10 Brutal Gaming Cutscenes That Still Haunt You

4. All My Friends Are Dead - Mass Effect 2

OK, so this one is far less gory than some of the others, but that doesn’t make it any less emotionally traumatizing. The Mass Effect series is well loved for having some of the best character writing of any RPG series. Mass Effect 2 uses that writing to get you completely invested in its cast then, should you make a few bad choices, ripping them away from you and leaving you alone in the cold emptiness of space.

The second Mass Effect game is often viewed as the series’ Empire Strikes Back for its grittier, ‘belly of the beast’ tone, and nothing is more emblematic of this than the infamous ‘suicide mission’ that acts as its finale.

To the game’s credit, it does go out of its way to repeatedly remind you that you should probably do some preparation for the practically impossible mission. Should you choose to ignore this advice, you can look forward to a heartbreaking hour of watching everyone you care about die horribly.