RPGsare generally massive games, and it can be tough to have momentum in the story all the way through. Some have mastered that balancing act, but others drop the ball right at the end as their story has finally picked up some steam.
These are often good games that do this, but due to sequel baiting or just not having a proper ending, things can feel unfinished and abandoned right as the most interesting part of the story was getting going.
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It’s often a torturous practice because sometimes, a game will be rather weak in the story department until the final hours, where you think, “Where was this all game?” and then just as you’re ready to really dig into the meat of the game, it ends.
We’re going to check out a bunch of RPGs that intrigued us throughout, but let us down right as things started to get going.
Several of the entries below will include spoilers for their respective games.
10Final Fantasy 16
And Then…
Final Fantasy 16
Final Fantasy 16is a long game, and while the story is kind of all over the place, it does have a lot of intriguing parts, particularly ones that come into play towards the end of the game.
The story builds to a thrilling finish, but instead of fighting through an incredible end-game dungeon to a final boss, it’s just a big fight against Ultima, and that’s all.
The plot threads about Leviathan the Lost, The Undying Order, and Ultima’s homeland, as well as the black mist covering the land, areall just left on the cutting room floor.
Sure, Leviathan the Lost would be addressed in an underwhelming DLC add-on in 2024, but overall, it was wildly disappointing to not get any follow-up on the story.
The Undying, in particular, were a fascinating idea that seemed to be the real evil at play in the world, and yet, they get no elaboration and become little more than a footnote.
9Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Such A Tease
Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Fextralife Wiki
Kingdom Come: Deliverancewas such an interesting and unique game when it came out in 2017, and while it had some rocky edges, it was a fantastic game that gave the RPG genre a much-needed makeover.
While the story was gripping, it simply didn’t have an ending. Sometimes that’s hyperbole, but here, that was literally the case.
The main villain gets away, stealing your sword in the process, and the game ends with Hans and Henry riding away to deliver an important letter to another land.
I was so sure that we were about to get a thrilling finale, and then, credits? Seriously? It is the most baffling example of a game ending right as it’s getting interesting.
Luckily, the sequel picked it up and finished in grandiose fashion, but we had to wait 8 years for that to happen.
8Horizon Zero Dawn
They Told The Wrong Story
Horizon Zero Dawn
Horizon Zero Dawnis an amazing game, and it has one of the most interesting backstories to discover in all of gaming. However, the main plot is far less interesting.
Dealing with the human cult and them praying to Hades was not nearly as intriguing as discovering how the current world came to be, but they do drop one very intriguing tidbit at the very end of the game. That being Hades is taken by our mentor throughout the game, Sylens.
This betrayal, as it appears,sets up tons of questionsthat it seemed like we may be exploring after what I assumed was a fake first ending sequence.
Unfortunately, the most intriguing thread in the story is what Sylens is even trying to do by possessing Hades, because the cult’s obsession with it and the plan to bring all of the old weapons back online wasn’t all that interesting compared to the amazing backstory.
Sylens was easily the best character in the game, and that shocking twist deserved to be the finale of the game rather than just a teaser.
And The Crowd Goes Mild
Avoweddoesn’t have the best story in the world by any means, butthere is a lot to likeabout the story, especially as the game hurdles towards its finale.
The discovery of The Garden, the reveal of the Magfolk, and the clear allusion to things that could go down in a sequel are all mighty interesting. Unfortunately, just as you think you’re about to set out on one last adventure, there is an awkward, rushed town siege segment to end the game.
The boss fight against Inquisitor Lodwyn feels like step one, but in reality, it’s the end of the game. Then we get a literal speech about the power of friendship, and that’s all she wrote.
It makes no sense. We don’t get to confront Aedyr for sending Lodwyn here to begin with, and we get no follow-up on whether or not we sent Yahtzli away with an obviously evil sorceress. It’s just such a sterile ending that cuts the story short, where it clearly was picking up momentum for literally the only time all game.
6Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
So Much Left Unfinished
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
Deus Ex: Mankind Dividedis such a great game, and it’s a shame thatit just wasn’t finished. The final boss fight is such a strange and anti-climactic encounter that can be literally skipped by finding an insta-kill button, and then the game just ends.
Right as it seemed like Jensen was going to uncover the larger conspiracy at play, discover the higher-ups in the Illuminati pulling the strings, and end the corruption once and for all, the credits roll.
