Games with surprise second acts!

[aozgolo]

IMMEDIATE AND INTENSE SPOILER WARNING!!!: The very nature of even knowing this thread's intention and seeing a game title is potential enough to spoil something, so if you are averse to it at all, I'd sit this one out folks.

Okay, so maybe it's not a "second act" per se, but many games have pulled or at least tried to pull the rug out from under players by revealing that what they thought was the final level where they defeat the big boss is really just the half-way checkpoint where the game REALLY opens up. Now this has varying degrees of success, I mean sometimes the world map and the fact that there's clearly inaccessible locations is enough to tip you in on the fact that there's more coming, but other times it really does go that extra mile.

There are many ways a game could qualify for this, but basically it has to have a set-up where, at least in the narrative or presentation of the game it appears to be building to a major plot climax that should supposedly satisfy the major conflicts but instead presents new ones or further complicates matters and further extends the game opening up new parts of the game to explore.

What does NOT qualify are like Legend of Zelda second quest or New Game + type deals where you replay the same story but with new challenges.

So let's go, what are games you know of that have surprise second acts and how do you feel about them?

 

[aozgolo]

To start with, I'll give a big shout out to Chrono Trigger which does a pretty good job of setting up a big bad, and setting up a potential climactic showdown to stop said big bad, only to throw you down a deeper rabbit hole.

Spoiler

By the time you get to Magus Castle you've already traveled through most of the different time periods, collected most of the characters, and have a pretty climactic road up to attacking the castle with it's gauntlet of traps, enemies, mini-bosses, and the final show-down with Magus himself which is epic in it's own right. After a difficult and intense battle it's revealed... oh wait you still have half the game left to go through, there's more to see folks! A whole extra time period to visit, new locations in all the previous time periods to see, an extra character (maybe) and lots of side content and story plot twists to really sucker you in.

Let's not even mention those multiple endings...

 

[jademunky]

How about Final Fantasy 6?

Spoiler

After you have gotten your airship and pretty-much explored the entirety of the map, there comes a point in the story where the empire raises an island in the sky powered by an unholy fusion of magic and technology, inhabited by twisted, monstrous creatures who's biology makes no sense. This SHOULD be the end, this is what the final stage in a game tends to feel like.

You fight your way to the end only to find that you were too late to stop them and then, long story short, Kefka becomes God-Emperor of the world, scatters your party and forces you to start from scratch in a messed-up version of the same world 1-year-later.

 

[Hawki]

Alright, spoilers be warned:

Spoiler

-BioShock: There's hints, but after spending at least half the game working up to facing Ryan, the rug is pulled out from under you, Atlas is revealed as Fontaine, and the second act begins.

-Golden Sun: The Lost Age (not exactly a single rug pull, but it is slowly revealed that alchemy is the key to the world's salvation, not destruction, that you HAVE been playing as the 'good guys', and if I had to name a point, it's where Felix and co. spell it out to Isaac and his party. Everything changes, from the stakes, to the overworld music.)

-The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (being plunged into the Dark World after defeating Agaheim for the first time)

-The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (replace Agaheim with Yuga, and Dark World with Lorule)

-The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (becoming adult Link - not exactly a rug-pull, but it is revealed just how bad things can get in 7 years)

-The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (failing to defeat Ganondorf the first time, and being forced to awaken the sages and find the Triforce pieces)

(Honestly, the LoZ games have a formula, so the rug-pull is pretty much expected)

-Marathon: Where Durandal takes over from Leela, and the situation changes.

-Mass Effect: Discovering the nature of the Reapers, the mass relays, etc.

-Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (happens very early on, but replacing Snake with Raiden...it's very much a rug pull)

-StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty (the moment where Zeratul gives Raynor the ihan crystal, and, well, let's just say a lot of revelations happen very quickly)

-Xenoblade Chronicles: I'd say there's quite a few rug-pulls. Such as when Xord is revealed to be able to speak along with Metal Face, when Fiora is revealed to be alive, when we spend all this time thinking Egil's the big bad, only for Zanza and Dickson to have their true colours revealed, for Mechonis to be destroyed and Bionis to start looking not so hospitable, etc.

 

[necromanzer52]

Okami. About 10-12 hours in you fight what feels very much like a final boss, only for the game to essentially tell you that you've just passed the tutorial. And it only gets more and more amazing as it goes on.

 

[bificommander]

To Hawki:

Spoiler

Yeah, I was about to say, at this point it'd be a rugpull if it didn't turn out that after the first three dungeons/magguffins, you get screwed over and have to collect some more. We can also add:

Twilight princess: Zant launches a, it has to be said, very skillful ambush, just popping up right behind you as you are teleported out of the last dungeon, and steals your stuff.

Skyward Sword: This is slightly different. You actually thwart the bad guy after the third dungeon. The screwing over happens at the hands of the "good" guys, who insist you build a time portal so Zelda can tell you what old!Impa could've said with no problems. The more traditional rugpull comes after you seal away the big bad in accordance with the stupidly convoluted plan, and the big bad's minion ambushes you and goes "Thanks for building that time portal for me, I can just travel back to before you sealed my boss, release him, and have him create Ganondorf. Great job indirectly causing the bad things in 90% of the franchise". Which, yeah, is a rugpull, but not one I actually like.

Haven't played BotW, since I don't have the console.

Also, Final Fantasy 6 isn't the only one in the series that did that. It just got a lot harder to surprise players in the CD era. When your "final dungeon" isn't on the final CD, well... TV tropes did name it the First Disk Final Dungeon for a reason.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Okami. About 10-12 hours in you fight what feels very much like a final boss, only for the game to essentially tell you that you've just passed the tutorial. And it only gets more and more amazing as it goes on.

