Best 'fall to the Dark Side' in a game?

[Ivan the Terrible]

*SLIGHT SPOILERS, OBVIOUSLY!*

 

 

Ever since games have had reasonably coherent plotlines, there have been good characters who, for one reason or another, 'go bad' and join the villain. This has been used as a shocker so many times, and often so improbably, that it's lost much of it's impact.

 

Nevertheless, it can still be done well, if the writers are good and the situation is handled well. I didn't see Yoshimo's betrayal coming in BG2 until he started flagrantly blowing his cover on the Pirate Isle, and (while anyone could see it coming a mile away after she was ditched on Tarsonis) I definetely enjoyed the transformed Kerrigan of Starcraft, in all her ruthless ultra-violence.

 

By contrast, the contrived nonsense of the NWN 'betrayal' of Aribeth was beyond pathetic, and Bastila's fall was pretty weak, too.

 

Anyone have any favorites? Keep in mind the issue is less the character, and more the way the actual fall was handled in the story.

[Tanuvein]

I'd have to say the old guy (Grumpo?) from Anachranox... because it actually was shocking, and it suddenly made a few things clear.

 

Its terribly sad that the second half of the story will never be released.

 

I weep

[Spider]

Fairly recent, but The Alchemiss' fall in Freedom Force vs The 3rd Reich was kinda cool. I usually hate plotlines that involve characters turning on me, but in that game it didn't feel as out of place.

[Llyranor]

I'd have to say the old guy (Grumpo?) from Anachranox... because it actually was shocking, and it suddenly made a few things clear.

 

Its terribly sad that the second half of the story will never be released.

 

I weep 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

;_;

[Jumjalum]

Argh I shouldn't have read this spoiler-filled thread! My eyes!

[Zero]

This will sound lame as f#$k, but I'm going to go with Sephiroth (from FF7).

 

When you get to party with him; he just seems to kicks ass and he comes across as a nice guy. To put it blunty hes kind of a king among men; than he realizes what he is (or how he was created) and everything goes to hell. His abilities , his disposition, mean nothing as he is nothing like all those around him (so the rules that apply to them no longer apply). Basically any meaning has been sapped from his life along with his humanity. The implications this has for the protagonist is obviously quite serious if you played the game.

 

To be fair I was a screwed up 14 year old when I played this in 1997, and I haven't played it since. So I may have read a lot of this into the game.. and seeing how SquareSoft's primary focus seems to be on creating the prettiest pretty boy in the world above all else ; this may be the case. Its hard to tell :ph34r:

[Ivan the Terrible]

This will sound lame as f#$k, but I'm going to go with Sephiroth (from FF7).

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Even if it's not one of my faves, I don't think it's lame, either. I remember really liking the guy when I first met him.

 

BTW, my own choice will probably be considered lame, too:

 

I really liked the fall of Prince Arthas in Warcraft III. Seriously. Say what you like about the game itself, but there were no cop-outs with Arthas.

 

*DETAILED SPOILERS AHEAD, IF YOU EVER PLAN TO PLAY WARCRAFT III!*

 

 

 

 

 

He starts out a sort of Paladin super-hero, helping children and saving villagers from rampaging Orcs and bloodthirsty Undead. As the Human campaign progresses, he shows impatience....but crap, which epic hero isn't headstrong and defiant of the system?

 

Then, the situation deteriorates. He gets to Strahnbrad and, seeing the townspeople infected and on the verge of becoming Undead, he orders the city burned and it's people slaughtered. His allies balk and abandon him....and I couldn't help but sympathize with him. Faced with a hard situation, he was taking the only option open to him, no matter how horrific it may have seemed. If you could prevent a plague from spreading and wiping out countless cities and towns by burning one city, wouldn't you? Uther and Jaina ran away from their responsibilites without the slightest attempt at an alternative solution, while Arthas hardened his heart and did what had to be done.

 

So he goes to Northrend to hunt Mal'Ganis with my sympathies for him intact. When the King tries to recall his troops at Uther's request, he proceeds to burn the ships they arrived on to prevent his forces from abandoning the mission; harsh, but nowhere near as harsh as hiring mercenaries to help him, and then blaming those same mercenaries for the destruction of the ships when his men stumble across them. Arthas betrays his mercenaries and helps massacre them, all the while lying to his men and showing not the slightest sign of guilt.

