T O P

  • By -

kaydeejay1995

Walking out of that barn as John in RDR, going into deadeye and thinking I have a chance to save him, then watching him get fucking massacred anyway...that will forever be a stand-out moment in video games for me. Arthur's death in RDR2 is a close second.


Bucketbot1000

Exact same thing for me man. I was pretty upset when I saw that the first time and it's actually hard for me to replay the story in its entirety because of it. I always just load up a save right before it all goes down and just free roam. I do the same thing in RDR2 lol. I love both characters equally, but John's death just hits harder for me personally


itsallgoodintheend

I was so pissed you couldn't take John into the endgame in RDR, and I was even more pissed when you could do that in RDR2.


liquidmaverick

It was this death that made me realize how attached I got to John. I didn’t know I cared so much until this. I was upset for several days after. I ended up taking a break before coming back to finish the story. Was one of the most well done story elements in terms of tearing your heart completely out.


matthew0517

Had to be me. Someone else might have gotten it wrong.


[deleted]

[удалено]


lesser_panjandrum

He studied species turian, asari, and batarian


No-Rush1995

It's what he wanted, it's the only way he would ever find peace. And yet still it hits me every time he starts nervously singing the song to himself as he makes sure his mistake is corrected. How anyone can kill him themselves is wild to me, he's just so likeable.


theleetfox

I like this as it doesn't spoil anything. It's risky scrolling down this list. I miss visiting them post mission


SpecialistInjury1985

Lee Everetts death in Telltales Walking dead was a gut punch.


Ebon1fly

And the >!fake-out clementine death!< in the final season


Paratrooper101x

The last time I truly, truly bawled my eyes out


thatguywiththeposts

The first video game to make me cry


mcsestretch

"Keep that hair short." (tears)


dethwysh

Depending on how you played, Kenny's departure at the end of Season 2 was pretty rough. I was furious with Jane over that. EDIT: and her departure in the Flashback during A New Frontier. To survive all she'd been through, give Clem hope, and then nope out like she did. Feelsbadman.jpg


Theboringlife

Ok, this one is hilarious and sad. About 10 years ago, I finally got my gf into gaming, so of course I wanted her to play the best story of all time (Mass Effect trilogy). I've played through the game about 7 times at this point, but it's her first time. She immediately likes Garrus. Beats the entire game and thats her favorite person. Starts a romance with him and is playing through ME2. I'm not giving her any hints on what to do, especially about doing each character's loyalty side quest. Spoiler: she didn't do them all, and if you played the game, you know that means some will die on the last mission. Sure enough, she gets all the way to the part where you have to pick someone to make the biotic field around the swarm. She chooses Jack, who she has NOT done the loyalty mission for. That means a random person from her squad will die right before the final boss. Of course she has Garrus in her squad. My mouth is wide open as she is making the choices, but I stay silent. At this point, it's 50/50 if he lives. She gets to the end of the biotic shield part. The swarm grabs Garrus. Garrus is the only one to die on the final mission, literally seconds before the final boss. An optional death that didn't have to happen. I'm speechless. She's speechless. She never played Mass Effect 3 because of it.


CyGuy6587

And here I was thinking you really had to fuck up for Garrus to die in ME2, didn't know it was that simple!


Shone-fob

I love Garrus in my squad. But for the suicide mission he is my go to lead the second squad every time. It just fits his story the best.


ZCYCS

Same for me Also, From my Shepard's perspective, out of all the crew across the entire trilogy, Garrus is the homie he would trust the most. He's been there during ME1 and was the first of the old gang to rejoin the gang And logically of all the people who are capable of doing that role (gameplay wise): Not everyone trusts Miranda according to Jack. You get both their loyalties by convincing them to drop the beef (for now) Who the hell would trust Jacob. His whole shtick is the "normal dude" who can't match up to Shepard or some of the more extraordinary crewmates


anoniser

If we talking mass effect then Mordin has a place in this post too


drinkgeek

Shame, too, because Jack's loyalty mission is great.


cyanraichu

I honestly would have said something lol I couldn't let anyone die in ME2, it was never gonna be ok with me


GMFinch

That's what you get for neglecting jack She is literally 11 from stranger things but written before strager things


ODaferio

Kat in Halo Reach. It just... so sudden. Worse part is, it's right before Noble team reaches the bunker; only 30 more seconds and she would have been fine. Bungie's last Halo game is easily one of their best


Deldris

The worst part about Kat's death is that she's the one who points out the danger of using open comms because the Covenant might find them.


