Will Games Ever Make Us Cry?

Go Gaming Giant looks at the question "will games ever make us cry?"

[Go Gaming Giant]

Has anyone here ever cried in a video game?

[jazzking2001]

cant think of any

[JsonHenry]

I cried every time I tried to beat PUNCH OUT! as a kid..

[Voozi]

Valkyria Chronicles for me for games of this gen only. MGS4 almost did but it was more a feeling of emptiness which didn't really push me to shedding any tears.

Oh and the end of Crisis Core made me ;_; Granted I knew how it was going to end but the way it all played out during those final moments did it for me.

[siyrobbo]

Im pretty sure alot of people cried when Final fantasy 13 went multiplat- not sure if that counts or not tho

[Tony P]

The ending of FFX makes me tear up a bit. When Tidus starts fading away and he dives off that ship and finds his dad waiting, the two finally reconciled. It's so... *sniff*

But then FFX-2 ruins it.

[gaffyh]

I'm pretty sure Heavy Rain is going to be a very emotional story, just watch the gamescom trailer, it looks amazing.

[bnaked]

The ending of MGS4

[Sarcasm]

Nope, have never felt the need to shed a tear.

Infact, I've never cried for any entertainment medium, including movies.

[Reibooi]

There has been quite a few games that have made me cry. Final Fantasy VII and X come to mind.

The biggest one however is the entire last 4-5 hours of Xenosaga Episode 3 had me tearing up or in full blow tears because it was so heartbreaking.

Shadow of the Colossus hit me pretty hard and I'm sure everyone who has played it knows what part I'm talking about.

Oh and lets not forget Crisis Core Final Fantasy VII that ending was made especially painful because you were in control of the first part of it and no matter what you did you could not change what was about to happen.

So while there has not be a univeral game that could make every person cry there has been games that have made some people cry and lets face it there is no magic movie that makes everyone cry so as far as I am concerned games and film are on equal footing.

[Bathyj]

I think I cried *SPOILER* when my horse didnt make the jump in SotC. At least I was very not happy.

Oh yeah, and John Dimaggio's voice acting in Gears of War 2 makes me cry everytime.

[Nihilism]

i cried at the end of ffX, silent strong man crying of course...

[mistajeff]

I teared up at the end of MGS4, but I'd never expect anyone who isn't a shameless MGS fanboy like myself to feel the same level of emotion in that last cutscene. I think it was when they CQC'd a man-hug that it got to me, cuz it's like, these poor bastards don't know how to do anything but fight. And then the homage to MGS3's highly emotional ending... ah, I'm all buttery now.

[sniper-squeak]

when FF went Multi-platform...

oh and Heavy rain/TLG look to have emotional storylines

[kikilala]

I always cry when playing games.. even sports or racing games... espescially after staring at the screen for more than 2 hours straight.. *sobs..* Im crying while typing this comment too.. I guess I need a new pair of glasses..

[BISHOP-BRASIL]

You mean aside from fanboys? Ok, ok! I kid.

No, I don't think so... Sometimes I got that saddening, depressing, throat closing feeling, just like in some movies, but never had cried over it that I remember.

Come to think of it, have any of you guys cried over a movie? I know I don't... And if everybody is a "no", should we really be expecting people to cry over videogames? Maybe it's not the games, it's the gamers.

PS: Edited "public" for "the gamers" at the end, fitting better.

[umair_s51]

MGS3 had a sad ending, Valkyria Chronciles was emotional too. But none made me cry, I don't think games can ever really make you cry because the characters are virtual.

[Monk3y]

dropd a few tears on MGS4 final cutscenes, dunno why :O

[justpassinggas]

FFVI... Celes' suicide scene... I was bawling my eyes out!!!

Chrono Trigger... Chrono dies... I was bawling my eyes out!!! (good thing this was only one of the possible endings)

Chrono Trigger...Robo gets beaten up... I was choked up but no tears.

FFVI... Shadow doesn't make it off the floating island and dies... I was left speechless.

FFX... Tidus begins to fade and Yuna falls through him when she tries to hug him... I was bawling my eyes out!!!

FFIX... Zidane gives up hope (the music here is EPIC!!!) and becomes a nihilist until his friends help him out... got choked up but no tears.

