9 Video Game Endings That Were Changed Because Of Fan Feedback
If at first you don't succeed... patch in a completely different ending a few months later.
While a wobbly introduction can leave a terrible first impression, a bad ending can sink a whole game. Because no matter how great the potentially hundreds of hours that came before may have been, if a title ends on a frustrating anti-climax, any built-up goodwill a developer might have earned gets dashed in an instant.
And although you can find examples of internet backlash for controversial endings no matter the medium, sometimes gaming fans just can't continue their lives knowing that writers have botched a conclusion to their favourite games. Because if history has shown us anything, it's that if fans are vocal enough, even the biggest companies can - and will - bend to the demands of a fanbase, returning to a project to amend something like a terrible ending.
While there's something to be said about respecting the creative decisions of the dedicated and passionate writers at the helm of these narratives, many a horror story has leaked detailing rushed development processes that have ended up in unfinished and disappointing games (I'm still in mourning over Metal Gear Solid V's butchered second act).
Occasionally, a vocal fanbase is the only thing powerful enough to give publishers the push they need for a developer to finish their work, but how many times has it worked out for the best?
9. Infamous 2's Bad Ending Was Supposed To Be Canon
The Infamous series has always been big on moral choices. Throughout the first two games especially, players were able to tailor protagonist Cole MacGrath to their liking, deciding whether the reluctant superhero's tale would end in tragedy or a 'happy ever after'.
But when it came to crafting the latest spin-off, Infamous Second Son, the development team were forced to make one of the endings to the second game canon. The world of the series after this climax could have been wildly different depending on whether you went down the good or bad moral path, and as a result, there was just no way the dev team could have catered to both outcomes.
In the end, the darker, more ominous ending was chosen as canon, however, mid-way through development the writers had a change of heart when they analysed the game's trophies, revising this original plan after discovering that almost 80% of players chose the good ending.
So, while a Second Son set in an evil post-Infamous 2 world could have been amazing, it makes sense that the developers remained faithful to the ending most players preferred.