Skip to main content
Join The Community
- Join our community
11
Premium Benefits
24/7
Access Available
21K+
Active Members
Commenting
Join the discussion
Exclusive Articles Coming Soon
Member-only articles
Weekly Newsletters
Weekly gaming & entertainment news
Member Badges
Earn badges as you go
Exclusive Competitions
Members-only prize draws
Curated Deals Coming Soon
Tech and gaming deals worth grabbing
GET COMMUNITY ACCESS QUICK
For the quickest way to join, simply enter your email below and get access. We will send a confirmation and sign you up to our newsletter to keep you updated on all your gaming news.
By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
FIND OUT ABOUT OUR MAGAZINE
Want to subscribe to the magazine? Click the button below to find out more information.
Find out more
GET Community ACCESS QUICK

Join the GamesRadar community for quick access. Enter your email below and we'll send confirmation, and sign you up to our newsletter.

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Background
Welcome to GamesRADAR+ Community !
Hi ,

Your membership journey starts here.

Keep exploring and earning more as a member.

MY ACCOUNT

Badge picture
Earn your first badge
Read 1 article to unlock your first badge.
Keep earning badges
Explore ways to get more involved as a member.
Latest Games News

Latest Games News

Breaking gaming news and updates

Read Now
Latest Games Reviews

Latest Games Reviews

Expert verdicts on the newest releases

Read Now

See what you’ve unlocked.

Explore your membership benefits.

Explore
Member Exclusives

Stay Ahead with GamesRadar+

Get the biggest gaming news, reviews, and releases straight to your inbox.

Explore

Sign Out
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • View Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Trending
  • Pokemon Winds and Waves
  • New Games for 2026
  • Submit your game clips
  • GDC
  1. Games

Six happy game endings... that are actually horrifying

Features
By David Meikleham published 5 August 2010

And everyone lived happily ever after… and half a city got destroyed, too. But we’ll just ignore that

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Want to add more newsletters?

GamesRadar+

Every Friday

GamesRadar+

Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.

GTA 6 O'clock

Every Thursday

GTA 6 O'clock

Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.

Knowledge

Every Friday

Knowledge

From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.

The Setup

Every Thursday

The Setup

Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.

Switch 2 Spotlight

Every Wednesday

Switch 2 Spotlight

Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.

The Watchlist

Every Saturday

The Watchlist

Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.

SFX

Once a month

SFX

Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!


Join the club

Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

Who doesn’t love a happy ending? Well, apart from communists, old timey villains in top hats and Hitler. Most games love nothing more than to give you a pat on the back and send you off with your heart singing into the end credits after you’ve just witnessed Ted Heroic save the girl, beat ultimate hero with the power of your totally manly chest hair, then play some virtual tonsil tennis with said girl.

But not all seemingly blissful endings are as happy as they appear. In fact, some are just downright depressing, sweeping aside and glossing over some horrendous acts of collateral damage and destruction. Like these very games below…

Warning: This article may contain (SPOILERS!!!) . Alright, so it definitely contains mega (SPOILERS!!!). Oh, and also loads of pedantic, nitpicky moaning from us. Still, it’s all just a bit of tongue-in-cheek fun, right? RIGHT?

Just in case you missed that...

A bunch of adorable creatures bite it, Mario celebrates

Providing a horrendous happy ending in: Super Mario Galaxy

And Mario beat Bowser, saved the day and failed to kop a feel from Peach for the 14,000th time. The end… oh, and all those cute little star things threw themselves into a shitting black hole, probably suffering deaths of unimaginable torment. Ah, we love a happy ending. Wait, what?

In case you missed it, those adorable little Lumas throw themselves into the shagging great chasm Bowser rips into the universe, selflessly sacrificing themselves to save a certain fat Italian’s ass. We get some pseudo spiritual claptrap about no star truly dying and being reborn as even brighter stars. But you know what? Those Lumas are all dead. Like Lindsay Lohan’s acting career dead.

Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.


Above: That ain't no way for no Luma to go

Is there any mention of this galactic tragedy in the sequel, you ask? Is there hell. All Mario cares about is scoffing his fat face with a cake Peach baked for him. C’mon, you ingrate. How about building a memorial for all those cute little blighters that saved the whole goddamn universe? Hey, if you want to just piss about in a bee costume, though, that’s fine too, pal. What. A. Dick.

New York gets flattened, but the hero gets the girl

Providing a horrendous happy ending in: Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

Aka the game where the hero lets half of Manhattan gets flattened by a Metal Gear the size of an aircraft carrier.

No one cares about that, though. As long as he hooks up with his girlfriend at the end, everything is all peaches and cream. Well, except for all the families of the hundreds of folk who were no doubt squashed by Arsenal Gear, which the game so conveniently glosses over.

And what about all the millions upon millions of dollars worth of property damage inflicted upon the Big Apple? Seriously, it’s going to take years to rebuild all the shit Arsenal no doubt destroyed. Oh, and the Federal Hall National Memorial that so casually gets crushed? Yeah, that’s kind of a big deal. After all, it only marks the site where the Bill of Rights was ratified.

