4. Gearing Up For Battle
Without a doubt the standout moment for me in Metal Gear Solid 4 has to be the section where you seize control of Metal Gear Rex, cause abject destruction and end up in a truly epic battle against Liquid Ocelot inside a Metal Gear Ray. Who hadn't dreamed of piloting Metal Gear ever since we first saw one? Not only was this section absolutely epic in every way, but it served as a massive homage to the past of the Metal Gear series as Snake took the controls of that which he had once fought. A special mention must also go out to the hand-to-hand final boss fight that took place in Metal Gear Solid 4. This was just beaten by the Metal Gear fight, simply because giant freaking robot things.
3. Would You Kindly?
How about this one eh? It's not every game you realise halfway through that you'd been manipulated all the way through and are in fact a fully controllable puppet who is a slave to a maniacal despot. Told through a series of flashbacks, this scene in the original Bioshock shows us exactly how we'd been manipulated into orchestrating the very events we found ourselves in. The simply phrase, 'Would You Kindly', had forced Jack, our character, to crash the plane near to Rapture's coordinates and been the driving force behind everything he'd done up until this point. You'd never notice it before the reveal came about, and it was a true moment of genius in gaming storytelling. Bioshock Infinite tried to top it, but I think the original mindbender is still the most memorable.
2. The Last Stand
You think you've done it all. You've killed those who wronged you, you've been reunited with your family, and your settling down to life as a farmer and beginning to live for the first time in years. Then it all comes crashing down. The government, who had manipulated John Marston all along, came riding into John's farm with only one thing on their minds: tying up loose ends. The most amazing part of this scene is as Marston accepts his fate, walks outside the barn, and the game forces you into Dead-Eye mode, challenging you with bringing down as many of an impossible crowd before you succumb to a barrage of gunfire. Incredibly moving and extremely memorable, this scene is the standout moment not only in Red Dead Redemption, but in everything that Rockstar has done in this gaming generation. And the winner is...?