Chrono Cross... Kid being abandoned alone after the orphanage fire... I was bawling my eyes out!!!

Chrono Cross... All humans died and Harle visits Serge's grave... I was speechless! (good thing this was an alternate ending)

There's probably a lot more that I can't remember right now.

Damn I'm an emo. :P

[Marceles]

My cousin cried on Heavenly Sword when Flying Fox hung Kai

[NoBias]

After you beat it the special way and Fox follows his Dad's ship out of Andross's level. And then disappears after wards :( hah, I'm not going to lie, I teared up at the end of that.

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

Not since then has a videogame made me tear up though. I wouldn't be surprised if The Last Guardian breaks that record though ha.

[darthv72]

The game was phantasy star 2. I was young and the point to where Nei died towards the beginning really got to me. Especially since I had really spent some time in building up her skills.

Damn that sucked!

[Timesplitter14]

Nothing ever made me cry (movies, games, books, etc) but video games and books have been the most emotionally powerful up until now. Movies are too short. They don't allow enough development.

IMO,
- Movies are better at horror and "clever" scenarios (social commentaries, etc).
- Video games are better for action (more than movies) and beautiful yet simple stories
- Books are good for anything except action

[yog-sothot]

I almost cried at the end of Bioshock and ICO.

[Go Gaming Giant]

a lot of people have said they cried in the microwave scene in MGS4

[locos85]

LOL, why?

[Voozi]

Maybe by cry they mean at the pain/burn they were feeling as they were mashing that button making Snake crawl through it only to watch as the game wants you to MASH FASTER as you got closer to the exit lol

[Sarcasm]

Man that microwave scene was brilliant.

I really didn't think he'd make it out of there by the end of it lol

[Qazdaz]

I cried because my thumb hurt so much afterwards. :p

[mistajeff]

My mom walked in behind me during that scene, and all she saw was my arm furiously moving in my lap during a video game. Took a bit of explanation...

[SnuggleBandit]

that was one of the most intense gameplay sequences i have ever played my forehead was literally dripping with sweat at the end of it.

[TheAntiFanboy]

The best scene in MGS4. No yapping, no ranting, just pure emotion.

[PirateThom]

That scene was more struggle than actual sad emotion. Everyone else is fighting to give Snake time, Snake is fighting to get through the corridor, you're fighting to keep Snake moving. It's such a simple user input, but it's probably one of the greatest experiences in the whole game.

The most emotional line in that whole game, though, is probably Otacon's "Snake... had a hard life." The first time you hear that and all the dialogue and scenes surrounding it, I dunno, it's like the whole series was building up to that single line.

[jimi2104]

A very thought provoking article, the story of a game can often trigger emotional responses via cut scenes (the end of disc 1 in Final Fantasy 7 anyone??) But has a game ever made me cry whilst playing it? I don't think so.

[Reibooi]

If we are talking about has gameplay ever hit you and made you cry then there are 2 games that come to mind.

One is Crisis Core Final Fantasy VII. You are completely in control during a large sequence of the ending and you know what is coming and that you cannot change Zack's death while playing I was choked up at the thought that no matter how long i could survive the battle Zack was gonna die and that was during game play not a cut scene.

The other is Persona 3. The final choice you make in the game is heart breaking because there is nothing you can choose that will save the main character and seeing as this character has been YOU the entire game it really hurts to not be able to save him.

[corywebb93]

I cryed myself to sleep everyday for owning a ps3

[Saaking]

Yes, of course you have PS3 bot.

Funny how bots accuse ps3 fans of multiple accounts and this site of being biased yet a completely stupid bot like you has 6 bubbles. Stop crying bots, there's an equal number of fanboys.

[TheHip14]

haha

[Defectiv3_Detectiv3]

But that was still funny

[LuHawk2]

lol That fool Saaking easly gets butt hurt over an Article

[Saaking]

Yea, 360 games make me cry by how terrible they are. Thank god there's mostly always a superior PC version.

[Go Gaming Giant]

PC gaming FTW

[Clumzyagent]

I'm hoping it will happen as the medium evolves. I'm pulling for The Last Guardian to make the emotional connection

[gameseveryday]

great stuff man!

[vflhp]

No, don't think I will tbh. Good article!

[Pizzagaki]

FF7, only game that made me spill a tear.
When Aerith died, and i didnt even like her, just felt bad for cloud.

