Forums > Game Talk > Saddest video games that made you cry
Matt Neuteboom (976) on 2/16/2006 3:38 AM · Permalink · Report
In every game, the atmosphere is very important. It sets the mood for the game and it brings out emotion and immersion in the gamer. The atmosphere of the game is made by graphics, story, lighting, and music. Everyone loves video games, and of course they make us laugh and enjoy ourselves. However, out of all the emotions, making a gamer sad to the point where he/she cries is one of the hardest things to do in a video game. But if the game can do that, it makes it more memorable and makes it one of the most compelling video games in existence. The purpose of this topic is to make a list to find out some of the deepest games to the point where they drew out our emotions to the fullest point. Games that make us cry deserve the recognition of gamers everywhere. I will start the list, and others that follow should continue the numbered list, and lets see if we can get a full list going.
(NOTE: Please no joke games. This is a serious topic and serious list. Do not say that the game made you cry because it was awful, or because it ended. Please be serious)
-
Medal of Honor: Allied Assault- Okay, honestly, I can't even listen to this song without nearly crying. The instrumentals on this game were amazing, straight to the point where they made me cry over all the people that gave their life during WWII. The game also some of the most inspiring themes and battles, and when the game was over I skulked around for a day staring into space wondering what I was going to do with my life.
-
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater- Metal Gear Solid 3 is one of the most captivating games I have played. Its deep, its emotional, its sensitive, and it brings out every one of your emotions including fear and anger. It also has one of the saddest endings I have seen. After watching the ending, I cried, even though my brother was sitting right next to me watching me do it. I sat up in bed staring at the ceiling now that I knew it was over. For the next few days I couldn't even stand to look at my PS2. MGS3 is one of those games that does that sort of thing to you.
-
Final Fantasy VII- Its FF7. 'Nuff said.
Okay, now lets continue the list with #'s 4, 5, 6 and don't be afraid to admit you cried over a game ;-). No one is judging you here. Be open and honest and lets see if we can get a good list of games.
Unicorn Lynx (181769) on 2/16/2006 3:55 AM · Permalink · Report
Great topic, Matt :)) We musicians are usually very emotional people, so being touched and shedding tears is not an uncommon experience to us. I also cried in MGS3 and in FF7, great games, both of them. But there are games that made me cry more... or that were even more deeply tragic. I'm generally a sucker for sad games and sad endings. Let's see:
- Final Fantasy X. This one made me cry more than any other game - I mean the ending sequence. Of course, the sublime music added a lot to the feeling of deep sadness. I fought the two final bosses once again just to be able to see this ending again.
5. Xuanyuan Jian Waizhuan: Cang zhi Tao. Okay, beside being one of the best games of all times - I'm using the opportunity here to tell all of you that this is the single most powerful story ever written for a game - it is also very, very sad. It has a totally unexpected tragic ending, which comes after a fake "happy end". So of course I shed tears there. You owe it to yourself to play this masterpiece.
- Digital Devil Saga 2. This is the second, and final part of DDS sub-series. A marvelous game, but it also earns the prize for the most depressingly tragic story ever. I didn't cry there because there was almost too much tragedy. But it deserves to be in the list.
Indra was here (20752) on 2/16/2006 9:38 AM · Permalink · Report
It so doth come to the tantalizing truth that boys do cry, not because of the video game itself but due to the memories and relation that video doth represent.
- Only one for me since Final Fantasy is already on the list. Mine is the currently oldest game on the present list: LOOM. Fantasy adventure by Lucas Game. Had the longest and most touching endings I've ever played on the PC. Cried my little head off. Though suprisingly I didn't feel the same way when I played it again. Must be because of the walkthrough... hmm...just one? Thought I had more, considering I'm such a cry baby with sensitive material...
nullnullnull (1463) on 2/16/2006 3:55 AM · Permalink · Report
While I didn't cry I did get a bit choked up at the end.
Trixter (8954) on 2/16/2006 4:41 AM · Permalink · Report
I'm with Dave, Ico was definitely something to get choked up over (twice, if you stuck it out past the end credits for the real ending).
Rez -- if you lose during the final battle -- is somewhat heartbreaking.
I seem to remember a moment or two in Primal, but I might be misremembering.
I also tend to get moved if I have been adventuring with a party for a very long time (40+ hours) and one of them dies. I can remember this happening with Wasteland, for example.
