The most heartbreaking decisions in RPGs

Key recommendations

• RPG games provide players with impactful choices that shape the trajectory of the game's story.
• These choices can lead to devastating consequences, reflecting real-life dilemmas.
• RPGs like Mass Effect and The Witcher 3 feature heartbreaking decisions.

What makes the RPG genre so attractive to many players is the freedom of choice. While other games will be single-tracked with a linear plot to follow, RPGs are never that simple. Instead, players have the option to make things right.

In these titles, choices influence the trajectory of the story. These decisions can be difficult to make because it is not always obvious what the consequences will be until much later. Sometimes these consequences can be downright devastating. Heroes can't always win no matter what they do, and this election is proof of that.

7 Ending E (Nier: Automata)

Should players sacrifice everything to help another?

Nier Automata it raises serious questions, such as the age-old confusion over whether robots can feel emotions. 2B herself claims that emotions are forbidden, but this does not deny that they can feel pain, love, hurt, hope. Players are sure to experience this range for themselves as they explore and battle the ruined world, once inhabited by humans and now overrun by machines.

There are dozens of endings for players to experience, some gags or false endings. Only when they reach the E ending have players experienced the true ending. The credits roll, but players have one last impossible mission to dodge the projectiles. The game will ask players questions every time they die. And then there's that infamous question: Will the player sacrifice their save data to help another random player in their fight? Saying yes will erase everything they've done. It's a heartfelt, emotional ending that will move players to tears, if they weren't already.

6 The Fate of Shadowheart's Parents (Baldur's Gate 3)

A choice no one should have to make

Baldur's Gate 3 is undoubtedly one of the greatest RPGs in history. The scope of its story was impressive and the characters were all nuanced, with their strengths and flaws reflected in their dialogue and actions. Shadowheart is one of the most popular characters, with her backstory shrouded in mystery due to her missing a large portion of her memories. She is a cleric of Shar, cursed with pain that flares up from time to time.

In a twist, it turns out that Shadowheart has surviving family, which the party meets in the House of Grief. They are held captive by Shar, who gives Shadowheart a shocking ultimatum: she demands that Shadowheart kill her parents, sending them to eternal torment in Shar's realm, while removing her memory. Instead, Shadowheart is blessed with great power. Seluna's Path modifies this slightly. If killed, they will become Moonmotes as they lift their curse, remaining with her as guiding celestial bodies. One might think, why choose to kill them? But Shar's betrayal will have lasting effects on Shadowheart, dulling his emotions and causing nightly agony. It is not an easy choice and there is no obvious happy outcome.

5 Killing Toriel (Undertale)

The mother figure deserves better

Undertale is one of the most unique RPGs on the market, using retro pixelated graphics to tell the story of a human child who falls into the world of monsters. They learn to navigate the world of monsters and do it their way, sparing those who attack them or killing without remorse. Genocide Route is known for its iconic Sans boss battle.

There will be a series of boss battles as they make their way to the castle to return to their own world via Asgore. Toriel is one of the major characters you meet at the beginning of the game. She takes the player character under her wing, offering them a place to stay and a delicious pie. Toriel tells the character not to think about returning home because of how dangerous it is, standing between them and the exit. She wants nothing more than to protect them, and players can choose the path of cruelty by killing this kind figure.

4 Return to Crookback Bog (The Witcher 3)

A side quest with devastating consequences

The quests revolving around the Baron and his family are among the darkest in the The Witcher 3which is not a statement to make lightly about this dark fantasy RPG. The Baron's family fled and it turns out that he abused his family, so his wife and daughter ran away from home. The Baron enlists Geralt for help, and it turns out that this quest isn't quite as simple as it seems on the surface.

If players embark on the side quest to return to the swamp where the crones live, they will have to make a choice that ensures at least one character will meet an unhappy end. Killing the ghost tree means Anna will lose her mind for the rest of her life, while saving it will turn Tamara into a wild creature. However, one of the Strenger women loses, bringing a tearful conclusion to the story of this troubled family.

3 Who Remains in the Fade (Dragon Age: Inquisition)

Who lives or dies remains in the hands of the players

Inquisition was a brand new and exciting adventure into the world of Thedas, where the veil that separated the world from the Fade and the realm of demons was torn. The machinations of a previous villain, Corypheus, must be stopped by sealing the veil and stopping the flow of demons into the world. Playing as the Inquisitor, players lead the Inquisition forward to victory or death. They travel to dangerous locations both new and old, with the Fade returning.

This is where the game's most heartbreaking decision comes into play, as they must choose one person to be left behind in the Fade, where they will surely die. One of those characters will be Hawke Dragon Age 2or one of three possible guardians: Stroud, Loghain Mac Tir or Alistair. If it's Stroud, the decision will likely be simple. But throwing Alistair into the mix forces players to choose between a character they've played for an entire entry or an important companion and even a possible love option from Dragon Age: Origins. This makes this choice almost impossible and always heartbreaking.

2 Refusal to Heal Genophage (Mass Effect 3)

One of the worst choices in the Mass Effect series

Last game of Mass effect trilogy was the final showdown: the entire galaxy against the Reapers. Each game has been leading up to this, and now players can only hope that they've done enough in previous games to prepare the galaxy for the threat. There are still a few things that need to be taken care of to further strengthen the army, and one of them is the issue of the krogan genophage, a biological weapon that renders the krogans almost entirely sterile.

The mass effect 3 gives Shepard the option to cure the genophage, but there's a slight problem. The solution was sabotaged, which would mean the genophage would not heal. Shepard has a choice to keep quiet or reveal while on Tuchanka. Keeping the peace, he condemns the krogan to genocide. Even worse, the player will have to shoot Mordin Solus to stop him. Mordin is a beloved companion from The mass effect 2earning his payback for working on the genophage by doing everything he can to undo his work. Shooting him is not only heartbreaking because the player is taking the life of an old friend, but it stops him from atoning for what he wanted most.

1 Virmire (Mass Effect)

A beloved companion must die

As a BioWare RPG, players are presented with choices that can be a matter of life or death, millions of lives to save, and plenty of interesting companions with multi-faceted personalities for players to befriend or befriend. fall in love The first game in the series introduced two human companions, Kaidan and Ashley, to work in the Normandy alongside Shepard. Both are devoted to the cause so passionately that they are willing to die for it.

That loyalty and bravery comes into play during the Virmire mission, an assault that takes an even more dangerous turn. To make sure the bomb is detonated and shuts down the facility Saren is using to build his army, one of the human companions must stay behind. There's no way out for both of them, and it's up to Shepard to make that call. Having spent time with both, it can be difficult to choose. Knowing that someone will die makes this choice devastating.