10 Video Game Villains You Hated Killing

In the final stages of LA Noire, Detective Cole Phelps learns of an arsonist who's burning houses down throughout the city, which has resulted in the deaths of several civilians.

But when Phelps learns the arsonist is a mentally ill man who's been manipulated by a deranged psychiatrist, you no longer see him as a monster, but a victim.

However, it's all the more heartbreaking when Phelps learns the man he's hunting is Ira Hogeboom – a flamethrower from Phelps' squad during World War II. During one mission, Hogeboom was ordered to incinerate a cave, under the belief the enemy was hiding within. But when he learned he had just burned a group of civilians alive, he was left traumatised.

As horrific as this revelation is, it's not the worst part. Hogeboom's orders were given by Cole Phelps, meaning our so-called hero is indirectly responsible for all the atrocities that Hogeboom committed.

When you finally confront Hogeboom in the final scene, you don't see him as an evil man. Instead, he comes across as a broken individual who’s been taken advantage of by those in power. When Phelps' partner shoots him, Hogeboom doesn't put up a fight, glad his pain has come to an end.