Do you prefer a Sad Ending, Heroic Ending, or a bad ending?

[Daughter of Evil]

What are the types of game ending would you prefer? Would it be a sad, heroic, or a bad ending

Usually it depends on the game but here is the scenario

Scenario:

Hero reaches the the final boss (Demon King) after fighting countless battles. 

He fights the boss for a long time and a conclusion happens.

How would you like to end with the three choices above

Ex:

Sad - The hero sacrifices himself to kill the boss and save the world. 

Heroic - The hero's sword flash with immense light and he pierces the Demon King in the heart saving the world and living happily ever after. 

Bad - The hero's friend's are killed right in front of him and thousand of villagers die from the battle of the Demon King and the hero. In the end, all was in vain as the hero was stabbed straight into the chest and legend of the hero slaying the demon king was all but a folk tale.

Oh the difference between the sad  and bad ending is that the sad ending the Demon king is killed with a cost while the Bad is that the hero dies and the demon king lives on.

The one above are just examples, you could write how you want it to end like for the sad ending the hero's best friend dies, but the demon king is slain. 

How about you? How would you want it to end?

 

[Dalph]

I don't have any particular preferences.

It usually depends on the theme of the game, if it's an hilarious game then you could expect an hilarious ending, but there are always exceptions so I can't tell...

"As long as we're talking about an ending that fits with the story and that makes sense."

You can also shock the player with a surprising ending (I love this stuff).

I noticed however that bitter endings are the ones that are best remembered, people love tragedy, even if they say the opposite.

 

[Matseb2611]

My favourite endings are the bittersweet endings. Not really fond of endings which are black and white, i.e. either all good prevails and everything becomes cheery and happy, or all evil prevails and nobody else is left to face the villain. The bad endings just tend to leave you with a bitter taste afterwards, especially if you really cared for the hero and/or wanted to see the villain fall. Happily ever after's are just too cheesy and often end up feeling unrealistic. It also makes the villain feel like a wuss if he/she/it hadn't managed to cause any harm to the protagonists in the process of the story. 

Overall I'd say it highly depends on the story. With some stories a good ending fits (comedies, light-hearted stories), with others perhaps a bad ending can fit fine (perhaps some horror stories), but in general, no matter where on the spectrum the story genre lies, I think an ending that combines both good and bad usually leaves me most satisfied. For example, the villain is defeated but only after the hero lost his close friend or a lover, or perhaps the villain is defeated but after having destroyed a portion of the world and tonnes of innocent people, or maybe even the heroes managed to stop the villain's scheme, but the villain isn't really dead, or as in your example, the hero dies in the end but saves the world, and so on.

 

[Engr. Adiktuzmiko]

Good endings are awesome... people like it very much...


Sad endings are sad... people hate it... but things we hate are the things that stay on our minds...


Personally, I don't have a preference between good,sad,heroic,bad or whatever... as long as it's executed nicely... but a surprising ending is always a really good thing to have... IMHO

 

[West Mains]

I prefer whatever ending makes the most sense.

 

[Solar]

Most of all I like endings that leave something for the player to think about while also giving a feeling of accomplishment. That said, almost any kind of ending can work as long as it makes sense in context.

 

[Alkorri]

Any ending that does not make you go, What the heck was that, and makes sense---What West Mains said. (stop that, you )

 

[Shades]

I prefer the ending that the story itself demands.

 

[Neverward]

I think every story is so different, and sure there might be some kinds of stories I generally enjoy more, but any sort of ending can be done well if it fits the context of the game. I personally like sadder endings, I like when a lot of main characters die, and all seems lost (but it isn't really)

 

[Cozzer]

It depends a lot on the theme and the tone of the story.

In a traditional heroic fantasy story, having a sudden bad end feels like a cheap twist for the sake of twisting.

In an tragic and dark story, a "the hero wins with the power of friendship and every problem is fixed forever" feels lame and out of place.

What I NEVER like is an ending where the protagonists' actions turn out to be meaningless. Either because they don't manage to accomplish anything, or because the things are accomplished by something else.

If I had to choose my favorite king of ending, it would be the one that TVTropes calls "earn your happy ending". The main characters are successful in whatever the main point of the story is, but they have to make actual sacrifices to obtain it. (Not "just kidding, here, I'll give you back whatever you just sacrificed" sacrifices)

But if the problems are solved in a believable, coherent with the theme of the story way, I appreciate good old plain happy endings too.

 

[vociferocity]

I like bittersweet endings, definitely. a solid amount of personal sacrifice and hard work, and scraping through to an overall happy ending

 

[ShinGamix]

I always prefer games with multiple endings depending on what you do in the game.

 

[Korimax]

I guess after thinking about it my project will probably reflect my preference which are good/sad endings.

I suppose what I mean is that I like ending which are good as in almost everyone is happy because the big bad whatever was killed but not the hero but lets say the hero's wife or Male companion was killed along the way, leading to a life alone without him/her. The only thing to remember them by are painful memories of losing them, and Wedding Rings.

(Thats the kind of ending I like... I guess that might be more sad than happy though.)

 

[Alkorri]

@Pie - That's what they call a bittersweet ending, which I don't mind The kind of ending I don't like is a Pyrrhic victory. Losing a spouse would probably suck though, but hey, if they save the world, why not? 

 

[Bluetoes]

It all depends on the story and characters, and how it pans out, but with that being said I tend to prefer bittersweet endings like most other people here. Give an ending the characters deserve. The Metal Gear Solid franchise does amazingly well in that regard with MGS4 especially.

 

[wallacethepig]

Keep in mind that "Game Over" is an ending. Usually a bad one.

Other than that, my favorite ending is a bittersweet one. Pretty much all of my favorite games and shows have a bittersweet ending (Death Note, for example). It's like two emotions wrapped up into one!

-Wallace

 

[Alkorri]

Other than that, my favorite ending is a bittersweet one. Pretty much all of my favorite games and shows have a bittersweet ending (Death Note, for example). 

Spoilers! Just kidding ;>

 

[SLEEP]

i like the endings where the protagonist wakes up. it was just a dream.

 

[XPKobold]

I actually like a variety of endings especially ones that have a good ending but come at a huge price. Secret of Evermore is a good example of that.

 

[MasterLagger]

When it comes to endings, eh, it's kind of complicated from my perspective.

I don't mind good endings overall. As long as it's not overly cheerful.

Bittersweet endings are kind of a risk. Don't just la-dee-da kill characters for the sake of a bittersweet ending. It would need some sort of build up to it. For example, the bittersweet ending I saw in 'The Crooked Man' had the protagonist's mother dying in the hospital after the protagonist leaves the room after talking to her. That's much more believable and a more realistic situation.

One thing I do hate with an ending in some games is that the player gets screwed over or killed no matter what they do. Unless the player made poor choices that leads to that kind of ending and that there are alternative endings the player can get, do not do it. Inevitable bad endings shouldn't even be an option. (curse Shadow of the Colossus for doing that) It's not a good plot twist to the story, especially in horror-themed games since it's too cliche and it's the equivalent to getting a 'Game Over'. As a friend told me in a conversation about horror games, 'Nobody plays to lose.'