This Generation's Most Satisfying Endings (by Carl B.)

October 15, 2011, by Carl B. - A game's ending, in most cases, can either make or break the overall experience for the player. Unfortunately, this generation has been filled with endings that aren't up to par with the rest of the title, leaving players with an empty feeling that hurts their perception of the game. Nevertheless, there have been plenty of titles to release this generation that featured fantastic endings. Warning: This article contains spoilers.



4. Epic Mickey

Epic Mickey has several different endings based on how players handled situations and used their paint throughout the course of the adventure. Being an evil Mickey doesn't change the overall ending of the game – something Disney objected to – but it does allow players to see the destruction they've caused in the Wasteland.

3. Red Dead Redemption

Red Dead Redemption's ending worked so well because RockStar did an amazing job of building up John Marston's character from start to finish. Unlike the many "heroes" of the Grand Theft Auto games, Marston was very likeable, making his sacrifice at the end of the game that much more compelling. Not killing Marston would have been a total cop-out and not true to the character at all.

2. The Last Story

Like Red Dead Redemption, The Last Story spends the entire game building up relationships between the various characters, but this time, it ends in a favorable way for most of the characters involved. The end boss battle itself is fantastic in its build up – Elza's life-long friend, Quark, betrays the group in an effort to have the Gathering power all to himself. He ends up transforming into a large demon, only to be taken out by Elza and company. Afterwards, the game spends its waning hours wrapping up the dynamic between Elza and Kanan, ending in their wedding and Elza's knighthood.

1. Portal 2

I was afraid I wouldn't like the ending to Portal 2. It seemed 100% in Glados' nature to send Chell back to more testing after Wheatley is defeated, and she almost does that until a slight bit of consciousness comes over her. The ending to Portal 2 is so satisfying that making a third game would almost be a disservice to what Portal 2 accomplished.