Endgames Suck [probable SPOILERS]

M

Misteryo

Still Mildly Glowing
Endgames suck. That's been my general experience. In fact, most of the games I enjoy, I mostly play the first two thirds of over and over. I'll finish the game once to see how it ends, but mostly I find that what I really enjoy about the game is the gameplay itself and the exploration, and the endings generally just don't live up to the promise of the game. Now, there are exceptions: Fallout and Planescape: Torment stand out in my mind.

Thoughts? What are your favorite endgames? Least favorite? How much does the ending factor into your enjoyment of a game?

And, to start things off, here's a brief list of my favorite endgames, in order.

1. Fallout
2. Planescape: Torment
3. Deus Ex - I actually thought the various endings in this game fit the plot of the game well and weren't a letdown on the premise. For a game that is not role-playing, Deus Ex actually has a pretty fleshed out and complex story.

And, no, Fallout 2 doesn't even make my list.

Misteryo
 
Call of Duty 4's endgame was good, in my opinion.

I liked KoTOR's ending as well, though I never played the sequel, which is something I should do immediately.

And yes, I did like Colossus's ending.
 
*Spoilers



The last few levels on COD4, "Coming up to the awsome truck chase" we're pretty bland for me. The ending though was great... but it felt like one of those sex sessions where the whole experience was long and wonderful, but near the end got repetitious so it ended up getting hurried and finished quickly after looking at the clock and seeing what time it is. Kotor 1 ending was uninspired to me, but good in the same. Kotor 2 on the other hand was a masterpiece, work of art... orgasm...ect. The minimalistic ending is exactly what the plot in that game intended to be the break. The flaws of the light, dark, and grey are all exposed. The force is a curse apon all life. Nothing can be done now. Everything has lead to this point with Kreia "Best character written in a video game". The only thing left is her death... and drifting off into oblivion, scared by an enlightenment that was always a lie by both orders of the force. Awesome..... Most people didn't like the ending of Kotor 2, but most people are idiots. If they had followed the plot at all, instead of having the attention span of gnats, they would have realized that the ending was the symbol of the ultimatum, spelled out by all the pieces put together from the storyline throughout the whole game, rather than "Get to the finish and have the awnsers shoved down your throat." The only other game where I actually "Felt" something was Fallout's ending, which is in the same vein of KOTOR 2's.
 
Some people liked Kotor 2, but then again some people are idiots.
Click to expand...
There fixed your typos for you. ;)

Funny I thought KotOR 2 was complete and utter drivel. I followed the storyline, thought it was the worst thing I've ever seen in any entertainment medium. Kreia was the worst written character period and the ending was thrust upon the game at the last minute. You're right though it does fit the game perfectly. Uninspired for down right stupid.
 
Thanks for the typo fix :D

Anyways, I wanted to be rash, since I wanted to provoke a reaction outta someone and have a discussion. Kriea followed the role of the old Greek choirs following the story to it's conclusion like the old mythos. I got excited when I figured out what the writers were "Trying" to do, and I understood perfectly. But, it was said that Kotor 2 was rushed and not completely finished when it was released, so that would explain the gaps some people encountered. So I perceived that the last 4 hours instead of the last 30 mins of the game as the "Ending". Uninspired though? Not hardly. More like an incomplete thought and a rushed production. What was behind all that though I thought was wonderful. The game makes you hate life like batshit. It has so many nihilistic themes it would make a philosophy teacher's head explode. I think if the game was for 2 months more, worked on before release, i think it woulda be awesome. That being said... the end product was something I had to devote myself alittle to deep into, rather than enjoy a story. What do you think?
 
requiem_for_a_starfury said:
Kreia was the worst written character period and the ending was thrust upon the game at the last minute. You're right though it does fit the game perfectly. Uninspired for down right stupid.
Click to expand...
In what way is Kreia a poorly written character? I thought she was pretty unique and well-written, myself. She can be irritating, but not because of poor writing. As for the ending... well, it, like many of the problems in KotOR 2, can be traced to cut content. The ending is simply the most horribly butchered part.

Everyone (who doesn't hate it, of course) should give it another go around after Team Gizka's KotOR 2 Restoration Project is finally released, which should hopefully be soon.
 
