Some video games induce shaky nerves and an air of unrest when the stakes are much higher, and a great game can drag you into the action. This video game-induced nervousness can often lead to mistakes when a decision flashes across the screen, or you miss a quick time event.
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Now you’ve made an irreversible error, and you have no choice but to play through the game with the consequences of your actions. Sometimes, there are moments set up to make you feel like you’ve made a mistake, but in reality, you played right into the story’s plot. These are some examples of moments like that in video games.
Spoiler warning for major choices in these games.
8Interacting With Ramsay Snow In Game Of Thrones: A Telltale Game Series
TheTelltale gameshave been some of the beststory-drivenepisodic video games in recent memory, giving you the ability to play through a story by choosing from a series of options that directly impact the game’s outcome. When the Telltale Game of Thrones game was first launched, featuring popular characters from the TV show played by the same actors, it was immediately a smash hit for fans of the show and of that genre of game.
During one of the episodes, a young Ethan Forrester must host Ramsay Snow, a prominent antagonist in the show. You choose how Ethan interacts with Ramsay, and when he threatens one of Ethan’s siblings, there is an option to come to their defense. However, this choice gets Ethan killed, and you might be left thinking you’ve made a mistake and lost one of your characters, but this is not the case. This mistake is meant to progress the plot of the game, so no matter what you do, Ethan can’t survive his meeting with Ramsay Snow.
7Listening To Roman Or Kate In GTA 4
GTA 4is one of the most popular games in the GTA series and is, in fact, one of the most successful games in its genre to date. It is set in the fictional city of Liberty City and follows Niko Bellic, a foreign mobster who comes to the city to meet with his cousin Roman in search of a better life. Towards the end of the game, when dealing with the final adversary, Niko is given two different sets of advice from Roman and Kate, so take Roman’s advice and choose peace.
You will experience a happy ending cutscene of Niko at Roman’s wedding. However, the festivities quickly turn sour as an assassin from the enemy you chose to spare crashes the wedding in an attempt to take Niko’s life, but fails and mortally wounds Roman instead. Upon a second playthrough, you will find that choosing Kate’s advice will ultimately lead to her death, so whatever choice you make is a mistake that you were meant to make.
6The Golden Butterfly Case In L.A Noire
L.A. Noireis a choice-based adventure and mystery game that puts you in the shoes of a detective, solving cases and bringing culprits to justice. During one of the missions, you must decipher who is behind the ghastly murder of a woman.
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The two main suspects are her husband, Moller, and ex-convict Rooney. There is substantial evidence to convict either of these men, but it can only be one. Whichever man you condemn will be innocent, and the real killer will be revealed later in the game. This error in judgment was meant to happen and was placed in the game to progress the plot.
5Saving Chloe And Dooming Arcadia Bay In Life Is Strange
Life is Strangeis a choice-based episodic game that sees you assume the role of Maxine Caulfield, a teenage girl who discovers that she can manipulate time and must use it to solve a mystery in her small town of Arcadia Bay with her best friend, Chloe.
During one of the episodes, Chloe is killed, and you are given the choice to go back in time and save her, which, naturally, you would. However, at the end of the game, saving Chloe is a mistake that could lead to the town’s destruction, unless you go back in time and let her die. This mistake was always meant to happen, as it plays out in the game’s most significant decision: saving Chloe or sacrificing her for the whole town.
4Infamous 2 Endgame
Infamous 2 follows Protagonist Cole MacGrath, a conduit who tries to improve his abilities to take on the main antagonist of the game, the beast. During the final mission, you learn shocking information about the beast, which sets two decisions in front of you. Cole must decide after discovering who the beast is and the motives behind his actions.
Suppose you choose to sacrifice Cole’s life and save humanity. In that case, it will lead to the deaths of all his fellow conduits, which may seem like you’ve made a mistake. Still, if you go back and play through the choice again, you’ll find that the alternate option leads to the deaths of an untold number of people. Both choices have dire consequences that further the plot of the storyline.
3Choosing A Side In Far Cry 4
TheFar Cryseries is a popular and highly loved video game series with stories that often throw you into heavy choice-based decisions that mold the plot of the story. In Far Cry 4, you are thrown into a rebel group led by two generals fighting against the king’s tyrannical rule.
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During the game, you’re given various opportunities to decide which one of the rebel leaders will get your full support and take over control of the nation after the war is done. Whatever choice you make will leave you feeling like you’ve made some mistake, as both rebel leaders have a hidden intention of becoming some sort of dictator in the nation. If you go back and pick the other option, you’ll realize there are no good options. There is only the plot.
2The Whispering Hillock Mission In The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt
The Witchergame series is popular and has garnered noteworthy success since the first game launched. While playing through the third installment of the series,The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt, you will encounter a mission with a unique choice. You must decide whether to free a spirit trapped in a tree or destroy it.
If you choose to destroy the spirit, it will lead to the unfortunate demise of some missing children, prompting you to think your choice was a mistake. However, if you go back and choose the other option, you’ll find it unlocks a different tragedy. Regardless of your choice, the plot will move forward in the wake of an unavoidable tragedy.
1Handling Lee’s Bite Wound In Telltale’s The Walking Dead
Telltale’sThe Walking Deadis one of the most popular choice-based games ever. It follows Lee and Clementine, an unlikely duo who come together following the Walker virus outbreak and form a solid father-daughter bond. During the game’s final act, Lee is separated from Clementine and bitten in the hand by a Walker during his search for her.
The game then offers you the option to chop off Lee’s hand to try to slow or stop the spread of the virus. If you choose to remove the infected arm, the outcome will be the same, and Lee will inevitably die. However, chopping off the arm is a mistake you’re meant to make, as it makes the endgame more challenging and unlocks some extra dialogue.
