10 Video Games That Punish You For Caring

The Last Of Us: Part II is either one of the best games ever made or one of the worst games ever made, depending on how you took its heart-stomping first act twist. After spending the entirety of the first game developing a relationship with protagonists Joel and Ellie, and becoming so emotionally invested in their relationship to each other, killing off Joel in the most brutal, agonizing, graphic way possible left pretty much everyone in a state of shock.

What differs for a lot of players is how they felt after the shock wore off. Many appreciated the significance of Joel receiving his karmic punishment for the choice he made at the end of Part I to save Ellie from her unwitting sacrifice to save the human race. Others, like Joel himself, were too angry to let go of the loss, and carried that bitterness throughout the entirety of the experience.

And just to kick you when you were down, they made Joel's killer the secondary protagonist, challenging you to empathize with the character you hate more than anyone. But regardless of what side you fell on, there's no denying that everyone paid the price for caring so much about Joel and Ellie.