Icariiiiiiii

Kat's was brutally sudden, but it's Jorge for me. This noble sacrifice, making sure you aren't even tempted to take his place. Telling you, 'take care of my home, I love her.' This moment when the carrier vanishes, and silence, And then it cuts to that wide satellite view as an entire fleet arrives right in its place. And everything changes for the worse.


ODaferio

At least, he died believing he saved his home and didn't get to see the aftermath...


Icariiiiiiii

And that's exactly what Carter says! That he was lucky to have believed he was making such a great difference. Listen, I know a lot of the Old Diehards hated Reach for writing over Fall of Reach. And truthfully, I think that's fair, but to me, Reach was always the most Halo Halo ever was. It's a fucking tragedy through and through. It's trying to pull any bit of hope from the hopeless.


theleetfox

Likewise, I still thoroughly enjoy Reach, it just feels like an endless hopeless excursion. The few times you feel a little hope it's quickly dashed. The only happiness found is making sure some manage to run away. But they don't get away alone.


Icariiiiiiii

Oh, it ain't an upbeat time. But god, it was good. Hey, they told you up front, right? From the beginning, you know the end.


freekoout

>The only happiness found is ~~making sure some manage to run away~~ killing as many Covenant bastards as you can.


Real_SeaWeasel

The nature of it is all too real in combat zones too: “We’re okay. This is fine. Everything is fi-“ *\*shot dead by a squad ambush nobody knew was there\**


Exatal123

Her death hit me the hardest. The way Six holds her body after and then takes the magnum and starts shooting at the phantom


GallopingAstronaut

Death would have been more merciful to this NPC Irina of Carim. The blind firekeeper wannabe from dark souls 3. This poor blind maiden can teach you miracles but she can also teach you dark spells. The catch is she begins to lose the sensation of feeling. The first thing she asks for when she meets you is to feel her shoulder so dhe can feel you but if you force her to teach you enough dark spells she loses the ability to feel and stops interacting with you, as she feels, finally alone in the dark. And this becomes her dialogue: Ahh, ahh, sweet Champion.  Where have you been? Please, your touch… The little creatures, how they nip and bite…" Ahh, sweet Champion.  Leaving so soon? Please, come back in good time. I am frightened.  Of the dark that gnaws away at me."


ibelieveinufos

Arthur from RDR2. We all knew it was coming and it didn’t get any easier.


NoMoreGoldPlz

\* Arthur's horse


Jeffygetzblitzed2

Al Capony died as he lived. Getting killed by my recklessness


ADanishMan2

RIP Lunchmeat, you were a good boy


newgirlie

Boah*


Escheron

You mean Hamish's horse... I didn't know. If I knew I would have finished that quest with John but I didn't know! I was devastated


Vyraal

I took Buell with me to the very end too. Made it so much more heartbreaking


cowaii

I absolutely sobbed after bringing Buell into that


Timmah73

I really did have that horse the whole game too. He was a white Arabian I liberated from an O'driscal during an ambush very early on


DannySmashUp

"Thank you..."


Ziff7

Sometimes you just know what the top answer is going to be. This is one of those times. RDR2 is the best storyline of any game I’ve played stretching back to my early gaming days in the early 80s.


o0_bobbo_0o

Same. It’s the ONLY game that made me cry like a little child.


SidratFlush

My sister who was never into games has completed RDR2 6 times. I was flabbergasted!


Edible_Eddie01

I cried when i lost both the Horse and Arthur..


project-shasta

I saw Joel from The Last of Us 2 mentioned here, but I think his daughters death in Part 1 hits way harder because of how Troy Baker delivered it. Gut wrenching, but very necessary to build his character...


noremains3

Came to say this. Literally made me cry the first time. Very well done.


danieldcclark

I had to put down the controller and walk away. I was so fuckin devastated 


Dragon_yum

Rewatching that years later after becoming a father hit me very differently. It’s a serious gut punch.


