Your Top 5 Video Game Endings

[Gman5852]

Originally Posted by DAISHI

On the Mother 3 ending, I think you're missing that Japan has a cultural stigma on nature and the damage mankind does to the planet by its very existence, owing to their experience with the atomic bomb.

so.. what?
Symbolism that mankind got what they deserved?

[Giant Tope]

Originally Posted by Gman5852

EDIT:And what is so great about Mother 3's ending?

I take it you haven't played the game.

It's not great because it's sad, though it is sad. Nor is it great because it touches the idea that mankind supposedly gets what it deserves, which it doesn't. The ending is about redemption and moving on.

It should be noted that the video that Fawful posted actually doesn't have the full ending sequence which features an actual boss battle prior to the battle sequence with Claus. The fight with Porky shows that the puppeteer of the tribulations in the game is an individual who cannot move on. Despite his advanced age through life support, he remains infantile with no regard for anyone but his own pride resorting to any possible method for attention. While this is an actual battle, it ends in a "stalemate" as he locks himself up in an indestructible capsule. But in a fit of irony, while he cannot be hurt, the capsule cannot be exited. With this, he will not nor ever will move on.

This leads to the confrontation with Claus.

For the first time in several years, Lucas finds his brother who he had presumed to be dead only to find that he had been horribly mutilated and transformed into this robot slave. In this interesting battle sequence, you are left with just Lucas and Claus. Lucas, unable to bring himself to fight, takes the hits from his brother no matter what. Despite all the things he's done, Lucas still loves his twin brother.

Hinawa, the boys' mother who was murdered towards the beginning of the game of the game, comes to comfort Claus, who was meant to be dead long ago. She asks of both of the boys to stop fighting and eventually gains the attention of Claus who, at long last, remembers who he is. He realizes that he cannot be the one to pull the needle as it would bring about the end of the world and decides in the end that his time has finally come to return to his Mother. With all the energy he had left, he strikes the final blow and sends a lightning bolt fatally through his body.

He apologizes and thanks his brother before parting.

Lucas, who had struggled with letting go of the passing of his mother throughout the entire game finally realizes that it's time. He faced the final needle, knowing that the village he had grown up, the last bastion of human life, had already been abandoned and ruined by greed, and knew it was time to move on.

As the prophesy held, the Dark Dragon reawoke and as Ionia had prophesied, the world had been cleansed and reborn by Lucas's good heart.

The world was not destroyed.

People weren't killed.

There wasn't a suicide pact.

If you were looking for an ending with giant swords and 5000 things going on at once, this isn't it. But Shigesato Itoi managed to write one of the most touching and emotional endings in video game history and I stick by that.

[Rather Dashing]

"It is said that the Force has a will, it has a destiny for us all. I wield it, but it uses us all, and that is abhorrent to me. Because I hate the Force. I hate that it seems to have a will, that it would control us to achieve some measure of balance, when countless lives are lost. But in you… I see the potential to see the Force die, to turn away from its will. And that is what pleases me. You are beautiful to me, exile. A dead spot in the Force, an emptiness in which its will might be denied."

"I use it as I would use a poison, and in the hopes of understanding it, I will learn the way to kill it. But perhaps these are the excuses of an old woman who has grown to rely on something she despises."

"You are greater than any I have ever trained. By killing me here - you have rewarded me more than you can possibly know."

[GuruGuru214]

Well, damn. I just decided to update my list with links to videos of the endings, and I re-watched them all while I did it. All were as good as I remembered, Gemini Rue even better than I remembered, but there was one thing I forgot about. At the end of the Metroid Prime 3 100% ending, there's the mystery ship that tails Samus, which may belong to Sylux. Now I'm stuck hoping for Nintendo to resolve that plot line.

[Hiroshi Mishima]

I recall disliking that little thing at the end of MP3 because it could possibly relate to a game that I absolutely hated and don't want a return to it anytime soon, but that's my personal feeling on the matter. I prefer to think of it as Dark Samus survived if only cause my sister loves that character.

However, I know that Sylux is rather popular among a lot of people who played that game. I don't see the appeal cause I thought the characters were just hollow shells with no personality or background besides what's in the manual, and further excuse to give us a lackluster single player.

...sorry, it's just that game left a bad taste in my mouth and it's a bit of a sour point for me.


To slightly change the subject, I'd love to see a follow up to the way Fusion ended. It's a shame Nintendo refuses to touch it and go down the route we're all expecting.

[GuruGuru214]

See, the reason I'd like it to be Sylux is because he (she? it?) is an empty shell of a character. I feel it would be a great way to flesh out the character to put him in a more prominent villain position, and what little information there is on him is a fantastic starting point for that.

As for Dark Samus, I feel that her story was tied too strongly to the Phazon story arc, which I feel should be over after the climax of Metroid Prime 3.

But aside from resolving the end of Metroid Prime 3, a sequel to Fusion is right at the top of my list for what I want to see in a new Metroid game, along with a Zero Mission style remake of Metroid II.

[Hiroshi Mishima]

Oh gods, no thanks on a ZM style anything. I know a lot of people seem to like that game for some reason, but I couldn't stand the faster pace, lack of floaty jumps and the change in art style.