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This might’ve been sequel bait, but it’s a sequel we will sadly never see, and it’s brutal because, outside of Cyberpunk 2077, this is easily the best sci-fi series set in a near-future world and one that I’ve been following since my formative years.
There was a DLC after the fact, but nothing that came close to picking up where the story left off in a meaningful way, and that ending still leaves such a bad taste in my mouth.
5Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
So What About Revan?
Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords isone of my favorite RPGs of all time. Now, with that being said, the ending sequence of the game is such an unbelievable tease.
We’ve revealed the true threat in Darth Traya, heard about Revan going to find the True Sith in another form of space, and we’re about to touch down on Malachor V, where it all started for the story, and then it just ends.
Malachor V is a wildly disappointing final area that speeds us through to the final boss, which is equally underwhelming, and then all that juicy intrigue about Revan and the True Sith? Forget about it. At least, that’s what Obsidian did.
Everything in the game is so good, and the build towards the finale is top-notch as well. But it felt like so much more was supposed to come. There was a lot more story to tell in this specific universe, and it just never continued.
4The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings
See You In The Witcher 3!
The Witcher 2
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kingsis a fantastic game, and if you’ve also got The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, then you’re golden. However, if you’ve only got The Witcher 2, you’re going to be super disappointed as the game ends, as the story is at its most interesting point.
While the game is great, the story more or less meanders for quite a bit as you complete different small quests for each area you’re in. Once you’ve figured out what’s going on and that Letho is nothing more than a pawn for kings fighting in a war, you’ll be promptly shown the door.
I’m serious, the confrontation with Letho is so bizarre because you simply choose to let him go after all he’s done, and the game doesn’t change much regardless.
So many pieces slide into place in the final hours, and it seems like something bigger is definitely coming, but Letho shows up and says he’s been used, and if you let him go, see you in The Witcher 3.
It was a brutal cliffhanger that we had to sit with for 4 years, where it eventually all paid off in the next game.
3Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
A Whole New World
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33is an amazing game, but if I had one criticism, it’s that it ends far too quickly. The reveals at the end of Act 2 are simply mind-blowing and introduce an enormous amount of new ideas and plot elements. The problem is that almost none of them are followed up on.
It’s clearly sequel bait looking at it now, but at the time? I wanted some resolution. I wanted to know what was going on with The Writers and Clea. I wanted to know what happened outside of the canvas. I didn’t just want it, I needed it. And yet, regardless of that, the game shoves you full force towards the finish line right after these revelations happen.
There are some meaningful side quests to check out before the final area for sure, but those are optional. In terms of the story? It starts cooking with full heat near the very end of the game and then lets us off without a complete resolution. They have one option: make a sequel or a DLC, because we cannot be left with the questions we have.
2Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla
Not Even An Ending
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Assassin’s Creed: Valhalladoesn’t know what story it wants to tell for about 60 of its 80-hour runtime, but finally, as you’re getting ready to just give up on the game completely, there is a burst of super interesting ideas.
First, we get to see what Valhalla really is, and the answer is quite interesting. A virtual paradise where Vikings hook themselves up and are eternally part of this sort of battle heaven. It’s a cool concept that doesn’t get all that much time to cook, because shortly after, you fight Basim and trap him there.
The grand follow-up to this is Layla foolishly releasing him and then seeing her take his place, explore the data world with digital Desmond, and then Basim being unleashed in the real world because of this.
The consequences of both would seem to have rippling effects, to say the least, but the game just sort of sputters out after that. No resolution, and it doesn’t seem like Ubisoft cares too much about following up on it in any meaningful way.
1Dragon Age: Inquisition
You Made Us Wait And Then Gave Us The Veilguard
Dragon Age: Inquisition
I’m bitter, I’ll admit it.Dragon Age: Inquisitionsets up one of the biggest cliffhangers in gaming history and thoroughly falls on its face in delivering the payoff.
But before then, we had the ending of Dragon Age: Inquisition. It was cooking. The Eluvian, Morrigan, and Flemeth all came into the fold. We got the bombshell of bombshells that Solas is the Dreadwolf and caused the explosion at the beginning of the game, and everything was in place for an unbelievable ending.
That ending should’ve come in Dragon Age: Inquisition. For a game that meandered around with its plot for so much of the game, it picks up in the ending few hours, and it’s an awesome set of events that just picks up as the game comes to a close and there are so many interesting beats happening that it feels so brutal to see it end when it does.
It all feels worse when you see where the sequel went with the material. That’s a blow I may never recover from.
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