Nobody likes plot holes. They really can take you out of an otherwise decent story, or at least make a bad one even worse. So because no sin should go unpunished, here are a few choice examples from the world of gaming, named and shamed for your delectation.
5. Jenkins - Halo: Combat Evolved
You’re a green-armoured supersoldier opening a door, only for a soldier’s corpse to fall on you. You then watch a video from this soldier’s headset detailing the Flood – the alien zombie-making monstrosities that are going to plague you for the next three games. You also find out they infect any and every living being they can almost as if they’re machines. So why did they conveniently leave Jenkins’ body to be found so you could get a heads-up on the new bad guys?
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4. The Nuke - Crysis 2
The original Crysis established the concept that the alien Ceph were not only immune to nuclear radiation, but could actually absorb it. This radiation, rather than doing what it normally does – kill stuff – actually makes them stronger. So why, in Crysis 2, did the US military decide to drop a nuke on New York in spite of knowing this? Did the writers forget or did they think we would? The entire second half of the game centres round the nuking of New York in order to wipe out the same aliens which makes that entire plot line worthless. Considering they’ve already weaponised microwave radiation – which works – they could have just used that.
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3. The Ending - Mass Effect 3
Mass Effect is possibly one of my favourite game series of all time. I learned most of my social skills from these games… particularly Wrex. However, the ending of Mass Effect 3 was beyond disappointing. I think everyone universally hated it. Where did the Starchild come from? How did the Illusive Man get onto the Citadel? How did the crew of the Normandy get far enough away to escape? Why did Anderson represent the “red” ending and the Illusive Man the “blue”? Will we ever have justice for Marauder Shields? These will likely never be addressed now Mass Effect’s reputation has been tarnished.
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2. Also The Ending - Fallout 3
What is it with the ending of games having huge plot holes? At the end of Fallout 3, the player-character heads to the site of Project Purity. After losing your father and fighting – or talking – your way through the final conflict with X, you have a choice: Request that Y head into the room to activate the project or do it yourself. Problem is, the radiation will kill you. Until an update, any follower you brought with you would refuse to enter. Including Fawkes – a Super Mutant immune to radiation. The one character who wouldn’t die in that room. He’d just tell you it was your responsibility, not his. Cheeky green bastard. This, like Mass Effect 3, was updated – but gamers never forget.
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1. Everything - Resident Evil 4
Picture the scene: you’re a megalomaniac who wants to infect the world with good old Zombie-itis and you’ve captured the perfect person: the daughter of none other than the POTUS. She’s infected, so you want her to escape, right? Along comes her rescuer, Leon S. Kennedy. Best option is to let him escape with her to infect the world, right? So then why does he try to kill you with everything he has? Surely that’s completely counterproductive to his entire plan.
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