There's a lot of great craftwork that goes into creating video games. This year's standouts like Elden Ring showed that precise control and difficulty are still appealing to players. What it also shows, however, is how important the story is. While not necessary for a great game, an interesting world with plot twists can elevate a game.
This is a common topic on Reddit, and plenty of Redditors have been discussing what gaming plot twists completely blew them away. Sometimes these are big reveals, and sometimes they fall flat. Either way, beware of spoilers, as most are from endgames.
Shadow of the Colossus (2005)
Shadow of the Colossus has a classic twist nominated by Reddit user cubosh. They comment "its not a sudden twist, nor is it explicit in the game itself, but it really affected me." The game focuses on the protagonist fighting these giant monsters. Initially, it seems like it’s for good reason, but then the twist comes in.
The protagonist is guided by a godlike being to kill these monsters. They have a deal where if the protagonist kills the colossi, it will resurrect the hero’s girlfriend. As the game progresses it is subtly revealed that the colossi are not evil and are actually seals of the god's power. The twist is pretty shocking due to the player's own culpability in it.
Portal 2 (2011)
The original Portal is a game with a great plot twist already. It is, however, a twist that’s not very character-driven. The twist from Portal 2 nominated by CommanderStick on Reddit fixes that up. It’s a classic twist, being a betrayal by a close ally.
Wheatley is the player’s steadfast ally up to the game’s midpoint. While he wasn’t always useful, he didn't seem malicious. When he is plugged into GlaDOS’ mainframe, he changes suddenly. It completely swerves the game's direction, shocking players who were expecting more testing like Portal 1.
Halo: Combat Evolved (2001)
This is the rare twist in a game that actually changes the gameplay as well. "First half of the game is a shooter, you want to learn how to use Halo to win the war against the covenant," starts TireurEfficient on Reddit. "But then you discover that Halo is also a prison for the Flood, and the game takes a survival horror turn."
The Flood is one of the best villains in an FPS game. This isn’t because of their complexity, as they’re essentially just a zombie army, but because their existence shockingly changes the setting from a space opera power fantasy to a dark cosmic horror. It took lots of players off-guard back in the early 2000s.
Spec Ops: The Line (2012)
Spec Ops: The Line is one of the most harrowing first-person shooter games ever made. It's so powerful for those in the know that all Tazer2340 has to do is mention its name in its post. While even when this game was new it was considered mechanically lacking, it was its story that saw critics sing.
The game begins presenting itself as similar to other military shooters like Call of Duty. This helped set up a shocking fake-out when it ended up being a gritty military criticism. The US Military releases a bioweapon on civilians, and the protagonist is responsible for it. He spends most of the game repressing this fact but comes to realize how heartless he was in the game's shocking ending.
Danganronpa V3 (2017)
According to Redditor WillTrade4Food, "Danganronpa 3 has the most surprising twist I’ve ever seen, and it’s actually pretty close to the beginning of the game." What they’re referring to is a scene where the protagonists claim they are all normal high school students. In this series, typically students are “Ultimate” students with weird talents and personalities.
It's then revealed that the students forgot they were Ultimates, and are given their memories back. After many murder mysteries and mini-games, Dangarnonpa reveals its biggest twist. All the students were normal; they were given fake memories. While this is already shocking, Danganronpa 3 also implies the events of previous games were similarly fake in a shocking ending that turned the series on its head.
Metal Gear Solid 2 (2001)
"Metal Gear Solid 2 has one of the best I've seen," says Redditor LucW64. While it was controversial when it was first released, fans now think MGS2 is maybe the best in the series. Both its criticisms and praise come from this twist. Simply put, the game’s first couple hours see the player controlling the previous protagonist Snake before switching suddenly to a new face.
Raiden, the new protagonist, was a child soldier conditioned to become like Snake. Late in the game, it is revealed that almost everything in his life was fabricated. The events of the game itself turned out to be a training program for Raiden to kill the real Snake, and might not have even actually happened. All of this is super confusing and was very shocking for fans who just wanted to play as Snake.
Bioshock (2007)
As Redditor Kiryu8805 says, "The original BioShock has an iconic plot twist near the end." This doesn't mean it didn't blow the minds of gamers at the time, though. The player character, Jack, is revealed to be the son of the game’s antagonist. This would already be a big twist itself, so players likely weren’t expecting another twist on top of it.
The main character isn’t in control of their own actions. Instead, they are forced by hypnotic suggestions to obey Frank Fontaine, and while deposing the villainous Ryan was the right thing to do, they were forced to do it. It’s a dour moment that casts doubt on every objective in the game, as the surprised player now can't be sure of their own agency.
Xenoblade Chronicles (2012)
JRPGS are well known for their complicated plots, so it's only natural some have jaw-dropping moments. Redditor LegendaryHeropon points out Xenoblade Chronicles as going even further than most of the genre. According to them, "The entire game is full of them, but those last few hours are just one plot twist after another."
The endgame is sure to shock players with how twist-dense it is. The game’s events are revealed to be an immune response of the game’s god (and setting), the Bionis, who was also manipulating the protagonist Shulk all along. The heroes ultimately win, revealing that even the godlike Bionis itself is a pawn in a science experiment happening on Earth, in the game’s final and most momentous twist.
Mass Effect 2 (2010)
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A lot of people debate whether a plot twist can happen early in a story. A plot twist upends a status quo, and status quos don't usually appear early on. In the case of sequels like Mass Effect 2, though, they're more common. According to Redditor DubiousBeak "The opening sequence of Mass Effect 2 was pretty damn surprising."
The game opens with the destruction of Normandy, the flagship from the previous Mass Effect game. The player’s Commander Shepherd makes a valiant last stand and everything but is surprisingly killed. It’s deeply unsettling and shocking watching the crew, ship, and commander the player has built be lost, and while the player can get these all back, it completely changes the direction of the game.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2003)
When asked what the best plot twist in a game was, something immediately sprang to mind for Reddit user gowronatemybaby7. According to them, the twist from Star Wars: Knight of the Old Republic "blew them away the first time." The game's customizable player character is revealed to have been the Sith Lord Darth Revan all along.
Even more shocking is that the supposedly good Jedi are responsible for the player’s brainwashing. This makes the conflict between Jedi and Sith, which previously seemed black and white, gray, and it recontextualizes a lot of the enemies and allies the player has made along the way, as this twist was mainly unknown to the player. It’s the chief reason why many consider KOTOR to have the best plot of any Star Wars media, as the twist makes it so different in tone from any other.
Source:gamerant.com