Almost nothing builds up anticipation better than a good cliffhanger. You might 100% a game and then never think about it again, but stories stick better with us when they continue in our heads. Unresolved questions and open-ended conclusions work best to produce this particular effect.
Certain types of games, like horror, go exceptionally well with cliffhangers. Generally, these narrative devices are also employed best when developers intend to continue storylines or establish a franchise. Whatever the case, it’s always good to go into these experiences blind and then be surprised with an unexpected turn of events.
Of course, expect spoilers for the games on this list.
10 Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain
As far as cliffhangers go, this isn’t an especially satisfactory one, but it’s more than intriguing. After Venom Snake discovers his true identity as a mere clone of Big Boss, young Liquid Snake steals Metal Gear Sahelanthropus, armed with nuclear weapons. This is all revealed in a special deluxe version of the game that contains the infamous “Mission 51” (missing from the regular release), which is meant to tie in the game’s entire narrative.
Unfortunately, this mission is not actually playable, it’s more like the bonus contents of a DVD, or if you prefer, a huge exposition dump that utilizes half-finished cutscenes and concept art to quickly tie in loose ends. Regardless of this, Venom Snake’s fate meets no resolution.
9 Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice
This is easily one of the best indie games ever made, without question. Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice tells a gripping story riddled with the hardships that stem from severe mental illness. By the end of the storyline, Senua finally lets go of her desperate need to revive her deceased lover.
At this point, things feel pretty much cathartic enough that the game could have ended here. That’s exactly when it makes a hard right straight into weirdo territory. Senua’s voice cannot be heard, but you can visibly see her speaking words to you. She bids you to follow her, because there are more stories to tell. These stories are undoubtedly going to be the subject of the upcoming Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2.
8 Death Stranding
Hideo Kojima’s vision has always been rather strange and hard to grasp. The Metal Gear saga is a great example of a complex and convoluted story that requires hours upon hours of attention to truly understand. Death Stranding is, essentially, constructed in the same way, but it’s condensed.
If you scratched your head throughout this game, you’re not the only one. The obvious question that arises after the credits roll pertains to Lou’s and Sam’s fate. They seem to end up together in the final cutscene, but it’s anyone’s guess whether they settled for a quiet life or continued their work as delivery people.
7 Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
Darth Vader had to make an appearance in this title, and it was an awesome one. Unfortunately, Cal doesn’t stand a chance against him, even at the end of the game, and ends up fleeing back to his ship with the holocron that contains the locations of Force sensitive children across the galaxy.
After witnessing the destructive power of the dark side, and the wrath of the Empire, Cal decides to destroy the holocron, leaving the children’s fate for the Force to decide. A sequel is in the works, but it’s a mystery whether it will continue Cal’s story or go in a completely different direction.
6 Outlast 2
Horror titles are prone to ending with plenty unsolved mysteries. Outlast 2 is the best example of this phenomenon in action. After facing countless dangers with nothing but a camcorder, Blake Langermann finally rescues his wife, Lynn, from the deranged cult that abducts her at the beginning of the game.
Luckily for him, he makes it just in time to help her give birth to a prophesized, anti-Christ, child. Lynn passes away after delivering the baby, who doesn’t cast a shadow. As Blake walks away from his deceased wife, with the pseudo-ghost-baby in tow, a sudden flash of light fills his entire field of view. What on Earth is the meaning of this? Perhaps the Outlast Trials are going to shed more light on the matter.
5 Doom (2016)
Doom Eternal took the world by storm with its revamped gameplay that built off of the rebooted Doom released in 2016. Unlike Eternal, this prequel ended on unclear terms in a rather mysterious fashion. Despite the campaign being somewhat unremarkable from a narrative standpoint, the ending sees Dr. Samual Hayden essentially betray the Slayer. He takes the Crucible away and teleports our beloved Doomguy away, where he may not interfere with his plans.
Was he the baddie all along? It certainly doesn’t seem so, since the Slayer doesn’t hold a grudge toward Hayden in the latest installment in the franchise.
4 The Last Of Us 2
Heart-wrenching, profound, bittersweet notes characterize The Last Of Us 2’s depressing ending. On its most basic surface level, the narrative of this game boils down to an obvious message: revenge is meaningless. Naturally, there are more nuances to take into account here.
After Ellie gives up her quest to murder Abby, she returns to her former home, deserted. She tries to play Future Days by Pearl Jam, but her missing fingers are only able to produce dissonant chords. She briefly remembers her last exchange with Joel, and then she’s seen walking away into an uncertain world, alone, devoid of those whom she loved most.
3 Resident Evil: Village
Resident Evil: Village answers plenty of questions, but it also raises interesting prospects for Rosemary Winters. By the end of the game, after Ethan sacrifices himself to save his wife and daughter, the series’ beloved Chris Redfield asserts that someone has to pay for what happened.
After the credits roll, a brief scene involving a teenage Rosemary, or Rose, plays. As she visits her father’s grave, a man in a suit (who seems to be one of her tutors) apprehends her after stating that she “ran away again.” At this point, it is more than likely that Rose is going to be the protagonist, or at least a major character, in a future sequel.
2 Dark Souls 3
Depending on which ending you get, this game has a couple of different cliffhangers; some come with implied resolutions, while one, in particular, seems to set up the beginning of another game altogether. If you manage to steal the First Flame, you get the “bad” ending where your character essentially becomes evil and rules over the Unkindled, pretty much like a sort of dark lord.
In essence, Dark Souls 3 is about deciding what to do with the First Flame. All the other endings imply that the flame either dies for good or is passed onto the next generation of Unkindled. Stealing it, however, breaks the cycle, and the implications of that are all but unknown to us.
1 God Of War
Few games manage to build hype like God Of War. That’s without even considering the wonderful relationship that blossoms between Kratos and Atreus throughout the narrative. After scattering Faye’s ashes in Jotunheim, father and son return home to rest, for what seems to be a long amount of time.
Their sleep is suddenly interrupted by a violent thunderstorm. Kratos goes outside their little wooden cabin to find an unexpected guest glaring right at him — it’s Thor, son of Odin. Before their epic battle ensues, the screen cuts to black.
NEXT: The 10 Worst Gaming Cliffhangers Of The Decade, Ranked
