Emotion and games. sadness and character attachment

[entrerix]

here is a thread to list and discuss sad and emotional moments in games. or just characters you've felt really attached to. I have TONS of these, but these are a few that just popped into my head during a different discussion.

 

 

 

the most poignant was my horse in Shadow of the Colossus. I seriously almost shed a tear when the horse saved my life at the end... you know what im talking about if you've played it.

one of the saddest moments in gaming in my opinion.

 

i actually get emotionally connected to the cast of final fantasy 8 too. and Vivi in FF 9.

 

Otocan. when his sister bites the bullet and the parrot says his name and he starts freaking out and crying. oh man, i felt so sorry for him. maybe its cause im close with my little sister or something, but i definitely remember that moment as being sad as all hell. that was MGS 2 i think...

 

 

robo from chrono trigger. when he gets rejected by the other robots and they start kicking him while he lays on the ground crying "why are you doing this" dang that was heartbreaking too.

 

modron from PS:T

deionnarra from the same game

 

the town of tristram. i know it seems wierd, but when i hear the tristram theme from diablo 1, it conjures both incredible feelings of nostalgia, and a feeling of loss knowing that the town is doomed from the start.

 

my race of people in homeworld. damn, that game is epic and forlourn as all hell.

 

 

i got hundreds more i'll post em later. for now, post yours and or discuss these!

[entrerix]

more on FF8

 

by the time the game is over and im watching the final cinematic... i feel a little heartbroken that its all over. plus holy crap, the scene where squall picks rinoa up and tries to carry her piggyback all the way to that wierd country. that scene really got to me too.

 

actually that game has lots of sad and tender moments in it. its too bad the system was flawed and some of the plots holes were... big.

[Shryke]

accidentally getting Fwiffo killed in Star Control 2

[Hurlshort]

I'm playing Baldur's Gate 2 right now, and Imoen is really quite awesome. It's odd, because they didn't develop her all that much in the original, but she was with me through the whole thing, and when she gets take away it really feels like I've lost my closest friend in the game. She's also clearly broken as we move through the dungeon.

 

Going back further, Gurgi in the Black Cauldron was another close friend, and his sacrifice at the end was stunning for me.

 

Snake was my favorite merc in Jagged Alliance, and when I read the bio in JA2 that said he was killed, I was really bummed.

[Shryke]

ooh just thought of another one

 

Keldorn's epilogue in ToB

 

edit: and Cernd's too actually...

Edited September 10, 2009 by Shryke

[HoonDing]

April Ryan in TLJ is my favourite game character of all time... also the game has the most bitter-sweet ending I've ever experienced - both climactic & anti-climactic.

 

Kate Walker in Syberia, the way she changes throughout the journey culminating in the 'choice' she makes at the end... and also the ending of Syberia 2. A moment involving her & Oscar (the automaton-butler) that was supposed to be emotional didn't do anything to me, though.

 

And heck, Bobbin Threadbare meeting his mother in Loom made me cry when I was an 8-year old kid playing it as one of my first video games ever.

 

EDIT: not to forget, a certain moment in Beyond good & evil involving a ruined, empty lighthouse, Jade & her dog Woof.

Edited September 10, 2009 by virumor

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

Metal Gear Solid 3's ending. It stung. A lot.

 

Metal Gear Solid 4's ending was very touching as well.

[Niten_Ryu]

I'm playing Baldur's Gate 2 right now, and Imoen is really quite awesome. It's odd, because they didn't develop her all that much in the original

 

Bioware didn't develop any joinable characters in Baldur's Gate. It strikes you like slippery fish to see that all characters are just few lines of semi-random shouts. I did like Xzar's "Montaron... I ... I never loved you!" when the halfling dies but it's more like Warcraft then later Bioware. I re-played all Infinity engine games this summer (except Icewind Dale), but did it in wrong order. Baldur's Gate as last game was wrong move

 

Edwin / Edwina is great character and I really enjoyed Korgan too on my last run in Baldur's Gate 2. Too bad most of my Baldur's Gate character end up being just NPC in sequel. Tiax dies in Spellhold, you kill Xzar and Montaron is already dead in Harpers Base.

[Gorgon]

my race of people in homeworld. damn, that game is epic and forlourn as all hell.

The Higaran(s)

 

My favorite moment was when the Bentusi sacrificed their harbour ship to allow the fleet to escape in Cataclysm. Great voice acting, great score.

[Gorgon]

Also, how cool is this

 

[entrerix]

yeah, i don't remember any emotional connection to the original baldurs gate. the sequel had a tad for me, also in the form of imoen.

 

bioware games have never actually tied me in emotionally. torment did though.

 

 

ooh i got a new one: rescuing the captain in the flashback sniper missions of CoD 4: MW. Relying on him, and him relying on me, its the only time in a shooter where I genuinely felt connected with an npc (maybe dog in half life 2...)