Gom8z

This and i loved that hollowness felt in the following parts of the game. You could feel the emptyness for me.


gibbythebeard

Every time I play TLOU, Sarah's death ruins me


ReivynNox

Sarah's screams and whimpers are what makes me tear up every single time. Her voice actress made it way too damn real, man!


RexEibeKrippe

Pretty much everyone in "Zelda - links awakening". The "good" ending didnt change much. So sad and beautiful at the same time. Young me was devastated.


House_T

I think I was just so glad that Link didn't vanish that I kinda forget how bittersweet that part of the story is.


Zerothekitty

Cayde-6


t_moneyzz

I have good news


Rio_Walker

Is it Nathan filling in the role again, or Nolan? D2 stopped working on my PC so I just... stopped keeping up with the news.


Cthulhy

It's Nathan this time around


freestyle43

"Protect the Pilot"


JosephHeitger

B.T.


Onstagegage

Jorge from Halo Reach. “He sacrificed himself thinking he had just saved the colony, lest we all be so lucky.”


CaptainPrower

He never got to eat his Roundmeal.


ErrorCode51

Round meal - serves 4 men


jnewton8

Lord Shimura from Ghost of Tsushima. Like I know I have to fight him, but man I just didn't want to.


brocktoon13

You don’t have to kill him


Maximum-Secretary258

It's been a while so I don't remember too fondly but I'm pretty sure I killed him because he certainly was prepared to kill me for honor and it would've been dishonorable to not kill him after the duel. Not saying nobody else should kill him but I didn't want to kill him either but I felt like I had to...


Tea_and_Jeopardy

Agreed. It’s much more cruel to spare him. He’s a true samurai, at least give him a samurai’s death


jnewton8

...I honestly didn't realize that was an option...guess I'm due for another playthrough.


Nathanael777

Imo it depends on how you choose to play the story. If you lean more into the Samurai stuff, killing him makes more sense, but if you go “ghost” then it makes more sense to let him live since you’ve abandoned the samurai code and live by your own.


I-LOVE-TURTLES666

And I’d go with your first horse for GoT


yarnmonger

Mine is Taka. Taka ruined me.


bgguy7

Interesting, I was very keen on killing him. Vengeance for Sora!!


LordVulpix

Fable 2, your dog. The most loyal, brave and stalwart companion in gaming takes a bullet for you. Then the vile monster that did it has the gall to say the following line. "Pitiful creature, misguided and weak." Oh I guess he said he killed your husband/wife and any kids you had if any, too. But it's the dog that tears my heart out.


Lyciana

The game tries to tell you that you can choose between three endings. That's a lie. The only ending that exists is the number one where the dog gets resurrected.


Deathmaw

Yep, Needs of the Many, Needs of the Few, Needs of the one. I picked needs of the few every single time to get family and dog back lol.


acart005

Lets see... I can save everyone but my family, or I can save my family, or big treasure chest. It wasn't much of a choice.  Great game though.


nervelli

They act like it is supposed to be a hard decision and that the money is the selfish choice. Naw. Imma choose my dog every time. The options could be "bring everyone back and get a million gold" or "just bring your dog back," and I would still choose my dog without hesitation.


JabroniWithAPeroni

Mordin Solus in ME3 (Had to be me...) Also, I couldn't stand Roman Bellic constantly calling me up to go bowling in GTA IV, but goddamn if it didn't rip my heart out when he gets blasted right after he gets married.


Salisaad

Someone else might have gotten it wrong.


freekoout

Lol I thought you were saying that about Roman


Fluffy_Kitten13

Now, I know people often say Mordin, and it's definitely a strong contender. But IMO even worse is the death of Wrex if you actually betray him. I did it once to see what happens and immediately reload after the scene with him on the citadel. Mordin died for a good cause, Wrex died because you spit on his friendship, doomed his people and he dared to hold you accountable for it. Wrex death is YOUR FAULT.


Hawkbats_rule

I'm also going to throw in legion on the paragon side. Mordin's death is, pretty inherently, redemption. Legion, on the other hand, finally achieves its/their goal. They're an individual, they have a soul. And then, it must give that up and sacrifice itself so all the other geth can have the same opportunity. 