Dopemine Cleric said:
Uninspired though? Not hardly.
Click to expand...
Yep, the whole game. When it's not ripping off ESB (not that KotOR was better, but at least it's story worked) it was like a mod of KotOR where the modders didn't have the source code. So if anything was hardcoded they couldn't remove it only replace it. It's like they took KotOR looked at each module and said what happens here and then just changed the models and textures and slapped on some new speech and storyline. But yeah the ending was uninspired, other than the ripoff of ESB and ROTJ it's just combat. After fighting the other two sith lords it's rinse and repeat. That seems the theme of the entire game, rinse and repeat (KotOR).

Dopemine Cleric said:
The game makes you hate life like batshit.
Click to expand...
Nope, makes me hate the plot like batshit.

Dopemine Cleric said:
It has so many nihilistic themes it would make a philosophy teacher's head explode.
Click to expand...
Which might work in another setting but not exactly Star Wars. Plus the plot just doesn't work. It's set 4,000 years before the films, plenty of time for the Republic to come under threat and nearly be defeated, but rise once more, yet the threat is to all life and the force. Only we know it never happened so that you have to win through somehow. That either light or dark you'll defeat Nihilus and reject Kreia because 4,000 years later Luke is still using the force, and the galaxy is still populated.

Kyuu said:
In what way is Kreia a poorly written character? I thought she was pretty unique and well-written, myself. She can be irritating, but not because of poor writing
Click to expand...
There was a political drama called House of cards where a character would sometimes answer a question with "You might say that; I couldn't possibly comment" Kriea was like that but all the time, a broken record. Not that the other characters are much better, mostly cookie cutter copies of the KotOR characters they replaced but at least they have some sort of depth.

All KotOR, TSL and Jade Empire characters are irritating in a way, being stuck with them and having very little say in the matter. It does make it worse when the character is the main antagonist, made pretty obvious early one, and you can't do anything about it. Yeah I know she was affecting people, but even when you can confront her (before the end) sod all happens.
 
The plot was ripped off from what game? I loved the plot in TSLs, so if it is a ripoff of something else tell me so I can play the game and stand corrected. Other than that, I could look past the gameplay and engine problems. TSL had LOADS of depth, which is one of its strong points. All though, I do have to agree with your point on the engine being a modded up version of KOTOR 1.

I have to disagree though with labeling Kreia as the antagonist. You can choose to ignore her or follow her teachings, the fact that she used you is of no consequence. Unfortunately though, she drifted toward the grey area of the force and karma in the game, the gameplay engine didn't reward or validate grey, middle-ground type gameplay with PC development or some of the dialouge options. At points you you can choose a grey outcome, with no benefits of the force "Which is plausable because the concept of the force dissagrees with the concept of a grey area", But at other points you seemed to have to choose back and forth between dark and light since the game engine was retarded and not finished properly. Using the force as a "Tool" rather than a lifestyle is a great concept that flashes over the problems of dogma and belief we have in real-life, but Kreia's semi-schopenhaueristic philosophy went against the boundaries that the game engine allowed. The plot was awesome, but the engine wasn't fit to harness it, and I personally can look past that.


*Edit* And the destruction of the force never happened in TSLs. Kreia changed her mind at the end of the game because she saw hope in the exile. And after she died, the exile went off on the spiritual journey Revan undertook after the end of the first game to find awnsers to the problems and threats explained in TSL. It was a unifying threat to both the light and dark, so player choice was made illrelavent. Problem is that darkside players can't exactly roleplay a brutish, stupid darkside character, since the ending doesnt fit. You have to be aware of what kreia is saying in your PC, otherwise "Durrrr... FORCE LIGHTNING" doesnt work as a story narrative. And thats why I think TSL is a work of art. It's you getting into the mind of the storytellers, rather than a form of entertainment trying to tickle each person individualy.

"like uhh say mass effect or from what we've heard of fallout 3"
 
Dopemine Cleric said:
Anyways, I wanted to be rash, since I wanted to provoke a reaction outta someone and have a discussion.
Click to expand...

Baiting people for the lulz is bad, m'kay.
 
