10 Hardest Choices in Video Game History

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Choice-driven narratives have made gaming more immersive.

They give you the power to influence the outcome of the story.

But sometimes that power comes at a cost.

More often than not, youll find games giving you easy-peasy choices.

Like asking questions to know more about a character or where you want the protagonist to go.

These often lead to multiple endings, which encourage replayability too.

Perhaps you killed your own father to stash your life.

Or abandoning a mission youre heavily invested in to save a life.

Today, were looking at the hardest choices in video game history.

Which one will you choose?

I have to say, I dont envy him at all.

The first is passing a bill to cure cancer, while the second aims to end world hunger.

Both choices will no doubt make a huge difference in people’s lives.

But you’re free to only choose one.

So, which will you choose?

Your job is to choose which of the three you want to go with.

And, on top of that, the choice you make will affect all of Albion.

However, if you do so, youll never see your family again.

The second is called Love, which ensures you see your family again.

And the third is called Wealth, which instantly makes you a millionaire worth one million gold coins.

To put the three wishes into context, earning one million gold coins is easy while playing the game.

In fact, some players may have already earned it.

Yet you dont actually see your good deed come to fruition.

So, which wish takes the day?

They must decide which torture method to use.

Theres no way around it.

AlthoughGTAis popular for pushing the boundaries of gaming, they may have gone a bit too far here.

Mass Effect Save Ashley or Kaidan

As a rule of thumb, no man is left behind.

Well, at least when youre part of a squad.

Imagine, though, if you had to decide which of your squadmates to save.

Who will you choose?

Perhaps assessing either characters personality.

At which point youre likely to save Kaidan.

However, Ashley makes a good case for an interesting plot.

Ashley constantly discriminates against non-human species throughout the game.

On the other hand, Kaidan is the dullest character ever made.

Its a tough decision that ultimately depends on which character you identify with the most (or not).

Fallout:New Vegas Save the Few or the Many

TheFalloutseries has its fair share of hard decisions.

ButFallout: New Vegastakes the day.

Its a scenario that often plays out in films, which still doesnt make witnessing it any easier.

Its an easy decision: turn off the reactor.

However, you find out that a group of people are trapped in an inaccessible area of Vault 34.

If you shut down the reactor, they will die.

But if you do so, the crops will die, instigating widespread famine throughout the Wasteland.

It’s a difficult decision that evenFallout: New Vegashesitates to put to rest.

I mean, is there a right choice there?

TakeBioshock, for instance.

It features little girls who run around Rapture collecting dead splicers to harvest ADAM.

ADAM is like a currency that gives you the power to alter your mind or body.

If you kill the little girls, you grow stronger.

Specifically, you receive 160 ADAM.

However, if you save them, you receive 80 ADAM.

There are around 20 little girls inBioshock.

Will you kill or rescue them all?

Except this time, youre unsure whether chopping off your arm will do the trick.

How will you survive on one arm in a zombie apocalypse?

You cannot climb walls or fight well.

Or protect Clementine to the best of your ability.

And then theres the severe loss of blood.

Its a rollercoaster scene of emotions running wild, yet there are only a few seconds to decide.

If you chop off your arm, youll be weaker.

However, if you keep it, the infection will continue, ensuring your death.

But the reality of war is far more damaging than most games depict it to be.

InSpec Ops: The Line, players see the more realistic side of war.

From the harsh realities of civilian casualties to the toll it takes on the soldiers health.

At one point in the game, you could choose between using white phosphorus on enemy territory or stealth.

Some will choose white phosphorus to finish the mission as fast as possible.

However, its an extremely toxic gas for humans.

Not to mention the possibility of civilian casualties.

On the other hand, stealth will take more time but have the fewest casualties.

A major twist unravels in the end that the people at the camp werent soldiers but innocent civilians.

Players must choose whether to save Chloe or Arcadia Bay.

For context, Arcadia Bay is a town filled with thousands of people.

But Chloe is also a character youve grown to love, whos already had to endure so many deaths.

Whenever Chloe dies, you’re free to reverse time to save her.

However, each time you use your powers, the tornado grows more dangerous.

At this point, you have already made lots of changes to the timeline.

But its still tempting to stop using your powers to save Arcadia Bay.

Even if all the work you did to save Chloe was pointless.

You might as well have chosen not to save Chloe from the start.

To this day, no peaceful resolution has ever been achieved, with gamers often splitting both ways.

During the Bethesda civil war, players choose whether to side with the Stormlock or Imperial factions.

The Imperials banned Talos' worship.

They also gave Thalmor free reign.

On the other hand, the Stormcloaks are racist.

Plus, they have an undying thirst for power.

Both sides pose sound arguments, both morally and strategically.

Which also means that whichever side you choose would still be right; its all a matter of preference.

Further, with these types of games, the faction you choose only affects the games mechanics.

That is, the uniforms, a few dialogue pieces, and damage to either Solitude or Windhelm.

Otherwise, the overall mission and final outcome remain the same.

In the end, the faction you go with wins the war.

So, no love is lost, regardless of the side youre on.

Still, the Stormclock or Imperial debate makes for some good arguments over family dinners.

So thank you, Skyrim.

Evans I. Karanja is a freelance writer who loves to write about anything technology.

When not writing, he can be found playing video games or watching F1.