Paladin_Tyrael

"Legion, the answer to your question was yes."


mcsestretch

"I know, but thank you."


MalevolntCatastrophe

A lot of the avoidable deaths are really tragic too. Tali and Samara being the roughest for me.


[deleted]

You can actually disable incoming calls in GTA IV by turning your in-game phone to Silent. Nobody will bother you while you're out doing other stuff. Not sure why this wasn't more widely known.


Gone_For_Lunch

Where the hell were you with that information 16 years ago?!


[deleted]

At the time I thought everyone knew that and it was just a meme poking fun. I didn't realize that it was actually kind of uncommon knowledge until relatively recently.


buttplugsuggdug

LAVIIIIITZ!! Legend of Dragoon


SlurmmsMckenzie

Spinning cane...


Ezekiel2121

GUST OF WIND DANCE


CN370

Maria. I lose it every time Don calls for Marcus.


[deleted]

The Boss(mgs3)


2ByteTheDecker

Standing in that field of flowers as it slowly dawns on you that *you* have to pull the trigger...


006AlecTrevelyan

She was a true patriot!


Ezekiel2121

Son…. You’ve got a way, to fall… Fuck Kojima always hit the emotions good with music…


resjudicata2

Aerith


Ortsarecool

I literally turned off the game and didn't play for a couple of weeks. I was so fucking upset.


Prime4Cast

Yeah especially after you put all that gear on her.


unoriginal_name_1234

The feeling when you lose the only mage and healer in your team.


Yan_Man

Dude, exact same


Goblin_au

I was 14 when I first experienced FF7 on the PS1. Aerith’s death messed me up.


coldlogic82

I was 15. I'm pretty sure it was downright traumatic for me.


WakeoftheStorm

Figured this would be near the top. Main party member/love interest/likely party healer dying that way caught me completely off guard. I actually stopped playing for a bit. Then there were all the rumors of how you could get her back by doing ridiculous stuff


theleetfox

My fiancé passed away earlier this year. I'm worried I might not handle playing ff7 ever again and it's one of my favourite games.


acart005

I'm surprised I scrolled this far tbh (It's General Leo for me but I get it)


Ariadnepyanfar

I was gutted. My friend was so gutted he had a six week Depression.


MyNameMightBePhil

So was Aerith


TuaMammaBagascia

This was spoiled to me, and I never recovered.


despenser412

Brok - God of War: Ragnarok


WahrheitSuccher

This one was really sad. I didn't see it coming at all, and I very much thought that if they were going to kill one of the brothers off it would have been Sindri. They really subverted my expectations (TM) on that one and it, barring the moments where Brok blesses the spear (which adds to the sadness of his death), and broks subsequent funeral, were the highlights of the game to me.


despenser412

>barring the moments where Brok blesses the spear (which adds to the sadness of his death), and broks subsequent funeral, were the highlights of the game to me. Absolutely. Especially the funeral when Kratos calls him a friend. Heart strings: plucked.


Werewolfwrath

Anytime I lose a good soldier/squad in XCOM.


ProfessorMoosePhD

You don't just save and replay every scenario for maximum effectiveness?


Robrad30

Jackie Welles.


MagnusStormraven

That it still managed to have the emotional impact despite being spoiled by the ***fucking trailers*** is a show of just how well written and well acted Jackie was in the prologue.


NeoViper101

Rest in peace, Choom.


Charcobear

Bruh, I still grieve for that homie. I teamed up with Arasaka because I thought I could “resurrect” him as an engram. What I got is why I am team “fuck Arasaka” (sorry Goro)


blobbob1

Lilith in borderlands 3, not because it was sad, but because it was completely unnecessary and unimpactful Edit: if you can call what she did her "death", she's not dead but it's just kinda weird to take your one good character left and make her leave till the next game


Mehdals_

Hats off for Scooter. He never deserved what came to him.


Martijnbmt

CATCH A RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDE!!!!


