I Won... but what at cost?

[Bakuma1997]

Not all games need a happy ending, and this thread is an example, which game has an ending so sad or dark you don't feel like you won a damn thing? Obviously Spoilers Ahead, so use the Spoiler function

Post automatically merged: Dec 23, 2024

I came prepared Knowing than SMT's endings can be cruel even on the alleged "Good" ending that is the Ndutral Routes, but the first Shin Megami Tensei...holy shit...

Spoiler

First, midgame Japan is nuked, you only surviving because one of your companions teleport you somewhere else, then your other two companions betray you (In non-neutral, the opposing one betrays you while killing the one you aligned with) leaving you with no choice but killing them both, as if that was not enough, the leftovers of the nuked Tokyo get flooded, leaving you with only your demons, your female companion and your dog, oh, since you killed both Chaos and Law's representatives, you will be alone, making it worse is the fact than in SMT II, the player character of the first one is revealed to have DIED, a mess of an ending for a tragedy of a game

At least Pascal is there

 

[Hikari.EXE]

Personally, I haven't played that many games with brutal endings where I got them "on accident". If I got a bad ending I usually got it to see the game to completion, so it doesn't shock me when I get it, I knew when I signed up to it, it says in the trophy description see?

 

[Waffles]

I actually don't play many serious games, because I'm all about escapism. There were one of two that got me misty-eyed, but I don't think they were particularly sad.

 

[retronerdgamer]

Azure Striker Gunvolt. First game ends horribly because

Spoiler

The person that raised the MC Gunvolt and that he trusted most betrays him and since Gunvolt doesn't agree to his plan he shoots Gunvolt and then the girl Gunvolt liked/cared for as well. They both live technically in the "good" ending but in a sorta symbiotic way. Since the girls power jived with GV's so well and she could live as a spirit for a short while she fused with Gunvolt effectively saving them both but after that he had such a rage in him that he kills the leader of his organization/father figure and just ditches his co-workers because he's so broken hearted.

Second game then brings this to a head

Spoiler

where most of the power of Joule, the girl that fused with him, is stolen and while he tries to get it back at the end she is ripped from him power and mind. She is used alongside a girl called Mytyl who is the sister of the anti Hero from GV1 called Copen and she is sacrificed as well being the original holder of hte powers Joule had. They both effectively die, and while a secret plan in the background is done to bring them both back so to speak they merged into one and basically returned Mytyl to her original state with no memory of either Hero.

 

[Hikari.EXE]

Damn, I forgot the Gunvolt game, played them but the endings didn't move me that much...

 

[JustLooking123]

Breath of Fire 3

Spoiler: Ending

The poor goddess was trying to protect us, and we killed her! and killed our own childhood friend before her too!
Even if her methods was questionable, but... for real? there wasn't really any other way?
Like... i don't know... capturing her? diplomacy? betting? it wasn't like that she wasn't open to talking either!

 

[Cu-Neo]

Kotor 2: the sith lords. Ending

Spoiler

You finally defeated Darth Traya (Kreia) and her apprentices but you didn't stop the sith you only stopped the minor part of a large empire that is in the outer rim so the game ends with you leaving everything and everyone behind to go the outer rim, find Revan and stop the Sith empire once for all. You won but only temporarily and in the end you left everything behind. And later in the Revan novel the heroes loses, Meetra Surik (Kotor 2 protagonist) dies, Revan is capturated and tortured for a milenia but at least the galaxy is safe until the old republic game happens and a new conflict begins.

 

[dropsmegamega]

Drakengard 1 is infamous for having a very bittersweet normal ending... and then progressively worse extra endings. Yoko Taro attempted to do that again in most of his other games, but drake 1 is still the king of bad endings imho

Post automatically merged: Dec 23, 2024

Kotor 2: the sith lords. Ending

Yes but I refuse to believe the novel and the old republic game happened and I am still waiting for KOTOR3

Post automatically merged: Dec 23, 2024

Also the hero of neverwinter from NWN1 OC.

Spoiler

Although he saves the city, the ruler of the city executes his love interest which leads to a severe falling out between then and he is later exiled, forgotten and removed from the city's history. Not even one of his companions follows him in his exile and he is never heard of again. Also his love interest ends up either in hell or possibly saved and hooks up with the protagonist of the expansion instead

 

[Cu-Neo]

Yes but I refuse to believe the novel and the old republic game happened and I am still waiting for KOTOR3

Fair enough. I only accept the novel as the ending but mostly because there's no KOTOR 3 . That's a real life bad ending. We won two great games but at what cost....

 

[nobitakun]

Breath of Fire 3

Spoiler: Ending

The poor goddess was trying to protect us, and we killed her! and killed our own childhood friend before her too!
Even if her methods was questionable, but... for real? there wasn't really any other way?
Like... i don't know... capturing her? diplomacy? betting? it wasn't like that she wasn't open to talking either!

Mmm, I have no symphathy for something whose only purpose in its existence is to eliminate any threat it has in order to rule the world the way it wants, imposing its own side and making you feel like it's caring about you. There is no way you can talk with such creature.

 

[JustLooking123]

Mmm, I have no symphathy for something whose only purpose in its existence is to eliminate any threat it has in order to rule the world the way it wants, imposing its own side and making you feel like it's caring about you...

