90°

Why Are Game Endings So Bad?

Our Gaming Editor Marc takes a look at problematic game endings, and what can be done to fix them.

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vgrevolution.com
trouble_bubble4570d ago

Ubisoft doesn't know how to do an ending.

The Splinter Cells back in the day all had like 10 second endings. They even retconned out one of the ending choices in Double Agent.

Prince of Persia reboot ended in a cliffhanger and its DLC ended in another cliffhanger that still hasn't been resolved.

Far Cry 2 had a terrible text ending with stills. FC3 was barely better yet has some of the longest credits I've ever seen.

Assassin's Creed has been left hanging forever. Even Ezio's fate is left to a seperate downloadable animated "movie"

Master-H4569d ago

the first Prince of Persia on ps2 had a beautiful ending though.

prototypeknuckles4569d ago (Edited 4569d ago )

that is true ubisoft just suck at endings

princ of persia 2008 may never get a sequel yet it ended on a downright cliffhanger, and then they releases dlc with another cliffhanger, and now they refuse to make a sequel to clean it up

splinter cell games have the most irrelevant endings ever

every assassians creed end on a cliffhanger or a mindfuck, like seriously what was AC3 ending it sucked

latly it seems to me that the only developers that can make good or decent endings are suckerpunch, naughtydog, sony santa monica, rockstar,rocksteady, even capcom makes better endings.

iamnsuperman4567d ago (Edited 4567d ago )

Assassin's creed just went too ridiculous for the setting. It just came of as if it was ripped from a b movie. They just needed to tone things down which is why AC:B had the best ending. It was really about space gods and sun but about the characters there that shocked us all. I personally do not mind cliff hanger after cliff hanger as long as they answer things in the mean time (AC series just didn't do that)

listenkids4569d ago

Some things you don't need to have your hand held and told what happens, give your brain a chance to create something.

Tetsujin4569d ago

Not everyone has an imagination, or they'd rather youtube it for "clarification." then later whine because it's not how "they" thought it would be.

caseh4569d ago

Sorry but an ending is an important factor.

If they're not going to bother making an effort to end the story perhaps they shouldn't bother telling one to begin with.

dirthurts4569d ago

I'm with Listenkids on this one.
I think the developers are (I my honest opinion) simply overestimating the audiences ability to use their imagine and let their mind run with it.
Like with the Price of Persia game, sure it's a cliff hanger but it left a STATEMENT and you are left to finish the story in your mind.
It's imagination that really brings a story alive.
Perhaps people haven't grasped that yet.
Far Cry 2's ending also left a statement, but could have been executed better.

caseh4569d ago

Ok, go back a few years to the SNES/Genesis era.

There was very little in the way of story in most games, you maybe had a flashy intro loosely showing what the f*ck was going on.

So you go about completeing the game, there are no lengthy cut-scenes anywhere or plot updates throughout the game. It then ended with the good guys celebrating/aliens blowing up/crime lords flying out of the window. < That was ALL the closure you needed.

There was no real story so the ending wasn't really anticipated.

Flip to current generation, MGS4 would be a good example. Its all about the story, we MUST know what happens to Snake. Kojima spends hours in game telling a story, tieing up loose ends but more importantly it gives closure with a sh!tload of dialogue after the final punch has been thrown.

You cut back to MGS4, and cut the story at the point where Snake and Liquid fight and just roll the credits back to the title screen. I'm sorry but no ones imagination other than Kojima is ever going to give you closure in cases like that.

Some games don't need an ending I agree, but they shouldn't build up a story spanning over weeks of gameplay only to have some scrolling text, its just a weak assed end to what was previously an engaging storyline.

dirthurts4569d ago

@caseh,
Very well stated, but there are some difference here.
First, Metal gear solid IS a story. I've always felt like the story came first, and then the gameplay. So yes, you must know what happens but if you think back, you really don't. At the end of Metal Gear you find out Snake will live, but that's the end of it. You don't know where he goes or what he does.
Same for AC. You know he rescues the woman at the expense of the world, but you don't really know what happens after. In both cases the character overcomes the major obstacles, but you're still left to imagine the outcomes.
In either case, these are extreme cases.
In the original Gears of War, you really had very little idea of what was really happening, and the story was VERY loose, and you really had no idea what the character does at the end, but that was ok because it was a game first, and then a story.

trouble_bubble4569d ago (Edited 4569d ago )

@dirthurts
The only "statement" the PoP cliffhanger left is BUY OUR DLC FOR TEH TRUE ENDING. What good is your imagination then??? Nothing. Because Ubi' went and dragged it out for $10 more that left the game in a worse spot than where it was. Then ditched the continuity anyways.

Decompression is a form of storytelling often frowned upon by comic book readers who hate buying issues where nothing happens or things get needlessly stretched out. The fact that they saved Ezio's death for a $5-10 PSN/XBL animated skit is a slap in the face to everyone who paid $60 a year for 3 years, only to find out if they wanted the true ending they shoulda bought the cartoon and not the game, or spent more $$$ on a Collectors Edition.