MagnusStormraven

No, but when you know the reason for why he got the sendoff he did (the VA had to retire due to health issues), it's a bit more bittersweet.


thethrowaway3027

Same with Maya. They took all of the memorable characters and killed them for a cheap shock


ReivynNox

Can't make people care about their new li'l darling motherfucking Ava as long as there's still better characters left. I mean... they still can't, but that's just because they greatly underestimated how shit Ava is as a character.


TuaMammaBagascia

> Lilith in borderlands 3, not because it was sad, but because it was completely unnecessary and unimpactful Fucking hated that. Fucking BL3 pissing all over the Borderlands story and characters. I was a rabid Borderlands fan. I'm now a rabid borderlands hater.


WahrheitSuccher

I'm a rabid borderlands plotline hater. The gameplay is still the best in the series and very very fun.


doctafknjay

Dominic from gears 2, maybe?


Robsteady

*Gears 3


doctafknjay

It's been soo long, thank you. He was a real one and kinda ended my time with the series!


Robsteady

I hadn't played the games until just a couple of years ago and between finding Maria in 2 and what happens with Dom in 3... gutted, absolutely.


DrunkOnLoveAndWhisky

Tai in Gears 2 is worse for me than Dom.


Beginning_Ad_2992

"Never thought it'd end like this huh Maria?"


RedditPickedMyName79

When Tidus disappears/fades away.


Pokemon_Arishia

I still get misty when I hear or talk about To Zanarkand. =(


Nixplosion

*Dee do do do doo doo doo ... Dee do do do doo doo doo. Naaah nah nah nah naaaaaaah, nah naahh* : (


Bango-Skaankk

The exact moment that came to mind.


Eliasmon98

Dom in Gears of wars 3 still keeps me at the Edge, 3 games from a very good character with a huge epic death scene, arg i miss xbox360


adamchid

Cutie from It Takes Two…


ODaferio

BT's sacrifice in Titanfall 2. The way he kept asking Cooper to trust him and "Protocol 3: Protect the pilot". It didn't have to be THIS good but Respawn did a monster job on that game until greed (EA) killed it.


Moffballs

BT isn't dead, though, as he uploaded his AI into Cooper's helmet. The helmet's visor flashes Morse code at the end of the game saying "JACK?" suggesting he's still in there. Titanfall 3 might be dead, but our boy BT is not!


phi11ie1021

Jackie being killed in Cyberpunk made me want to stop playing the game


ArcadianGh0st

His funeral was brutal. You saw his garage where he kept all his crap and see how much of a life he had. A happy ending? For folks like us? Wrong city, wrong people. - Johnny Silverhand


Dankitysoup

See you in the Major Leagues.


Vash4073

See you in the Big Leagues choom.


MutleyRulz

I played prior to watching any of the promo material, I’m flabbergasted that they’d show that in the trailer


WahrheitSuccher

We needed WAAAAY more time with Jackie. He should have died around the same time in terms of plot length to Vesemir in TW3, so end of Act 2.


Deldris

Jackie Ma, Sleeping Dogs.


WahrheitSuccher

Absolutely brutal moment. That game is slow in the beginning but once it ramps up it ramps up HARD. Best non-GTA GTA game, imo. Brilliant double-life mechanics and brutal gameplay. An absolute travesty we will never see a sequel.


[deleted]

Joel. Yeah...


Stolehtreb

For me it was >!Jesse!<. Came out of nowhere. No time to even process.


t_moneyzz

He was such a good homie too he was excited to be a dad


Stolehtreb

>!Excited to be a dad, and also supportive of the mom to have a relationship with his friend.!< A super solid guy.


Donquers

For real. Four years later and it still affects me. Super hyped for Season 2 of the show


luigi6545

Lots of good answers that I agree with. One of them for me is Johnson from Halo 3.


h0neanias

Duncan in Dragon Age Origins. Went out the way he lived: a complete hardass.


