9. Dark Souls Ringing The First Bell
I came to the Demon's Souls party quite late, so by the time I was through with it, Dark Souls was already well on its way to coming out. Still, the wait was excruciating. Time drags so slowly when you're excited about a game that promises nothing but unadulterated punishment and misery. But it passed. And I played. And I got exactly what I hoped for... and goodness, was I sorry. There were no smiles to be had. No help. No friendly faces. No nothing but pain, sadness, death, loss, broken pads and tears. But then, after days of play, I managed to make my way through the Undead Burg, over the top of the parish, past the gargoyles, and to the top of the first bell tower. When I pulled the lever and that sweet, victorious clanging rang out across Lordran, I smiled as my heart almost burst through my chest with joy.
8. Red Dead Redemption Riding Home
John Marston's family had been stolen by the government. To win them back he'd have to travel across the old west, mix with the most unsavoury characters, steal, murder, and just generally re-enter a world that he'd tried so hard to leave behind. By the end he was battered, broken, and beaten. But then there was suddenly a light at the end of the tunnel. Marston is told that his wife and child are safe at the family home, and all he has to do is go to them. As he jumped on his horse and rode down the mountain towards them, Jamie Lidell's haunting Compass swelling in his ears, a funny thing happened. It was no longer John on his horse, making the final journey back to his loved ones, it was me, and the happiness of so much suffering finally paying off was almost too much to bear.