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* ''VideoGame/StarShiftSeries'': The Calterans are a mysterious civilization that destroyed Earth in a BadFuture, leading to the Terran Republic going further back in time to attack the Calterans first. This led to the Terran Republic becoming the Earth Systems Alliance, which is even worse than the Calterans.
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** ''VideoGame/DirgeOfCerberus'': Deepground, the shadow-army of Shinra, which is a veritable army of [[TheRemnant conscripts and machines left behind by the then-defunct Shinra Company]], of which said conscripts were raised for one purpose alone: To be efficient killers with no remorse. And boy do they make a surprise, grand appearance on a brutally-violent scale.
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** ''VideoGame/DirgeOfCerberus'': Deepground, the shadow-army of Shinra, which is a veritable army group of [[TheRemnant conscripts and machines left behind by the then-defunct Shinra Company]], of which said conscripts were raised for one purpose alone: To be efficient killers with no remorse. And boy do they make a surprise, grand appearance on a brutally-violent scale.
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* As of ''[[VideoGame/{{Contra}} Contra: Shattered Soldier]]'', it turns out that [[spoiler:the [[GovernmentConspiracy Triumvirate]] is truly responsible for everything that has happened in the ''Contra'' series, when they had stole the [[ArtifactOfDoom Relic of Moirai]] and provoked the Alien Wars in the first place.]]
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* As of ''[[VideoGame/{{Contra}} Contra: Shattered Soldier]]'', ''VideoGame/ContraShatteredSoldier'', it turns out that [[spoiler:the [[GovernmentConspiracy Triumvirate]] is truly responsible for everything that has happened in the ''Contra'' ''VideoGame/{{Contra}}'' series, when they had stole the [[ArtifactOfDoom Relic of Moirai]] and provoked the Alien Wars in the first place.]]
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* In ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'' (and their {{Expansion Pack}}s, [[VideoGameRemake remakes]], etc.) Giovanni, the BigBad of the original ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'' games, is AWOL in this entry but his organization is still committing crimes and experiments in his name. The Big Bad of these games is the DragonAscendant, who went nameless in the original ''Gold'' and ''Silver'' editions but was named Archer in the remakes.
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* In ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'' (and their {{Expansion Pack}}s, [[VideoGameRemake remakes]], etc.) Giovanni, the BigBad of the original ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'' games, is AWOL in this entry ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'' but his organization is still committing crimes and experiments in his name. The Big Bad of these games is the DragonAscendant, who went nameless in the original ''Gold'' and ''Silver'' editions but was named Archer in the remakes.[[VideoGameRemake remakes]].
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* Danette may be long gone[[labelnote:spoilers]][[OurGhostsAreDifferent for the]] [[BonusBoss most part]][[/labelnote]] by the time of the first ''VideoGame/{{Geneforge}}'', but [[spoiler:their invention, the [[TitleDrop Gene]][[ArtifactOfDoom forge]]]] would come to be the catalyst for much of the conflict in the series to follow.
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* Danette may be long gone[[labelnote:spoilers]][[OurGhostsAreDifferent for the]] [[BonusBoss the most part]][[/labelnote]] by the time of the first ''VideoGame/{{Geneforge}}'', but [[spoiler:their invention, the [[TitleDrop Gene]][[ArtifactOfDoom forge]]]] would come to be the catalyst for much of the conflict in the series to follow.
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* In ''Videogame/Borderlands3'', the DLC "Moxxi's Heist of the Handsome Jackpot'' deals with a casino created by Handsome Jack that has gone into lockdown after his death, trapping everyone (including Timothy Lawrence, the Doppelganger from ''Videogame/BorderlandsThePreSequel'') in it for seven years. Both Moxxi and Timothy lament that even in death, Jack is still screwing people over.
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* In ''Videogame/Borderlands3'', the DLC "Moxxi's Heist of the Handsome Jackpot'' Jackpot" deals with a casino created by Handsome Jack that has gone into lockdown after his death, trapping everyone (including Timothy Lawrence, the Doppelganger from ''Videogame/BorderlandsThePreSequel'') in it for seven years. Both Moxxi and Timothy lament that even in death, Jack is still screwing people over.
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* In ''Videogame/Borderlands3'', the DLC "Moxxi's Heist of the Handsome Jackpot'' deals with a casino created by Handsome Jack that has gone into lockdown after his death, trapping everyone (including Timothy Lawrence, the Doppelganger from ''Videogame/BorderlandsThePreSequel'') in it for seven years. Both Moxxi and Timothy lament that even in death, Jack is still screwing people over.
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* The ''Videogame/LikeADragon'' series has the Nishikiyama Clan, who after the death of their patriarch Akira Nishikiyama stick around for two more games as antagonists either attempting to make their own power play or attempting to avenge Nishiki by trying to kill Kiryu.