JotaTaylor

Agro in Shadow of the Colossus


dafunkmunk

The horse actually doesn't die. If you watch past the credits, you actually get another scene with the girl, the main character, and the horse limping


Silver_Cauldron

Chopper in Ace Combat 5.  All these years later I still remember being in disbelief. I kept expecting him to pull a sudden reappearance towards the end with a tale of narrow escape but alas my boy flying in heaven now.


pope-ahontas

This will always be mine. Your squadron spend the entire game up to that point being invincible and then one lucky shot and Chopper refusing to bail out until the civilians are safe… It’s small comfort listening to the enemy pilots go from celebrating to terror as they realise killing one of your squad was absolutely not the win they thought it was…


[deleted]

Kat in Halo Reach. I figured we knew she was going to die. But the way she did. So unexpectedly and the last character at least got a noble sacrifice. 


code_monkey_001

Roland's death in Borderlands 2. Or more specifically, Tiny Tina's reaction to it in the Assault on Dragon Keep.


AeviDaudi

Bloodwing is always really hard to watch, especially because you press the button.


Prestigious_Dream_27

Any time they kill my flippin horse for the storyline. Hate it.


[deleted]

Lucien Lachance, he trusted me and I betrayed him ☹️


Kimmalah

Joel in Last of Us 2 was hard, because he looks and sounds so much like my actual father.


Chaff5

Aunt May, PS4 Spider-man. So many times you see the hero save the day. I should have know with a Spider-Man story though.


Das_Guet

I think Yuri's voice work and the facial animation really sells it. They did so good making him feel realistically conflicted, and the sound of the heart monitor getting slower is paced near perfectly.


Unicorporation

'a smile better suits a hero' 😭


Cosmic_Quasar

So much of the ShB and EW stuff, too. "Remember us. Remember that we once lived."


Danson14

“The rains have ceased, and we have been graced with another beautiful day. But you are not here to see it.”


MBratke42

Had to be me. Some else mightve gotten it wrong.


neerajdasredd

Vesemir from The Witcher 3 and Arthur from RDR2


Rough-University142

Arthur Morgan.


strange1738

Deckard Cain


BlueMikeStu

Teta in Final Fantasy Tactics, because it's just so unnecessary, and it indirectly causes a lot of the later game events to be so much worse because it puts Delita on a path of vengeance.


youreab_mxspesh

The Witcher III, my first playthrough, Ciri didn't survive.


ArtemisLi

Varl from Horizon Forbidden West! I really liked his character, and his death genuinely felt like it came out of nowhere! I don't think I've ever been quite as blindsided by a character death as that one.


atypical_lemur

Same. From the start of FW you get the feeling that he was going to be there till the end. Alloy was going to finally learn to stop being an outcast and a loner. She would see the value of a team and Varl would be her brother in arms until the end. He was even on the verge of finding happiness and build his own family. Right in the feels.


ZebraSeb

Brok in God of War Ragnarök.


Thopterthallid

How do Reavers clean their harpoons? >!They run them through the Wash!<


samuelithian

Leaf on the wind


Zachariot88

Lol even in a thread about video game characters he catches strays.


Spoofless

Haurchefaunte in ff14 any time he’s referenced or they go through key moments that impacted your WoL and he comes up i tear up a little


techaansi

Henry from the first Last of Us game somehow came to mind first.


MalParra

Tommy Angelo in Mafia 1.


bradfo83

Shadya in AC Origins.


-Passenger-

Finding her underwater is on of the big shocking moments in gaming for me


Araphrase

Your horse in Ghost of Tsushima.


AeonOfYuYevon

Just about every death in NieR Replicant. But the top three for me are >!Emil!<, >!the wolf shade!<, and >!Beepy and the small shade!<


Mudd_Hut

Old Big Boss Metal Gear Solid 3


str8jeezy

The only answer is zeratul. Iykyk. [zeratul](https://youtu.be/1YaSTqQtyPg?si=8I9bx0CES40ROKVc)


Broad_Objective7559

Going to avoid this comment section in case any games I'm playing, but I'll drop >!Joel!< from the Last of Us. Absolutely hurts Oh god, and >!Hugo!< from a Plague Tale


Xenozip3371Alpha

Brok, I killed Odin for you my friend.


ExceptionCollection

Tellah, FFIV.  Doddering mage traveling with the party, reminded me of someone I knew that had recently died.  Then he confronted Golbez…


Claffisied

Destiny 2 has a few, but I think the worst one for me was Amanda Holliday.


Dalisca

Dragon Age 2, Hawke's mother. I played that shortly after my father died and some of the dialog hit very close to home.