10 Earth-Shattering Video Game Plot Twists You Didn't See Coming

Shadow of Chernobyl wastes no time introducing its mystery, casting the player in the role of a half-dead survivor of a horrific crash, with no memory of who they are and the only clue to their identity an ominous command to ‘Kill Strelok.’

Over the course of the game the amnesiac, dubbed the Marked One (for the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. tattoo on his arm), learns that Strelok and his crew were the first to reach the ruined Chernobyl nuclear reactor. But, this meddling resulted in an emission that wrought havoc on the Zone, explaining the deathmark on his dead.

Eventually the Marked One learns the truth – they are Strelok. The emission knocked Strelok unconscious, and finding only one unmarked body among many the powers who wanted to stop him mistakenly, and ironically, sent him out to kill himself.

Once you know that the Marked One is Strelok the twist is obvious, but until you do the clues given are nothing more than simple, and stylish, exposition. It’s a slick bit of sleight-of-hand and a clever way to invest the player in a character who is both hero and villain.