Then i got jelous with Cloud cause i didnt want anyone to lay his filthy hands on Tifa.

[JasonXE]

ff7

[Darkraven]

I cried when Aeris died in FF7 and MGS4 at the microwave scene =/

[Rampaged Death]

The ending in MGS4 !! But that's the only time a game has ever made my cry.

[KilZoneGeneralStrife]

..Tidus finding out he was just a dream... ,thinking Snake was about to pull the trigger cuz it was game over for his aged body.Idk,I get emotional with deep games.always tellin my little bro,dude. . .theres something in my eye lol.

[Pizzagaki]

Its not so bad to be a dream.
Then i could manifest and screw any woman i want, cuz its just a dream right?

[gameseveryday]

Matt! I am really thrilled to read ur article!

[Mr Bean Laden]

only game that made me cry was MGS4

[Mr Bean Laden]

^^^ I'm being serious no joke

[bnaked]

I don't know why you've got disagrees..

MGS4 is one of the most emotional games ever! And if you are a real MGS fan, it is the most emotional game of all time!

[DocHoliday]

I cried when greyfox died in Metal Gear Solid. Also when maryl died. Just not otocan, i laughed when he died.

[Knightofelemia]

The game that shocked me was Xenogears when I found out Fei was Id, the games that made me cry were FF7 and Xenosaga. When Aeris died I was pissed and erased the whole game thinking I screwed up somehow.

[kraze07]

Almost cried when Lavitz died in The Legend of the Dragoon. MGS3 and 4 had some pretty emotional moments but none were tear worthy. I'm pretty sure some extremely difficult fighting games have made me shed some tears of anger before (you guys know which ones I'm talking about).

[DocHoliday]

Not because i felt bad for her, but because i wasted so much time leveling her up.

[Aquarius]

DAMM!! Voozi :D

...you beat me to it. I did shed a tear when isara died in VC. :(
The game is epic, I'm sure there's more emotional parts in VC. I haven't played it for a while.

[Voozi]

Yea that's the scene that did it for me, oh and there's another scene too at the end as well, but instead of sad tears, it's more like happy tears. You'll know what I mean (without spoiling anything) once you reach the end.

[Double Toasted]

made me cry, but I think it was more from boredom...

[Aquarius]

yh Voozi ( I actually finished the game )

I hope PS2 RPG PLAYERS pick this title up so it gets
even more sales :{
SONY should advertise this. PLEASE!!!!

Mind you is the game still around in shops.

BTW Can you tell me if VC's DLC is worth it. Is it long? I've watched a couple of YOUTUBE videos but it seemed to me that the DLC is revolving around 1 battle, environment, hub etc.

EDIT: OMG HOW COULD I FORGET HEAVENLY SWORD!!!!!
Nariko :(

It has a beautiful ending. 1 of the best this gen.

[Voozi]

Being the impulse buyer I am, I bought both mission pack DLCs, and I only played Edy's DLC and never even beat it yet lol, and I've yet to even touch Selvaria's DLC. So not sure if I can properly judge whether or not it's worth it lol.

As for the super hard difficulty one, I skipped out on that lol.

[Chewytime]

I shedded a few manly tears at the end of MGS4.

[mmike855]

I have teared up during games before. I find that games like Gears of War were not created to make people feel much other than being a renegade awesome cool dude with huge feet. The series is good, but not mind tinglingly or even thought provoking. To find that type of emotion in games is similar to finding it in movies: look hard. Metal Gear Solid 4 is a game where, if you have watched the excellently directed cutscenes, followed his character, and paid attention to the story, you know that the tears brimming your eyes have nothing to do with the pain in your thumbs. Gaming is a storytelling medium now, and directors and writers are going to take more and more advantage of that in the future. Heavy Rain and the new Final Fantasy games come to mind.

[kingme71]

Good point mmike.

Spoiler alert for Gears of War II.

I know Epic talked for months on how they have a professional writer and you might shed a tear on this one and they are putting more into the story than before. The whole time we were searching for Dom's wife, I kept thinking man I do not want to find her and have to do an escort mission for the next level or two. I hope she's dead or we find her at the end. Probably not the response Epic was looking for, but if you try and mix in the emotions into the gameplay like that, I'll take gameplay first.

