Top 20 Greatest Revenge Stories in Video Games

Admittedly, there’s a lot more story to “Fallout: New Vegas” than your quest for revenge, which is why we’re placing it low. However, it does play a big role in setting up the story, and building out the world during the opening hours. Players control a courier who is tasked with delivering the Platinum Chip, a highly sought after data storage device. But on their way, they’re robbed of it and shot in the head by a criminal named Benny. Obviously, you survive, and you go looking for Benny as soon as you’re able. Once you track him down, you can either choose to repay his unkindness or let him go.

Set in the late 1800s, the first game in the “Call of Juarez” series follows two men seeking justice from two different perspectives. The main character is Billy, a young man who returns from an unsuccessful search for fabled treasure to find his mother and stepfather murdered. His step-uncle, Ray, is a gunman-turned-preacher who believes him to be the culprit. While Ray hunts Billy out of a desire for retribution, Billy goes on the run to uncover the truth. And enact a little vengeance against those who are really responsible. Naturally, not everything is what it seems, though Billy is at least able to clear his name by the end.

“Soul Reaver” remains the most beloved entry in the “Legacy of Kain” series. And on top of it being because it’s a pretty solid action adventure game, the drive for vengeance at the heart of its main character is also captivating for the time. It follows Raziel, a vampire lieutenant serving Kain, the protagonist from the first game. Unfortunately for Raziel, Kain kills him at the beginning, which prompts the Elder God to revive him as a wraith. While Raziel seeks revenge against his former master, his divine savior wants to put an end to Kain to restore Nosgoth, the world that Kain has decimated. Sadly, Kain escapes at the climax, leading to further games in the series.

The most distressing thing about Ryo Hazuki’s revenge story isn’t so much the nature of it, but the fact that the story never reaches a conclusion. In the first game, Ryo returns to his family’s dojo just in time to be emotionally scarred as a man named Lan Di threatens to kill Ryo if his father doesn’t reveal the location of something called the dragon mirror. Ryo’s father complies... and is immediately killed afterwards. The second game reveals that Lan Di blames Ryo’s father for his own father’s death, yet things still end unresolved. That’s where things stood for a long time, until “Shenmue III” in 2019. And yet, Ryo still didn’t get to claim vengeance, and probably never will. Bummer.

While the “Redemption” duology certainly features stronger games, and revenge does play a role, it’s a much more central focus in the original game in the series, “Red Dead Revolver.” It follows bounty hunter Red Harlow twelve years after the murder of his parents. His father discovered gold, but was betrayed by his prospecting partner, leading to his and his wife’s death at the hands of a greedy Mexican Army general and his ally, an American mercenary. While there are plenty of other fun, gunslinging missions to embark on, Red’s thirst for vengeance is the driving force. And he eventually gets to quench that thirst, bringing all three men swift deaths.

Revenge has been a staple in the “Ninja Gaiden” series since its inception, when Ryu Hayabusa set out to avenge his father’s death. When the series was revitalized in 2004, the developers knew not to leave out this key theme. The plot follows Ryu after his village is attacked, his people slain, and he himself is killed by an assailant who stole an ancient, mystical sword his clan was protecting. Brought back to life by a spirit, he then sets out to find all those responsible and give them a very violent end. And if you’ve played “Ninja Gaiden,” you know ‘very violent’ is putting it mildly.

If video games have taught us anything, it’s that if someone is presumed dead, they aren’t actually dead. Such is the case with Sarah Kerrigan, who is abandoned to the Zerg by the emperor of the Terran Dominion, Arcturus Mengsk. Instead of being killed, Kerrigan is assimilated, and as the series progresses she becomes the Queen of Blades and is able to control the Zerg. While she’s been wanting revenge since Mengsk left her for dead, it all comes to a close in “Heart of the Swarm,” where she’s the central focus of the game and able to finally get the vengeance she’s been craving... even if it hurts those closest to her.

This vengeance has been a long time coming. Asura is a demigod and one of several protectors of Earth, whose people give them power with energy through prayer called Mantra. In order to stop a near-constant evil force, the leader of these protectors kidnaps Asura’s daughter, a priestess who can amass huge amounts of Mantra. They also frame Asura for their emperor’s murder before killing him, which takes him 12,000 years to come back from. So, yeah, a little tit for tat is in order. When Asura does return, he channels his fury into wiping out his former comrades one by one. Unfortunately, he learns an all-powerful god is responsible for everything and then has to put a stop to that. Go figure.

Just because you kill someone doesn’t mean you’re free from their wrath. Talion is a man who is hellbent on destroying the Black Hand of Sauron. Black Hand, in an attempt to summon the wraith of the Elf Lord, Celebrimbor, sacrificed Talion, his wife, and his son in a ritual. Celebrimbor does appear, but instead of going to Black Hand, he merges with Talion. The rest of the game is the two working together to restore Celebrimbor’s memories so he can become stronger, and Talion using that strength to avenge his family.

It’s the night of Jackie Estacado’s 21st birthday and he’s got some pretty big plans: escaping the Mafia’s assassination attempts, having a demonic force inhabit his body, watching his girlfriend die, and committing suicide due to his grief. Worst. Birthday. Ever. Fortunately -- or unfortunately, depending on your viewpoint -- Jackie’s death is only the beginning of his story. By giving into The Darkness, he succeeds in his quest for vengeance. Actually, he does more than succeed, as he not only kills the one responsible for his pain, he takes over the mob.

