One of my favorite games is Pokemon Pearl, which has a game architecture where the core gameplay loop involves battling different Pokemon with one’s own Pokemon to to progress through the game. Some of the levels are the different gym leaders that one must battle to get through he game, which has an overall narrative arc where the player progresses to death the Elite 4, and eventually their rival, who was introduced at the beginning. Some of the parallel arcs are the battle music raising emotional stakes throughout the game, as well as side quests to get eggs and specific potions.
