Most gamers appreciate a good plot twist in a video game. Even if the twist reveals itself on Disc 3 and gamers can sense it way, way back on Disc 1 (remember the days where games had four discs?) a well-executed, reasonably-explained plot twist can do wonders for the story. It can turn a mediocre game into a memorable one.
Let me give you a few examples of twists that I thoroughly enjoyed (spoiler alert; rampant spoilers ahead). Castlevania: Symphony of the Night turning the entirety of Dracula's castle upside down, for instance, was a twist that I did not see coming. When that happened, I was in awe. "Uhhh...?! Same castle? Only upside down and more difficult? Awesome!" I felt the same way when I experienced Final Fantasy VI for the first time (this was before I had internet) and the World of Balance became the World of Ruin. "Holy hell, Kefka destroyed the world I came to know and now there's a new one to explore? Wow!" Exploring the World of Ruin for the first time was as amazing as it was depressing.
What if that big twist turns you into the game's main villain instead? How would you feel about being a role-playing game villain? (hint: I'd like it, but I'm a villain at heart.)
Think about it: almost every RPG follows a band of ragtag heroes on their path to vanquish evil and save the world. Save the Crystals, save the Espers, save the planet, save the Princess, save the world. Save whatever. You do a whole lot of saving when playing role-playing games. For once I'd like to experience a game ending from the opposite point of view, where defeating the main group of protagonists is the "good ending." Is there a game where it is revealed that you, the player, are really the main villain?
Games have allowed the player to control villains before. Any number of Final Fantasy games have villains becoming temporary playable characters who fight by the protagonist's side (Sephiroth, Delita... heck, Final Fantasy Tactics has a good dozen, I'm sure) with some even controllable for the short time they are with you (Seymour, Seifer). Chrono Trigger technically does it with Magus becoming recruitable at a certain point in the story. But I'm not talking about controlling or fighting alongside the eventual final villain or even something as simple as a Serge/Lynx (Chrono Cross) body-swap. I'm talking about you becoming the full-blown antagonist of a video game. World ruiner. Heroic quest denier.
Breath of Fire IV did this to an extent, though it's a bit of a stretch. Players were able to play as Fou-Lu, the main antagonist, intermittently throughout Ryu's main storyline (but in the distant past). Fou-Lu ended up being the other half of Ryu—the Yang to his Yin, as it were—and at the final confrontation, the player can choose to merge with his other half and destroy humankind or fight his other half and save the world. However in the event of siding with the enemy, it simply absorbs the main character Ryu and you are left with the rest of the protagonists to control. You don't take control of the new entity created from Ryu and Fou-Lu.
But what about a game where the villain turns out to be yourself—and one you can control?
Here's the run-down of a possible game plot to do just that. I call this the "Twist and Bout":
- Main protagonist introduced; name is fixed for voice acting purposes
- An unknown entity or consciousness inhabits the main protagonist early on in the story, through some sort of accident or chance event
- Game allows player to name the consciousness
- Consciousness interacts with the hero internally throughout the entire game, offering an outsider's perspective and subtly influencing the protagonist's decisions while making sure to conceal his/her true ambitions
- Main protagonist is spurred on towards some quest to save the world/the country/the princess/the plot devices
- Many other like-minded heroes travel with main protagonist; names also fixed for aforementioned reasons
- Heroes reach what would be the final dungeon
- Main protagonist transfers consciousness through some sort of techno/magical means and revives a gigantic entity
- That entity turns out to be.....YOU!
- Game gives you a choice to control yourself or destroy yourself
Most people, when asked to name what is essentially a disembodied voice or consciousness inside the mind of the main protagonist, would undoubtedly choose their own name. Functionally it exists as a meta-view on the game's overall plot and character decisions. It can provide comic relief, engage in deep inner dialogues with the main protagonist and act as his or her own foil. And hey, you can name someone/something significant to the story! Why not choose yourself?
A clever writing staff might throw in stuff to make the consciousness seem like nothing more than an extension of the player's own thoughts. In-jokes could be created to make the player identify with the consciousness. For example, the main protagonist could do something so dumbfoundedly stupid that it makes the player shake his or her head. Then the consciousness would call out the protagonist and let them know how dumb they are. The player would laugh because they were just thinking that same thing and the bond between consciousness and player could grow stronger through scenes like these.
Then this twist happens. You are now aware that the entity you named after yourself at the beginning is the end-all-be-all final boss. The game gives you a choice: support the band of misfits whose journeys through the world you have shared thus far, or side with the super-villain who thinks like you do and bears your own name. Which side would you choose?
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