In this co-op action adventure game, the players control Vincent and Leo, two recently acquainted incarcerated men with a desire to bust out. However, their grasp at freedom doesn’t just come from missing the outside world. They each want vengeance on a crime lord named Harvey, who framed Vincent for the murder of his own brother, and who backstabbed Leo after they stole a rare diamond known as the Black Orlov. The two bond as they plan and execute their escape plan, eventually making their way to Harvey and getting sweet revenge for their troubles. There’s a bit more to the story that we don’t feel the need to spoil here, but vengeance still encompasses both men.

While it doesn’t have a fancy title like “Revengeance,” there’s no denying our need for some payback after the events of “Ground Zeroes”... no matter how short said events were. On top of the Militaires Sans Frontières being destroyed, Chico and Paz were tortured in truly despicable ways, including Chico being forced to sexually assault Paz, and Paz having bombs surgically put into her body. Even after being in a coma for nine years, Big Boss and Miller were eager to fight for their lost comrades... and we don’t blame them.

The thing that brings ex-soldier Niko Bellic to Liberty City in the first place is vengeance. He comes looking for the man who betrayed his unit a decade ago, leading to an ambush where most of them were killed. He eventually tracks the guy down, and you can choose to kill or set him free, though you’re much better people than us if you chose the latter. Your decision doesn’t change the overall story, but revenge also plays a part in the story’s final quest. You can either choose to work with or retaliate against Dimitri, who wronged Niko earlier in the game. Either decision leads to Niko losing someone close to him, sending him on one final hunt for revenge.

Someday, villains will learn to not tell the heroes that they’re the ones who destroyed their lives. Had Lord Regent not told Corvo Attano that he was the one who framed him for the death of the Empress, we probably wouldn’t have our number seven pick. To be fair, it was Corvo’s execution day, so Lord Regent was probably feeling extra cocky ... until Corvo broke free. Thus begins his tale of vengeance, a theme that carries over in the sequel, where the Empress’s daughter -- now an Empress herself -- follows in Corvo’s assassin footsteps in an attempt to regain her lost land when she’s dethroned.

Sloclap’s “Sifu” is essentially an old school martial arts movie in video game form. As such, revenge is at the heart of its story. It opens on the murder of your father by one of his former students. You then get to grow up training, thinking only of getting even, and tracking down his accomplices one by one. The game is most noteworthy for its hand-to-hand combat and roguelike structure, which has you grow older upon each death. But you do earn the satisfaction of tracking each target down and taking their life. Of course, you then learn your father’s killer had justifiable reasons for committing the crime, showing that not everything is so black and white.

We can already hear the angry comments. There’s a vocal part of the fanbase who were displeased with the storytelling of “The Last of Us Part II.” Importantly, that Ellie doesn’t get revenge on Abby, the woman who murdered her father figure, Joel. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t a story about revenge, and a gut-wrenching one at that. Abby only sets out to take Joel’s life because of his actions in the first game, which left her without a father. And in Ellie’s quest for retribution, she ends up committing horrific acts against the others responsible. The story attempts to showcase how someone can lose themselves to violence and their desire for revenge. Whether it stuck the landing is down to your personal preference.

Wouldn’t it be great if you could get in all the training you needed via reliving the memories of an assassin? Especially an assassin as charismatic as Ezio Auditore da Firenze? We suppose the drawback would be having to live through Ezio’s tragic backstory. We barely get to be introduced to the man before his father and brothers are killed, leaving Ezio to flee with his mother and sister. Before his death, Ezio’s father tells him where to find his assassin tools, and the rest, as they say, is computer generated history used to fight the Templars.

Why can’t any badass lead character be allowed to settle down with their family? Such is the case for Max Payne, a NYPD detective who just lost his wife and newborn baby to junkies who were high on a brand new drug. As if losing his family weren’t enough, Max’s longtime friend, Alex, is also killed, and Max is framed for it. This adds to the pile of reasons why Max is on such a destructive path of vengeance. How destructive, you ask? Well it says a lot when the lead character actually smiles as he’s arrested for all of his carnage.

When Mongol forces invade his homeland, Jin Sakai survives as one of the only remaining Samurai. The other is his uncle, Lord Shimura, who is captured. What follows is Jin’s sole purpose, to rid Tsushima Island of its invaders and avenge the horrors brought upon his people. In doing so, he leaves behind the idea of honor instilled in him, using tactics that some would deem shameful. Jin’s transformation from noble warrior to fearsome Ghost is surrounded by his thirst for vengeance. And despite his methods, we can’t help but feel what we’re doing is necessary. That’s not to mention several deep side characters on their own quests for justice, such as Lady Masako, who joins Jin after burying her entire family.

When you think of a brutal force of nature, there’s several characters who come to mind, but nothing says enraged quite like Kratos. Tricked into killing his family by Ares, he sets off on an epic quest for vengeance. Kratos not only kills Ares, but he takes his position as the “God of War.” Due to his anger at the gods in general, Kratos runs amok, which evokes the wrath of Zeus, which gets Kratos killed, which makes him even angrier, which means... lots of violence, blood, and those aggressive, Spartan battle cries. Although Kratos would mellow out in his old age during the Norse era, his bloodlust in Greece is still the stuff of video game legends.

Is there a riveting tale of vengeance we left off of our list? Well, don’t hold it against us, but let us know about it in the comments below!