But I suppose that's like people being used to the art style in Symphony of the Night and Aria of Sorrow and not caring for the anime style used in Dawn of Sorrow and Portrait of Ruin. Personally, I felt it fit PoR, but not DoS. They were both good games, though.

I suppose that fact that I saw MZM as a turning point in the series towards a direction I didn't care for hasn't helped it gain my love. I'm not saying you're wrong for wanting a Metroid 2 remake, I just don't think I'd like it in the MZM style.

[Davies]

Originally Posted by Rather Dashing

I believe that this photo was taken on one of Alcoremortis' bad hair days, though it was actually one of the better days for her skin!

[Alcoremortis]

Originally Posted by Davies

I believe that this photo was taken on one of Alcoremortis' bad hair days, though it was actually one of the better days for her skin!

Bad hair days? Psh. This was a good day. I mean, it's actually lying flat!

[DrRocketGenius]

5 - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
4 - Uncharted 3
3 - The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
2 - Portal 2
1 - Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door

[Hiroshi Mishima]

Oooh, yes, Thousand Year Door had an excellent ending! I've been meaning to replay that and keep forgetting. So much better than the original Paper Mario.

[Chyron8472]

My Top 5 Endings [of the games that I have finished (and listed in no particular order)]

• Tales of Symphonia
• Tales of The Abyss
• Final Fantasy VIII
• Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
• Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War

This list was really hard for me to decide upon, especially the last one.

In deciding the top 5 endings, I had to decide what "ending" means. Does it include the final boss fight and/or the sequence leading up to it? mmm... depends, but not usually. I would qualify "ending" to mean cutscenes--before, during and after the credits--which occur after the final boss fight. With that in mind...

Final Fantasy VII? Great story, but the ending is very short and gives little to no resolution about the main cast.

Tales of Monkey Island? Okay sure, it has a great post-credits sequence; good enough to warrant serious consideration. However, in retrospect the final puzzle and its lead into the following cutscene does seem a tad deus ex machina in that suddenly everything is okay.

Ocarina of Time? nah... the final cutscene isn't much more than Zelda sending Link back through time, cue NPC's partying together.

Wind Waker? No, I wanted Hyrule back. I understand the ending, and it was good. It's just not the one I wanted.

Mass Effect 1 or 2? The games are very good, but the ending cutscenes are short and don't exactly exude revelation or resolution to the overall story.

Dragon Quest VIII? mmm... the relationship between the Hero and the princess isn't exactly wrapped up entirely. The (post-Dragovian Trial) ending suggests that it is, but the player has to assume it rather than getting to watch it happen.

Skyward Sword? okay, it's a good ending, but I like Midna (from Twilight Princess) better than Fi.

King's Quest VI? Great game, great post-boss fight resolution regardless of the path taken. (The credits song is not a cutscene.) However, if I have to be objective about it, my fondness for the whole game is probably weighted heavily by nostalgia.

There are other games that I assume from playing they might have great endings, but I haven't beat them yet so I can't say for sure.

[Davies]

Originally Posted by Chyron8472

My Top 5 Endings [of the games that I have finished (and listed in no particular order)]

...[*] Final Fantasy VIII
...

I agree completely. Ever since I first completed 'Final Fantasy VIII', I've maintained that it has one of the very best endings ever seen in a video-game. I think that a large part of that is down to the magnificent closing theme by Nobuo Uematsu, played by a full orchestra. Pure sublime, wrapped in a sheet of awesomeness.

Originally Posted by Chyron8472

Tales of Monkey Island? Okay sure, it has a great post-credits sequence; good enough to warrant serious consideration. However, in retrospect the final puzzle and its lead into the following cutscene does seem a tad deus ex machina in that suddenly everything is okay.

I couldn't agree more with this. TellTale did such a fantastic job of infusing true weighty drama and character emotion within the 'Monkey Island' universe, arguably for the first ever time. TellTale essentially took all of that build up, which was established over the course of five episodes and chucked it all out of the window for a 'happily ever after' ending.

Of course it's understandable that the game needed a reasonably happy ending but surely some of the plot points raised throughout the game could have been carried over to the ending. For example wouldn't it have been more interesting if Guybrush and Elaine hadn't gotten back together at the end?

Not only would such a scenario be more interesting and thought provoking from a narrative perspective but it would probably be more in keeping with the character of Elaine as conceived by Ron Gilbert for the first two 'Monkey Island' games (particularly in regards to 'LeChuck's Revenge'). Gilbert's Elaine was a very independent and strong woman. Whilst Elaine does have feelings for Guybrush, she doesn't need him half as much as Guybrush needs her.

What if Elaine had actually willingly remained with LeChuck at the game's conclusion?. Yes it would dark and yes, it would fail to deliver a "true" conclusion to the story. Do you know another game that had such an ending? It was that piece of utter garbage that nobody likes; Monkey-Friggin'-Island 2!

