8 Video Game Plot Twists that Surprised No One
- Thread starter ffronw
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So apparently I'm thick, because I was pretty surprised by the Comstock=Booker thing. The "Elizabeth is his daughter" thing I saw coming pretty early on.
Now, going back through the game a second time and really paying attention to the setting, yeah, the Comstock=Booker thing totally makes sense, but the first time around, I must have been distracted by everything else to put all the pieces together.
I would argue that the "Twist" in Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs was incredibly obvious, even for a 4 hour game. It was about as subtle as the Pig metaphor.
Or, from the same series, the true identity of Atlas in Bioshock. You know, because it's the same fricken twist for System Shock 2. That and the "My family is in that sub" ploy, when there was no evidence anyone was in that sub.
Now, going back through the game a second time and really paying attention to the setting, yeah, the Comstock=Booker thing totally makes sense, but the first time around, I must have been distracted by everything else to put all the pieces together.
I would argue that the "Twist" in Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs was incredibly obvious, even for a 4 hour game. It was about as subtle as the Pig metaphor.
Or, from the same series, the true identity of Atlas in Bioshock. You know, because it's the same fricken twist for System Shock 2. That and the "My family is in that sub" ploy, when there was no evidence anyone was in that sub.
I was just going to say that! I knew Elizabeth was going to be the daughter from basically the beginning, but I just assumed Comstock either stole/bought her off Booker and now he wants to get her back. The whole Booker is Comstock thing was surprising, at least the first time around.Dalisclock said:
I missed the Reznov and Dead Space twists, as well as both BioShock Infinite twists. I don't know, maybe I just like to get sucked in to games so much that I don't notice small things like that the first time around. Second time, they're easy to spot because there are so many clues--yeah, no one talks to Reznov, but I was too busy going, "Oh man! He's back!!" to notice--but the first time through, I miss a lot of stuff.
What surprised me about the Uncharted Twist was that he stayed bad. Even at the end, after being betrayed and left to die, he still tries to take out Drake, even though they're trying to save him. That was really surprising to me.
What surprised me about the Uncharted Twist was that he stayed bad. Even at the end, after being betrayed and left to die, he still tries to take out Drake, even though they're trying to save him. That was really surprising to me.
Then I'm pretty dumb catching these "obvious twists", because quite honestly Dead Space and Bioshock Infinite surprised me with those. With Dead Space, I knew something was off, but I didn't immediately came to the conclusion that Nicole was already dead.
With Resident Evil 5, yeah, the foreshadowing at the beginning was as subtle as a brick.
Maybe not game related, but the "tiwst" of the movie Oblivion with Tom Cruise was painfully obvious early on.
With Resident Evil 5, yeah, the foreshadowing at the beginning was as subtle as a brick.
Maybe not game related, but the "tiwst" of the movie Oblivion with Tom Cruise was painfully obvious early on.
It's been a long time since I played Dead Space, but I don't remember there being any real hint that Nicole was already dead. I just figured the videos he was playing were from prior to the outbreak, and hell, if Newt could survive in 'Aliens' with no weapons, maybe Nicole could too.
And agreed with many others, I must be dumb, because not only did I not figure out the "Booker is Comstock" twist, I still barely had any idea what the hell was going on after that game ended.
I'd also nominate "Ninja Gaiden", when you discover that the Emperor is that guy you met at the beginning. Except I honestly have no idea what the hell was going on in that game so maybe that doesn't count.
And agreed with many others, I must be dumb, because not only did I not figure out the "Booker is Comstock" twist, I still barely had any idea what the hell was going on after that game ended.
I'd also nominate "Ninja Gaiden", when you discover that the Emperor is that guy you met at the beginning. Except I honestly have no idea what the hell was going on in that game so maybe that doesn't count.
I didn't notice the Reznov thing... until you get in to the tunnel with Swift. Reznov talks to you, then Swift says something along the lines of "what the fuck are you doing?". Just gave it away. On a recent replay I was tracking the dialogue to see how well it was built up. Not bad, actually, Woods usually says something relevant to what Reznov's saying without using pronouns so it doesn't seem incongruous. After the Swift encounter though, yeah it just goes downhill.Sniper Team 4 said:
I liked that they played a little joke with it in Black Ops II, though.
I'd like to say that Knights of the Old Republic did the surprise twist well, but honestly, the amnesiac trope they employ at the beginning kinda spoils any tension.
I'm surprised S.T.A.L.K.E.R. isn't on the list. Anybody who's played an amnesiac story will figure out your secret identity before the game proper even starts. Seriously, I was kind of expecting some kind of trope subversion because it was so blatant.
The Black Ops one got me and I'll admit I should have caught it during that run in with Reznov in the tunnels during the Vietnam arc.