 

By this point, I get it entirely: Arthas is becoming a downright evil bastard. His murder of Muradin, and finally taking up Frostmourne, are only icing on the cake.

 

I love this for several reasons:

 

1) Unlike most 'slides' into the Dark Side, this one was comprehensible. It happened, not because Arthas suddenly decided he wanted to 'be evil', but for the same reason it happens so often in the real world; a good cause pursued with increasingly ruthless and questionable tactics, all with the aim of a greater good emerging out of the momentary evil. By the end, as with so many self-righteous people, you could no longer tell where Arthas' petty bruised ego ended and the genuine desire to defend the Kingdom began; in the name of the latter, he seemed to really be desperately trying to soothe the former, even at the cost of his men's lives and his own soul.

 

2) The blame is never misplaced. Kerrigan in Starcraft was still good when Mengsk betrayed her; in effect, she became evil and never regretted it, but it wasn't really her fault. Whatever the magic sword may do to him at the end of the first campaign, everything here is Arthas' fault, brought on him by his own stubborn arrogance and stupidity. After so many other game betrayals in which everyone is at fault but the betrayer, it felt good to see a story which didn't flinch in assigning blame, and yet still won a measure of sympathy.

 

3) Once he fell, he never looked back. There was no Darth Vader 'oh no what have I become' moment for Arthas. Every time we see him after, he seems to be positively enthralled with his new role as a Death Knight and the destroyer of his own kingdom; in fact, the first we see of him as a Death Knight is his strolling into the throne room and almost gleefully running his father through. Redemption is a cliche almost as overdone as betrayal; I like it when a company takes a chance and let's a character actually enjoy his evil actions instead of waiting for someone to save them.

[Tanuvein]

I hated Arthas, but I do agree his fall was well done. But there's no guarantee he won't try and redeem himself whenever Warcraft IV comes around.

 

I also like how they handled Illidain: The good guys hate him and say he's evil, but he's probably the most direct and good of them all. He rocks.

[Ivan the Terrible]

I hated Arthas, but I do agree his fall was well done. But there's no guarantee he won't try and redeem himself whenever Warcraft IV comes around.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Probably unlikely.

 

 

There is no Arthas to redeem anymore; there's only a sort of Ner'zhul/Arthas hybrid, the newly freed Lich King.

 

[Tanuvein]

I hated Arthas, but I do agree his fall was well done. But there's no guarantee he won't try and redeem himself whenever Warcraft IV comes around.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Probably unlikely.

 

 

There is no Arthas to redeem anymore; there's only a sort of Ner'zhul/Arthas hybrid, the newly freed Lich King.

 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I know, that's what would make it so bad.

 

"I will defeat the evil will inside of me and become good again! Yay for goodness!"

 

I don't think it will happen though, either.

[Niten_Ryu]

I really liked Prince Uther in Disciples 2. That brat was complite bastard.

 

Lance Vance from GTA: Vice City. Just like in the 80's.

[Gorth]

I really liked Prince Uther in Disciples 2. That brat was complite bastard.

[roshan]

Although it didnt take place during the game and was part of the backstory, Trias from PST was quite well done also.

[Jedi Valius]

In Warcraft III, that Night Elf daemonhunter from the Night Elf campaign. The way he had to become dark in order to destroy the big daemon guy. He did this willingly and become a daemon though he couldnt return to his people and though his intentions were good, he had still fallen into darkness (definitely in his peoples' view).

 

That was a classic dramatic scene.

[SteveThaiBinh]

I liked Virgil falling to the dark side in Arcanum, after you slaughtered an entire town (still the most evil thing I've ever done in a computer game).

 

He had a great back story, and his fall back into evil was completely in character. It also shows how influencing your NPCs' alignment can be a natural thing, and doesn't require an explanation like 'force bonds'.

[Ivan the Terrible]

In Warcraft III, that Night Elf daemonhunter from the Night Elf campaign.  The way he had to become dark in order to destroy the big daemon guy.  He did this willingly and become a daemon though he couldnt return to his people and though his intentions were good, he had still fallen into darkness (definitely in his peoples' view).

 

That was a classic dramatic scene.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Illidan disappointed me in the expansion pack, though. He became a daemon to help kill Tichondrius and destroy the Burning Legion in the original game....and now he's willing to make a pact right out of the blue with Kil'jaeden and join them? Talk about sketchy motives.

