10 Video Games That Didn’t Know When To End

3. .Hack//G.U. Vol. 3: Redemption

There€™s a moment in Redemption, the third and final chapter of the .hack//G.U. series, where everything feels like its coming to a close. Ovan uses his Avatar to reset The World, waking up the comatose players while sacrificing himself in the process. It€™s character driven, bittersweet, and would have made for a satisfying ending.

But then Yata reveals that Cubia, a major antagonist from the previous series of .hack games, is back and threatening to destroy The World. This leads to hours of more gameplay that feels tacked on and detached from the main plot that preceded it. It€™s superfluous, uninteresting, and feels like a misguided attempt to both extend the length of the game and call back to the prior series.

Redemption is one of the clearest cases you can find of a game that doesn€™t know when to stop. Its final hours come at the expense of the narrative; damaging it and detracting from a moment that would have served as a fine ending. By the time it actually finishes, you€™ll only remember its uninspired final hours.