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** ''VideoGame/DirgeOfCerberus'': Deepground, the shadow-army of Shinra, which is a veritable army of [[TheRemnant conscripts and machines left behind by the then-defunct Shinra Company]], of which said conscripts were raised for one thing alone: To be efficient killers with no remorse. And boy do they make a surprise, grand appearance on a brutally-violent scale.
to:
** ''VideoGame/DirgeOfCerberus'': Deepground, the shadow-army of Shinra, which is a veritable army of [[TheRemnant conscripts and machines left behind by the then-defunct Shinra Company]], of which said conscripts were raised for one thing purpose alone: To be efficient killers with no remorse. And boy do they make a surprise, grand appearance on a brutally-violent scale.
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** ''VideoGame/DirgeOfCerberus'': Deepground, the shadow-army of Shinra, which is a veritable army of [[TheRemnant conscripts and machines left behind by the then-defunct Shinra Company]], of which said conscripts were raised for one thing alone: To be efficient killers with no remorse. And boy do they make a surprise, grand appearance on a brutally-violent scale.
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'''NOTE''': Since this trope reveals a villain being responsible for other events in the series (potentially even after their own demise), expect spoilers.
[[VillainousLegacy Villainous Legacies]] in VideoGames.
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* Most of the conflicts that occur in ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' can be traced back to [[VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar Belka]]. Many scientists and engineers from the country went to various places around the planet to become arms dealers and weapons manufacturers to breed conflict and start wars to avenge their homeland.
* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedSyndicate:'' Despite having been dead for a hundred years, Reginald Birch - former Grandmaster of the Templar Order - and the purge he inflicted on the Assassins of Britain has been so successful the Assassins still don't have a foothold on London, save one guy who was ReassignedToAntarctica. It's also what allows the Templars of the 1860s to have the stranglehold they do have on the city.
* Many of the obstacles the Vault Hunters face in the ''Videogame/{{Borderlands}}'' series are the results of three MegaCorp companies leaving their impact on Pandora: Dahl for creating the bandits by leaving prisoners and personnel staff to their fates after an unknown Vault incident as well as abandoning The Lost Legion on Pandora's moon after the Crackening. Atlas via the Crimson Lance for driving out what was left of Dahl's forces out of Pandora while forcing civilians and townsfolk to be in fiefdoms and killing any bandits and opposing Vault Hunters that interfered in the hunt for the Vault. With Knoxx's death, Atlas too left Pandora with the remnants of the Lance ironically becoming the bandits they themselves once hunted. Luckily Roland recruited the rest into the newly founded Crimson Raiders.
* ''VideoGame/Case02ParanormalEvil'': Nya, the recently deceased BigBad of ''VideoGame/LoserReborn'', had a hand in summoning Gla'aki to the real world. This makes them one of the main causes of the zombie apocalypse, though it's unknown how exactly they're connected to Gla'aki's cult.
* ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlertSeries'': Joseph Stalin built the Soviet Union into an unstoppable military machine, and while he dies at the end of the first game, his successors continue his legacy of world conquest. This is especially pronounced in the case of the psychic DiabolicalMastermind Yuri, who reveals that he used to be a student and personal friend of Stalin.
* As of ''[[VideoGame/{{Contra}} Contra: Shattered Soldier]]'', it turns out that [[spoiler:the [[GovernmentConspiracy Triumvirate]] is truly responsible for everything that has happened in the ''Contra'' series, when they had stole the [[ArtifactOfDoom Relic of Moirai]] and provoked the Alien Wars in the first place.]]
* ''Videogame/DarkSouls'':
** Manus, Father of the Abyss, is long dead by the time of ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII''. His remains eventually became the Abyss, a dark realm haunted by malevolent spirits, and the fragments of his soul embodying his emotions were reincarnated as his Children of Dark. One of those Children [[spoiler:Queen Nashandra, embodiment of Manus' desires]], is directly responsible for Drangleic's downfall. Even in death Manus spreads Dark.
** Gwyn, the Lord of Sunlight, is the single most impactful individual on the world of the series, seeing how it was he who committed the "First Sin", when he refused to let the first Age of Fire be succeeded by an Age of Dark, breaking the very foundations of the metaphysical world order to preserve the First Flame. The result was the repeated cycles of the First Fire fading and being rekindled, which precipitate both sequels, and ultimately, the turning of the entire world into ashes, as seen in the final DLC of the third installment.
* Gorden Amherst created the [[SyntheticPlague Dollar Flu/Green Poison]] to bring about the downfall of civilization in ''VideoGame/TheDivision''. By the time [[PlayerCharacter the Agent]], finds him, he’s been DeadAllAlong, [[HoistByHisOwnPetard killed by his own virus.]] Nonetheless, [[TheBadGuyWins he got what he wanted]] from the chaos caused by the outbreak, and a [[FaceHeelTurn rogue agent]] named Aaron Keener steals his research and equipment to start a new plague that he intends to use to seize power.
* The Grotesqueries Queen, FinalBoss of ''VideoGame/{{Drakengard}}'' Ending E, becomes this in ''VideoGame/{{Nier}}'', since it was because of her that the Gestalts and Replicants were created to allow humanity to outlast the White Chlorination Syndrome caused by the Queen's remains. [[spoiler: The Queen is also responsible for humanity's subsequent extinction once the Gestalt project failed, necessitating the formation of [=YoRHa=] to cover the news so as to not let the androids lose hope, eventually causing the events of ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'']].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Fable}},'' [[EldritchAbomination Jack of Blades]] inspires followers in the form of the Cult of Blades years after his death.