As Chyron said; yes, we did get that post credits sequence but to be honest it felt fairly throw away to me. Whereas 'LeChuck's Revenge's ending was purposefully daring, upset the status quo and left fans everywhere discussing it's true meaning; the post credits ending to 'ToMI' feels as though it exists merely to say "HEY, DON'T FORGET TO BUY SEASON 2 WHEN IT COMES OUT NEXT YEAR". Yeah, that worked out real well...

[Chyron8472]

eh... I don't rank ToMI, not because it's stupid, bad, or not the ending I wanted. I don't rank it because the solution to the final puzzle leads instantly to happily ever after, with no lead into it. The pre-credits cutscene should have been longer and had more build up into being happy rather than suddenly being happy.

MI2 is neither daring nor original--it's wtf. I dislike wtf endings. I can accept cliffhangers and the hero doesn't always have to win (though I like for them to) but MI2 just leaves the player with the question "what the hell just happened??" in their minds for a long time afterward. I disapprove.

[Davies]

Originally Posted by Chyron8472

eh... I don't rank ToMI, not because it's stupid, bad, or not the ending I wanted. I don't rank it because the solution to the final puzzle leads instantly to happily ever after, with no lead into it. The pre-credits cutscene should have been longer and had more build up into being happy rather than suddenly being happy.

Well, I certainly agree with that.

Originally Posted by Chyron8472

MI2 is neither daring nor original--it's wtf. I dislike wtf endings. I can accept cliffhangers and the hero doesn't always have to win (though I like for them to) but MI2 just leaves the player with the question "what the hell just happened??" in their minds for a long time afterward. I disapprove.

This on the other hand...

Ah well, it's all horses for courses.

[DAISHI]

Originally Posted by Hiroshi Mishima

I recall disliking that little thing at the end of MP3 because it could possibly relate to a game that I absolutely hated and don't want a return to it anytime soon, but that's my personal feeling on the matter. I prefer to think of it as Dark Samus survived if only cause my sister loves that character.

However, I know that Sylux is rather popular among a lot of people who played that game. I don't see the appeal cause I thought the characters were just hollow shells with no personality or background besides what's in the manual, and further excuse to give us a lackluster single player.

...sorry, it's just that game left a bad taste in my mouth and it's a bit of a sour point for me.


To slightly change the subject, I'd love to see a follow up to the way Fusion ended. It's a shame Nintendo refuses to touch it and go down the route we're all expecting.

Sylux is no different from Bobba Fett really. Just cool factor that fans took and run with.

[DAISHI]

Originally Posted by Chyron8472

MI2 is neither daring nor original--it's wtf. I dislike wtf endings. I can accept cliffhangers and the hero doesn't always have to win (though I like for them to) but MI2 just leaves the player with the question "what the hell just happened??" in their minds for a long time afterward. I disapprove.

High five.

[KuroShiro]

To be honest, I don't usually care for video game endings. It's generally a combination of a lack of any sort of denouement, and the fact that many have open endings to make for sequel fodder. I can probably think of five that I liked though (disclaimer: I haven't played console games since the SNES, and that was more than 10 years ago, so they won't really feature on any list I make).

One game ending that I did like recently was Dragon Age: Origins. It had a fun if somewhat cliched climax, and a nice long winding-down epilogue.

I have a weak spot for the ending of King's Quest 6. Well, except for that goddawful song that plays.

Portal's ending is pretty awesome, even if it has been sort of ruined by the ubiquitous internet meme generator at this point.

Hm... the ending of Grim Fandango was very well done in my opinion. Tied up the story nicely, a bit bittersweet but appropriate.

I think my recently minted favorite video game ending of all time though is Bastion. It's really quite moving.

[Hiroshi Mishima]

Originally Posted by DAISHI

Sylux is no different from Bobba Fett really. Just cool factor that fans took and run with.

I guess? I never really saw the appeal of Bobba Fett, either. Insofar as I knew he was some bounty hunter who died in the Sarlac Pit in Return of the Jedi, and then I find out years later he was written out of the pit in a comic or a novel or something. Then he was suddenly Mr. Popular. *shrug*

[Davies]

Originally Posted by Hiroshi Mishima

I guess? I never really saw the appeal of Bobba Fett, either. Insofar as I knew he was some bounty hunter who died in the Sarlac Pit in Return of the Jedi, and then I find out years later he was written out of the pit in a comic or a novel or something. Then he was suddenly Mr. Popular. *shrug*

No no, you've got it all wrong.

Boba Fett appeared in The Empire Strikes Back (or the Holiday Special if you want to be pedantic) and following its release become a hit with the fans, simply because he looked cool and had a cool, fucked up, raspy voice for all of the two lines of dialogue he spoke!

Then Return of the Jedi was released and Boba Fett was unceremoniously disposed of in the least badass way possible; a gigantic sand vagina... eww! The fans were pissed and so Boba Fett survived (having been spat out of the gigantic sand vagina... double eww) via the expanded universe (comics, novels etc.).

So, Fett wasn't "suddenly popular" after he escaped the Sarlacc. He was "suddenly popular" after his brief appearance in Empire. However, neither reason for the popularity makes much sense; other than Boba Fett being... well, cool.

Having said all that; I haven't been a fan of Star Wars since I was a kid. I really should replace my knowledge of it with something a little more worthwhile!