Video Game Innovations: Multiple Endings

There have been games that most commonly have one ending but there are some cases that sometimes a certain action dictates the ending that you receive. It is what we call multiple ending sequences. One of the 1^st games to utilize this was Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest for the NES. There were 3 different endings using time, as a factor to determine what type of ending you would receive. Obviously, Dracula had to be killed but time is a major factor as there are these endings: good ending, ok ending, and bad ending. Only one of them would directly into the next game in the Castlevania series while 2 others were just merely what ifs.

Another example going back to the Castlevania series was the sequel to it with Dracula's Curse. That was different because there are 4 possible endings with different characters involved. There is an ending with Trevor Belmont by himself, him with Alucard, Grant, or Syphia. This game is also innovative for having a new path to take if a choice could be made. This is actually a prime example of a game that has endings that are different based upon different characters used as a secondary character perhaps.

One last example going straight into the Castlevania series would be the Genesis game Castlevania Bloodlines. There were 2 different characters, Eric LeCarde and John Morris; each had different weapons but slightly different endings. While mostly the same, just the characters attributes make a difference.

To go further into the title of innovation, the Megaman X Series had become a staple for multiple endings in particular starting with X3. With X3 there were 2 endings depending on if Zero is still alive or not. Megaman X4 had 2 different story plots depending on whom you started the game with exactly. If you start with Zero, you get his story and have a different boss. With him, you fight Iris but with X you fight Double. The beginning of the story for Zero has to do with his past and it shows what looks to be Dr. Wily. There also is a slight introduction to who really is the mastermind behind all of the problems with Sigma. Beat the game with X, you get his ending and if you beat it with Zero, you get his ending.

Even the X-Box game Shadow the Hedgehog has different endings depending on the actions that you use. There's an ending where Shadow is determined to be good, neutral, or evil, it's up to you the player to dictate that. The Sonic games in particular the Sonic Adventure 2 Battle have an ending for the good guys, bad guys, and the Ultimate Ending. It was up to the player to dictate what would be the characters they wish to use.

The sequence of having different endings add an extra dimension to the games making you choose what you want to do or how long you complete the game will get you a different ending. One of the endings is generally the most logical while the others are just what ifs. The best way to put it is that this is something that has been influencing with video games no matter what major franchise it is. With this style, it can make the player really feel like they have a lot to work on to get a particular ending they wish to have.