Deaths

Lester Knight Chaykin seemed to have the entire world in his hands. He was young and athletic, he drove a Ferrari, and he had a cool underground laboratory. Unfortunately, a failed experiment with a particle accelerator transported Lester to a barren alien planet. Lester was able to evade a number of dangerous animals in this new world, but he was eventually captured by a race of aliens and imprisoned in an underground facility. While he was locked up, Lester befriended a captive alien and the two worked together to escape. The alien’s incredible strength proved to be an invaluable asset, and he frequently helped Lester out by throwing him across chasms or pulling him out of harm’s way. This unlikely duo battled countless creatures, solved numerous puzzles, and fought their way through the harshest of environments in their attempt to secure their freedom. Before they could escape from the complex, Lester was attacked by one of his oppressors. His alien buddy jumped in to save him, but the injuries were too much for Lester to handle. In the last scene of the game, the alien picks Lester’s lifeless body off the ground and flies away to freedom on the back of a dragon. Lester’s death was especially somber for the simple reason that he came so close to reaching his goal.

We were first introduced to the Metroid hatchling at the end of Metroid II. After eradicating nearly every life-sucking Metroid in the galaxy, Samas Aran, came into contact with one last hatchling. The newborn was immediately drawn to the legendary bounty hunter, and it clung to her like a lost child. Samus promptly turned the hatchling over to researchers. With the last Metroid in captivity, the galaxy was finally at peath. When a group of space pirates murdered the researches and stole the young Metroid, Samus pursued them. By the time Samus encountered the stolen hatchling, it had grown exponentially and was beginning to embrace its life-sucking instincts. Samus was attacked by the growing Metroid and had no way of defending herself. The Metroid stopped its attack short of killing her, however, and it appeared to recognize her. Moments later, when Samus found herself engaged in battle with Mother Brain, the Metroid made another appearance. Although the full-grown hatchling appeared to attack Samus again, it was actually restoring her health and protecting her at the same time. After reviving Samus, the Metroid attacked Mother Brain head-on. Mother Brain proved to be too powerful, however, and the brave Metroid was killed by one of her attacks. Samus was the closest thing the hatchling ever had to a mother, and it gave its life to protect her. The Metroid hatchling only had about a minute of screen time in Super Metroid and wasn’t even able to speak, but its death had more emotional weight than anything else in the series.

Sgt. Paul Jackson is one of the primary protagonists in Modern Warfare. An operator of the USMC 1st Force Recon company, Jackson and his team were sent into an unnamed Middle-Eastern country in search of a dangerous militant named Khaled Al-Asad. After landing in a coastal town, Jackson and his platoon pushed through to the capital. Jackson took part in a strike force to capture Al-Asad, provided air support for his troops, and eliminated the ground resistance in order to clear a landing zone. After the discovery of a nuclear device within the city, Jackson’s squad decided to displace themselves to a position outside of the effect radius. Just as they were leaving the city, the nuclear device went off and Jackson’s helicopter crashed. Jackson survived long enough to witness the aftermath of the explosion, but the injuries he sustained were enough to kill him. I guess you can’t really have a realistic depiction of war if you leave death out of the equation.

Big Boss has danced with death on a number of occasions. In Metal Gear 2 his genetically-altered clone/son, Solid Snake, burned him with a flamethrower and left him for dead in Central Asia. In the wake of his death, a terrorist organization demanded that his remains be handed over to them. It would later be revealed that Big Boss had somehow survived his encounter with Solid Snake and had subsequently been placed into an artificially induced cryogenic coma. Eventually, the damaged body of Big Boss was reconstructed using material taken from two of his genetic clones. After awakening from his coma, Big Boss tracked down Solid Snake and revealed the truth about his life and the organizations that he had been a part of. Big Boss did not have much time left, and soon succumbed to the FOXDIE virus that had been specifically programmed to kill him. Before he died, Big Boss was able to reconcile with his son/clone and put their turbulent relationship to rest.

Sarah is the first character players control in The Last of Us and the central figure of the game’s prologue. Focusing on her at the beginning of the game allowed the developers at Naughty Dog to build the fear of the apocalypse from a kid’s perspective instead of an adult’s point of view. Although she’s only 12, she’s witty enough to trade jabs with her father without missing a beat. She was also considerate enough to buy him a birthday present with money she somehow saved up. While Sarah and her father are attempting to flee a zombie-infested city, they are stopped by a soldier and Sarah is shot during the confrontation. Joel manages to escape with his life, but the death of his daughter changes him and informs his ruthless and cynical nature. Joel is defined by his overwhelming grief, and this affects every relationship he has. He finds some sense of closure by protecting a young girl named Ellie, but every decision that he makes during the game is driven by the tragic loss of his daughter. Sarah doesn’t have a lot of screen time, but her death set the stage for the entire game.