 

He, along with the Blood Elves and the Naga, seemed to be rather poorly thought out.....despite the major role they all played.

[Blarghagh]

It's not like he had a choice, though. They nearly destroyed the world in a last ditch effort to kill Archimonde. Kil'jaeden is equel or stronger to Archimonde at least, and somehow he doesn't seem like someone who takes 'no' for an answer. I mean, what happened when Ner'Zuhl gave him a no for an answer? He peeled his flesh off and encased his spirit in a piece of ice. Besides, their goals are compatible. If the undead took over the world, Illidan's fall would have been for nothing.

[Berserk]

This will sound lame as f#$k, but I'm going to go with Sephiroth (from FF7).

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Even if it's not one of my faves, I don't think it's lame, either. I remember really liking the guy when I first met him.

 

BTW, my own choice will probably be considered lame, too:

 

I really liked the fall of Prince Arthas in Warcraft III. Seriously. Say what you like about the game itself, but there were no cop-outs with Arthas.

 

*DETAILED SPOILERS AHEAD, IF YOU EVER PLAN TO PLAY WARCRAFT III!*

 

 

 

 

 

He starts out a sort of Paladin super-hero, helping children and saving villagers from rampaging Orcs and bloodthirsty Undead. As the Human campaign progresses, he shows impatience....but crap, which epic hero isn't headstrong and defiant of the system?

 

Then, the situation deteriorates. He gets to Strahnbrad and, seeing the townspeople infected and on the verge of becoming Undead, he orders the city burned and it's people slaughtered. His allies balk and abandon him....and I couldn't help but sympathize with him. Faced with a hard situation, he was taking the only option open to him, no matter how horrific it may have seemed. If you could prevent a plague from spreading and wiping out countless cities and towns by burning one city, wouldn't you? Uther and Jaina ran away from their responsibilites without the slightest attempt at an alternative solution, while Arthas hardened his heart and did what had to be done.

 

So he goes to Northrend to hunt Mal'Ganis with my sympathies for him intact. When the King tries to recall his troops at Uther's request, he proceeds to burn the ships they arrived on to prevent his forces from abandoning the mission; harsh, but nowhere near as harsh as hiring mercenaries to help him, and then blaming those same mercenaries for the destruction of the ships when his men stumble across them. Arthas betrays his mercenaries and helps massacre them, all the while lying to his men and showing not the slightest sign of guilt.

 

By this point, I get it entirely: Arthas is becoming a downright evil bastard. His murder of Muradin, and finally taking up Frostmourne, are only icing on the cake.

 

I love this for several reasons:

 

1) Unlike most 'slides' into the Dark Side, this one was comprehensible. It happened, not because Arthas suddenly decided he wanted to 'be evil', but for the same reason it happens so often in the real world; a good cause pursued with increasingly ruthless and questionable tactics, all with the aim of a greater good emerging out of the momentary evil. By the end, as with so many self-righteous people, you could no longer tell where Arthas' petty bruised ego ended and the genuine desire to defend the Kingdom began; in the name of the latter, he seemed to really be desperately trying to soothe the former, even at the cost of his men's lives and his own soul.

 

2) The blame is never misplaced. Kerrigan in Starcraft was still good when Mengsk betrayed her; in effect, she became evil and never regretted it, but it wasn't really her fault. Whatever the magic sword may do to him at the end of the first campaign, everything here is Arthas' fault, brought on him by his own stubborn arrogance and stupidity. After so many other game betrayals in which everyone is at fault but the betrayer, it felt good to see a story which didn't flinch in assigning blame, and yet still won a measure of sympathy.

 

3) Once he fell, he never looked back. There was no Darth Vader 'oh no what have I become' moment for Arthas. Every time we see him after, he seems to be positively enthralled with his new role as a Death Knight and the destroyer of his own kingdom; in fact, the first we see of him as a Death Knight is his strolling into the throne room and almost gleefully running his father through. Redemption is a cliche almost as overdone as betrayal; I like it when a company takes a chance and let's a character actually enjoy his evil actions instead of waiting for someone to save them.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Agreed, it's pretty refreshing to see a fallen Hero who's not getting second thoughts but instead embracing what he has become and enjoying it.