* Non-character example in ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}''. The BigBad of the [[VideoGame/Fallout1 first game]], TheMaster, was using the Forced Evolutionary Virus to mutate humans. The villains of the second game excavated the ruins of his lair to retrieve the FEV for their own uses, and the villains of the third synthesized their own version for their plan as well.
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' and its expanded universe, all major villains trace themselves back to Jenova, an EldritchAbomination who tried to destroy the planet 2000 years ago. Jenova was found by [[{{Megacorp}} Shinra]], and the lab experiments produced by tinkering with her cells serve as the villains of the series, along with a few of the scientists who did said tinkering.
* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn'' has Ashnard, the BigBad of ''Path of Radiance'', who turns out to have been the cause of a ''major'' problem for Daein during the sequel. Of couse, he doesn't actively play a role due to being dead by then.
* Danette may be long gone[[labelnote:spoilers]][[OurGhostsAreDifferent for the]] [[BonusBoss most part]][[/labelnote]] by the time of the first ''VideoGame/{{Geneforge}}'', but [[spoiler:their invention, the [[TitleDrop Gene]][[ArtifactOfDoom forge]]]] would come to be the catalyst for much of the conflict in the series to follow.
* In ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'', although Ares is long dead by the third game, his original goal to make Kratos his pawn to destroy Olympus and kill his family is fulfilled successfully.
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'': Billy Grey's betrayal hit the Lost hard. [[spoiler:Even after his death, most of the chapter refused to believe Billy was planning to betray all of them, causing a major split in the gang. This led to massive hindrance to Johnny's plans to expand, making him settle in [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV Blaine County, San Andreas]], where he partners with a certain Trevor Philips, and to say things doesn't end well for them is a massive {{Understatement}}.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheHouseOfTheDeadOverkill'' has [[spoiler:Clement Darling]] discover the "[[NotUsingTheZWord mutant]] compound" responsible for the ZombieApocalypse. While they die at the end, TheStinger reveals he had "powerful friends" who had access to the compound, enabling all future outbreaks in the ''VideoGame/HouseOfTheDead'' series.
* ''VideoGame/InjusticeGodsAmongUs'': Even though the Injustice-verse version of the Joker was killed by a grieving Superman early in the game and only appears as a Fear Toxin-induced hallucination suffered by Harley Quinn in ''VideoGame/Injustice2'', his twisted legacy of causing Supes' FaceHeelTurn by tricking him into killing his wife Lois and nuking Metropolis has affected heroes and villains alike. As such, he's also indirectly responsible for [[WeUsedToBeFriends creating a wedge between Superman and Batman]], the deaths of people who died fighting Superman and his allies, and the general collapse of everything good in the Injustice-verse. The game and its sequel also play up Joker's role as TheCorrupter to Harley to make her HeelFaceTurn more plausible and enable more CharacterDevelopment to her story, as even she regrets associating with him. While most are too happy to be rid of him, Batman opines that Joker's legacy still haunts everyone to this day.
* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' reveals that the machinations of Ganon are the legacy of Demise, the Demon King who cursed Link and Zelda to be plagued by an incarnation of his hatred forever, manifested in Ganondorf (and perhaps others).
* In the ''Franchise/MegaMan'' video game franchise, this comes up a lot, as ''VideoGame/MegaManClassic's'' Dr. Wily rivals the TropeNamer as a master of HijackedByGanon.
** In the ''VideoGame/MegaManX'' series, it is discovered that TheVirus that turns Reploids into Mavericks originated from Zero, and both were Wily's final creations before he died long before the ''X'' series. The BigBad of the ''X'' series, Sigma, merges with the Maverick Virus and transforms it into the Sigma Virus.
** In the ''VideoGame/MegaManZero'' series that comes after the ''X'' series, Dr. Weil (no connection to Dr. Wily according to WordOfGod) creates Omega as a DarkMessiah to subjugate and/or exterminate all Reploids. Omega's consciousness inhabits Zero's original body since Zero's mind was extracted after the ''X'' series in order to better study his body's status as the Maverick Virus's carrier. The Mother Elf, who becomes the Dark Elf, another major antagonist, was created by Ciel's ancestor from these studies as an antibody, which was used to eliminate the Maverick and Sigma Viruses (and putting a permanent end to Sigma), but Sigma's actions in the Maverick Wars are what inspired Weil's decision to use Omega, claiming that Reploids should be rendered totally subservient to humans and uncontent with "letting Reploids off easy".
** In the ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' series, all the [[TransformationTrinket Biometals]] are created from studying the original Biometal [[ArtifactOfDoom Model W]], created from the ruins of the [[KillSat Ragnarok satellite]] that Weil fused with at the end of ''Zero 4'' (and is still technically ''alive'' within).
* ''VideoGame/MetalGear'':
** [[spoiler:Major Zero]] is responsible of the creation of the Patriots, which he quickly loses control over and become the GreaterScopeVillain for most of the series.
