I think Final Fantasy VII for instance does a remarkably good job at following those laws.
Although those laws, if followed, certainly extremely beneficial to the depth and richness of the narrative, I dont find them to be a dealbreaker if not there either.

Haven't experienced the other movie/novels you mentioned. Going to add To kill a Mockingbird to my movie watchlist. I dont like classic Literature though.. Here in Portugal we have renowned authors such as Jose Saramago(not really classic literature but a little more modern), Fernando Pessoa and Luis de Camoes.. I find them to be incredibly overrated, their social critique is solid but the actual narrative content is generic dribble if you ask me, their writing might be considered masterful but I for one dont give a shit if the story itself doesnt grab me and the characters are nothing more than archetypes for the purpose of social commentary. I dont like shakespearean writing aswell but I cant speak for the content itself because im not very familiar with it but it seems to be in the same vein. They may be pioneers and ahead of their time but I dont see myself going back to them by the same logic I dont go back to Atari games. Greater and better things have been created since and what makes them so unique doesnt appeal to me. I also dont like the objective hivemind surrounding these authors, it's like a fucking religion - "these are the absolute best and if you think otherwise you are an uneducated baboon"

Edit_ Mickeymac you are absolutely right, I was just responding to people who were making comparisons, I know ive used this example multiple times  but I dont see a game like 999 being replicated in any other medium besides videogames, the interactivity is key and the multiple endings are an absolute must in this particular narrative.

Shawshank Redemption is an incredible movie and one of my absolute favourites but I dont feel nearly as passionate about it as a I feel about certain game storylines like Zero Escape, Ace Attorney, Final Fantasy and some others. Of course it's ultimately subjective.
What I said about the visual novel thing, ye certainly it doesnt need to have multiple endings. It can have a linear narrative like ace attorney and ghost trick which are great examples of more awesome video game storylines.

I think the Xenosaga trilogy makes a pretty darn good job at explaining the "magic" and "supernatural elements".

One of the biggest plot points in FF XII was the magic of the world, it was directly involved in the main conflict and I think it's explored fairly well there, also in FF VI,VII,IX and to a lesser extent VIII. 

I think there are some great storylines in videogames and I believe the medium itself has potential to outdo any other when it comes to storytelling, it has the potential to tick every box(music, writing, visuals and immersion). There are a few outstanding storylines in videogames if you ask me even if the average video game doesnt have one.

At the highest possible caliber I think videogames already outdo movies and novels but that's just me, there are much fewer examples of excellent narratives, that's a given, but movies and books have been around for far longer.

If the best novels were "translated" into a visual novel and they were done right, I think they would be vastly superior to the book itself. The same could be applied to movies if done right, that would require finding a good balance between the interactive nature of video games and the pacing of the narrative in films. The interactivity adjacent to the medium allows for a bigger emotional involvement from the audience.

Shit... Now I have to wait 2 weeks for this to arrive. Im surprised I managed to get the vita before the actual game, thought it was going to be the other way around.

I like convoluted. I know a lot of people think of that as a negative but I for one don't. If it makes sense within the context of the story and within the rules setup by that universe, Im perfectly ok with it, it also makes my brain go crazy and I like that aswell.

Ahem tbh, I think the xenosaga Trilogy has a better story than Xenogears. I think the Zero Escape series has the best plot of anything that ever existed so there is that.. That's just me though.

Are the Fire emblem games on the ds any good?

I would also like to refer that I havent played some of the high profile games on the ds like SMT DS,SJ and Radiant Historia(SOON!), thinking a little bit more I think I would replace Chrono Trigger with TWEWY on my top 5 list.

I love you!

Similar to the other topic that was made for the top 20 psp rpg's list, let's discuss the recently released top 20 ds games from the website.
I am overall very pleased by this list though I would change the order of the games around a little bit. While I think TWEWY is a very awesome and innovative game, I personally wouldnt put it at number 1.

 Im also a little bit disappointed that Apollo Justice was chosen over Trials and Tribulations. While Apollo Justice is technically a better "Game" and actually my 2nd favorite in the series, I dont think it compares to the masterpiece of a storyline that Trials and Tribulations delivered, it was more memorable and there was more in the way of character development. I am also surprised to see FF IV above Chrono trigger, I guess it was positioned that way because of the major update they made to the game with the new graphics and whatnot(I would argue though that they are atrociously ugly 3d models, ff7 looks better than that imo.), also the game is just very slow paced compared to it's 2d counterpart(FF IV complete collection is the definitive version of FF IV imo).

My top 5 would be: 999-PW:AA:Trials and Tribulations-Castlevania Portrait of Ruin-Chrono Trigger-Ghost Trick(this with the 1 game per series restriction). I havent played Order of Ecclesia though, so maybe I will enjoy it more than PoR(I like PoR better than SOTN though)

NO!

I cannot lose this! DAMN YOU MONSOON! Now I will have to replay it aswell xD and I recently beat VLR.. And played 999 in february..

Ye perhaps you are right but I still argue that there are a few standout tracks that are pretty good without context besides blue bird lamentation and Morphogenetic Sorrow and any consequent variant like the end credit piano version renmix of Virtue's Last Reward. I would argue that for example quietus doesnt need context, it has a very sinister and creepy vibe wether you played the game or not and it's rocking cool.
Apart from that:
Binary Game - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_BLhvyZA2I
The Monitor - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1yVqJA3u4Y
Placidity - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWa1j9VHRrc

OMG plot twist..