Get it

Brothers; a tale of two sons

Cyberpunk, might not exactly fit your budget but you can easily get it on discount (it's usually around 20/25 without the dlc)

Story will f you up, and have an impact, can assure ya

A Plague Tale! I pride myself on being a heartless monster and the ending of the second game broke me.

HADES

There is no escape.

If you aren't big on Roguelikes, you can enable God Mode in the settings, and it gives you +2% damage reduction after each death. It eases a little bit of the grind, but you can still experience the whole story & get all the achievements. You can also disable/ enable it at any time with no penalty.

I second Hades 1. Its very good game (roguelike), but shouldnt be too much problem, allows saving, progress even if you die (or rather game assumes you die so if you are too good story can get a bit silly ordered), not too expensive and should be a few dozens even if youre good. Soundtrack is amazing.

It will however probably NOT let you devasted emotionally or hurt you too much.

Hades II (2 is shooting game), is still very early on and I ram personally waiting for it so not too sure.