** Big Boss, after his apparent demise at the end of ''VideoGame/MetalGear2SolidSnake'', looms like a shadow over the next two games as the villains -- both clones of him -- follow in his footsteps by rebelling against the US Government's authority and trying to establish a nation-state named Outer Heaven. Then his admirer/follower Ocelot, [[ItMakesSenseInContext who is apparently possessed by one of Big Boss's clones, and becomes Liquid Ocelot]], decides to establish Outer Heaven using private armies.
** The Patriots themselves, and to a lesser extent Liquid Ocelot, become this for ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance''. The war economy [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome cannot simply stop dead even after their defeat]], continuing on into new avenues while different villains emerge to exploit it or stop it in their own destructive ways to accomplish their own goals.
* In ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'', the main antagonists of the series, the SpacePirates, suffer their final defeat in ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' when the last of their forces, including their top leaders Ridley and Mother Brain, are destroyed with the planet Zebes after they have spent decades terrorizing and raiding remote colonies on the galactic frontier and starting at least one major war against the Federation. However, their technology and methods live on when corrupt Federation Army forces recreate Mother Brain as an AI and clone Ridley and Zebesian special forces soldiers [[spoiler: as well as Metroids]] in ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' and ''VideoGame/MetroidFusion''. In ''VideoGame/MetroidDread'', it also turns out that [[spoiler: Raven Beak's plan for galactic conquest is nigh-identical to Mother Brain's methods by cloning and deploying Metroids as weapons of mass destruction, seeming to imply that she may have been influenced by him.]]
* Orochi in ''VideoGame/{{Okami}}'' makes sure the yet-to-be-lifted evil curses cast by him wouldn't fade away after his defeat by Amaterasu and Susano. In addition, as his soul flies away to the north of Kamui to reactivate the Ark of Yamato to summon [[spoiler:Yami, the Lord of Darkness]], he releases several monsters originating from that place so they can terrorize all of Nippon, starting with Kamui itself.
* Shuji Ikutsuki was a major antagonist in ''VideoGame/Persona3'' who was defeated and died. However, Sho Minazuki, his "son" (actually an orphan he experimented on) attempts to continue his legacy in ''VideoGame/Persona4ArenaUltimax''. As much as he tries to deny it, all of Sho's villainous actions stem from Ikutsuki in some way.
* In ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'' (and their {{Expansion Pack}}s, [[VideoGameRemake remakes]], etc.) Giovanni, the BigBad of the original ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'' games, is AWOL in this entry but his organization is still committing crimes and experiments in his name. The Big Bad of these games is the DragonAscendant, who went nameless in the original ''Gold'' and ''Silver'' editions but was named Archer in the remakes.
* ''VideoGame/{{Portal}}'' and ''Videogame/{{Portal 2}}'' have Cave Johnson, the [[MadScientist deranged]], [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and]] [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain non-wheelchair-friendly]] CEO of Aperture Science. Although [[PosthumousCharacter long dead]] by the time of the games, he's responsible for the company's horrific (and counterproductive) policies, as well indirectly responsible for creating [=GLaDOS=] and putting her in charge of the facility.
* ''VideoGame/ReKuroi'': The game has no active BigBad because the evil factions of the past are either inactive or neutralized. However, their actions still have lasting effects.
** The Magic School originally used the Black Pearl to create a monster army and rebel against the Western Kingdom. After the Magic War, the Magic School underwent its own civil war, resulting in damage to the Black Pearl that caused the Night of Black Snow. [[spoiler:This caused people in the northern mountains to transform into monsters. The surviving faction of the Magic School is trying to find a way to erase magic from the world to prevent monster transformations and misuse of magic.]]
** The Western Kingdom used ether drugs to create their own magical [[TykeBomb child soldiers]], [[spoiler:but this leads to the children becoming addicted to the drug or turning into monsters. In the present, one of their former spies, Asha, is still suffering from ether addiction. However, it's implied that the treaty with the Magic School put an end to the use of ether drugs by the Western Kingdom, though the drug itself is still in circulation in the black market]].
* ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'':
** Albert Wesker is the overarching BigBad for most of the series, until he's KilledOffForReal at the very end of ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvil5 5]]''. Even then, his influence leaves a shadow throughout the rest of the franchise. [[spoiler: Alex Wesker makes use of the Uroboros virus he created in ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvilRevelations2 Revelations 2]]'', his illegitimate son Jake Muller is one of the protagonists of ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvil6 6]]'', and a file in ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvil7Biohazard 7]]'' reveals that his organization, the H.C.F., had a role in the creation of Eveline and the Mold.]]
** Mother Miranda in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilVillage'' is a greater version of this, as her interaction with [[spoiler:Oswell Spencer in the 60's is the trigger for all the tragedy in the Resident Evil games, including those above of Wesker]].