[No FanS Land]

I would say the scene when Eva dies in MGS4, When she sees nakedsnake's body burning. It's an entire story that dies right in front of her eyes, that and the moment she thinks she can reconciliate Adam.

[kingme71]

I cried last night in GTAIV. Got 20 minutes into a mission, all I had to do was drive Roman home to finish it and as I was leaving, I bumped a propane tank and blew up my car. Checkpoints would be nice.

Seriously though, the article makes a good point that most of the emotional parts of the game are portrayed in cut scenes, not during the gameplay. It is much easier to draw out emotions during passive entertainment like a cut scene.

If you kill off a trusting animal I might come close. The Last Guardian has a chance to wet some tear ducts if that big creature dies at the end.... I can just see that coming too.

[The Meerkat]

Maria!!!! in Gears

and

The very end of Halo 3 when the MC goes into stasis and you know Cortana loves him and will watch over him for possible hundreds of years.

[ginsunuva]

You cried for Halo and Gears?!?!?

Typical 7 year old.

[The Meerkat]

Your absence of empathy for the characters in the games actually speaks volumes about your lack of maturity.

Once your old enough to experience all of the good and the bad that life throws at you in the forms of love, loss and death. When you see these same feelings expressed in a game than you can more accurately relate to them and reflect on your own memories.

[LeonSKennedy4Life]

In Gears 2.

Definitely.

[Sanhlami]

I cried in that game

that shoots diced onions into your eyes.

It was beautiful.

[hankmoody]

When Red XIII finds out what really happened to his father. I didn't cry but my eyes got a little watery.

[Ninjamonkey]

Not for a while.

Right now most games ar about gameplay and graphics. Plus the devs are always trying to make us feel like rambo whilst were playing, and he never cries.

A game which made people cry could be easily made. But thats not what the devs want right now. Becuase they dont sell.

[RedDeadLB]

MGS4 definitely.. From the microwave scene onwards.. A true epic story. The Ocelot vs Snake battle had that epic feeling.. Can't quite describe it. Not like it would make you cry, but more like an... adrenaline rush?

[ginsunuva]

I cried when MGS4 ended.

[LeBart]

Ending of Shadow of the Colossus, when the hero is struggling against the wind. This is gameplay, and this is effin' sad.

[Kakihara]

I cried all the way through Assassin's creed and Prototype. Not just slight tearing up either, full on tears and cries of 'Why??? Why??? It looked so cool from the pre release footage. Why does this game suck donkey balls???'.

Aside from that Half life 2 moved me far more than any other game. I didn't come close to crying but at many points when Alyx smiled at me or expressed concern for me I almost crossed a major line from geekhood into serious mental illness falling in love with a computer generated character.

[Demon5500]

That is the funniest thing I have ever read , :)
Yeah HL2 drew me in to, but not to the point of your level, that's no
return mate:)

[Bathyj]

Ok, this might sound stupid. I didnt cry but I felt great empathy for Yorda in Ico. In fact I didn't like to run with her because it looked like when you took off it nearly pops her shoulder out of her socket. I wouldn't normally just walk with her and then run if I had to.

I guess its either a testiment to the brilliant animation of the game, or to what a whoose I am.

[34543534798]

have ever f*cking played Metal Gear ? (1 2 3 4 ?)

[Sitdown]

Let me start by saying that this is a global question that is/was answered from a cultural standpoint. To pose a question with that assumption means that we are unable to see beyond the majority. A couple days back an article was posted on N4G stating that "average age of video-game players in the United States is 35...overweight and tend to be depressed."; from that prevailing stereotype, I can understand why this questioned is asked...because that population would not be my first choice as far as crying is concerned. But the reality is, majority is not indicative of every gamer....and diversity in gamers is to vast to neatly put it under a single umbrella. I will in turn ask the question, how often does media in general cause us to cry?...or lets take it a step further, how often do people cry in general?

[iceman06]

Funny that you stated that because I was thinking the exact same thing. When was the last time that the average person has shed a tear over an entertainment medium!?!? I have had VERY EMOTIONAL experiences in movies, games, and music. However, I can't say that I shed any TEARS! I think that movies have brought me the closest to that point, but I didn't cry. I was just left with the emotional baggage of the character that I empathized with. That is the key to the question. When have we been so engrossed in a game that we took on the emotion of the moment in games and cried? For me...not yet...but here's HOPING that one will eventually turn me into a BIG CRYBABY!!!

