Summary
It is possible for villains to defeat the main hero in video games. However, when this happens, the protagonist is typically just wounded or knocked out by the bad guy. So, the hero must recover and seek revenge. On the rare occasion, though, the villain actually kills a hero.
This can happen in the middle of a game, and that hero’s allies go on a quest to avenge them. Alternatively, it can occur at the end, andthe villains emerge victorious. Of course, there are also times when the hero is revived somehow, meaning they’re ready to fight again. Regardless of what happens after, the main point is that the villain slays the seemingly unbeatable hero. These are the antagonists who accomplished that impressive feat.
In Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, you control a few different characters, including a Task Force 141 soldier named Roach. He goes on a bunch of missions during the game, sometimes following the orders of General Shepherd.
However, at the end of the Loose Ends mission, Shepherd betrays both Roach and his ally, Ghost, killing them with his .44 Magnum. This turns him into the main villain for the rest of the game, with the remaining members of Task Force 141 hunting him down.
The 2011 Mortal Kombat story mode has you playing as a different character for each chapter. Chapter 11 puts you into the boots of the respectable fighter known as Kung Lao.
He participates in a bunch of battles during the chapter, as he competes in the Mortal Kombat tournament. After defeating Kintaro, however, Shao Khan walks up to Kung Lao from behind and snaps the fighter’s neck, killing him instantly. As such, Liu Kang has to take his place in the last fight of the chapter.
Red Dead Redemption 2 isa game where your choices have an impact. Primarily, they revolve around honor, which ultimately affects the ending of the protagonist, Arthur Morgan.
Whatever your honor and choices, Arthur ends up fighting the very unlikable Micah Bell, either at camp or on a mountain. If Arthur has low honor, Micah will deliver the killing blow to him. If it’s at camp, that blow comes from a knife, while on the mountain, Micah shoots Arthur in the head. Both serve as a brutal conclusion to Arthur’s story.
Things don’t start great for Commander Shepard in the second Mass Effect game. They and their crew are on their ship, flying through space, when the laser of another ship attacks them. It cuts right through their vessel, meaning their only chance at survival is escape. Yet, Shepard is focused on saving others and doesn’t get the chance to escape themself. So, they’re left to die with their ship.
At the time, it wasn’t known who attacked them. Later, however, you discover it’s a race called The Collectors, who are being controlled by a synthetic being known as Harbinger. Because of this attack and the fact that they’re abducting colonies in space, they become the main villains of the game. Leading the attack against them is Shepard, who has been brought back to life by an organization known as Cerberus using their impressive tech.
The Force Unleashed is about a character named Starkiller, who begins the game as Darth Vader’s apprentice. He soon starts to rebel against Vader and Emperor Palpatine. This leads to a final conclusion where Starkiller has Vader beaten and is ready to finish him off. Alternatively, he can choose to do the right thing and save his ally, who is about to be killed by the Emperor.
If he avoidscommitting to the dark side, he battles and defeats Palpatine. Once again, though, he decides against finishing him off, so Palpatine uses force lightning against him and his friends. This leads to an explosion, killing Starkiller, but Palpatine remains alive. So, it isn’t the happiest of good endings. Yet, he does become a martyr for the Rebel Alliance.
Like in the TV series, it’s easy to die in Telltale’s Game of Thrones game, as all the playable characters could be in danger if you make the wrong choices. However, one death that is guaranteed is that of the early game protagonist, Ethan Forrester.
He is just a kid, but circumstances mean he has to be the lord of House Forrester. This means dealing with the sadistic Ramsay Bolton, who visits the house near the end of the first episode. Because of the influence of Ramsay and his family, the Forresters can’t do anything to the villain. So, Ramsay isn’t scared to simply stab Ethan in the throat and kill him, which he does at the end of the episode.
You likely don’t expect Sonic to die in any game, but you probably don’t expect a lot of what happens in Sonic ‘06. Deep into the game, the main villain, Mephiles, shoots a beam at Sonic, killing him.
This causes his friend Elise to cry, which unleashes a being known as Iblis. Mephiles bonds with Iblis to become a god known as Solaris. It’s a bit complicated, but the important thing is that Mephiles eliminates Sonic. He doesn’t stay dead for too long, though, as the other heroes use the Chaos Emerelds to bring him back.
In Resident Evil 7, you play as a man named Ethan who travels to a very creepy house to find and save his girlfriend, Mia. While there, he finds a bunch of infected creatures, including members of the Baker family.
They’re infected by a mold virus that turns them into violent monsters. This includes the head of the house and one of the main villains in the game, Jack Baker. Ethan tussles with him a lot during the game, and in one of their first encounters, the villain boots him in the face, instantly killing him. Interestingly, you don’t actually know the protagonist died until it’s revealed in the sequel. This is because after Ethan dies, he’s taken over by the mold, meaning he’s alive again and is oblivious to the fact that he died.
