Let's talk about these two things. A game that mostly focuses on an overarching story and a game that tells the story through several smaller character stories. I like both, obviously, and they both have their merits. But I think I prefer stories told through smaller stories that come together and make a big picture. It's one of the reasons I love Majora's Mask. You can play just the overarching story, but it won't have the same magic and charm as if you play all of the smaller NPC stories.
Legend of Mana is also an interesting case because in that one the overarching story is barely there, but there are many many smaller stories to explore and those basically make the game. I'm not sure it was my favourite but I did like having the story told in a unique manner like that.
But in the end I like both a lot, I'm a big fan of video game stories, so I certainly won't be disappointed in just having an overarching story, and some of my favourite video game stories are told that way.
So which one do you prefer? Is it about even? What are some of your favourite examples of each?