You ever have a game completely crush your soul?

It just occurred to me that one game did crush my soul: Deadlight.

You play through the game, and collect notes and other things, and when you finish the game you have a full story, with a good ending. A very good, heroic, good ending. An impossibly good ending. An impossible ending, if you were paying attention.

Getting the good ending (and maybe doing some other achievements, I forget which exactly) unlocks Nightmare Mode. You have to play through the entire game in one sitting, with no deaths, and with checkpoints only between chapters. This means that annoying area near the end of a chapter that took you 20 or 30 tries in normal mode will take you 20-40 minutes for each try in Nightmare mode. If you actually manage to complete Nightmare Mode, after the normal ending and the credits, the alternate ending plays.

I played a little bit of Nightmare mode and I was all "screw this stupid shit", it was immediately apparent that I was not going to get it done. Instead, I watched the alternate ending on YouTube, which was the true ending. THAT was soul-crushing. I hated it so much that I recommend that you just watch the two endings on YouTube so you don't waste your time and money on this game.
 
evilsofa said:
It just occurred to me that one game did crush my soul: Deadlight.

You play through the game, and collect notes and other things, and when you finish the game you have a full story, with a good ending. A very good, heroic, good ending. An impossibly good ending. An impossible ending, if you were paying attention.

Getting the good ending (and maybe doing some other achievements, I forget which exactly) unlocks Nightmare Mode. You have to play through the entire game in one sitting, with no deaths, and with checkpoints only between chapters. This means that annoying area near the end of a chapter that took you 20 or 30 tries in normal mode will take you 20-40 minutes for each try in Nightmare mode. If you actually manage to complete Nightmare Mode, after the normal ending and the credits, the alternate ending plays.

I played a little bit of Nightmare mode and I was all "screw this stupid shit", it was immediately apparent that I was not going to get it done. Instead, I watched the alternate ending on YouTube, which was the true ending. THAT was soul-crushing. I hated it so much that I recommend that you just watch the two endings on YouTube so you don't waste your time and money on this game.
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I actually enjoyed that game a lot. It got really poor reviews, but it was kind of like a mini-last of us. I loved the level with the giants. I think it was some sort of dream sequence about your ex or something very imaginative. Its been at least year so I don't remember the details. I didnt know there were alternative endings. Now I have to go watch them and then be mad about it I guess.
 
Half Life 2: Episode 2.
I'm amazed no one mentioned it yet.

One of the most beloved gaming franchises ever. Amazing story....then... that ending.:(

So heartbreaking then leaving it on a cliffhanger, unresolved. Almost a decade passed for all the fans waiting to see the end of the tale, either thru a possible episode 3 or Half Life 3. It wouldn't even have mattered if that final piece of the tale was done using the nearly decade old source engine, we just wanted to know the ending. We were constantly trolled by Gabe Newell and Valve, then the lead writer for the HL series up and quits Valve after so many years even though most fans had given up hope already.

That one hurt. Shame on you Valve and Gabe, shame on you.
 
CaptNumbNutz said:
Half Life 2: Episode 2.
I'm amazed no one mentioned it yet.

One of the most beloved gaming franchises ever. Amazing story....then... that ending.:(

So heartbreaking then leaving it on a cliffhanger, unresolved. Almost a decade passed for all the fans waiting to see the end of the tale, either thru a possible episode 3 or Half Life 3. It wouldn't even have mattered if that final piece of the tale was done using the nearly decade old source engine, we just wanted to know the ending. We were constantly trolled by Gabe Newell and Valve, then the lead writer for the HL series up and quits Valve after so many years even though most fans had given up hope already.

That one hurt. Shame on you Valve and Gabe, shame on you.
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I've always enjoyed the Half-Life games, but the characters for the most part didn't grab me. I just can't give two squirts of piss if they live or die. The only game that left me feeling like I had unfinished business due to a cliff hanger is Republic Commando. The banter of your squad mates, conversations, their usefulness etc. made them all great characters. At the game's climax, RC-1207 (Sev) is missing, and you want to go find out what happened to him. Unfortunately, Yoda orders a withdraw. I have a feeling this plotline was to be resolved in a planned sequel that never came.
 
MaZa said:
You'd be glad to know that they removed the whole inventory system in ME2 and 3. You do find new weapons during missions but you simply assign them to your squad if needed. No weapon is better than the other, they just work differently. And the main character is the only one who can get new armor. ME1 is severely flawed game but the story and characters are amazing so its worth slogging through atleast once, even if its with cheats, to get some perspective. ME2 and ME3 on the other hand had actually pretty good gameplay.
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Agreed, ME2/3 cleaned up a lot of janky UI and player experience issues for the better.
 