* ''VideoGame/TheSecretWorld'': farmer-turned-EvilSorcerer Archibald Henderson died in 1906, but the aftereffects of his atrocities continue to plague Solomon Island as of 2012. For one thing, the [[ScaryScarecrows animated scarecrows]] he built to protect his property are back to killing people; for another, the farmhand he [[{{Transflormation}} transformed into a pumpkin monster]] is still haunting the island as a supernaturally-empowered serial killer. Worst of all, the experiments he performed to harness the hidden power of the island eventually paved the way for [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Nathaniel Winter]]'s attempt to do the same via [[AmusementParkOfDoom Atlantic Island Park]], leading to the creation of the [[EmotionEater Bogeyman]].
* In ''VideoGame/SlyCooperAndTheThieviusRaccoonus'', the BigBad is a mechanical owl named Clockwerk. But in [[VideoGame/Sly2BandOfThieves the second game]] Clockwerk is now destroyed, shut down, and separated into several pieces, but still a very dangerous potential threat if he were to be rebuilt. The Cooper Gang intend to try to steal and destroy his remains, but are beaten to the punch by an illegal spice distribution ring called the Klaww Gang. Most of the Klaww Gang's leaders are just using pieces of Clockwerk for their own small-time schemes, until it becomes clear that Arpeggio intends to fully rebuild Clockwerk to [[spoiler:take Clockwerk's body for himself so that he can be immortal. Then his protege Neyla backstabs him (which he really should have seen coming since she did that to everyone else) and takes Clockwerk's body for herself.]]
* Gerald Robotnik from ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2''. The main conflict of the story is against Eggman, but it was Gerald's actions 50 years in the past that caused many of the problems in the game.
* [[GoodAllAlong While not quite "villains"]], the ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' StoryArc consisting of games 10 through 13 is generally referred to as the "Moriya arc", because the events of each game are caused by a character who debuted in the previous game, despite not appearing in the game in question, starting with the Moriya Shrine members. ''VideoGame/TouhouChireidenSubterraneanAnimism'' was caused by Kanako giving Utsuho [[FromNobodyToNightmare the tremendous power]] [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity that gave her ideas of megalomania]]. ''VideoGame/TouhouSeirensenUndefinedFantasticObject'' was caused by a geyser that Utsuho created launching the Palanquin Ship into the sky. And ''VideoGame/TouhouShinreibyouTenDesires'' was caused by Byakuren landing the Palanquin Ship on Miko's mausoleum, giving her the boost she needed to resurrect.
* ''VideoGame/{{Ultima}}'': Mondain is the BigBad of the first game. The second and third games have the villains as his lover and apprentice Minax, and their creation Exodus. The fourth game requires the player to retrieve Mondain's skull, and the fifth game has the villains as manifestations of the shards of his ArtifactOfDoom the player destroyed in the first game. In the sixth game, the Gargoyles summoned Mondain's spirit to embody their virtue of Control, along with Minax and Exodus. Finally, the Guardian, the villain of all subsequent games from ''VI'', was initially planned to be revealed as the combined form of the Shadowlords after they were cast into the Void, but this was axed.
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'''NOTE''': Since this trope reveals a villain being responsible for other events in the series (potentially even after their own demise), expect spoilers.
[[VillainousLegacy Villainous Legacies]] in VideoGames.
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* Most of the conflicts that occur in ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' can be traced back to [[VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar Belka]]. Many scientists and engineers from the country went to various places around the planet to become arms dealers and weapons manufacturers to breed conflict and start wars to avenge their homeland.
* ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedSyndicate:'' Despite having been dead for a hundred years, Reginald Birch - former Grandmaster of the Templar Order - and the purge he inflicted on the Assassins of Britain has been so successful the Assassins still don't have a foothold on London, save one guy who was ReassignedToAntarctica. It's also what allows the Templars of the 1860s to have the stranglehold they do have on the city.
* Many of the obstacles the Vault Hunters face in the ''Videogame/{{Borderlands}}'' series are the results of three MegaCorp companies leaving their impact on Pandora: Dahl for creating the bandits by leaving prisoners and personnel staff to their fates after an unknown Vault incident as well as abandoning The Lost Legion on Pandora's moon after the Crackening. Atlas via the Crimson Lance for driving out what was left of Dahl's forces out of Pandora while forcing civilians and townsfolk to be in fiefdoms and killing any bandits and opposing Vault Hunters that interfered in the hunt for the Vault. With Knoxx's death, Atlas too left Pandora with the remnants of the Lance ironically becoming the bandits they themselves once hunted. Luckily Roland recruited the rest into the newly founded Crimson Raiders.
* ''VideoGame/Case02ParanormalEvil'': Nya, the recently deceased BigBad of ''VideoGame/LoserReborn'', had a hand in summoning Gla'aki to the real world. This makes them one of the main causes of the zombie apocalypse, though it's unknown how exactly they're connected to Gla'aki's cult.
* ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlertSeries'': Joseph Stalin built the Soviet Union into an unstoppable military machine, and while he dies at the end of the first game, his successors continue his legacy of world conquest. This is especially pronounced in the case of the psychic DiabolicalMastermind Yuri, who reveals that he used to be a student and personal friend of Stalin.
