Death in video games is often temporary — a setback at worst, a minor inconvenience at best. But some games explore something far more harrowing: fates that make death seem like mercy. Whether through psychological torment, eternal suffering, or irreversible transformation, these stories push their protagonists — and players — into realms ofexistential horror.
These aren’t just bad endings or tragic twists; they’re inescapable nightmares that linger long after the game ends. From body horror to forgotten identities, here are the video game fates that remind us some things are worse than dying.
In The Suffering, players control Torque, a prisoner on death row who may have murdered his family — or may be haunted by something much worse. As he navigates an island prison overrun with monstrous representations of execution methods, the line between reality and hallucination blurs entirely.
Torque’s powers come from his inner rage and trauma, transforming him into a beast fueled by guilt and violence. Whether his crimes are real or not depends on player choice, but the horror is constant: he is trapped in a cycle of punishment and denial, forced to relive every failure and fear. Even escape offers no guarantee of peace — only the possibility that he’ll carry his demons forever.
Scorn throws players into a grotesque, biomechanical world without dialogue, context, or mercy. You awaken in a decaying labyrinth of flesh and metal, forced to solve puzzles by violating your own body and others'. Progression is slow, painful, and dehumanizing — and that’s before the final act.
The game culminates in the protagonist’s loss of autonomy, as parasitic entities physically fuse with and control their body, stripping them of all agency. They are left immobilized, trapped in a state of conscious, permanent torment, unable to die and incapable of resisting. The ending offers no triumph, no release — only eternal suffering in a living prison.
Raziel is introduced inSoul Reaveras a noble vampire lieutenant, only to be executed by his master Kain for evolving too quickly. Cast into the Abyss, he is resurrected by an ancient force as a wraith — a creature caught between life and death.
His body is ruined, his thirst now spiritual, and his only sustenance is the souls of the damned. But his new existence is defined by revenge and manipulation, as he discovers he is merely another pawn in a divine and eternal chess game. Raziel’s journey is tragic not because he dies — but because he can’t. He is cursed to wander and suffer in a cycle that strips him of identity, choice, and hope.
In Dark Souls, players take on the role of theChosen Undead— a title that sounds noble until its implications become clear. The curse of undeath means never truly dying, but also slowly losing your mind, becoming Hollow, and eventually forgetting who you are.
Even success feels shallow at best. Linking the fire may prolong the Age of Fire, but it sacrifices your soul to a flame that only burns until the next hero comes along. Refusing the call leads to a world of endless decay. No matter the path, the Chosen Undead is just another tool of a broken cycle, destined to be forgotten while the world stumbles toward entropy.
In Corpse Party, a group of students is transported to Heavenly Host Elementary — a school that exists in a warped dimension where time and death are meaningless. Murdered children, vengeful ghosts, and corrupted reality surround them. But the worst part?
Even dying doesn’t free you. Characters are revived over and over, forced to relive their deaths, torment, or the trauma of watching friends die. The school feeds on fear and sorrow, looping their suffering endlessly unless precise conditions are met. It’s a psychological and emotional meat grinder, where every escape attempt risks making things worse, and every moment is a step closer to madness.
2Becoming A Mind Flayer In Baldur’s Gate 3
Transformation Without Consent
In Baldur’s Gate 3, the central threat is aparasitic tadpolethat slowly transforms you into a Mind Flayer — a psychic, tentacled monster that consumes the minds of others. The process is terrifyingly intimate: you remain conscious as your body, thoughts, and identity begin to shift.
Even if you resist, the temptation of power grows stronger, and your allies may succumb before your eyes. The threat of losing yourself — while becoming more effective and seductive in combat — makes every choice feel dangerous. For those who fully transform, it’s not a death — it’s the obliteration of your soul, with your body left as a puppet of alien will.
1The Memory Loss Of The Nameless One In Planescape: Torment
Immortality Without Meaning
The Nameless One cannot fully die — but every time he does, he loses a piece of himself. After thousands of lifetimes, he’s forgotten his original name, identity, and purpose. Each incarnation has been different: cruel tyrants, lost philosophers, noble heroes — all unknowingly building off the consequences of the last.
His journey is a search not for glory, but for answers. Why is he cursed? Who is he really? Can this ever end? Planescape: Torment explores the horror of immortality not as a gift, but as a punishment — where even death offers no finality, only another reset. The Nameless One is a man trapped not by chains, but by the weight of his forgotten sins.