What's there to grasp or imagine there? If you're like me and chose to save Lambert's life in Ubi's Splinter Cell Double Agent ending, Splinter Cell Conviction still says you shot him (!) and thus finished the game with an out of continuity ending. No foresight. Much how Sam Fisher has been getting younger and more agile in subsequent games to the point they ditched Michael Ironside as VA. The only thing these developers are overestimating their own ability to tell a story with continuity.

Bimkoblerutso4569d ago

Good God...that's a ridiculous cop-out. There is a difference between making a cryptic ending and making an unsatisfying ending. I'm sorry, but if a game is NARRATIVE DRIVEN throughout the first 99% of it's play-time, there needs to be at least SOME effort put into the ending. I don't need all the answers, but I do need to feel like developers didn't pass off the ending to some office interns because they were sick of working on it.

...that means NO GODDAMN MONTAGE. Jesus. Developers spend the entire game telling their stories through animated cutscenes and gameplay, and yet they can't find a more creative way to wrap up their game than a Reading Rainbow-inspired montage!?

dirthurts4569d ago (Edited 4569d ago )

Firstly, a down bubble vote for the bad language. You should communicate yourself with better chosen words or no one will ever take you seriously.
Secondly, what game are you referring to?
Your comments have little substance without being specific.
There are few games that I have played that I haven't felt satisfied with the ending. I actually quite like the Price of Persia ending.
The Assassins Creed games have all had mediocre endings, but I never felt like the story work was that great either (although a great concept), so that was expected.
Above I cited (AC for assassins creed, I actually meant prince of persia).

Bimkoblerutso4569d ago (Edited 4569d ago )

...I'm sorry that my language offended you (though the language was not even directed at you). Just FYI, you may wish to avoid 90% of the games we're talking about here if you are so readily offended by salty language.

Let me just go down my Steam games list here, and keep in mind that this is not a comprehensive list in the least. These are only the narrative-driven games with terrible endings that I own through Steam:

- Bioshock 1/2 (montages)

- Borderlands 1/2 (like a minute of cheesy "we won" dialog, cut to credits)

- Deus Ex HR (arbitrary choices, montage)

- Dishonored (montage)

- Fear 1/2/3 (ALL basically "setup" endings)

- Fallout 3/NV (montages)

- RAGE (30 second cutscene...no real confrontation at all, just a button press)

- Warhammer 40k DOW2/Space Marine ("setup" endings)

The list goes on and on and on to the point that it almost seems like an inside joke in the industry to totally skimp on the ending. Granted many of those games are some of my favorite games ever, but that just makes me sadder knowing how awesome the endings could have been if they had put as much work into them as they did the rest of the game.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4569d ago
Cam9774569d ago

You're playing too much COD.

chukamachine4569d ago

Still waiting for a game, open worldish with a good story, you can ride a dragon, jump off for combat, about an evil man who kidnaps your daughter,girlfriend etc.

A good story can make a game, a bad one can break it, no matter how good in other ways said game is.

spacedelete4569d ago

FYI GTA IV had a pretty good story. Open world games don't need good stories anyway tbh as they are about freedom. Linear games DO need good stories as they are about a story.

It says alot how bad story telling is when an open world game like GTA IV has better story than most linear games.

Gamesgbkiller4569d ago

Maybe because we don't like the game to end ?
NO.. I think because they are working so hard but at the end they just want to finish it quick.

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190°

Xbox Mass layoffs Are Expected To Hit On July 2, 2025

The previously rumored mass layoffs at Xbox are expected to happen on Wednesday, July 2, 2025, according to a new rumor.

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twistedvoxel.com
12h ago
lukasmain8h ago(Edited 8h ago)

They will have fired close to 20,000 people all up after this round of lay-offs coming, since the ABK deal announcement in January 2022. Shocking really

January 2023:
Microsoft laid off 10,000 employees, which was a significant workforce reduction.

January 2024:
Approximately 1,900 gaming employees were laid off following the Activision Blizzard acquisition.

May 2025:
Microsoft announced a further 6,000 layoffs as part of an organizational shift.

June 2025:
Additional layoffs, including 650 in the gaming business, focused on corporate and support functions

7h agoReplies(2)
Obscure_Observer7h ago

"They will have fired close to 20,000 people all up after this round of lay-offs coming, since the ABK deal announcement in January 2022. Shocking really"

It's not that shocking considering these numbers aren't just Xbox numbers as you're deliberately trying to make it seem for some reason.

Interestingly, another no shocking fact is that whenever Microsoft releases its quarterly earnings reports, you're quick to point out that those numbers aren't exclusive to Xbox. Yeah... go figure.

Ganif5h ago

They also fired around 2500 people across Microsoft's gaming divisions and Zenimax shortly after buying it, and before they closed down 4 studios including Arkane and Tango.

I remember Satya boasting about how compassionate he was for splitting the list 50/50 across the two companies.

4h ago
Obscure_Observer2h ago

"They also fired around 2500 people across Microsoft's gaming divisions and Zenimax shortly after buying it"

Bring your sources. I´ll wait.

