A Death In The Limelight / Video Games

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• The Modern Warfare series does this at least once in each game. In the first one, it's the just-got-ousted President of the generic Arab Country, whom you get to play as during the moments leading up to his execution. In the second, it's SatCom 1, who you use to watch Price's plan unfold. When it does, the resultant space-shockwave destroys the station you're on, killing you in the process.
• Happens multiple times in the Story Mode of Mortal Kombat 9, in which a character will be killed immediately once his chapter in the story ends.
• Chapter 11 of Valkyria Chronicles includes Isara inventing smoke bombs to get the squad past a narrow field without being gunned down by the enemy... and then ends with her being Killed Off for Real.
• Mass Effect 3 does this with several missions that involve former members of your squad from the second game: they receive some notable focus and then wind up dying by the time it's over. For most, it can be optionally subverted, since you can save them from dying. The only ones you can't save are Legion, Thane, and one of either Mordin Solus or Urdnot Wrex (since the latter being dead since the first game is a requirement to save the former).
  • Subverted fully with Jack and Jacob Taylor, who survive their missions. Jack can only die if you choose not to do her mission.
• Some chapters in Corpse Party: Book Of Shadows are this. Chapter 2 is how Mayu tries to avoid her death only to be killed even more cruelly (you should know that after playing chapter 1). Chapter 4 is how Sayaka tries and fails to find Naho. Chapter 6 is how Yuka dies in one of the wrong ends in the previous game.
• It's not hard to figure that Chapter 9 of Fire Emblem: Awakening isn't going to go well when it's named after Emmeryn.
• Crisis Core features Zack Fair, a character already dead by Final Fantasy VII. In addition, a few other new characters meet some sort of end by the finale.
• The King of Fighters All Star: The 2002 Story focuses heavily on Nameless, who debuted as a Godcreated Canon Foreigner in 2002's Updated Re-release, but hadn't made any other major appearances since then. It ends with him mortally wounded in the middle of a self-destructing base after performing a Heroic Sacrifice, with it being all but stated that he didn't survive.
• League of Legends did not pull their punches in the Bilgewater event "Burning Tides". Gangplank, one of the premiere pirate champions and symbols of Bilgewater, was hyped up to play a very important part, receiving a kit upgrade from his outdated one, new voice over and new model. At the end of the event, not only was he apparently Killed Off for Real, but he was also removed from the game. He did eventually turn out to be Not Quite Dead, though.
• The Danganronpa series has a lot of characters, so if a previously minor one starts getting a lot of screentime, that person will either be the next victim or the next victim's killer. (Victims get characterization just before they die, killers get characterization during the trial immediately after- so either way, this trope is used to more deeply impact the player's emotions.)
• In Watch_Dogs 2 DedSec member Horatio Carlin is the focus of a mission, with him helping protagonist Marcus Holloway infiltrate his workplace, a knockoff of Google, and then saving him from being arrested for espionage, but 3 story missions later he is kidnapped and killed by The Cartel. It's worth noting that otherwise Horatio was pretty much Out of Focus compared to the others in the group, especially if one plays the side and DLC missions.

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