10 Video Games That Gave Iconic Characters The Endings They Deserved

3. Solid Snake & Big Boss - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots

Say what you want about how insanely OTT many of Metal Gear Solid's various story-related aspects are, but when creative mastermind Hideo Kojima wants to nail an emotional beat, he knocks it clean out the park.

Case in point: The close of MGS 4. Main-man Solid Snake has gone through hell, his entire body ageing incredibly fast as a side-effect of the cloning process. He makes it through to visit the grave of The Boss, his former commander, Big Boss' mentor. The only twist is, Big Boss isn't dead, and instead comes back out of a cryo-freezing process (or something) so the two of them can finally see each other again.

Both men form the linchpins of the entire canon, and as they reconcile they've strived to achieve peace by following broken ideologies and philosophical differences, in the end they share a cigar together. Big Boss looks up and in his weakened state, asks, "This is good, isn't it?" before passing away, and Snake is finally left to live out his remaining days in isolation, before the ageing process takes him altogether.

Bittersweet, but more than conclusive for two of our medium's most fabled warriors.