Was going to say Okami.
BioShock might qualify as well.

 

[meiam]

Most of the tales of game have some second maps/world at some point, usually after you kill the first big bad boss.

Portal, self explanatory

 

[FalloutJack]

Spoiler: Persona games

There are a few of these. Not ALL of the games have them, but some do. Let's examine.

The original Persona game had an unexpected second act that went thusly: You've discovered your Persona as the town your in has suddenly become overrun with all kinds of demons. You've had to fight your way out of a hospital, get to your school where people are trying hold up and stay safe, and then try to infiltrate the company that has apparently summoned these damn things. At no point do you think you're going to be transported to AN ALTERNATE WORLD where everybody is there, but things are very different. You also don't expect the villain to construct a massive temple where your town was, back in the first world, or that the alternate world was in your friend's head and you have to go BACK or everyone dies. Persona became popular for being very different and for having great story, most definitely.

Now, the SECOND game has a REAL twist. Initial buyers of Persona 2 in any country but Japan will, as they play out the game, note that it references the events of a previous game that they have not played. Eternal Punishment is the second act to Innocent Sin, which was - for a time - available largely in Japan and not elsewhere. For those played Innocent Sin, Eternal Punishment was the surprise first act. For those of us who didn't get access to Innocent Sin until much later, it was the surprise FIRST ACT. (Note: The individual games have their own unexpected changes to the situation where the big bad you THOUGHT was the big bad was not...at least twice.) Point being...well...surprise!

Persona 3 has its own surprise acts. You have this new formula of managing your normal high school life and your secret missions to explore a strange tower and protect the town from dangerous Shadows...and then you learn that these big shadows you defeated were just piece of a greater whole, that the true purpose of the tower was to reach the moon, practically. And why? Because of human despair at the world. Not only is a man you've been working with fooling you from the start, but it seems the world is reaching out to a death god to end it all, and you have to get all the way up that tower...or the world will be destroyed. And then, of course, you have The Answer to The Question, which is essentially a new and added aftermath story which leads to the team traversing time and space, learning the truth behind their leader's sacrifice to save the world.

I wouldn't say Persona 4 and 5 had a surprise second act, per se. Good final acts towards the endgame with plenty building up to it, but not a second act, I would say. Nevertheless, these are awesome games.

 

[Zen Bard]

Jade Empire

Spoiler

Turns out that the player's mentor and teacher, Master Li, was the villainous Death's Hand all along!

What a twist!

 

[Avnger]

Dishonored definitely counts

 

[balladbird]

The whole "Vaas isn't the actual villain! There's a whole 'nother island with a whole 'nother villain to play now!" Twist from far cry comes to mind... and also illustrates that sometimes getting more game isn't a net gain.

 

[Trunkage]

Finding Vendrick in Dark Souls 2... sad

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

Bravely Default. I won't spoil it for people who don't know cause you should really just play the game instead of spoiling it here!

 

[Frankster]

Castlevia Symphony of the Night!

Oh i'm sorry did you just think you beat the game? Ha! Fool, you only did 50% and got one of the worst endings

 

[aozgolo]

While I already mentioned Chrono Trigger, the real impetus for this thread belongs to the Dragon Quest series which has pulled it off a number of times:

Spoiler: III

You've finally defeated the evil Baramos, good job, now go back to the original land of Alefgard from the first game and defeat the TRUE villain

Spoiler: VII

Would be a very convincing final fake-out battle with the fake dark lord, if not for the glaring evidence that the game has a second disc you haven't played yet

Spoiler: VIII

Again, somewhat glaring as half the map is unexplored, but the Dark Isle where you fight Dhoulmagus, which has up to that point been the only villain really mentioned is very much set up like a final encounter, with some strict entry requirements, a labyrinthine maze to explore full of powerful enemies, creepy mood setting atmosphere and music, and an epic showdown with a boss who has high difficulty and multiple forms who has been built up since the very beginning of the game. Still got another half the game to go before you beat the true Big Bad, and that's not even counting the extra bonus endgame dungeon you do if you want the True Ending.

Spoiler: IX

Here it is, the big boss rush on the evil empire's kingdom, large epic dungeon, multiple bosses to beat, a suitably evil villain, but as Billy Mays would say "Wait, there's more!" Turns out there's a bigger badder dude on the block and he's just been waiting for you to press his buttons

 

[baddude1337]

Fable 3. It was quite a surprise to overthrow the king, only for him to lump all the power to you with an "oh by the way an Eldtrich horror is coming to annihilate everyone in a year. Bye!"

Shame the execution was absolutely atrocious, with most of the good choices actually making no sense in the circumstances (and you giving no explanation the people about the impending doom), being totally circumvented by already being a property tycoon so you could dump all your money into the army, and skipping whole months between missions.

 

[Saulkar]

Spoiler: Battlezone 2: Combat Commander

You essentially find a dead comrade very much alive and transformed into a human/alien cyborg hybrid out of the blue and she asks you to trust her when she says your are batting for the wrong side. Your commander on the other hand tells you to outright kill her. If you kill her the game has only a few missions left but if you spare her you become an alien (Scion) yourself and effectively double the campaign length playing as them and getting the good ending.

 

[Dalisclock]

The whole "Vaas isn't the actual villain! There's a whole 'nother island with a whole 'nother villain to play now!" Twist from far cry comes to mind... and also illustrates that sometimes getting more game isn't a net gain.

Yeah, but the game isn't really that interesting once you get rid of Vaas. I can barely remember who he was working for, to be honest. All I remember was the helicopter rescue mission and the bad ending.