10 Video Games You Weren’t Expecting To Make You Cry

3. The Walking Dead

Death is a common feature in the Walking Dead series, be it the television series or the comic series - it is a story about survivors in a zombie apocalypse, after all. Despite the immense popularity of the comics, Telltale's series actually has very little to do with Robert Kirkman's characters and story, instead opting to create something original set within the universe. As it turns out, with a talented bunch of writers at the helm, this was a great decision. When Telltale gives the player control of a character, they pretty much give them a blank canvas to work with. The player dictates Lee's course through the events of the game, carefully selecting his reaction to events and making quick-fire decisions which affect the game's branching narrative. Yes, oftentimes, the game is merely offering the illusion of choice but really, that doesn't matter. What matters is how the game develops an attachment between the player and Lee, adding real weight to the monumental decisions forced upon them. As the game draws to a close (more precisely, at the end of Episode Four), Lee is bitten by a Walker, sealing his fate several hours before the end of the game. Still, in the finale, Lee presses forward on a mission to save Clementine, still offering a vague hope that his bite won't turn him. Of course, it doesn't happen. Having saved Clementine, Lee eventually succumbs to a variety of injuries and Clementine is left to fend for herself. The teary finale to Lee is expertly crafted, offering one final monumental decision - does Clementine leave Lee to turn or should she kill him to spare him that fate? What the player chooses is entirely down to personal preference but either way, it's a heart-breaking ending to a genuinely great character. The attachment between the player and Lee is something that only a video game could nurture - to see it broken in this manner is traumatic.