"I suggest two things: One. The better ending should be better. If nothing else, it should provide more clarity about what is happening and what was going on. Two. If you put in super-hard ultra-hardcore mode to test the player, this is awesome, but don't lock endings behind it."
I'm about to ramble about Hollow Knight endings-- some spoilers ahead.
When I first played Hollow Knight, I found the basic ending baffling but intriguing enough that it did motivate me to keep playing and uncover the 100% completion ending. And while that ending isn't necessarily much clearer on its own merits than the basic ending as to what exactly is going on, by simple virtue of requiring the player to go through 100% of the main game, several NPCs like Hornet and the friendly moth get chances to deliver exposition that both kind of explains the basic ending and also gets the player at least pretty close to informed of what will be going on in the 100% ending. All the madness, orange sickness, and undead bugs are due to the corrupting influence of something sealed away in the furthest corner of the dreams of this place? A vengeful god of light that the Pale King shoved aside to build this kingdom? Aah, there's our hidden final boss, and that's what the Hollow Knight was sealed away to try and contain. Sure.
I found the difficulty of that final challenge pitched satisfyingly just at the edge of too hard, and I found the second ending satisfyingly
-longer
-filled with more positive imagery (Hornet getting up, the shades settling to rest)
-buoyed by happier music
I was pretty happy walking away with that ending. I was a bit irritated to learn later (looking things up on the wiki) that the Boss Rush from Hell in Godhome also had a full third alternate ending to the game which I wasn't feeling /nearly/ hardcore enough to unlock myself. But I didn't feel cheated, I guess? The ending I'd earned felt satisfying and complete -- it was enough.
A few years later, I persuaded a friend to play through Hollow Knight. I fell in love with the game again as I watched my friend explore it; there are an awful lot of cool things to find that can be found in very, very different orders in a way that is kind of amazing. And then, to my horror, my friend found that final hidden boss of the 100% ending to be just on the /wrong/ edge of too hard. And while the rest of the game has a constant option of letting the player avoid the things they find too hard until they've explored elsewhere and powered up, there's no such option for the final final boss-- the player has already been everywhere and found all the power-ups. My friend ended up quitting there, leaving the game on a very different final note than I did.
I ended up getting back into the hardcore end of the game much further than I had several years prior, and did end up finishing that Godhome boss rush (after hours of practice. Hours.) and even went crazy enough to get all the speed run and Iron Man trophies /on the same playthrough/. I do love Hollow Knight.
But I'd give a lot for some difficulty options that would let me recommend the game to my friends with fewer reservations about which ending I think they'll stop at.
I really appreciate a “Thank you for playing” type message in endings.
Even a little static message like that in the credits gets goodwill for me, like it’s a humble message that the developer knows I chose to pay them in both money and time.
But the final final bonus star levels in Mario games, after you’ve done everything, collected everything, and beaten your head against all the platforming challenges, and it’s interactive and there are coins that spell out “thank you” or whatnot: those always tickle me pink.
This is perhaps a littler earlier in the game than you are writing about, but I couldn't finish Queen's Wish 1 because I couldn't find an ending I could live with. Every attempt to end the game with what I had in mind, and which seemed hugely plausible given everything that came before, I had to agree to something or do something I didn't want to. So after getting within inches of finishing the game, I gave up.
I think that Cultist Simulator is another example of a roguelike done right. It's one of maybe five games that I've really finished, and it's one of two that I've gone back for multiple endings.
Hopefully you do another post (beyond SOMA) on endings done right.
"I suggest two things: One. The better ending should be better. If nothing else, it should provide more clarity about what is happening and what was going on. Two. If you put in super-hard ultra-hardcore mode to test the player, this is awesome, but don't lock endings behind it."
I'm about to ramble about Hollow Knight endings-- some spoilers ahead.
When I first played Hollow Knight, I found the basic ending baffling but intriguing enough that it did motivate me to keep playing and uncover the 100% completion ending. And while that ending isn't necessarily much clearer on its own merits than the basic ending as to what exactly is going on, by simple virtue of requiring the player to go through 100% of the main game, several NPCs like Hornet and the friendly moth get chances to deliver exposition that both kind of explains the basic ending and also gets the player at least pretty close to informed of what will be going on in the 100% ending. All the madness, orange sickness, and undead bugs are due to the corrupting influence of something sealed away in the furthest corner of the dreams of this place? A vengeful god of light that the Pale King shoved aside to build this kingdom? Aah, there's our hidden final boss, and that's what the Hollow Knight was sealed away to try and contain. Sure.
I found the difficulty of that final challenge pitched satisfyingly just at the edge of too hard, and I found the second ending satisfyingly
-longer
-filled with more positive imagery (Hornet getting up, the shades settling to rest)
-buoyed by happier music
I was pretty happy walking away with that ending. I was a bit irritated to learn later (looking things up on the wiki) that the Boss Rush from Hell in Godhome also had a full third alternate ending to the game which I wasn't feeling /nearly/ hardcore enough to unlock myself. But I didn't feel cheated, I guess? The ending I'd earned felt satisfying and complete -- it was enough.
A few years later, I persuaded a friend to play through Hollow Knight. I fell in love with the game again as I watched my friend explore it; there are an awful lot of cool things to find that can be found in very, very different orders in a way that is kind of amazing. And then, to my horror, my friend found that final hidden boss of the 100% ending to be just on the /wrong/ edge of too hard. And while the rest of the game has a constant option of letting the player avoid the things they find too hard until they've explored elsewhere and powered up, there's no such option for the final final boss-- the player has already been everywhere and found all the power-ups. My friend ended up quitting there, leaving the game on a very different final note than I did.
I ended up getting back into the hardcore end of the game much further than I had several years prior, and did end up finishing that Godhome boss rush (after hours of practice. Hours.) and even went crazy enough to get all the speed run and Iron Man trophies /on the same playthrough/. I do love Hollow Knight.
But I'd give a lot for some difficulty options that would let me recommend the game to my friends with fewer reservations about which ending I think they'll stop at.
I really appreciate a “Thank you for playing” type message in endings.
Even a little static message like that in the credits gets goodwill for me, like it’s a humble message that the developer knows I chose to pay them in both money and time.
But the final final bonus star levels in Mario games, after you’ve done everything, collected everything, and beaten your head against all the platforming challenges, and it’s interactive and there are coins that spell out “thank you” or whatnot: those always tickle me pink.
Thanks for the article.
I really thought you would mention Mass Effect 3. Wonderful game, but the ending consisted of pick one of three colours.
Good call with SOMA. What's your take on the ending of another life-changing game, Outer Wilds?
"NEVER end your game with a cliffhanger unless you are ABSOLUTELY sure the sequel will happen."
Man, it's been almost 15 years and I'm still salty about the secret ending to Aquaria being an effing cliffhanger.
This is perhaps a littler earlier in the game than you are writing about, but I couldn't finish Queen's Wish 1 because I couldn't find an ending I could live with. Every attempt to end the game with what I had in mind, and which seemed hugely plausible given everything that came before, I had to agree to something or do something I didn't want to. So after getting within inches of finishing the game, I gave up.
I think that Cultist Simulator is another example of a roguelike done right. It's one of maybe five games that I've really finished, and it's one of two that I've gone back for multiple endings.
Hopefully you do another post (beyond SOMA) on endings done right.