History YankTheDogsChain / VideoGames

** [[spoiler:The whole game is an attempt to figure out why you're stuck in a 22-minute GroundhogDayLoop that ends with your sun going nova, and over the course of your explorations, you'll discover that the Nomai constructed a Sun Station as part of a grand experiment to trigger a supernova and use the energy to power that very time loop, allowing them to send millions of probes in every conceivable direction to find the Eye of the Universe. You would think that reaching the Sun Station and shutting it down will put a stop to all this, except when you get there and read the station's logs, you discover that it never worked. The Nomai's grand undertaking failed, and they died out before they could complete their search. The Sun Station then remained in orbit for over 200,000 years until your sun going nova - as a result of it reaching the natural end of its life cycle - triggered the time loop. There's nothing you can do to save your solar system.]]

** In ''Videogame/SonicForces'', Eggy ''finally'' gets rid of Sonic and conquers the world! Not only that, he learned from his past mistakes and prepared in case [[LaResistance the Resistance]] put up more of a fight than he expected. The only reason his plans failed was because of [[spoiler: Infinite's carelessness. He decided Sonic was NotWorthKilling, meaning the Resistance kept their most powerful member. He let the Avatar go after killing their teammates, leading them to join the Resistance and team up with Sonic. And most importantly, he [[ForWantOfANail dropped a Phantom Ruby Prototype]] during his fight with Silver, which was then found by the Avatar and used to cancel the ColonyDrop]].

* Jackie Ma from ''VideoGame/SleepingDogs'' is buried alive in one mission but is rescued and appears to have gone through the worst the game can throw at him. He has some serious reconsideration about his choice to be a gangster and it looks like he's going to go clean by the end of the game. [[spoiler:So the following mission sees the poor guy GuttedLikeAFish, hung up in a back alley, and used as bait to bring Wei to "Big Smile" Lee.]]

* Eggman in ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog''. Sure, he's an evil bastard, but he's tried so many times to establish his Eggman Empire, coming quite close more than a few times, when suddenly and quickly all his hard work is washed away. You start to feel sorry for the guy...
** There was that time in ''[[Videogame/SonicTheHedgehogTripleTrouble Triple Trouble]]'', in which Eggman finally gets all the Chaos Emeralds, only to have a machine blow and send the gems to the far corners of the Earth.
** Then in ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'', Eggie gets all the Chaos Emeralds inserted into the Eclipse Cannon, causing him to think he's invincible and can do whatever he pleases. No. His granddaddy's secret planet-destroying program is initiated when he inserts the last emerald.
** Happens twice in ''VideoGame/SonicUnleashed''. Not only does Eggman beat Super Sonic and rid his GreenRocks of their invincibility-granting powers, but he manages to collect energy from Dark Gaia and finally builds his long-awaited Eggmanland. Unfortunately, his latest pet disobeys him (once again) and he ends up stranded in the desert with nothing but a back-sassing robot who maliciously reminds him of his constant failures.
** Also ''VideoGame/SonicRiders''. His plan manages to work, he gets the good guys to hand over a treasure (which he's expecting to be better than an angel wing that could rule the world) and it turns out to be a very soft carpet. He then faints and the good guys say what it really is (which still isn't as good as what he was expecting.).
** In ''VideoGame/SonicColors'', Eggman's plan and execution are reasonably professional and almost free of buffoonery. Sonic and Tails show up to keep an eye on him even then he is poised to activate his latest and greatest evil device. It promptly explodes because his dim-witted minions forgot to clear robotic debris from the first boss that lodged into part of it after Sonic defeated it. And this is after Eggman gives us one of the best boss fights in the series...
** In ''Videogame/SonicForces'', Eggy ''finally'' gets rid of Sonic and conquers the world! Not only that, he learned from his past mistakes and prepared in case [[LaResistance the Resistance]] put up more of a fight than he expected. The only reason his plans failed was because of [[spoiler: Infinite's carelessness. He decided Sonic was NotWorthKilling, meaning the Resistance kept their most powerful member. He let the Avatar go after killing their teammates, leading them to join the Resistance and team up with Sonic. And most importantly, he [[ForWantOfANail dropped a Phantom Ruby Prototype]] during his fight with Silver, which was then found by the Avatar and used to cancel the ColonyDrop]].
* ''VideoGame/{{Persona 3}}'' Hey, Shinjiro! It looks like things are looking up for you in ''[[UpdatedRerelease Persona 3 Portable]]''! Not only are you a Social Link character for a cute girl, but if she maxes out your link, [[spoiler:you survive TakingTheBullet! Sure, you fall into a coma for the rest of the game, but you wake up for the ending... just in time for said girl to die either right before you get there or in your arms. But hey, you're still probably gonna die from those drugs you were taking, so at least you get to meet up in the afterlife, right? Ehh, sorry! She's become the Great Seal for Eternity, so meeting up with her in the afterlife is... unlikely]].