[likedamaster]

What kind of question is that?

I'll keep it simple. Make us cry... and you make us trade it in.

[LeonSKennedy4Life]

Devil May Cry
Kingdom Hearts
Devil May Cry 3
Kingdom Hearts 2
Ico
Shadow of the Colossus
The Darkness
Metal Gear Solid (ALL OF THEM)
Indigo Prophecy
Final Fantasy X-2
Fatal Frame II

I don't know a single gamer that hasn't cried during at least one game.

[bjornbear]

Which are those moments in "movies" (videogames too) where its so creatively and narratively perfect, you can't help but tear up due to the admiration and beauty of it =D

[flankhim]

I make make people cry all the time when I beat there ass online.

[keysy420]

games have lost touch with conencting us to our carachters ps 1 did this really well through rpg's the online experience take that away from u s

[Premonition]

im probably the only one but when playing heavenly sword, towards the ending, it had me choked up, i had to hold it back but in the end no tears fell, but it was a pretty close one.

[mushroomwig]

Will they?

They already do..it depends what game. I have cried at a few (Metal Gear Solid 4, Final Fantasy..although I forget which number.)

[Demon5500]

Well not crying but on the edge?
Crisis Core Final Fantasy
MGS4 ,
gears of war 2 the wife?
final fantasy 10,
Ninja Gaiden black :) "tears of rage"
Phantasy star, first rpg it left a big hole in the heart.
Advent Rising wife's death.
Final fantasy 7 the tragic movie of aerith dieing.
I have no mouth and I can not scream, story 5

[infamous-butcher]

When playing MGS3 i pritty much cried at the end, FFX i think i cried more. Iv never been so emotionally attached to a game charature than Tidus and Yuna. i almost cried at the end of GTA4, but that was just because it was such a letdown haha. Also at the end of MGS4 i almost cried, but there was something there that just stoped it, tears foirmed but they didnt fall, (sounds gay yea but fûçk it).

[el_rika]

MGS3 and MGS4 are two games/stories that had me holding back my tears.

MGS4 had more genuinely emotional moments than any movie i've seen and not only dramatic, but deeply nostalgic, amazingly spirit soaring and incredibly profound as well. Truly an emotional rollercoaster for those that got invested into the story.

[Shadowstar]

Wait, there are people who've never cried at a game before? Have they no souls?

[thegreatest7884]

I'll admit it, I did at the end of MGS4. I grew up playing as Snake and it was the end of a legendary story. It was just so sad that his body had failed because of his aging condition.

[SpaceInsomniac]

"But the question posed by the title of this article stands; will a game ever make us cry? It is a question which requires some clarification. For some we may have already reached a point where a game can educe such powerful emotions, but the trigger is never the game itself. The gameplay, the element that defines it as a game is not instigator but a story element usually expressed through a cut scene or similar device."

It's this part of the article that makes this such an interesting topic. I think most are ignoring this, and are primarily talking about cut scenes and and other non-interactive segments of the game. Will "gameplay" ever make us cry is a very different question, indeed.

[DiffusionE]

....the ending slo-mo sequence of COD4 gave me a sad feeling, watching helplessly as our teammates got shot in the head one-by-one.

And the Prince of Persia trilogy, when at the end of Two Thrones they showed the opening scene of Sands of Time. That left me in a very emotional state, seeing how far we've come from SoT to T2T, then going back there like a time-loop. That was a nice and rare touch from the devs.

[gamerzBEreal17]

kingdom hearts made me cry at the end lol and im 90% sure the last gardian will make you cry i mean ur a boy u get to be closed with this huge thing but then...SPOILER...you have to kill him

[billybob2468]

But I have cried watching Avatar, so I think that counts. I honestly think it's the only thing that's ever made me cry, and I still don't really know why. This video gets me every time:
http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[kaveti6616]

My eyes kind of get watery every time I finish Super Mario Brothers. It's because I'm always getting to the end of the level and the little shroom guy thanks me for saving his life but says the princess is in another castle. So when I finally get to the right castle I feel really sad that the game is ending. I want it to continue.