Tup3x said:
Mass Effect 3. I was a massive fan and then BioWare justs show middle finger at you. They killed the whole IP in 10 minutes. I am extremely sceptical about Mass Effect: Andromeda now.
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It's been 4 years and I still don't talk about it. I haven't touched the series since.. I keep telling myself, come on, play the DLC, maybe they reedemed themselves but I keep putting it off.
 
NickJames said:
It's been 4 years and I still don't talk about it. I haven't touched the series since.. I keep telling myself, come on, play the DLC, maybe they reedemed themselves but I keep putting it off.
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You really should. Omega, Leviathan and the Citadel DLC are really good. The Extended Cut does improve the endings, albeit, they are far from ideal.

And for those of you that weren't aware, there is the MEHEM or Mass Effect Happy Ending Mod. It's pretty damned awesome actually. Since Mass Effect Andromeda won't be revisiting the endings of the previous games, you can choose to remember Shepard's final adventure in a more positive way.
 
M76 said:
I absolutely revere trespasser as a thought experiment, even if it was a shitty experience as a game.
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I wonder how Trespasser would've turned out if they allowed "Valve Time" development clock. (Done When it's Done, even if we have to scrap four years and start over a la TF2) But I watch the Trespasser lets play vids on YouTube and just laugh hysterically. There's so much wrong that you can't see the thought experiment from the glitches and bugs.

I would like to see someone re-try Trespasser once VR becomes accesible and mainstream. The running from dinosaurs part of Trespasser was always fun.
 
Verge said:
Dick Tracy.

Fuck you dick Tracy, fuck you.
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THIS!!!!

Dick%20Tracy%20(U).png


Just seeing the title screen again is making me angry.
 
NickJames said:
It's been 4 years and I still don't talk about it. I haven't touched the series since.. I keep telling myself, come on, play the DLC, maybe they reedemed themselves but I keep putting it off.
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I played the ME1 and ME2 to death. I just can't seem to finish ME3 with my current Shepard. I've finished the Citadel DLC once with another Shep and it did help a bit but since it doesn't change anything....

When I finished ME3 the first time it made me feel sick. It was such a shock that I needed some time to process that massive disappointment.
 
Comixbooks said:
Lords of the Fallen

most recenlty
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I thought it was a decent game for what I paid for it, which I think was $9.99 on the last sale. I would have disappointed at full price though, especially if I was expecting anything remotely comparable to the Dark Souls series.
 
BF3 premium. Virtually all servers became premium-exclusive so people who only bought some of the DLCs literally couldn't play the DLCs they paid for. DICE/Battlefield used to be some of the best games but they have gone way downhill in recent years.

Because of that experience I will never buy a DICE game for more than about $20 in the future, and that $20 has to include "premium". The last couple I'm just not even interested in at all either (Hardline and Battlefront). BF1942/BF2 had better free user-created mods.
 
Tup3x said:
I played the ME1 and ME2 to death. I just can't seem to finish ME3 with my current Shepard. I've finished the Citadel DLC once with another Shep and it did help a bit but since it doesn't change anything....

When I finished ME3 the first time it made me feel sick. It was such a shock that I needed some time to process that massive disappointment.
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Have any of you actually read what I've written about the ending?
 
Van Helsing, the first part of the game. I don't know if it has improved in the later parts, but it definitely made me not want to buy them.
The game itself was rather solid and cool. The problem was monster density. I'm the type who need to explore every corner of the map. The monsters were clustered so tightly on the map it was so tedious killing them all the time, so the last quarter of the game I just wanted it to end.

Act of Aggression as well. Bought it for full price since a friend nagged and said it's like old school strategy games. Played it for 30 minutes. NOPE. Waste of money and time.
 
travbrad said:
BF3 premium. Virtually all servers became premium-exclusive so people who only bought some of the DLCs literally couldn't play the DLCs they paid for. DICE/Battlefield used to be some of the best games but they have gone way downhill in recent years.

Because of that experience I will never buy a DICE game for more than about $20 in the future, and that $20 has to include "premium". The last couple I'm just not even interested in at all either (Hardline and Battlefront). BF1942/BF2 had better free user-created mods.
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I can agree with this, but for different reasons. I'm all for DLC when it adds something to the game. I don't think I got anything worth while out of the Premium membership that was worth having, much less paying for.
 
travbrad said:
BF3 premium. Virtually all servers became premium-exclusive so people who only bought some of the DLCs literally couldn't play the DLCs they paid for. DICE/Battlefield used to be some of the best games but they have gone way downhill in recent years.

