The biggest mistake everyone makes is that they watch videos about how to play first. It's fine to watch a bit to see if you'd even be interested but once you make the call, if you want to be immersed in a game just play it and experience it yourself!
I noticed you mentioned games with strong stories. I tend to play more open ended games but my first suggestion has a stronger narrative and that is The Aquatic Adventure of the Last Human.
The rest are games that sucked up way too much of my time lol:
- Mount & Blade Bannerlord
- Vintage Story
- Dinkum
- Mad Max
- Hardspace Shipbreaker
- Terra Invicta
- Astroneer