Dopemine Cleric said:
The plot was ripped off from what game?
Click to expand...
That's not what I said, I said it ripped off from ESB and ROTJ, the films Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. KotOR has a lot of homage moments but it worked, TSL though they just seem more like rip offs rather than homages. It's like they took the fact it's the sequel and Empire was the sequel so they'd go with the dark theme of ESB, and how they could twist KotOR around. Atton was Carth if he'd followed Revan, Kreia was Jolie if he'd become bitter and twisted, even the relationship between Mission and Zaalbar got twisted and turned up on it's head.

Dopemine Cleric said:
TSL had LOADS of depth, which is one of its strong points.
Click to expand...
Depth? I found KotOR deeper, even with it's rather clichéd story and memory loss. Ho Hum all life is in danger and you are the only one who can stop it (snore zzzzz).

Dopemine Cleric said:
I have to disagree though with labeling Kreia as the antagonist. You can choose to ignore her or follow her teachings, the fact that she used you is of no consequence.
Click to expand...
Err right from the start she's manipulating you and events and she's the ultimate end boss to defeat to finish the game. Everything happens because she's pushing you forward or holding you back so how is she not the main antagonist?

Dopemine Cleric said:
*Edit* And the destruction of the force never happened in TSLs. Kreia changed her mind at the end of the game because she saw hope in the exile.
Click to expand...
It never happened because it never could happen with a prequel. The devs probably got to the end and thought oh shit how do we end this? This type of threat should of been saved for a storyline set in the future of Star Wars then at least you'd get some feeling of impending doom and desperation from the story (and not the developers).

Dopemine Cleric said:
And thats why I think TSL is a work of art. It's you getting into the mind of the storytellers, rather than a form of entertainment trying to tickle each person individualy.
Click to expand...
Do what? Art, only if you believe a row of bricks is art. The only thing I got from the mind of the storytellers is that they have a lot of issues with Star Wars. Fine I'm not religious and personally don't agree with a lot of the Force teachings that are often spouted, but then it's not my world so I don't really care I just want to escape and enjoy the adventure. I don't want to have to wade through someone else's problems just the characters.
 
Do what? Art, only if you believe a row of bricks is art. The only thing I got from the mind of the storytellers is that they have a lot of issues with Star Wars. Fine I'm not religious and personally don't agree with a lot of the Force teachings that are often spouted, but then it's not my world so I don't really care I just want to escape and enjoy the adventure. I don't want to have to wade through someone else's problems just the characters.
Click to expand...

I thought the characters problems kinda made the characters actually.
Anyways, it was an unfinished product and the source files for the ending that weren't put in are available on the disk. Modders are already trying to recreate KOTOR 2 like Obsidian intended before Lucasarts pulled the plug at the last minute. Note Kyuu above ^ Play it over again, or not.



We should talk about other games and not waste other peoples time. This is gettin to long. Sorry all.



*

So yeah , The worst ending I have experienced in recent memmory was Fables. 8 hour RPG adventure? WTF>?!?!?!?!

Same with Jade Empire, and Half-Life 2.

Ohh wait nevermind. Half-Life 2 never ended.... you have to pay more money to valve to find out the ending.



*The Best game endings I have seen would have to be.

Max Payne's ending. "They were all dead. The final gunshot was an exclamation mark to everything that had led to this point. I released my finger from the trigger, and then it was over."

Simple, yet fitting. Same with the sequel.

All of the Metal Gears.

Starcrafts Protoss ending.....
 
Oh, sorry for that. Nah, I would only want to delve into the devs problems if he made some good art outta it. And that hasn't happened to my knowledge yet in a video game.
 
fallout ranger said:
Shadow of the Colossus' end was pretty stange, and very well done. I liked that game, if only for the sparse world and graphics.
Click to expand...

Indeed. That game is a piece of art, one of my favorite games of all time. The ending is definitely one my favorites as well.
 
Anyone complete Kane and Lynch yet?

SPOILERS:





I thought both endings were decent, perfectly capturing the underlying themes of sadness in the game, and as acting as the final reminder that Kane has barely a shred of decency in him. The daughter death ending is was very enjoyable, and though the squad members weren't fully developed, i did feel bad that even finally making an effort didn't help them. The final paniced rush to boat was very cool, as you gun down shelly, your daughters corpse over your arm. Very cool stuff.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top