A strong twist can elevate a good video game into a great one, or even turn a mediocre story into a decent one. It’s not an easy thing to pull off, though, as it isn’t just a case of surprising the player. A twist needs to make sense within the context of the story and the best ones don’t just come out of nowhere; there were clues along the way.
Most video game twists are going to be the finale of the game, setting up a shocking surprise that subverts expectations. Those that succeed and really surprise their players become more than just twists. They redefine the game, setting up a memorable, blockbuster experience that gamers will talk about for years to come.
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Resident Evil – Wesker Working For Umbrella
In 1996, video game plots were little more than a conduit to shooting lots of stuff and seldom had the depth or forethought to set players up for a twist. This only added to the genuine shock when the original Resident Evil turned the tables with Albert Wesker.
Throughout the game, Wesker is the stoic leader of STARS, the team tasked with progressing through a mansion beset by demonic enemies. He is dependable and effective, but it turns out he’s also a double agent for the evil Umbrella Corporation. He reveals his identity to the player before unleashing the Tyrant super-weapon to kill the remaining members of STARS, though unwittingly gets himself impaled by the Tyrant in the process. It turns out he had injected himself with an engineered virus before the incident, granting him life-saving regenerative powers and, handily, super strength. Not only was this twist great within the game, but it also set Wesker up as the big bad for numerous Resident Evil titles going forward until he met his permanent demise in Resident Evil 5.
Metroid – Samus Is A Woman
In today’s gaming scene, it’s not that odd to have major games led by female protagonists, but back in the ’80s, this was almost unheard of. This is why Metroid‘s endgame twist was so brilliant. Throughout the game, the player never sees the face of the badass space bounty hunter they’re playing as, and most players assumed Samus was male. In fact, the original manual for the game even referred to Samus Aran as a man, hiding this reveal even more.
After defeating Mother Brain, the final boss in the game, Samus escapes and makes it back to their ship. They take off their helmet, and it’s revealed that Samus is a woman. This subversion of typical gaming tropes in those times was truly groundbreaking, introducing Samus as an iconic female character and paving the way for countless more after her. The twist was even more effective for its lack of fanfare; the reveal is all the more effective for how understated it is.
BioShock – Would You Kindly?
With immersive world-building and gorgeous game design, the original BioShock stood out from its peers with one of the most unexpected twists in gaming history. The game sees its protagonist, Jack, make his way through the failed utopia of Rapture, guided through areas and events by a friendly man named Atlas. Your apparent ally regularly uses the phrase “Would you kindly…?” to have you perform tasks, which comes across as just a character quirk… until the big reveal, that is.
At the end of the game, Atlas is revealed to be Frank Fontaine, rival to Rapture founder Andre Ryan. Prior to the events of the game, Fontaine had brainwashed Jack and is able to control his mind with the trigger phrase “would you kindly.” The player then realizes all of their actions throughout the game were at the bidding of Fontaine and that their character had no free will the entire time. It’s shocking, unnerving and completely brilliant.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic – You Are Darth Revan
Hailed as one of the best Star Wars games ever made, Knights of the Old Republic planted itself into that conversation in large part due to its mind-boggling twist. The focus of the plot is to stop the evil Sith Lord, Darth Malak, all the while reclaiming your lost memories. It is established in the game that Malak, prior to the events of the game, had slaughtered numerous members of the Jedi Order and developed a superweapon called the Star Forge, all under the tutelage of Darth Revan.
Once the player finally gets their hands on Malak, it’s revealed that they’ve been playing as Revan all along. The reason they’ve been hunting down their former student is that, after a huge battle, Revan was captured and brainwashed by the Jedi Order to fight for the light side and stop Malak. Developers BioWare then gave the player one final choice: stop Malak for good, or turn back to the dark side and regain Revan’s full power.
Portal 2 – Wheatley’s Betrayal
The original Portal was a masterclass in blending an engrossing storyline with effective dark comedy, culminating in a memorable struggle between the game’s protagonist, Chell, and its main enemy; the psychotic AI GLaDOS. Such was the success of this premise that most players expected this story to just be expanded upon in the sequel, with GLaDOS remaining the big bad.
That certainly seems to be the case for the first half of the game, which is supplemented with a humorous, powerless robot sidekick named Wheatley. The new AI becomes immediately corrupted by the power granted to him in the middle stages of the game and takes over the facility. What elevates this twist further are the ramifications it has on the rest of the game; Chell and GLaDOS become an unexpected team to take down Wheatley, and even develop a bond along the way.
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