Alkarion (8) on 2/16/2006 8:48 AM · Permalink · Report
Well I don't know exactly if tears formed and fell to the ground, but the scene which moved me most in all the years of gaming was from
7 Wing Commander 4. I don't think I'm very much fond of the interactive movie style in general, but Wing Commander 3&4 were brilliant. The symphonic soundtrack which was years ahead of other games contributed strongly to the athmosphere. There are very memorable scenes from Wing Commander 3, for instance the moment Tolwyn unveils the Behemoth in the briefing room. (Or the dialogue on the bridge: We're headed for Kilrah, aren't we? Well, where would you go if you had the biggest gun in the universe?!) But to come back to Wing Commander 4, there is a scene at the end after you have defeated the evil Admiral Tolwyn where you watch a newsflash showing Tolwyn's tragic end by suicide in his prison cell. The orchestra (along with chuch bells) adds all the feelings of tragic decline and voila, you have the most moving game moment I can think of.
After all those Wing Commanders (2-4) where Tolwyn had an important role, often being your bitter enemy, he simply dies. I couldn't believe it, though there was no other way for the story to end. I watched the ending over and over again in disbelief. Today, I'm still deeply moved if I hear the music of the WC 4 ending. (Which may be downloaded at wcnews.com).
Andy Voss (1861) on 2/16/2006 6:54 PM · Permalink · Report
What are we up to, 8, 9?
Unreal II - yes, probably the least appreciated of the Unreal family. I confess, I got a little choked up at the ending. Noone's playing this anymore, so screw the spoiler. Basically, your shipmates are shot down and killed before the last level, and all you have left is a recorded message where they finally say how much they appreciate you.
Matt Neuteboom (976) on 2/16/2006 8:02 PM · Permalink · Report
This is the list so far in the order they were entered into the list:
- Medal of Honor: Allied Assault
- Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
- Final Fantasy 7
- Final Fantasy X
- Xuanyuan Jian Waizhuan: Cang zhi Tao
- Digital Devil Saga 2
- LOOM
- ICO
- Rez
- Primal
- Wing Commander 4
- Grim Fandango
- Baldur's Gate
- Fallout
- Unreal II
Note: Sorry for not adding links to these games. Also please remember to NUMBER the games you add to the list.
And also, I can definitely relate to you Trixter when a party member that you;ve been with since the beginning of the game suddenly dies. Once, one of my party members died near the very end of the game. I hadn't save in over two hours, which many I had to load the game to a point 2 HOURS BACK just so he would still be alive. I was right before the very final boss too. It was a good choice though, because I get great satisfaction from saving him and beating the game with my entire party from the beginning of the game intact.
I also have to agree with Alkarion that when a villain dies, it has just the same effect. Enemies are not like the 2D enemies they seem anymore. Now games' enemies become the games main characters themselves. Killing off a powerful and deep enemy is almost as depressing as one of the main protagonists in the game. An example I have is the Japanese show Trigun. My friend let me borrow the Japanese DVD with subtitles. I spent an entire week on my computer watching all 24 episodes of it in a row. When Knives dies in the end, I cried right there. After I was done watching it, I sort of went dumbstruck for a few days because once those characters leave your life, you sort of need time to get bakc into your own universe. But yea, my point is, an enemy dying off is just as sad as a protagonist as well.
And remember, PLEASE NUMBER YOUR ENTRIES.
Zovni (10504) on 2/17/2006 2:24 AM · Permalink · Report
Wow... This thread makes me feel like one bad heavy metal mutha, as I can't think of a single game that made me shed a tear. There have been close calls I suppose, but actually crying over a videogame? No way dude. However for the sake of not being a thread-sniper let me add Out of This World to the list as number 16. Someone had to cry with the ending I guess... right? And Loom was very moody too.
Matt Neuteboom (976) on 2/17/2006 3:33 AM · Permalink · Report
", but actually crying over a videogame? No way dude."
Crying over a video game actually happens a lot. It even makes more sense. Can a movie make you cry? What abut a boo, or song? So why can't a video game? In fact, it even makes more sense if you cry over a video game than a movie. In a video game, not only do you connect with the characters but you control the characters as well. So don;t diss crying over a game just yet. ;-)
Zovni (10504) on 2/17/2006 3:50 AM · Permalink · Report
Not dissing it quite yet, in fact I hope it happens. I have cried over movies, but with a videogame... well, it just hasn't happened yet. And I did play the games listed so far.
My remarks about being a heavy metal mofo where blatantly (I think) ironic, no disrespect to anyone was meant, so let those tears flow if you want to :).
