7. Spec Ops: The Line
Set in a sand sunken Dubai, you play as Captain Martin Walker leading a team of three on a rescue mission which soon turns into a man hunt for a decorated officer Colonel John Konrad who has seemingly turned the city into a post apocalyptic autocratic state. The plot is one of a brilliant gripping thriller with throws to
Apocalypse Now and
Heart of Darkness. A tale of what war can do to the mind
which resolves itself when Walker finds Konrad... who has long since committed suicide. Everything clicks into place as it turns out Walker has suffered a case of disassociation disorder in order to cope with the atrocities of killing civilians and fellow soldiers along the way. His mind snapped, and it becomes clear that Konrad's goading him on the radio throughout the game -which no other character could hear- was in fact a hallucination Walker's mind created to justify his actions, scapegoating Konrad. No matter which of the four endings you choose, be it suicide, handing yourself over when the back up comes, being killed by the cavalry or killing them all yourself with an AA-12, you're left with a less-is-more ending full of thought. It's not often games can create a subtext on such a serious issue, but but the Line does it spectacularly, driving it home with a bullet to the head.