Because of that experience I will never buy a DICE game for more than about $20 in the future, and that $20 has to include "premium". The last couple I'm just not even interested in at all either (Hardline and Battlefront). BF1942/BF2 had better free user-created mods.
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R6 Siege did DLC right. The maps are free to everyone and operators can be unlocked without the DLC.
 
M76 said:
Have any of you actually read what I've written about the ending?
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I read every word. I couldn't disagree more with your post. Especially this part:
M76 said:
I think if you believe this that turns the ending that is crap at face value into something truly epic. That's worthy of the trilogy, which at the end boils down to you. The choice is yours as the player. Do you allow yourself to be lead by your nose, or do you have enough resolve to do the right thing, and not end up like the Illusive Man or Saren.
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I admit the indoctrination theory was cool and we desperately hoped that BioWare's writers were that good and gave them more credit than they deserved. BioWare should have taken the idea and run with it, despite it not being their idea, but the communities. This would have been really cool as the community would essentially have crafted their own ending. This truly would have made Shepard's story, ours, but the ego of BioWare made them choose a different path in which the indoctrination theory was put to rest. The current endings in the game preclude this from being the case. I agree that you can believe whatever you want, and if it helps you swallow the game's horrible ending as a coping mechanism to the traumatic experience, then fine. But I can't get behind ideas of "head canon" as the people on the BioWare forums call it. I could back when we didn't know what BioWare's real intentions for the ending were. In the wake of the revisions and evidence that the indoctrination theory is nothing more than fan fiction at best, I can't see why anyone would cling to it. It simply isn't true.

The current endings are fine in broad terms. Yes, the final 15 minutes of "gameplay" have a huge shift in tone on par with an M.Knight Can'twriteforshitmylan movie. The important take away of the Renegade or Paragon endings are that the galaxy is left in a recoverable state, and that the sacrifice of the protagonist mattered. The inclusion of the fourth ending option, while basically throwing a tantrum and not doing anything, is a good one with a vastly different outcome for the galaxy.

Synthesis is just bullshit and your a monster and a horrible person if you'd choose galactic homogenization for the entire galaxy, in a game that pushes diversity and the theme that people of different races and beliefs can co-exist. You drag the galaxy kicking and screaming through three games, just to force eugenics on everyone? Fuck that ending and the asshole who wrote it with the biggest pineapple in the Guiness Book of World Records. This ending is the biggest pile of shit and the reason why sequels to Mass Effect have to be in another Galaxy as it can't be reconciled in game with the other two choices in a credible way.

Despite Mass Effect 3's flaws, I still maintain that the series, overall is one of the best experiences in gaming history. These games are truly epic in scope with memorable characters and choices that do actually matter, albeit not necessarily in the more broad sense. All the game's effectively tie back to one common ending with some variation, except the third game. That one has two similar'ish endings and two that are radically different, preventing sequels from working without BioWare choosing a canon ending. They've refused to do so based on their doctrine of player choices matter and personalized story.

The game was the most soul crushing piece of entertainment, but it's also been redeemed for the most part in its current iteration. As for the comments about the Citadel DLC, it doesn't change the ending, but it does change the overall experience of the game. Leviathan and the Extended Cut do change the endings quite a bit. It's worth checking these out if your a fan of the series.
 
Age of Conan was a big dissapointment for me. After countless years playing WoW I wanted a new mmo and looked forward to this game even one of the first games I preordered
 
Miknow said:
Age of Conan was a big dissapointment for me. After countless years playing WoW I wanted a new mmo and looked forward to this game even one of the first games I preordered
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I wouldn't call it soul crushing. It was disappointing for sure. When the game launched it was buggy and it seriously lacked content. It was really the bugs and the post level 35 grind that killed it for me. I tried it again a couple years later when it was supposedly far better off and I just couldn't get into it.
 
I think I've had my soul slightly constricted by Megaman once or twice in my life. :D
 
Mad Max

You clean out the scum of the wastelands, help the communities to thrive, re-develop a conscious, and in the end the prime motivator characters DIE and you drive off ALONE (don't even take the dog, I believe)
 
Dan_D said:
I read every word. I couldn't disagree more with your post. Especially this part:


