Even in the 8bit era, there are those moments in a video game that pulls on the string in our hearts. For many who don’t experience video games hands on might find it hard to understand how a video game can move us. I asked my followers on Twitter which moment in a video game is the saddest for them. Some of the responses that I received were the ending to Metal Gear Solid 4, the 1,000 Years of Dreams in Lost Odyssey, the Shyron massacre in Crystalis and the baby metriod sacrifice in Super Metriod. The iconic scene in Final Fantasy VII is a common moment that made many gamers cry as well as the destruction of the Normandy at the start of Mass Effect 2, the separation from Yorda at the end of Ico, the Kafei and Anju story in Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, and Dom seeing his wife in GoW2 and having to sacrifice a character in a story that the player has gotten attached to.
For me, it’s the ending to Final Fantasy X. Throughout the story there was never a doubt that Tidus was real and not just a dream brought into reality. Sadly, once Sin was destroyed and Yuna started to cast the Aeons away, this also caused Tidus to fade away. How sad is it knowing that the man that you had fallen in love with was just a dream and you had a huge part in sending him back from where he came from? The part that got me was when Yuna tried to hug Tidus, only to fall to the ground and her speech at the very end.
Runners up for me include the death of Zack in Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core, which is a bit odd since I really didn’t have a reaction to the death of Aerith. Seeing Cloud break down at such a young age and knowing what’s to come is a bit heartbreaking as well as the ending of the orginal Kingdom Hearts, where Sora must sacrifice himself for his friends.
Even though we wish for a happy ending in the games that we play, adding a sad moment or three here and there or having an ending that isn’t so fairy tale brings life and emotion to the games that we know and love.