[mkreku]

Argh, found this thread a minute too late it seems.

 

ANYHOW:

 

"I got a bit attached to Zo

[Gorth]

The only characters I remember feeling truly protective of were my lemmings in the game of the same name

[Tel Aviv]

I talk about it a lot, I know, but Anachronox. Sly's a heel, for sure, but his back story and how it connects to Fatima, Sera and Detta is pretty gut wrenching.

[Malcador]

I talk about it a lot, I know, but Anachronox. Sly's a heel, for sure, but his back story and how it connects to Fatima, Sera and Detta is pretty gut wrenching.

 

I agree, that was a pretty sad story. I was attached to my squad mates in Ghost Recon, remember one riflemen did an epic act of stepping out in to a road way, hitting several Russians with an M203 then picking several more off then returning to cover with me. Alas he bought it in the second last mission.

[Magnum Opus]

Most poignant emotional moment in games that I can recall was *almost embarrassed to admit it* in Ultima IX: Ascension, of all places. The farewell scene between Raven and the Avatar, just before he heads off ship on the Isle of the Avatar to confront the big red muppet.

 

Am not a proponent of romances in games but if I can consider any of them "well done", that one would be it. It was a parallel thread to the main story line, so it got as much air time as it possibly could have, and I rather liked Raven's character as well. Voice acting was quite well done with her as well. I suppose it seems like a more extended romance than it really was, because I found the rest of the game quite repetitive, but it was still the best romantic subplot I've encountered (Bioware's included). Sayin' byebye at that point was quite the wrench.... though I suppose that was due, in no small part, to the knowledge that I was also going to be bidding Britannia farewell, too. Bye to the girlfriend, bye to the world that had been the source of so many good games for so long.

 

Good moment, that one.

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

Homeworld, the scene where Kharak is burning.

Edited September 11, 2009 by WILL THE ALMIGHTY

[Slowtrain]

I must be playing the wrong games.

[Gorth]

You should try "Lemmings" (if you haven't already)

[I want teh kotor 3]

Like I said before, my Oblivion character. And Lord Zetta. Greatest character ever. Needs a sequel, in which he will sttill be the main character.

 

Also, when I'm playing SSBB, and Ike dies, I get upset. Very upset. Usually because its me...

[Hurlshort]

I must be playing the wrong games.

 

You aren't attached to any of the Jagged Alliance Mercs? Razor and Haywire always make me smile.

[Aram]

Kate Walker in Syberia, the way she changes throughout the journey culminating in the 'choice' she makes at the end... and also the ending of Syberia 2. A moment involving her & Oscar (the automaton-butler) that was supposed to be emotional didn't do anything to me, though.

The robot's death basically ruined whatever emotion I was supposed to get because, if you think about it, the guy basically makes the robot sacrifice himself for selfish reasons, the robot's last words are "i'm not really important, I'm just a robot" which is a way of thinking forced on him by this tyrant that built him and is now forcing him to die so he can wear his dismembered corpse so he can live 5 more minutes and see some elephants. It made the guy completely ****ing evil. What the hell.

[Aram]

Also the ending of the Last Express was really tragic. I'm pimping this game again go buy it.

[Monte Carlo]

BG1, Coran was my favourite NPC, I know they're not deep or anything but sometimes less is more.

 

BG2 I really liked Edwin, OK he's a pantomime villain but amusing. Admittedly, he's also an arcane howitzer, which doesn't hurt either. I also liked Minsc, I know he's a bit of a love / hate NPC for a lot of people but he made me chuckle, the whole Boo thing didn't get old for me for a long time.

 

I find myself unmoved by most of the NWN2 NPCs save Sand and Bishop.

 

In JA2 I always took Grunty along, he was cheap and his German accent was strangely comforting in an old war comic kinda way (Achtung Himmel!).

 

Currently playing Mysteries of Westgate, I'm growing on Mantides the Fallen Paladin, he's a sympathetic character.

 

Cheers

MC

[Maria Caliban]

Kate Walker in Syberia, the way she changes throughout the journey culminating in the 'choice' she makes at the end... and also the ending of Syberia 2. A moment involving her & Oscar (the automaton-butler) that was supposed to be emotional didn't do anything to me, though.

The robot's death basically ruined whatever emotion I was supposed to get because, if you think about it, the guy basically makes the robot sacrifice himself for selfish reasons, the robot's last words are "i'm not really important, I'm just a robot" which is a way of thinking forced on him by this tyrant that built him and is now forcing him to die so he can wear his dismembered corpse so he can live 5 more minutes and see some elephants. It made the guy completely ****ing evil. What the hell.

 

I think the original Syberia was better than the second in a number of ways.