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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/48366
License name: CC BY-SA 4.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Most stories in the genre start with an inception and end with an enlightenment. What exactly these entail depend on the story genre/setting you are working with.

For example, I can take your space exploration:

- The inception is something like the discovery of FTL travel. It means something about your setting changes to such a degree that the game's central action is now either possible or vital. This will set the tone of your whole game. Alternative inceptions could be the declaration of war by a much greater power, a natural disaster, or anything.
- Between it and the enlightenment are a series of advances and obstacles. Advances tend to be either new information or the removal of problems, while obstacles introduce new problems that are solved either through gameplay or meta-actions (such as something your advisor is doing while you are managing the big stuff.) In storytelling terms, these tend to follow a "Yes, But/No, And", structure. Every mission should have at least one of these advances or obstacles, and preferably both.
- Finally there is the enlightenment. This can be either a physical or metaphysical great achievement which makes the main action of the game further unneeded. You could ascend to a higher plane of existence, end the great war, or have everything be destroyed. If it does not make sense to return to the main action afterwards, that is your enlightenment. In some cases, this is directly preceded by a crisis, which resolves any remaining obstacles.

Now, there are two general ways to tell your story; either through gameplay or through inter-mission cutscenes/text scrolls. For a game series that I personally feel tackles both methods quite well, I would recommend Tropico.

Original score: 3