* As of ''[[VideoGame/{{Contra}} Contra: Shattered Soldier]]'', it turns out that [[spoiler:the [[GovernmentConspiracy Triumvirate]] is truly responsible for everything that has happened in the ''Contra'' series, when they had stole the [[ArtifactOfDoom Relic of Moirai]] and provoked the Alien Wars in the first place.]]
* ''Videogame/DarkSouls'':
** Manus, Father of the Abyss, is long dead by the time of ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII''. His remains eventually became the Abyss, a dark realm haunted by malevolent spirits, and the fragments of his soul embodying his emotions were reincarnated as his Children of Dark. One of those Children [[spoiler:Queen Nashandra, embodiment of Manus' desires]], is directly responsible for Drangleic's downfall. Even in death Manus spreads Dark.
** Gwyn, the Lord of Sunlight, is the single most impactful individual on the world of the series, seeing how it was he who committed the "First Sin", when he refused to let the first Age of Fire be succeeded by an Age of Dark, breaking the very foundations of the metaphysical world order to preserve the First Flame. The result was the repeated cycles of the First Fire fading and being rekindled, which precipitate both sequels, and ultimately, the turning of the entire world into ashes, as seen in the final DLC of the third installment.
* Gorden Amherst created the [[SyntheticPlague Dollar Flu/Green Poison]] to bring about the downfall of civilization in ''VideoGame/TheDivision''. By the time [[PlayerCharacter the Agent]], finds him, he’s been DeadAllAlong, [[HoistByHisOwnPetard killed by his own virus.]] Nonetheless, [[TheBadGuyWins he got what he wanted]] from the chaos caused by the outbreak, and a [[FaceHeelTurn rogue agent]] named Aaron Keener steals his research and equipment to start a new plague that he intends to use to seize power.
* The Grotesqueries Queen, FinalBoss of ''VideoGame/{{Drakengard}}'' Ending E, becomes this in ''VideoGame/{{Nier}}'', since it was because of her that the Gestalts and Replicants were created to allow humanity to outlast the White Chlorination Syndrome caused by the Queen's remains. [[spoiler: The Queen is also responsible for humanity's subsequent extinction once the Gestalt project failed, necessitating the formation of [=YoRHa=] to cover the news so as to not let the androids lose hope, eventually causing the events of ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'']].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Fable}},'' [[EldritchAbomination Jack of Blades]] inspires followers in the form of the Cult of Blades years after his death.
* Non-character example in ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}''. The BigBad of the [[VideoGame/Fallout1 first game]], TheMaster, was using the Forced Evolutionary Virus to mutate humans. The villains of the second game excavated the ruins of his lair to retrieve the FEV for their own uses, and the villains of the third synthesized their own version for their plan as well.
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' and its expanded universe, all major villains trace themselves back to Jenova, an EldritchAbomination who tried to destroy the planet 2000 years ago. Jenova was found by [[{{Megacorp}} Shinra]], and the lab experiments produced by tinkering with her cells serve as the villains of the series, along with a few of the scientists who did said tinkering.
* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn'' has Ashnard, the BigBad of ''Path of Radiance'', who turns out to have been the cause of a ''major'' problem for Daein during the sequel. Of couse, he doesn't actively play a role due to being dead by then.
* Danette may be long gone[[labelnote:spoilers]][[OurGhostsAreDifferent for the]] [[BonusBoss most part]][[/labelnote]] by the time of the first ''VideoGame/{{Geneforge}}'', but [[spoiler:their invention, the [[TitleDrop Gene]][[ArtifactOfDoom forge]]]] would come to be the catalyst for much of the conflict in the series to follow.
* In ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'', although Ares is long dead by the third game, his original goal to make Kratos his pawn to destroy Olympus and kill his family is fulfilled successfully.
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'': Billy Grey's betrayal hit the Lost hard. [[spoiler:Even after his death, most of the chapter refused to believe Billy was planning to betray all of them, causing a major split in the gang. This led to massive hindrance to Johnny's plans to expand, making him settle in [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV Blaine County, San Andreas]], where he partners with a certain Trevor Philips, and to say things doesn't end well for them is a massive {{Understatement}}.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheHouseOfTheDeadOverkill'' has [[spoiler:Clement Darling]] discover the "[[NotUsingTheZWord mutant]] compound" responsible for the ZombieApocalypse. While they die at the end, TheStinger reveals he had "powerful friends" who had access to the compound, enabling all future outbreaks in the ''VideoGame/HouseOfTheDead'' series.
* ''VideoGame/InjusticeGodsAmongUs'': Even though the Injustice-verse version of the Joker was killed by a grieving Superman early in the game and only appears as a Fear Toxin-induced hallucination suffered by Harley Quinn in ''VideoGame/Injustice2'', his twisted legacy of causing Supes' FaceHeelTurn by tricking him into killing his wife Lois and nuking Metropolis has affected heroes and villains alike. As such, he's also indirectly responsible for [[WeUsedToBeFriends creating a wedge between Superman and Batman]], the deaths of people who died fighting Superman and his allies, and the general collapse of everything good in the Injustice-verse. The game and its sequel also play up Joker's role as TheCorrupter to Harley to make her HeelFaceTurn more plausible and enable more CharacterDevelopment to her story, as even she regrets associating with him. While most are too happy to be rid of him, Batman opines that Joker's legacy still haunts everyone to this day.
* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' reveals that the machinations of Ganon are the legacy of Demise, the Demon King who cursed Link and Zelda to be plagued by an incarnation of his hatred forever, manifested in Ganondorf (and perhaps others).
* In the ''Franchise/MegaMan'' video game franchise, this comes up a lot, as ''VideoGame/MegaManClassic's'' Dr. Wily rivals the TropeNamer as a master of HijackedByGanon.
** In the ''VideoGame/MegaManX'' series, it is discovered that TheVirus that turns Reploids into Mavericks originated from Zero, and both were Wily's final creations before he died long before the ''X'' series. The BigBad of the ''X'' series, Sigma, merges with the Maverick Virus and transforms it into the Sigma Virus.
** In the ''VideoGame/MegaManZero'' series that comes after the ''X'' series, Dr. Weil (no connection to Dr. Wily according to WordOfGod) creates Omega as a DarkMessiah to subjugate and/or exterminate all Reploids. Omega's consciousness inhabits Zero's original body since Zero's mind was extracted after the ''X'' series in order to better study his body's status as the Maverick Virus's carrier. The Mother Elf, who becomes the Dark Elf, another major antagonist, was created by Ciel's ancestor from these studies as an antibody, which was used to eliminate the Maverick and Sigma Viruses (and putting a permanent end to Sigma), but Sigma's actions in the Maverick Wars are what inspired Weil's decision to use Omega, claiming that Reploids should be rendered totally subservient to humans and uncontent with "letting Reploids off easy".
** In the ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' series, all the [[TransformationTrinket Biometals]] are created from studying the original Biometal [[ArtifactOfDoom Model W]], created from the ruins of the [[KillSat Ragnarok satellite]] that Weil fused with at the end of ''Zero 4'' (and is still technically ''alive'' within).
* ''VideoGame/MetalGear'':
** [[spoiler:Major Zero]] is responsible of the creation of the Patriots, which he quickly loses control over and become the GreaterScopeVillain for most of the series.
** Big Boss, after his apparent demise at the end of ''VideoGame/MetalGear2SolidSnake'', looms like a shadow over the next two games as the villains -- both clones of him -- follow in his footsteps by rebelling against the US Government's authority and trying to establish a nation-state named Outer Heaven. Then his admirer/follower Ocelot, [[ItMakesSenseInContext who is apparently possessed by one of Big Boss's clones, and becomes Liquid Ocelot]], decides to establish Outer Heaven using private armies.
** The Patriots themselves, and to a lesser extent Liquid Ocelot, become this for ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance''. The war economy [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome cannot simply stop dead even after their defeat]], continuing on into new avenues while different villains emerge to exploit it or stop it in their own destructive ways to accomplish their own goals.
* In ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'', the main antagonists of the series, the SpacePirates, suffer their final defeat in ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' when the last of their forces, including their top leaders Ridley and Mother Brain, are destroyed with the planet Zebes after they have spent decades terrorizing and raiding remote colonies on the galactic frontier and starting at least one major war against the Federation. However, their technology and methods live on when corrupt Federation Army forces recreate Mother Brain as an AI and clone Ridley and Zebesian special forces soldiers [[spoiler: as well as Metroids]] in ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' and ''VideoGame/MetroidFusion''. In ''VideoGame/MetroidDread'', it also turns out that [[spoiler: Raven Beak's plan for galactic conquest is nigh-identical to Mother Brain's methods by cloning and deploying Metroids as weapons of mass destruction, seeming to imply that she may have been influenced by him.]]
* Orochi in ''VideoGame/{{Okami}}'' makes sure the yet-to-be-lifted evil curses cast by him wouldn't fade away after his defeat by Amaterasu and Susano. In addition, as his soul flies away to the north of Kamui to reactivate the Ark of Yamato to summon [[spoiler:Yami, the Lord of Darkness]], he releases several monsters originating from that place so they can terrorize all of Nippon, starting with Kamui itself.
* Shuji Ikutsuki was a major antagonist in ''VideoGame/Persona3'' who was defeated and died. However, Sho Minazuki, his "son" (actually an orphan he experimented on) attempts to continue his legacy in ''VideoGame/Persona4ArenaUltimax''. As much as he tries to deny it, all of Sho's villainous actions stem from Ikutsuki in some way.
* In ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'' (and their {{Expansion Pack}}s, [[VideoGameRemake remakes]], etc.) Giovanni, the BigBad of the original ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'' games, is AWOL in this entry but his organization is still committing crimes and experiments in his name. The Big Bad of these games is the DragonAscendant, who went nameless in the original ''Gold'' and ''Silver'' editions but was named Archer in the remakes.