I admit the indoctrination theory was cool and we desperately hoped that BioWare's writers were that good and gave them more credit than they deserved. BioWare should have taken the idea and run with it, despite it not being their idea, but the communities. This would have been really cool as the community would essentially have crafted their own ending. This truly would have made Shepard's story, ours, but the ego of BioWare made them choose a different path in which the indoctrination theory was put to rest. The current endings in the game preclude this from being the case. I agree that you can believe whatever you want, and if it helps you swallow the game's horrible ending as a coping mechanism to the traumatic experience, then fine. But I can't get behind ideas of "head canon" as the people on the BioWare forums call it. I could back when we didn't know what BioWare's real intentions for the ending were. In the wake of the revisions and evidence that the indoctrination theory is nothing more than fan fiction at best, I can't see why anyone would cling to it. It simply isn't true.
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Oh man this thread is bring up unpleasant memories. ME3 was definitely soul crushing because it's the only time I bought into and hoped that fan theories like this were true. But you're right, once the EC and Leviathan DLC's were released that theory died. On the plus side those also made the endings for me go from soul crushing to adequate.
 
Ultima Ascension was pretty soul crushing at first. I bought the Super-Ultra-Mega-ExtraLarge-Plus-Plus-Plus Edition. The game didn't work out of the box. I even had a machine with a Voodoo 3 in it, so the fact that it didn't support D3D out of the box wasn't the problem. Then I finally got a patch that made it work on Voodoo cards. So I started playing. Still pretty broken. By the time the final patch came out, I had already gotten completely game-breakingly stuck in Ambrosia. Had to start all over. But at least when I did, I was able to use my TNT-2 or whatever I had at that point.

The game itself once patched up properly is great (especially with all the fan patches later, and patching out the voice acting for classic text etc.) I still enjoy a playthrough of this even now despite a few shortcomings.

However, that rough start more or less dropped an anvil on me. This is the perfect example of what happens when stupid publishers try to force something out ahead of schedule. Also a perfect example of EA at that time, and for a long time to come.
 
Dan_D said:
I read every word. I couldn't disagree more with your post. Especially this part:

I admit the indoctrination theory was cool and we desperately hoped that BioWare's writers were that good and gave them more credit than they deserved.
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But you missed my main point. I never believed Bioware intended the indoctrination theory ending, but I don't care. It's like arguing creationism. I can love it regardless of there being an intelligent design behind it, or just random events aligning to create this ending.

That's why I don't care about them running with it or not. The main reason they didn't pick it up, is probably that the extended cut DLC was already mostly completed by the time the IT gained momentum.

The current endings are fine in broad terms. Yes, the final 15 minutes of "gameplay" have a huge shift in tone on par with an M.Knight Can'twriteforshitmylan movie. The important take away of the Renegade or Paragon endings are that the galaxy is left in a recoverable state, and that the sacrifice of the protagonist mattered. The inclusion of the fourth ending option, while basically throwing a tantrum and not doing anything, is a good one with a vastly different outcome for the galaxy.
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I don't think the current endings are fine, far from it. They slapped a slideshow at the end, and called it a day almost. They attempted to address the most blatant issues, but couldn't properly address everything.

The supposed paragon / blue ending at face value goes against the whole morality of the game. It basically means that the IM was right all along. And you fought cerberus for no reason trough the entire game. I just can't get behind that.

The synthesis ending is a damn abomination. It equals turning the galactic civilizations into the borg willingly.

And the destroy ending cripples galactic civilization since without reaper technology there is no hope of ever rebuilding the mass relays, at least not in a reasonable time frame. You're sending the galaxy into a dark age.

And the fourth tacked on ending, is a middle finger to everyone who still dislikes the ending. It's Mac Walters' way of saying: "Don't like the ending? Then reapers win, everyone you fought for dies, starbrat gets the last laugh".

So to me, there is no "Good" ending to the game if I only count the face value endings.


Despite Mass Effect 3's flaws, I still maintain that the series, overall is one of the best experiences in gaming history. These games are truly epic in scope with memorable characters and choices that do actually matter, albeit not necessarily in the more broad sense. All the game's effectively tie back to one common ending with some variation, except the third game. That one has two similar'ish endings and two that are radically different, preventing sequels from working without BioWare choosing a canon ending. They've refused to do so based on their doctrine of player choices matter and personalized story.
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I can agree to this, but with the IT I can cross out the flaws part.

The game was the most soul crushing piece of entertainment, but it's also been redeemed for the most part in its current iteration. As for the comments about the Citadel DLC, it doesn't change the ending, but it does change the overall experience of the game. Leviathan and the Extended Cut do change the endings quite a bit. It's worth checking these out if your a fan of the series.
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I played all the DLCs, and by far my favourite is Leviathan. The Citadel is pure character moments, fanservice. So I liked that for a different reason. And Omega is pure action, it's the best add-on gameplay wise, with a pretty challenging bossfight at the end.
 
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