Unicorn Lynx (181769) on 2/17/2006 4:48 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Zovni wrote--] And I did play the games listed so far [/Q --end Zovni wrote--]
Really? Including Xuanyuan Jian Waizhuan: Cang zhi Tao? :-)
Matt Neuteboom (976) on 2/17/2006 5:38 AM · Permalink · Report
Trust me, Unicorn knows his Japanese/Chinese RPG's. ;-)
Unicorn Lynx (181769) on 2/17/2006 8:40 AM · Permalink · Report
I love them with passion :)) Pity most people in the West don't really know them. Because Final Fantasy or Grandia (which I don't like) don't sum up Japanese RPGs. Megaten games, for example, would please hardcore Western RPG players much more; it's a pity they are virtually unknown in the West. Maybe because in the second Shin Megami Tensei the final boss can be (depending on your decisions and alignment) Yahve, the God of Judaism and Christianity... which some might find not very "religiously correct", so to say.
As for Chinese RPGs, they have similar gameplay mechanics, but generally more intimate, less melodramatic, less "world-embracing", and either love- or politics-oriented stories, they are set in concrete Chinese historical envirnoments, and they are all released for a comfortable platform: PC. The problem is, they are all in Chinese.
D Michael (222) on 3/6/2006 4:27 PM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Unicorn Lynx wrote--]I love them with passion :)) Pity most people in the West don't really know them. Because Final Fantasy or Grandia (which I don't like) don't sum up Japanese RPGs. [/Q --end Unicorn Lynx wrote--]
I know what you mean, a hardcore fellow gaming friend of mine studied Japanese for years to learn it so he could play Japanese RPG's. This isn't the first I've heard of something like that either. Must be really good games to inspire a player to learn an entirely new language to play them.
Unicorn Lynx (181769) on 2/17/2006 8:34 AM · Permalink · Report
It is, but not the same way as for example Final Fantasy games. Chinese RPGs are much less melodramatic. They tend to be more intimate and rely less on effects. Actually this particular Chinese game would probably suit your taste much better than FFs.
Anonymous Gamer (161) on 2/19/2006 9:08 AM · Permalink · Report
Zovni,
I'm with you on this one. I don't think I've ever played a game that has made me cry. Given, I don't cry easily.. not because I'm a "heavy metal" mother like you Zovni ;-P but it's just that it takes a lot to get me to that point. Very few movies make me cry too, Saving Private Ryan being one of the exceptions, first time I saw it had me bawling at the end.
However, I will say this... many a game have given me incredible emotional moments where I can't help cry out (that's CRY OUT hehehe) in joy, spontaneously applaud for me and my character, pump my fist in the air, etc...
I've had jaw-dropping, blow-my-pants off moments (KOTOR's plot twist for example), and frustrated outburts when a favorite character dies ("No you can't kill so-and-so... they were so COOL! Noooo.)
But never to the point of tears. Perhaps if I were a more emotional person, then all these moments would have been enough to get me a little misty, but who's to say? :)
Good topic though!
Mik
nullnullnull (1463) on 2/17/2006 3:46 AM · Permalink · Report
cool avatar.
-Chris (7757) on 2/19/2006 5:12 PM · edited · Permalink · Report
I'm going along with all the FF7 lovers here, Aeris' death is heartbreaking to all but the most hard-boiled Argentinians.
The most dramatic, bleary-eyed moment that literally left me in despair was the death of Shella in Shannara. I reloaded over and over again in order to save her, to no avail - and I know that I'm not the only one...
Trixter (8954) on 2/21/2006 4:16 AM · Permalink · Report
[Q --start Matt Neuteboom wrote--]Once, one of my party members died near the very end of the game. I hadn't save in over two hours, which many I had to load the game to a point 2 HOURS BACK just so he would still be alive.
[/Q --end Matt Neuteboom wrote--]
Yeah, but it's never the same. I only restore if my entire party dies... if one or two die, then it was meant to be and I have to move on.
D Michael (222) on 3/6/2006 4:24 PM · edited · Permalink · Report
not sure about the saddest game, but there is a quest in world of warcraft where you infiltrate some temple in hopes of rescuing a kidnapped young griffon. When you find him and complete the quest, he's in a cage but dead. His mother and father fly in, hang their heads in grief and fly away together. Extremely sad, almost brought me to tears.
Unicorn Lynx (181769) on 3/7/2006 5:25 AM · Permalink · Report
What a sweet, sad story. Pretty unusual, too.