Endings are one of the hardest parts of any media to nail. The conclusion needs to be satisfactory, make sense for the rest of the story, and give the audience a sense of catharsis. It sounds simple in theory, but in reality, it is much more challenging than most realize.
Game endings all vary from title to title. Some offer a more happy resolution, with the characters sometimes literally walking off into the sunset, others leave a cliffhanger, teasing a possible sequel. And then there are those that provide a truly heart-breaking conclusion, by killing the one character that players have spent the most amount of time with: the protagonist.
The dark fantasy RPGDragon Age: Originsis consideredone of BioWare’s strongest games, which is quite the catalog to compete with. Set in the fictional land known as Ferelden, it has come under the threat of a Blight, an emergence of creatures known as darkspawn under the iron claw of an archdemon, a draconic creature with immense power, and only the Grey Wardens are capable of putting a stop to them.
But, it comes with a price. The soul of the archdemon will enter the body of the Warden who slays them, effectively kilings them both. Morrigan does offer a way out with what’s known as the Dark Ritual, ensuring no one must die to end the Blight. Skipping the ritual can either result in the other Warden, such as Alistair, dying, or the protagonist themselves, and this sacrifice will be echoed in future games.
Transistoris one of Supergiant’s most beautiful and stylish games that is tragically overlooked, overshadowed by the success ofHades. It shows a unique tale of love in a dystopian future as Red traverses the world with the titular sword that narrates the adventure, and what Red uses to face the dangers in the world.
The two form a close bond as they work together, whichculminates in a bittersweet ending. Red uses the sword itself to strike herself down, so her spirit can live on with Unknown inside the transistor.
Mass Effect 3was the epic conclusion of Shepard’s war againstthe Reapers, a race of sentient machines that enact a cycle of culling all civilized lifeforms, leaving one species alive during each reaping. Last time, it was humans as they were still in the Stone Age. But now, they are on the chopping block along with all other intelligent lives, and now it falls to Shepard to unite them all under one common cause.
Shepard will need to gather resources and allies if they have any chance of survival, not just inMass Effect 3but alsoMass Effect 2, as it will grant the necessary war assets. If players don’t gain enough resources and choose the destroy ending, Shepard will die, making the ultimate sacrifice for the good of the galaxy.
Persona 3is considered to be one of the best in the series, particularly after Reload arrived, with many quality of life changes to the game that remained largely the same. The opening reveals the hidden Dark Hour to the protagonist and player, a time of the night when most ordinary people transmogrify into coffins, but persona users remain unaffected, and can use this time to thwart the shadows in Tartarus.
The world hangs in the balance in this game, and the dangerous shadow monster Nyx has to be slayed in order to save everyone. Unfortunately,not everyone can be saved, and during the final cutscene, the player character dies in Aegis’s arms, surrounded by his friends who are helpless to reverse his fate.
The third installment in theBioshockseries, the game is completely disparate from the previous two, which took place deep beneath the sea in the city of Rapture.Infinitesees players taking off to above the clouds, in the seemingly idyllic place called Columbia, but it quickly becomes apparent this is not the nirvana it seems upon first impressions, but Booker has a job to do: retrieve Elizabeth and leave, and he will be damned if anything stands in his way.
Its quite ironic that the figure that stands in his way the most is Comstock, another version of Booker. He kept Elizabeth locked up and under the watchful gaze of the Songbird. to allow Elizabeth her freedom, and to stop the rise of the prophet Comstock, Booker must die, and in the game, he does so at the hands ofhis own daughter. The game had to end this way, but it doesn’t lessen the impact of Booker’s death any less.
Telltale have become known for taking an existing IP and putting their own spin on it, and by far one of the most successful and popular games isThe Walking Dead.Rather than following Rick Grimes and the other survivors of the show, the game instead focuses on Lee, a convicted criminal on his way to be executed, saved when a rebel group destroy the settlement he was being taken too. Upon his escape, he meets young Clementine, and takes her under his wing as the two attempt to find safety in themidst of a zombie outbreak.
ButThe Walking Deadis a franchise that rarely pulls its punches and no one is safe, not even the protagonist. In the final hours of the game, Lee is bitten by a zombie, and Clementine will have the choice to shoot or leave him. Either way, Lee will die in a tragic scene, effectively passing the torch of main character from Lee to Clementine for the rest of the franchise.
A prequel to the firstRed Dead Redemptiongame, the second places gamers in the saddle of Arthur Morgan, part of the Van der Linde gang that are doing what they can to stay afloat after being forced to flee Blackwater. After robbing a train owned by a man called Cornwall, they run afoul of him and the Pinkertons, but gain more enemies than that as they continue to pull offheist after heist.
Arthur’s life as an outlaw will be cut short however, as he contracts tuberculosis, which is essentially a death sentence, causing him to scramble to protect the others as he knows he won’t be there to do it. His fate is a tragic one that cannot be altered. Arthur either succumbs to the disease, or is killed by Micah depending on how the player played through the game. Either way, Arthur’s death is still felt by many to this day.