The same thing with Elizabeth being Booker's daughter in BioShock Infinite. For some reason i just assumed Booker's daughter was dead even though he never outright stated it.
I completely missed Booker being Comstock, but unlike Elizabeth I don't think it was obvious. It's true that there are some plot points and audio logs that hint towards this, but to me they really only seem obvious at the end of the game or during a second playthough.
The same thing with Elizabeth being Booker's daughter in BioShock Infinite. For some reason i just assumed Booker's daughter was dead even though he never outright stated it.
I completely missed Booker being Comstock, but unlike Elizabeth I don't think it was obvious. It's true that there are some plot points and audio logs that hint towards this, but to me they really only seem obvious at the end of the game or during a second playthough.
The Bioshock Infinite twist was not obvious for me at all. Looking back a few scenes make more sense now but hindsight is a powerful thing. I must have been enjoying the game to much to make a not of all the subtle things they hide through out the game. Doesn't matter still loved it.
I remember fairly distinctly when I decided Booker would be Comstock. I picked up an audio log and I think it said something about him aging rapidly, or maybe it was the sterile thing. I had the advantage in that I was really expecting there to be "a twist", though.
If I hadn't picked up the log (and probably some particular others), it probably would've shocked me more. As it is, I gave out a little "ah-ha!"
If I hadn't picked up the log (and probably some particular others), it probably would've shocked me more. As it is, I gave out a little "ah-ha!"
The plot twist in Dead Space wasn't that Nicole was dead, but that Isaac knew all along. Finding out near the end of the game that the character you've played, is insane, is a pretty clever plot twist in my book.
And Mirror's Edge? I didn't guess that my opponent was Celeste, but mainly because I never even asked myself: Who's that? Celeste was an under-developed character and the "villain" even more so. When I found out they're the one and the same, I sighed and quickly decided not to think about it any further. Not sure if that kind of reveal even qualifies as a plot twist. You need a lot more plot to justify twisting it.
And Mirror's Edge? I didn't guess that my opponent was Celeste, but mainly because I never even asked myself: Who's that? Celeste was an under-developed character and the "villain" even more so. When I found out they're the one and the same, I sighed and quickly decided not to think about it any further. Not sure if that kind of reveal even qualifies as a plot twist. You need a lot more plot to justify twisting it.
I think a lot of these twists are less 'obvious' and more 'good.' An obvious twist by definition isn't a twist, it's a plot development. A cliché twist - best friend turns traitor, she was dead all along et cetera - isn't necessarily obvious during the build up but might make you groan when you discover it because you expected better from the game.
If you can predict a twist using extraneous information you dig up while exploring, that's not an 'obvious' twist. That's just a decent twist. It establishes the rules that make the twist possible.
Nobody predicted that Booker was Comstock no matter how many people were aware of the time travel or parallel universes and whatnot. That only made it so when the twist was revealed, you didn't cast your mind over the past events and think, 'hang on, this isn't even possible.'
If you can predict a twist using extraneous information you dig up while exploring, that's not an 'obvious' twist. That's just a decent twist. It establishes the rules that make the twist possible.
Nobody predicted that Booker was Comstock no matter how many people were aware of the time travel or parallel universes and whatnot. That only made it so when the twist was revealed, you didn't cast your mind over the past events and think, 'hang on, this isn't even possible.'
I can't believe how many of you are saying that Booker = Comstock was a surprise. I was talking to a friend when I had played Infinite for about 2 hours (he had already finished the game), and I point blank asked him when they revealed Booker and Comstock to be the same guy. He said "Not nearly soon enough. You'll be sick of waiting by the time they do."
This just makes me want to go dig up good twists as a contrast.
*Makes note for future GotD*
This just makes me want to go dig up good twists as a contrast.
*Makes note for future GotD*
What spoiled the "Elizabeth is Booker's daughter" thing for me was my cynicism regarding women as secondary protagonists. i thought to myself, "So, if Elizabeth isn't the romantic interest, then she must be his daughter."
Alternatively, you could do one for games that had twists that came out of left field or had little to no foreshadowing that they couldn't reasonably be predicted.ffronw said:
Like the Betrayal of TF 141 in Modern Warfare 2(which even after replaying several times, it's still really difficult to see that moment coming from clues gathered beforehand), or the Time Loop in the first Final Fantasy.
Or the entire game Cyrostasis, which is just weird.
Wait, I'm the only one who was surprised by the mirror's edge twist?
Not shocked or Mindblown, but surprised. I always assumed there were other Runners we didn't see, because there's at least one other "voice on the Radio" (Drake), so I assumed he had a few runners working under him too.
Not shocked or Mindblown, but surprised. I always assumed there were other Runners we didn't see, because there's at least one other "voice on the Radio" (Drake), so I assumed he had a few runners working under him too.