10 Truly Horrible Things Video Games Made You Do

2. Choosing Who Dies In Wolfenstein: The New Order

Resident Evil 7
Machine Games

The opening level of Wolfenstein: The New Order sees beefy hero Blazkowicz and his squad apprehended by Nazi doctor Death's Head. The grinning villain demands Blazkowicz decide which of the squad is going to be harvested for one of Death's Head's 'samples' - fresh-faced rookie Wyatt, or stringy Scottish veteran Fergus. If the player refuses, it's game over, so they have have to condemn one valiant soldier to a horrible demise.

The player has to make the choice, making the wanton cruelty of Death's Head directed not just at Yankee meatpile Blazkowicz, but at the player themselves. A later cut scene shows the chosen victim being vivisected and his brain removed, a consequence, as Death's Head claims, of the player's actions.

Forcing the player to make the choice and confronting them with the results is an act of exceptional sadism and makes Death's Head more than the cut-and-paste Nazi villain he could have been.

Contributor

Ben Counter is a fantasy and science fiction writer, gaming enthusiast, wrestling fan and miniature painting guru. He was raised on Warhammer, Star Wars and 1980s cartoons that, in retrospect, were't that good. Whoever you are, he is nerdier than you.