* ''VideoGame/{{Portal}}'' and ''Videogame/{{Portal 2}}'' have Cave Johnson, the [[MadScientist deranged]], [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and]] [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain non-wheelchair-friendly]] CEO of Aperture Science. Although [[PosthumousCharacter long dead]] by the time of the games, he's responsible for the company's horrific (and counterproductive) policies, as well indirectly responsible for creating [=GLaDOS=] and putting her in charge of the facility.
* ''VideoGame/ReKuroi'': The game has no active BigBad because the evil factions of the past are either inactive or neutralized. However, their actions still have lasting effects.
** The Magic School originally used the Black Pearl to create a monster army and rebel against the Western Kingdom. After the Magic War, the Magic School underwent its own civil war, resulting in damage to the Black Pearl that caused the Night of Black Snow. [[spoiler:This caused people in the northern mountains to transform into monsters. The surviving faction of the Magic School is trying to find a way to erase magic from the world to prevent monster transformations and misuse of magic.]]
** The Western Kingdom used ether drugs to create their own magical [[TykeBomb child soldiers]], [[spoiler:but this leads to the children becoming addicted to the drug or turning into monsters. In the present, one of their former spies, Asha, is still suffering from ether addiction. However, it's implied that the treaty with the Magic School put an end to the use of ether drugs by the Western Kingdom, though the drug itself is still in circulation in the black market]].
* ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'':
** Albert Wesker is the overarching BigBad for most of the series, until he's KilledOffForReal at the very end of ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvil5 5]]''. Even then, his influence leaves a shadow throughout the rest of the franchise. [[spoiler: Alex Wesker makes use of the Uroboros virus he created in ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvilRevelations2 Revelations 2]]'', his illegitimate son Jake Muller is one of the protagonists of ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvil6 6]]'', and a file in ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvil7Biohazard 7]]'' reveals that his organization, the H.C.F., had a role in the creation of Eveline and the Mold.]]
** Mother Miranda in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilVillage'' is a greater version of this, as her interaction with [[spoiler:Oswell Spencer in the 60's is the trigger for all the tragedy in the Resident Evil games, including those above of Wesker]].
* ''VideoGame/TheSecretWorld'': farmer-turned-EvilSorcerer Archibald Henderson died in 1906, but the aftereffects of his atrocities continue to plague Solomon Island as of 2012. For one thing, the [[ScaryScarecrows animated scarecrows]] he built to protect his property are back to killing people; for another, the farmhand he [[{{Transflormation}} transformed into a pumpkin monster]] is still haunting the island as a supernaturally-empowered serial killer. Worst of all, the experiments he performed to harness the hidden power of the island eventually paved the way for [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Nathaniel Winter]]'s attempt to do the same via [[AmusementParkOfDoom Atlantic Island Park]], leading to the creation of the [[EmotionEater Bogeyman]].
* In ''VideoGame/SlyCooperAndTheThieviusRaccoonus'', the BigBad is a mechanical owl named Clockwerk. But in [[VideoGame/Sly2BandOfThieves the second game]] Clockwerk is now destroyed, shut down, and separated into several pieces, but still a very dangerous potential threat if he were to be rebuilt. The Cooper Gang intend to try to steal and destroy his remains, but are beaten to the punch by an illegal spice distribution ring called the Klaww Gang. Most of the Klaww Gang's leaders are just using pieces of Clockwerk for their own small-time schemes, until it becomes clear that Arpeggio intends to fully rebuild Clockwerk to [[spoiler:take Clockwerk's body for himself so that he can be immortal. Then his protege Neyla backstabs him (which he really should have seen coming since she did that to everyone else) and takes Clockwerk's body for herself.]]
* Gerald Robotnik from ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2''. The main conflict of the story is against Eggman, but it was Gerald's actions 50 years in the past that caused many of the problems in the game.
* [[GoodAllAlong While not quite "villains"]], the ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' StoryArc consisting of games 10 through 13 is generally referred to as the "Moriya arc", because the events of each game are caused by a character who debuted in the previous game, despite not appearing in the game in question, starting with the Moriya Shrine members. ''VideoGame/TouhouChireidenSubterraneanAnimism'' was caused by Kanako giving Utsuho [[FromNobodyToNightmare the tremendous power]] [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity that gave her ideas of megalomania]]. ''VideoGame/TouhouSeirensenUndefinedFantasticObject'' was caused by a geyser that Utsuho created launching the Palanquin Ship into the sky. And ''VideoGame/TouhouShinreibyouTenDesires'' was caused by Byakuren landing the Palanquin Ship on Miko's mausoleum, giving her the boost she needed to resurrect.
* ''VideoGame/{{Ultima}}'': Mondain is the BigBad of the first game. The second and third games have the villains as his lover and apprentice Minax, and their creation Exodus. The fourth game requires the player to retrieve Mondain's skull, and the fifth game has the villains as manifestations of the shards of his ArtifactOfDoom the player destroyed in the first game. In the sixth game, the Gargoyles summoned Mondain's spirit to embody their virtue of Control, along with Minax and Exodus. Finally, the Guardian, the villain of all subsequent games from ''VI'', was initially planned to be revealed as the combined form of the Shadowlords after they were cast into the Void, but this was axed.
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