And that's exactly what WE did too in that game!
A lot of people weren't happy about what we did either! but well, WE did it, so it's fine!

 

[DunkeyKong]

Shadow of Colossus

Spoiler: End

It's not that I didn't won, it's the reason alone that makes it feel unworthy. All these killing, to all these creatures, to save one girl. It's not like those knight saving the queen kind of story, or even if it is, it doesn't make you feel good. It makes you feel bad, not for the boy…but for the others

 

[rollout]

Megaman zero 4 had the saddest ending of any megaman games I played

 

[Leon]

Got 2 for you, Arc the lad 2:

Spoiler: Arc the sad

Beat the devil and seal him away, but the world has essentially went through the equivalent of a extinction level event, ending at least 90% if not more of humanity, most of the party's family, multiple countries are literally at the bottom of the ocean and the main character and his girlfriend are dead to seal the devil away again, you won but barely and arguably the devil still kinda won even if you locked him away again.

Of course i cannot forget phantasy star 2:

Spoiler: Phantasy star 2

You destroy mother brain, the genocidal ai that runs all of the technology in algo, but all of the technological achievements of algo were destroyed when mother brain was destroyed, and your party likely died fighting the "earth-men" who came to kill the people of the solar system, even if they won all that would have been left is to die when the spaceship's life support failed, so neither side survived, worse yet palma is destroyed, so you've just prolonged mankind's survival against dark falz for a little while longer while likely going down in history, if remembered at all, as the people who destroyed algo's entire civilization and killed billions.

 

[Dai]

Chrome wolf

Spoiler: War is never good

All the party dies at the end saving the people from some maniacs, they sacrifice themselves one by one 'till it's the MC turn.

 

[bobobobo2]

Fallout Tactics

Spoiler

It starts grim, there's barely any hope, and it ends just as grim. The only way to get the good ending is if you are a goodie (there is a reputation system) and choose to sacrifice yourself (or a party member, but then you're not so goodie are you?). And it's not some romantic walk away into the heavenly light or hold the door or take million arrows to every joint and keep fighting like a badass. Nope, you just walk into this slaughterhouse brain removal machine and watch yourself get brutalized to become a cog in the skynet computer that was the big bad of the game. By being a good cog you slightly influence the fascist skynet to become a _benevolent_ DICTATOR. Yes the good ending in this game is the big bad getting what they want, and everyone just accepting it just for the glimmer of hope that in this way civilization might be restored. Now if you are not a goodie, and still sacrifice (likely a party member in this case) it's the same except you get a _ruthless_ dictator AI that kills everyone who may pose any danger to its authority. Now if you do not want to make the ultimate sacrifice for this frankly shitty deal (and really why would you, you fight your way into the big bad's lair, defeat it, and then this sneaky supercomputer goes "please kindly step into the brain remover, it would be better for everyone that way"... hell no!) and want to at least live to tell the tale, you have to choose between the worst ending and the defeatist ending. Worst ending is your superior general sacrifices themselves instead, and oh boy is he one racist cog. With him in the skynets' system we get concentration camps and genocide that results in a rebellion and continued war of oppression. Finally in the defeatist ending you go full ape mode and smash the big bad to bits, and go back to square one in the plans to save humanity, there are some tree-hugger sentiments there, but the overall message is you achieved nothing in your ultimate quest of finding super tech that will save everyone and just continue to barely survive in a barren wasteland, constantly at war with random bandit groups. And speaking of costs, if you play at higher difficulty settings and especially in real time mode instead of turn based, you're gonna be loosing a lot of party members along the way for this, many many tragic gruesome casualties, them recruits have just enough character to make it sad, but not quite enough for you to not be able to accept losing them, it's all just designed to be depressing.

Honorable mention: F.E.A.R.

Spoiler

You know how when disaster strikes and some evil menace is let loose in the city, the higher ups often talk about nuking all of it from orbit, but never actually do it. In this game they never talk about it, and they actually do it, nuke the city with you in it, no warning, you just turn the corner and BAM, nuke on the horizon, either sit back and enjoy the show or panic and scramble for cover, doesn't matter, the blast wave reaches you in seconds, smacks you against the wall and we fade to black. If it ended here it would have been my first pick, but they do a sequel bait instead and show you surviving and being rescued and getting jump-scared again, ha-ha alma and her silly antics... dude a ringu is not gonna scare me after you just freaking nuked me from orbit!

 

[Yousef]

Power. Power is everything.

 

[JustLooking123]

Power. Power is everything.

Congratulations! You have gained ultimate power!
But in order to maintain it eternally, you have to eliminate all threatening possibilities.
Anything in universe contains a fatal dose of threatening possibility.
All threats eliminated.
Now your power is absolute. Enjoy your rest of eternity in void.

 

[Hikari.EXE]

Power. Power is everything.

Ok Vergil we get it.

 

[Yousef]

Ok Vergil we get it.

Good shout, although I was quoting Jin Kazama funnily enough.

 

[Hikari.EXE]

Good shout, although I was quoting Jin Kazama funnily enough. View attachment 6209

Did you... Run a T7 match with Jin just to get this screenshot and post it?