25 Best Diegetic Maps And Journals

Diegetic maps and journals keep information inside the world itself, so players check notes, books, devices, or parchment that characters would actually use. These tools often update as you explore, record clues you find, or mark places you have visited. The best examples explain rules and routes without breaking immersion, and they feel like real objects in the character’s hands. Here are standout games where the map or journal truly exists in the fiction and helps you navigate and remember what matters.

Red Dead Redemption 2

Arthur keeps a handwritten journal that records sketches, locations, wildlife, and story moments as you progress. You can open it during camp or out in the world and it fills with dated entries tied to recent events. The game’s world map sits in his satchel along with other field notes and collectibles. Gunsmith catalogs and wanted posters also function as in world documents that characters plausibly handle.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

The Sheikah Slate serves as Link’s in universe map and toolset that displays topography and pins. Towers add regional data to the slate and the camera logs entries to a compendium. You can stamp points of interest directly on the slate and manage objectives as if handling a real device. Shrine sensors and album photos are presented as features of the same slate.

Hollow Knight

You buy region maps from Cornifer and they are incomplete until you update them at a bench. The quill adds your trail and room connections to the paper after you rest. A compass charm lets the knight mark their own position on the drawn map. Vendors sell markers and wayfinding icons that appear as additional ink on the page.

Metroid Prime

The Scan Visor records entries into a logbook that catalogs creatures, technology, and lore. Doors, terminals, and objects can be scanned to unlock map data and critical hints. The map is rendered as a holographic projection inside the suit, presented as a system Samus actually uses. The log categorizes findings by area and species for quick reference.

Alien: Isolation

You find wall mounted terminals that upload blueprints and floor plans into your in world device. The motion tracker is a physical gadget that you raise to check distance and direction of movement. Paper signs and station schematics appear on walls to supplement the device. Audio logs and ID tags add to a collected record of crew activity.

System Shock

Audio logs and data pads left by crew members populate your in suit database. Security cameras and terminals feed into a map screen that exists on your forearm interface. Messages and mission directives are stored as text entries you can replay. The entire heads up display is framed as hardware that the hacker operates.

BioShock

Audio diaries you pick up are labeled objects with names and dates and they store in a playback list. Each diary preserves a speaker’s voice and location context within Rapture. Safe codes and clues are embedded inside these recordings and transcriptions. Posters, notices, and ledgers in shops function as readable world items.

Pentiment

Notes, tasks, and character bios appear as inked marginalia within a manuscript style interface. Fonts and illustrations reflect who is writing or speaking inside the world. The journal tracks evidence and contradictions as pages you can flip through. Period maps and woodcut diagrams depict landmarks as printed sheets from the era.

Disco Elysium

Your detective ledger is a tangible item that you can inspect and reorder. Tasks and case files are written as entries with time stamps and outcomes. The Thought Cabinet stores ideas as notebook like cards that change the character. Receipts, pay slips, and bills are collected as physical documents in your inventory.

Outer Wilds

The ship log automatically records rumors and discoveries as nodes on a star map. Each entry links to related clues and indicates whether more can be found. The log is accessed at the cockpit and updates the moment you learn something new. Color coded lines show how facts connect between planets and ruins.

Firewatch

Henry carries a folded paper map and a compass that you hold in your hands. You can annotate the map using a marker at points of interest like caches and supply boxes. Landmarks and trails appear as printed features rather than abstract icons. Radio transcripts and notes from supply caches are collected as in world papers.

Far Cry 2

The character holds a large paper map in real time while walking or driving. You glance down to check position and objectives without opening a separate menu. Waypoints are drawn on the sheet and a GPS light indicates direction. Mission briefs and gun shop catalogs also exist as physical documents.

Pathologic 2

The town map updates with scrawled notes that reflect what your character learns. The diary records quests as handwritten pages that can contradict each other. Districts change state and the map shows infection spread with markings. Letters and prescriptions appear as readable items from townsfolk and clinics.

Subnautica

The PDA is an in universe computer that logs blueprints, flora, fauna, and voice recordings. Scanned objects add encyclopedia entries with diagrams and recipes. Radio transmissions arrive as audio files in the PDA inbox and mark coordinates. Beacon names and life pod numbers are managed from the same handheld interface.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl

You carry a PDA that stores missions, maps, contacts, and faction standings. Messages arrive as in world texts and are archived for later reading. Locations and stash notes appear as coordinates added from found documents. Artifact descriptions and anomaly data fill the PDA as field research.

Death Stranding

Sam accesses orders, routes, and mail through a cuff link terminal worn on his wrist. Delivery summaries and cargo condition reports are stored as readable entries. Maps are presented as holographic projections tied to chiral network coverage. Interviews and data logs unlock background information as documents you can review.

The Forest

Your survivor keeps a hand drawn map that fills in as you traverse caves and terrain. A survival guide book lists crafting recipes and shelter plans as illustrated pages. You can flip the guide open at any time to check construction steps. Notes and photos found at crash sites and camps add to the record.

Return of the Obra Dinn

You work from a printed ledger that lists crew, cargo, and fates with sketches. The pocket watch links scenes to specific pages in the book for cross reference. The ship map is printed in the ledger and anchors each investigation. Clues are confirmed as stamped updates that appear on the relevant page.

Sea of Thieves

Treasure maps and riddles are physical scrolls that you can hold and rotate. The ship’s map table shows islands as a chart that the crew gathers around. Voyage books and tall tale journals are placed in the world and can be read. X marks and compass bearings translate directly to landmarks on islands.

The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind

The character’s journal records quests as dated text entries that you can review. Directions rely on landmarks and roads that are described within those entries. Paper maps and guild notices appear as readable world items. Scrolls and books you collect are fully legible and stored as in world texts.

Elden Ring

You collect map fragments at steles to reveal regional topography. Sites of grace and markers are placed by the player and appear as notations. Iconography reflects real structures like ruins and caves once discovered. Item descriptions and cookbooks function as short in world notes and recipes.

Resident Evil 2

You find maps as physical sheets that add rooms and floors to your records. The Officer’s Notebook and scattered files include sketches and puzzle hints. Inventory and key item notes are presented as in universe paperwork. Item status and room clearing notes update as annotations on the found map.

Amnesia: The Dark Descent

The journal stores notes, diaries, and mementos that your character writes after events. Clues collected from letters and lab records appear as text entries. Puzzle hints are preserved as observations rather than external prompts. The inventory displays parchments and tools as tangible objects.

The Long Dark

Your survivor keeps a journal that logs days survived, skills, and discoveries. Charcoal mapping lets you survey the terrain and sketch landmarks onto the map. Notes and survivor letters found in cabins add story context as readable papers. Signal fires and prepper caches are recorded as entries after you uncover them.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance

Henry consults a parchment map and a detailed codex that explains customs and gear. Quests write themselves as diary notes with times and witness names. Herbal recipes and skill tips appear as entries in the codex rather than external prompts. Posters, letters, and books exist as objects you can read in the world.

Share your favorite examples of in world maps or journals in the comments and tell everyone which ones helped you the most.