Top 10 Video Games That Made You Buy The True Ending
#10: “Doom Eternal” (2020)
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Id Software’s follow-up to 2016’s revival was a bloody, explosive, adrenaline shot of a game. And it ended with the Slayer victorious and Earth saved. But there was a lot more to it than that. The developers crafted not one, but two DLC expansions to continue the story at $19.99 a piece. The two-part “Ancient Gods'' saw the demonic invasion of Earth continue while showcasing a ton of lore. It mainly revolved around The Dark Lord, the first being in existence who created the multiverse and Hell. The Dark Lord’s death destroys all demons outside of Hell, so it still ends with Earth saved. But the DLC’s price of admission is enough to earn it its spot.
#9: “Dead Space 3” (2013)
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“Dead Space 3” isn’t exactly the most beloved entry in the series. But it still nailed its tone and gave Isaac Clarke a definitive end. Or so we thought. The game concludes with Isaac and Carver sacrificing themselves to keep Earth safe from the necromorphs. A moon crashes into the planet Tau Volantis and they fall from a definitively deadly height. However, a post-credits sting and the $9.99 “Awakened” DLC confirmed that it strangely wasn’t the case. Not only did they survive, but they made it back to Earth to find it surrounded by Brethren Moons. Sadly, this bleak ending would be the finale as EA shut down Visceral Games in 2017 and only a remake of the first game is on the horizon.
#8: “Assassin’s Creed: Revelations” (2011)
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It’s one thing to make players buy DLC to get answers, but linking it to a separate game is pretty crummy. At the end of “Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood,” modern day protagonist Desmond Miles gets possessed by an ancient being who forces him to stab ally Lucy to death. Why this happened wouldn’t be revealed until the DLC for the next game, “Revelations.” The $9.99 “Lost Archive” DLC revealed that Lucy was working for the villainous Templars. The modern day events naturally aren’t the most interesting aspects of the series. But making players purchase the next game, and then DLC, just to get an answer is annoying to say the least.
#7: “Fire Emblem Fates” (2016)
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The 14th entry in Nintendo’s long-running RPG series released in two parts on the 3DS: “Birthright” and “Conquest.” They each had their own storylines and characters but primarily focused on Hoshido and Nohr, two kingdoms at war. Which kingdom you sided with depended on your version of the game. And while both ended peacefully, the $19.99 DLC titled “Revelation” definitely had the more complete ending. This storyline saw the protagonist reject both kingdoms only to find out later that someone else was pulling the strings. A third, hidden kingdom, Valla, had been taken over by the evil dragon Anankos. “Revelation” united both kingdoms against a common foe and peace was established between three kingdoms rather than two.
#6: “Alan Wake” (2010)
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The nature of Remedy Entertainment’s “Alan Wake” is to disorient the player. It follows the titular author as he searches for his missing wife while witnessing events from a novel he hasn’t written yet. And it ends with Alan trapped in an alternate, dream-like reality known as the Dark Place. But two DLC expansions at $6.99 a piece were released the same year that chronicled Alan’s time in this strange dimension as he learned of a way to escape. At the DLC’s core is a message about conquering your fears; it’s just a shame we had to shell out a few extra bucks to experience it completely. And Remedy would similarly hide a true ending within more DLC for its future release, “Control.”
#5: “Fallout 3” (2008)
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An open world game that completely ends after you finish the main story sounds strange. And even in 2008, players were frustrated by the outcome of “Fallout 3.” Upon entering the Jefferson Memorial, the Wanderer is confronted with a tough decision: sacrifice themselves by taking on lethal radiation in order to fix a water purifier or make their ally Sarah do it instead. Regardless, the game ends here. Or it did until Bethesda released the “Broken Steel” DLC. This gave players the option to send a radiation-immune ally in their stead. But it also let players continue exploring the wasteland after completing the main event. What’s standard practice now was given a $4.99 price tag then.
#4: “Dead Rising 4” (2016)
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The main draw of Capcom’s zombie series is combining regular items to make ridiculous killing machines. But we were still ecstatic to see original protagonist Frank West return for the fourth game. The so far final entry ended with Frank sacrificing himself to a zombie horde as his friends escaped on a helicopter. But by forking over $9.99 for the “Frank Rising” DLC, we’d see the actual end of Frank’s story. After being attacked by evo zombies, Frank was turned and gained some nifty new abilities. But through an alliance with Dr. Blackburne, Frank would get cured and make an escape of his own. It seems like something that important should've been in the original game.
#3: “Dying Light” (2015)
Techland’s survival horror game set itself apart with some stellar parkour mechanics. And despite its genre, it actually had a pretty happy ending. Kyle Crane was victorious over the villain and decided to stay in Harran to help survivors. But anyone who’s played “The Following” knows that isn’t the end. The $19.99 DLC picked back up on Kyle tracking a cult claiming to have a cure for the zombie virus. Of course, there is no cure and “The Following” ends in one of two ways: either Kyle gets transformed into a sentient Volatile or he sets off a nuclear warhead to destroy Harran, containing the virus. Either way, it’s a wildly different ending to the one that non-DLC purchasers were given.
#2: “Prince of Persia” (2008)
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This cel-shaded revamp of Ubisoft’s action-adventure series sought to tell a new story. But with the way things ended, we kind of wish it hadn’t. During the climax, the Prince’s companion Elika is killed after completing a spell to lock the God of Darkness Ahriman away. However, the Prince frees Ahriman in order to bring her back to life. And the game ends with the ancient evil returning. To find out what happened after that cliffhanger, players would have to pay $9.99 for the “Epilogue” DLC. While it did put an end to Elika’s villainous father, it still finishes with Ahriman free and likely seeking vengeance. But that would be the last we’d see of that storyline.
#1: “Asura’s Wrath” (2012)
By far the worst case of price gouging players to give them a real ending is Capcom’s anime-inspired beat ‘em up. The game itself was actually pretty cool, following an enraged demigod who seeks vengeance on those who betrayed him as he yearns for his kidnapped daughter. But by the end, there are still a few mysteries left unsolved. A mere two months after launch, Capcom released the “True Ending” DLC (yes, that’s what they actually called it) that added an extra 4 chapters for $6.99. The price isn’t too bad. But cutting out necessary scenes to get the full story? That’s downright terrible.