But hey, those poor bastard New York construction workers won’t mind putting that along with half the city back to-bloody-gether again. Still, Raiden totally remembers Rose’s anniversary in the end, and we bet they had some awesome makeup sex. So that’s the only thing that really matters.


Above: "No, I love you more...."

Best buds reunite, leave other friend to get his balls bitten off

Providing a horrendous happy ending in: Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time

Alright, so everything ends up fine and dandy for our two heroes (even if the closest thing Ratchet will ever have to a father dies in the process). But how about sparing a thought for their old buddy Captain Qwark? Admittedly he’s a selfish, cowardly self promoter, but last time we looked that didn’t warrant being left behind by your mates to have your scrotum chewed on by a massive monster.

Clank was seemingly distraught at leaving Ratchet alone in his quest to find his furry family, though neither of them seem to have any problem abandoning a comrade to a life of space solitude and groin-based lacerations.

Hell, even if Qwark somehow miraculously manages to best Snowball it could be years until he gets rescued. YEARS! Just imagine the physiological scarring. Either way, Ratchet and Clank’s intergalactic bromance will continue, so the spandex-wearing hero can seemingly go f*ck himself.


Above: Space cadets need spleens too, you know

  • 1
  • 2

Current page: Page 1

Next Page Page 2
TOPICS
Sony
CATEGORIES
PC Gaming Nintendo PlayStation Xbox Platforms
David Meikleham
David Meikleham
Social Links Navigation
Google AMP Stories Editor

David has worked for Future under many guises, including for GamesRadar+ and the Official Xbox Magazine. He is currently the Google Stories Editor for GamesRadar and PC Gamer, which sees him making daily video Stories content for both websites. David also regularly writes features, guides, and reviews for both brands too. 

Latest in Games
Screenshot from Minecraft Dungeons 2's reveal trailer, showing a bunch of villagers standing around a blocky village.
Minecraft Minecraft Dungeons 2 takes another stab at Mojang's surprisingly great Diablo-inspired RPG spin-off later this year
 
 
Starfield screenshot showing the new Anchor Point location
RPGs How your feedback helped shape Starfield's biggest updates: "We're always checking in," says Bethesda
 
 
Palworld
Survival Games "We have no desire to be a media empire," says Palworld publishing head but Pocketpair would be stupid to let it die out
 
 
Protagonist Jordan in a screenshot from the reveal trailer for Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet.
The Last of Us Neil Druckmann's teasing the return of a The Last of Us actor in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet
 
 
A screenshot of the Adoring Fan seen in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered.
The Elder Scrolls Todd Howard says Oblivion leaks didn't help Bethesda or players: "Everyone is gonna have a different version"
 
 
Slay the Spire 2
Roguelike Games Slay the Spire 2 devs respond to the flurry of negative Steam reviews: "No change is necessarily permanent"
 
 
Latest in Features
Starfield screenshot showing the new Anchor Point location
RPGs How your feedback helped shape Starfield's biggest updates: "We're always checking in," says Bethesda
 
 
Invincible VS screenshot showing Dupli-Kate using her abilities
Fighting Games Invincible VS director wants players to feel like "a f**king superhero," so expect matches that are a "knock-down, drag-out fight until the death"
 
 
A close-up of Grace talking with someone through glass in Resident Evil Requiem
Resident Evil Resident Evil Requiem's Grace actor did "a lot of research" into panic disorders, which makes playing the game with a real-life anxiety condition the scariest the series has ever been
 
 
A painted Legio Custodes miniature on a wooden surface
Tabletop Gaming The new Warhammer Custodes look amazing, but my god, I wish they were easier to build
 
 
Star Wars Galactic Racer big preview
Racing Games "Our tracks are not procedurally-generated": Why replayability is at the heart of Star Wars: Galactic Racer
 
 
Star Wars Galactic Racer big preview
Racing Games Star Wars: Galactic Racer looks every bit the Burnout: Takedown revival I've been waiting 20 years to play
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Screenshot from Minecraft Dungeons 2's reveal trailer, showing a bunch of villagers standing around a blocky village.
    1
    Minecraft Dungeons 2 takes another stab at Mojang's surprisingly great Diablo-inspired action-RPG spin-off later this year
  2. 2
    Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord showrunner says the former Sith is "a bad guy fighting worse guys"
  3. 3
    Fallout season 3 will incorporate "a few things from the game that we've wanted to do since season one," says showrunner Geneva Robertson-Dworet
  4. 4
    Daredevil: Born Again season 2 release schedule: when is episode 1 on Disney Plus?
  5. 5
    "We try to lean in on the things where our idea of what Starfield should be aligns with the feedback that's coming in from folks who get the game": How community feedback helped Bethesda shape Starfield's biggest updates

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...