Neifirst was created by scientists who were attempting to combine “Palman” and “bio-monster” DNA. The scientists regarded Neifirst as a failed experiment and tried to kill her. Neifirst managed to escape, however, and sought revenge by initiating a devastating bio-monster outbreak. Although Neifirst was consumed by her resentment and anger, a more peaceful manifestation of the being was also created. This new being (known simply as Nei) was found by a government official who adopted her as his little sister. When Neifirst’s actions led to a planet-wide drought, Nei eventually confronted her other half in a one-on-one battle. Neifirst was simply too powerful, and Nei was easily defeated and killed. Even if Nei had been able to defeat the monster, she would have still died due to the strong mental bonds they shared with one another. Nei’s efforts to stop Neifirst were futile, but her friends were able to fight on without her and finally managed to put an end to the bio-monster’s reign of terror. The death of Nei was especially significant because it was one of the first instances of a major character being killed off as part of a game’s story. Concepts like “extra lives” and “continues” couldn’t save her.

As the leader of the Lambda resistance, Dr. Eli Vance was the first human being to make peaceful contact with the Vortigaunt species. He even managed to convince the alien race to join forces with humanity in their fight against the Combine invasion of Earth. Eli Vance is a loving father, a brilliant physicist, and an all-around great guy. His contributions to humanity cannot be overstated. Sadly, he also died one of the most horrific deaths in video game history. After Eli was ambushed by a Combine Advisor, his daughter Alyx was forced to watch helplessly as her father was brutally killed in front of her. Eli was stabbed through the back of the head and torrents of blood were spilled in the process. Needless to say, there wasn’t a lot of ambiguity surrounding his death. Half-Life 2: Episode Two draws to a close with Alyx mourning over her father’s body.

John Marston was a retired outlaw who had his wife and son taken away from him by government officials. In order to secure the safe return of his family, John was ordered to hunt down and kill the members of his former gang. Left with no other choice, John ventured to New Austin and set out to eliminate his old friends one-by-one. After living up to his end of the deal, John was finally reunited with his family. The reunion did not last long, as John’s government contact, Edgar Ross, led a surprise attack on his ranch. John was able to get his wife and son out safely, but was subsequently shot dead by soldiers. This was the ultimate act of betrayal on the part of Ross. John effectively sacrificed himself in order to allow his family to live a normal life. His death was violent and tragic, but the game’s epilogue provided a little justice. Several years after John sacrificed himself for his family, his death was avenged when his son defeated Ross in a duel.

Hinawa was a dedicated mother to her two children. Her maternal instincts were so strong that she readily risked her own life to protect her family. When a mechanical dinosaur threatened the lives of her children, Hinawa selflessly stepped in to defend them. She was fatally wounded in the process, and her death effectively fractured the lives of everyone who loved her. In previous Mother games, mothers of the central characters would stay behind and do typical housewife activities like cooking and cleaning. As players went about their adventures, they had to call their mothers regularly or else they would get homesick. There was almost an expectation that the matriarchal figure in Mother 3 would take on a similar role, so the fact that Hinawa died in the very first chapter of the game was completely unexpected. Players barely even got a chance to know her, but this made it easy to empathize with her children.

Aeris Gainsborough is one of the most compassionate characters to ever appear in a video game. Despite living in the slums for many years, Aeris managed to retain her positive outlook on life. She spent her time selling flowers and attending church, and developed an extremely close bond with the living world around her. Aeris’ beautiful blue eyes and innocent smile provided a window to her soul, and she always went out of her way to cheer up her friends. When a maniacal villain named Sephiroth summoned a destructive meteor, Aeris ventured off alone to the Forgotten City with the intent of using her “Holy” magic to negate the devastating force. Before Aeris could carry out her plan, Sephiroth found her praying at an altar. With no word of warning, Sephiroth promptly impaled her through the back with his ridiculously long sword. This event is regarded as one of the most shocking moments in video game history. After her friends found her body, Aeris was carried out into a lake and released back to the planet’s lifestream. She was a completely selfless individual, so her death was especially emotional.