Video game players try to maintain a healthy relationship with gaming as it helps with different facets of living like build relationships with other gamers and unwinding after a long week of work. As storytelling in games has evolved over the years, it has also developed more nuanced ways of narrating interesting tales and containing iconic characters. Plot points and story beats are provided by the developers to varying magnitudes- this allows the player to pay closer attention to details such as characters, new enemies, concept and art work.
Many gaming services and game QA services come into play when trying to ensure that a captivating story is told. This needs to be done while the gameplay mechanics are intact and also while introducing the player to the unique game genre’s design and layout. Specialized services such as game localization services is brought into the picture- as the process of making video games accessible on a foreign market is crucial in building a bigger fanbase.
Some of the most memorable stories in video game history featured some completely unexpected twists. Let’s look at 5 such unexpected plot twists that sends the story on a spin:
No. 5: Metal Gear Solid 2
If we want to revisit a plot that is constantly spinning out of control- we should look no further than Metal Gear Solid 2. Only a very small number of games really push artistic and creative boundaries to put across a story that is equal parts surprising and scintillating to the player. Most triple A titles choose to keep ambiguous tropes and palatable villains while Konami pushes the game’s metatextual complexities. The first and most twists is that there is a completely new playable character that replaces Solid Snake after the first two hours of gameplay.
Towards the end of the game there are a group of criminals called The Patriots who have built a weapon called the Arsenal Gear. We also learn that the big incident that inducts the new Solid Snake recruit is a training program that mould the newbie into a professional snake. Learning Colonel Campbell is an AI program through small glitches and static in the game makes it very nerve racking as we expressly find out plot points through the game’s story. The open-ended closing to the story makes the player wonder if Snake was the one that went through a simulation or themselves- which is a very interesting way of finishing any story.
No. 4: Red Dead Redemption 2
The fate that Arthur Morgan has to endure as the player goes through the game is contracting tuberculosis- which is pretty much unavoidable. This is an integral part of the story as the game acts as a prequel to the first release in the Red Dead franchise. It tells the story of an outlaw and a loan shark in the late 1800’s and how his escapades change him as a person for the better through the events of the story. In a small side mission where the player has to go around apprehend people who have been lent money, Arthur contracts the disease in a very visible way as Thomas Downes the Farmer coughs on Arthur as he thrashes him half to death.
This story beat is carried on till after the story ends through various side missions as the player has to confront and deal with the repercussions of their actions. One could go through these missions to actually put the pieces of the puzzle together and finally figure out the case of Arthur’s sickness. Rockstar wrote this game in a masterful manner where the player can figure out the twist as it’s happening or through later events in the game. This adds to the replayability of the game as a whole and adds layered nuances in the story as a whole.
Some games have great stories that get adapted into movies, read here to learn why most movie adaptations fail in recent times
No. 3: Batman: Arkham Origins
Acting as a prequel to the Arkham Games created by Rocksteady, Arkham Origins was developed by Warner Bros. The game begins at Christmas Eve as Batman apprehends Black Mask and finds out that he has hired eight deadly assassins in the criminal world to hunt down Batman for $50 million. As the events of Arkham City wraps up Joker’s story, when Origins introduced the Joker as the man behind the mask- it acted as a great surprise to me while playing. In respect with the Arkham series, it is safe to say that the story hinges on the overarching relationship between Batman and the Joker and not having the Joker appear in this one would have been a disservice. Given that fact, the story soon spirals into a kidnapping and delves into the deep and wide criminal world that Gotham City garners.
As the story comes to a close after a lot of running around and staying alive, Bane suffers amnesia after finding out Batman’s true identity. This sends the game into setting up the first game in the series as Quincy Sharp says he will lobby to reopen the premises of Arkham Asylum. Deathstroke is approached by Amanda Waller to join the Suicide Squad- who we’ll see killing the Justice League sometime next year. (read. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League)
No. 2: Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
The Uncharted series is full of plot twists and as a genre of games, is one of the most dramatically action fuelled video games to exist. Some nice details like being able to play another one of Sony’s IPs, Crash Bandicoot between Nate and Elina in their hall breaks the 3rd wall and lets the player enjoy a warm moment in their relationship.
Sam’s intentions with Drake are very ominous for most part of the game and Nate realizes later that the tale of Hector Alcazar, that Sam had been feeding Nate was a fake all along. This is done under the circumstances of Nate having to risk his marriage to save Sam and to help him find the treasure to pay off the drug lord Alcazar.
The first game introduced zombies out of all the supernatural things in the world, but A Thief’s End stuck to a more grounded form of storytelling where it has rich environments with actions of the past affecting the atmosphere of the story. Things like exploding mummies and pirates give a look at how time takes its toll on the places that Nate traverses through and gives a very realistic feeling to the overall gaming experience.
Iconic game plot twists contain iconic characters that have been long lost. Here’s our picks for Iconic video game characters who deserve a return
No. 1: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Ocarina of Time is considered one of the greatest video games of all time by numerous publications for good reason. It was not only one of the first open-world 3D rendered games in the Zelda series, but it also harboured a rich and well-told story. Link, the protagonist has a vision of a “wicked man of the desert” chasing him down the fields of Hyrule. After finding out from the Great Deku Tree that he is destined to stop this villain. Ganondorf’s goal is to conquer the world and to curse him. The player is then sent into a time bending narrative that ensues.
After getting the two elemental stones from the Gorons and the Zoras, Link sees his vision from the beginning of the game play out a little differently as Ganondorf chases Zelda and her caretaker Impa onto the fields of Hyrule. This makes Link go into the Temple of Time and wake up seven years later at the Sacred Realm as an older Link. It is explained that Link’s spirit was sealed for seven years until he could wield the “Master Sword”- the only weapon that could best the evil sorcerer. After bringing together the seven sages according to the prophecy, the evil sorcerer king of evil, Ganondorf is sealed in the Dark Realm.
Video game plot twists are a sight to behold owing to their slow burn factor and how the player gets to experience it along with the characters. This lets developers create small story moments throughout the playtime of the game that can stick with players for many years after. What games do you think have the best plot twists? Drop them down below on the comments!
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