1dmj43m ago

He doesn’t have any sources lol

He also forgot that Sony does layoffs too

Hereandthere6h ago

Let's hope its not as bad as socials are making it, good luck to those that unfortunately lose their jobs.

5h ago
Lightning775h ago

Could be not as bad could be horrible. But it's Ms so I'm expecting the absolute worst.

-Foxtrot4h ago

Sometimes I feel like they brought in Sarah to take the heat away from Phil.

Phil has always stuck his nose into everything Xbox related when it's something positive or at least neutral but as soon as they went the multiplatform root he's stood back and let Sarah do most of the talking in terms of PR. Now they are doing the same with layoffs.

The person who should be let go is Phil himself.

RhinoGamer882h ago

Phil and his inner circle of circle jerk bros like AG.

Obscure_Observer2h ago

"Phil has always stuck his nose into everything Xbox related when it's something positive or at least neutral but as soon as they went the multiplatform root he's stood back and let Sarah do most of the talking in terms of PR. Now they are doing the same with layoffs."

You have no idea what you´re talking about.

*IF* Microsoft decides to address the upcoming layoffs, Matt Booty will be the one in the spotlight since he is the president of XGS.

Phil will probably be on some bs drama later doing interviews telling people how "devastated" and "sorry" he is for those affected while wiping away his tears with money.

Sarah is the President of Xbox (hardware) so she will be better off taking care of hers business and let both Matt and Phil face the backlash.

Show all comments (19)
300°

Looming Xbox layoffs threaten Microsoft's reputation

Even as the company sets out to overhaul the very definition of Xbox, cuts at its studios risk creating a negative image reminiscent of EA's worst era

Read Full Story >>
gamesindustry.biz
Jingsing4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

I appreciate the article but this guy must be living in a delayed universe, The reputation was ruined 10+ years ago and hasn't recovered since. As such people have voted with their wallets and stopped buying Xbox products in large amounts.

YourMommySpoils3d ago

Their reputation was lost way before that. From the moment Microsoft said they entering the console business, we all knew it would be a downgrade.

Bathyj2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

That's not true at all the OG Xbox had drive and they had hunger and they wanted to accomplish something. It was a great console.

they didn't quite reach their goals and they gave up prematurely because they couldn't win. It was halfway through the Xbox 360 when kinect released and that was when they lost their way and we're a rudderless ship ever since

Agent752d ago

In all fairness, Xbox had some great games with online play, Xbox 360 even better. Xbox consoles started to die with the Xbox One. Ditch consoles for the PC and PS.

YourMommySpoils2d ago

@Bathyj hard to compute ay. Xbox was never better than a PC and that's all they ever were. A demo box. Doesn't get more true than that.

4d ago Replies(1)
isarai4d ago

What reputation is this threatening exactly? 😂

Lightning774d ago

Rumors of Turn 10 being either shut down or hit with massive lay offs is on the horizon.

The issue is MS will do something right only to do something very, very wrong. And they do this what seems calculative at this point. Doesn't matter what they do the Investors and leadership want more and more money an endless bottomless pit of purr insatiable greed. A company that acts like it's broke or hurting is what really, really infuriates me. They've surpassed apple again well over 3 trillion who acts like they're a million dollar company is fk stupid. Pivots and changes for no reason and can't do things for more than a year with out a pivot or changing their metrics.

Christopher3d ago

That would be really bad since Phil just hyped up next year as a big Forza year at Summer Game Fest.

1Victor3d ago

@christopher: “ That would be really bad since Phil just hyped up next year as a big Forza year at Summer Game Fest”
The key word big can be ether good or bad 🤷🏿only time can tell

DarXyde3d ago

First Forza being generated entirely via AI?

If any company would do it, it'd be them.

Nacho_Z2d ago

Isn't the point that it's irrelevant how profitable MS is, the suits have decided it's time that the Xbox division started making them money. Hence the layoffs, the pivots.

hennessey862d ago

That wouldn't surprise me, as motorsport has been heading down hill since the great number 4. Where as playground have consistently put out better games. I think the two studios will be merged under playground games banner.

3d ago Replies(2)
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90°

The 'Stop Killing Games' initiative is close to its final deadline

Ross Scott—also known as Accursed Farms on YouTube—has been fighting tooth and nail for almost a full year to help spearhead game preservation. Starting after it was announced that Ubisoft's The Crew would be shutting down, permanently ending support for the game, Scott launched the "Stop Killing Games" initiative.

That makes a twofold deadline for the Stop Killing Games initiative. Or, at least, one headed up by Scott: The UK petition, which ends July 14, and the EU Citizens' Initiative, which ends July 3.

M3talDiamond7d ago (Edited 7d ago )

If you live in the EU then Please sign this or our game ownership rights and game preservation is
at stake. I know there isnt much time left but please consider signing the petition

-Foxtrot6d ago

I never knew Ross Scott was doing this

I love Freemans Mind

Inverno6d ago (Edited 6d ago )

People whine and in the end don't do a thing. Then whine more when they get screwed some more smh. If this makes it then it'll be monumental for consumers. That Pirate software guy was no help either smh.

GazCBG5d ago

The EU Date is the 31st July not the 3rd

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