Capcom raised many an eyebrow when they revealed Dragon's Dogma, a traditional high fantasy action-RPG notably devoid of zombies and finger-breaking combo systems. That surprise was brought to a boil when players discovered the game is actually quite fun, if insultingly easy and occasionally repetitive. But we can all take solace in the fact that, true to Capcom's standards, Dragon's Dogma's story would easily lose to the back of a cereal box in a contest of narrative. You play an unlikely hero from small beginnings who must embark on a grand quest to slay a dragon (while performing countless odd jobs along the waythis is an RPG, after all). It couldn't be more linear if it tried, but the game's ending is by far its greatest catastrophe. The entire thing is such a mess that harping about the ending is like complaining over a single dead bulb on a strand of holiday lights that's on fire, but you have to see this. It's a veritable buffet of nonsense: holes in reality created by unknown means opening portals to past and alternate realms, the complete and unavoidable destruction of the kingdom the player has spent the entire game trying to stabilize, and surprisingly little to do with the big red dragon. However, all pales in comparison to the charitably described twistthe introduction of a kidnapped love interest whom you will literally have never met in a romantic capacity. You couldn't care less about your apparent partner, but now you have to save them? And the most likely outcome? Being paired with a poorly drawn merchant woman who, in her previous actions (all three of them), will have demonstrated all the wit and personality you would expect from a chicken nugget. For not only asking us to play the knight in shining armor chasing after Princess Stranger, but doing so very sincerely within the final two percent of the game , Dragon's Dogma has earned its spot. Now, if we can just get someone at Capcom to read a book that doesn't involve coloring inside the lines... What's the worst game ending you've ever seen? Let us know in the comments below!
A freelance games writer, you say? Typically battling his current RPG addiction and ceaseless perfectionism? A fan of horror but too big a sissy to play for more than a couple of hours? Spends far too much time on JRPGs and gets way too angry with card games?
Well that doesn't sound anything like me.