** IV spend a good while getting the player attached to Choushiro Kirishima and thinking he'll help Ruka stop Sakuya. [[spoiler:While he does help Ruka, [[TomatoInTheMirror it turns out that he died 8 years prior to the events of the game]].]]
* In ''VideoGame/Portal2'', [=GLaDOS=] pulls several of these as a way to demonstrate just exactly how angry she is with Chell.
** In a CallBack to the first game, [=GLaDOS=] presents you with a Weighted CompanionCube in one of her test chambers. The instant you pick it up, she fizzles it. Then drops another, which she also fizzles after you start to solve the puzzle with it. Finally she lets you complete the test, only to mention offhandedly that the Emancipation Grill is malfunctioning and ''[[SchmuckBait not to take anything with you]]''. Sure enough, if you try to leave with the Companion Cube, she fizzles it yet again. Bad, bad [=GLaDOS=].
** At one point she offhandedly mentions having seen a deer outside. She offers, if you complete the next test, to let you ride an elevator ''all'' the way up... to the employee break room, where she'll tell you about the time she saw a deer again.
** After continuously teasing you about being adopted (yet another CallBack), [=GLaDOS=] promises a surprise in which you're going to "meet two people you haven't seen in a long, long time." Of course, it's a lie. Then later in that same test chamber, she promises to put them on the phone, but instead puts on a fake "prerecorded message" in which they claim not to love you. Yes, [=GLaDOS=], we get the point. You don't like Chell. Thank you for being so discreet about it.
** The last one is more noticeable for being subverted HypocriticalHeartwarming. Later in the game, she contradicts [[spoiler:Wheatley]] when he tries to pull the same "adopted fatty" insults on Chell, creating an "awwwwwww" moment, but promptly yanks the rug out when she whispers to you, "For the record, you ARE adopted, AndThatsTerrible."
* ''[[VideoGame/ClockTower1995 Clock Tower: The First Fear]]'' has the A Ending: you make it to the top of the clock tower, defeat the killer. Then, Ann or Laura ([[DoomedByCanon but never Lotte]]) will run out to Jennifer. [[spoiler:Then Mary appears and throws Ann/Laura off the ledge after her son.]] Poor Jennifer. She'll also get it pretty bad in the D Ending: after running around terrified for hours, Jennifer finally finds Ms. Mary, and it told it'll all be fine. [[spoiler:Then Mary stabs her.]] Girl can't catch a break.
* ''VideoGame/{{Familia}}'': It takes most of Act 1 for Lono to reunite with his family and drive the Draconian invaders out of Kalbi. During the epilogue, the fortune teller will warn the player that the family will be split up again during Act 2.

* ''VideoGame/{{Antichamber}}'' starts you off in a room with a door marked "exit" behind glass. [[spoiler: You will actually get to the door several times during the game, but the first few times you are simply chided about being halfway there and things.]]
* In ''VideoGame/SheepDogNWolf'', Ralph the Wolf (the main protagonist), after who knows how long time of unsuccessfully trying to steal sheep from Sam the Sheepdog, suddenly gets sucked into a game show all about stealing sheep from Sam. He finally started being successful in this task, stole Sam's entire flock, became pretty much a television star, and after a long and tiring adventure [[spoiler:that included even a space trip]], he finally got himself his own sheep. [[spoiler:Just when you think he finally won, it all turns out to be just a dream. The expression he has when he goes back to unsuccessfully trying to steal sheep from Sam says it ''all''.]]
* Jackie Ma from ''VideoGame/SleepingDogs'' is buried alive in one mission but is rescued and appears to have gone through the worst the game can throw at him. He has some serious reconsideration about his choice to be a gangster and it looks like he's going to go clean by the end of the game. [[spoiler:So the following mission sees the poor guy GuttedLikeAFish, hung up in a back alley, and used as bait to bring Wei to "Big Smile" Lee.]]
* ''VideoGame/IHaveNoMouthAndIMustScream'': The whole human race has been destroyed, except for five people have been kept alive and tortured by AM, a [[AIIsACrapshoot psychotic, all-powerful computer for 109 years.]] Any offers for suicide, food, shutting him down, etc. will be torn away by AM if attempted, [[WhoWantsToLiveForever since AM does not want to lose his toys.]] It becomes a plot point later on. [[spoiler: Ted was offered a chance to go to the surface world. If he succeeds, he will discover the Earth has been rendered an unlivable wasteland.]]
* In ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIV'', the Counter-Demon Force, Tokyo's resident UsefulNotes/KaijuDefenseForce, suffer indignity after indignity with intermittent {{Hope Spot}}s that are just as quickly taken away. [[spoiler: First the Angels enter Earth from the Expanse, unleashing demons upon the physical realm. Fortunately, they get the National Defense Divinities, indigenous deities to help defend the country. The Angels promptly escalate to unleash nuclear warfare. They release the seals on the biggest Divinity, Masakado, to provide a massive shield for Tokyo. They succeed, but lose their most promising summoner and are buried under Masakado's body. They reach to the sleeping Masakado and drill their way out, and thanks to YearOutsideHourInside they get out after the radiation has died out. They begin fixing things and preparing a new land... only to face the returning Angels. After being forced back into Tokyo, the organization quickly fell apart, losing the ritual items for the Divinities to rising Yakuza warlord Mr. Tayama and reduced to two members slumming out in Shinjuku.]]
* ''Franchise/MortalKombat'':
** Oh Scorpion. fate hasn't been good for you, hasn't it? [[spoiler:From being [[MistakenForMurderer told by the killer that someone killed your clan and family]], being killed by [[MistakenForMurderer said someone]], unable to [[GetBackHereBoss kill the killer after finding out you had been lied to]], been killed [[TheyKilledKennyAgain - again]], being given a chance to save your family and clan by the Elder Gods, only to be lied to again and so much more. At least ''VideoGame/MortalKombatX'' will be [[ThrowTheDogABone your saving grace, as you and your clan become guardians of earth]].]]
** [[VideoGame/MortalKombat11 Repeat after me, Liu Kang]]: "I hate Time Travel". Sure, it meant undoing his descent into madness as an undead overlord, but it also [[spoiler:retconned ''all'' of history. So Cassie and Jacqui are unwritten... and the original cast... and Earthrealm and Outworld for good measure! Now he has to rewrite history all the way from the primordial ages... after dealing with Shang Tsung one last time]].
* Every time [[Characters/SuperRobotWarsZ Crowe Broust]] finally manages to pay off his current debt in the ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsZ'' series, expect him to be saddled with another equally ludicrous amount of debt almost immediately. Always.
* Deconstructed in ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}''. [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome Knowing that one's work can get undone by a higher power without warning easily leads to apathy.]] After all, what's the point?
-->'''[[spoiler:No Mercy Sans]]:''' You can't understand how this feels. Knowing that one day, without any warning, it's all going to be reset. ...To be blunt... it makes it kinda hard to give it my all.
* White Face of ''VideoGame/{{Imscared}}'' loves messing with the player. Whenever the player thinks the game has ended, the game opens up, or a new text files downloads to your computer...
* In ''VideoGame/GettingOverItWithBennettFoddy'', one can always slip up and lose one's progress, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_lGDi1EDts Even if you're almost near the end]].

* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemGaiden'' and its remake, ''Echoes: Shadows of Valentia'', Alm and Celica finally reunite after seven years, and they're both excited and relieved to see each other again. ''Echoes'' even has Celica breaking into TearsOfJoy and [[TheGlomp glomping]] Alm when she sees him. Then [[spoiler:they get into a huge argument that causes them to split up again]].
** Berkut. After Alm beats him from the rematch, he regroups in a final attempt to prove himself the rightful heir to the throne... [[spoiler:only to discover that his Uncle has willingly 'surrendered' (i.e. threw himself into an unwinnable battle) the throne to his secret heir, ''Alm''. Alm finally has an older cousin to look up to, except that cousin is now a paranoid, murderous wreck from the realization that his uncle never believed in his strength his whole life and planned on giving his entire inheritance to a son he never raised. Alm's constant insistence that the throne is worth nothing compared to having family just drives him further into kamikaze attacks.]]

* In ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil3Nemesis'', after Jill has spent a good chunk of the game struggling to survive, putting a plan together to escape, evading [[ImplacableMan The Nemesis]], and actually succeeding in calling a rescue helicopter, the triumphant music plays as it begins to land. Then a rocket blows it out of the sky: cue BossFight!
--> '''Nemesis:''' [[ItCanThink S.T.A.R.S...]]
** It happens in the ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil3Remake'' as well, albeit much earlier in the game.

* Near the end of ''VideoGame/{{Gorogoa}}'', the protagonist finishes his quest to find five fruits to appease the dragon that caught his curiosity, coming face to face with its eye. [[spoiler:Then the dragon closes it and fades away, rejecting the offering and leaving the boy distraught. Worse, he is immediately cast down and crippled for his ignorance, and his town suffers a great calamity.]]

* Near the end of ''VideoGame/{{Gorogoa}}, the protagonist finishes his quest to find five fruits to appease the dragon that caught his curiosity, coming face to face with its eye. [[spoiler:Then the dragon closes it and fades away, rejecting the offering and leaving the boy distraught. Worse, he is immediately cast down and crippled for his ignorance, and his town suffers a great calamity.]]

* In ''VideoGame/PapersPlease'' early on you receive a "gift" of $1000 from "a man who dropped it off at the house", which handily solves all of your finance problems. If you choose to take it rather than burn it, the neighbors take note of your sudden wealth and report you, and the government takes ''all'' of your savings pending an investigation-- not just the $1000 but all the money you've saved up fair and square. Not only are you now forced to help EZIC and locked into one of their endings, since they're the only ones able to sabotage the investigation and prevent the government from learning it was a bribe (which results in a NonStandardGameOver), but even when you're found innocent [[KickTheDog the government doesn't give any of the money back]].