Red Dead Redemption sees its protagonist making the ultimate sacrifice for his family. As he sees them ride into the sunset, John Marsten is gunned down, but not before taking a few of his captors with him. Unfortunately, his sacrifice was in vain. In the epilogue, we see the son he tried to keep from going down a road of villainy begin his downward spiral as he seeks revenge on his father's killers.
One of two games on this list to be a top contender for game of the year 2013, The Last of Us not only gives us a game, but a gripping story. As Joel you are given a mission to escort Ellie from Boston to Salt Lake City. Although the reason is not known right away, Ellie carries a possible cure to a disease that has left the world with zombie like creatures known as clickers. Not only are you left to defend yourself against them, but also a world that has broken down and left humanity in a feral state. You encounter dangers along the way bringing you and your "package" closer. The end truly shows that the best family you can have is the one you choose.
Broken down into 5 episodes, Telltale Game's The Walking Dead is a roller coaster ride of emotions from start to finish. The finale is no different. One of the only games in recent history to truly make me shed a tear, we are left with Clementine having to either kill her father figure and your playable character, Lee Everett, or leave him to become a monster. After connecting with Clementine and redeeming yourself from the person you were before the zombie outbreak, you push yourself to save her life. As with most great video game endings, The Walking Dead is left open for a sequel.
My list ends with the most controversial. Bioshock: Infinite leaves the player's mind boggled. With strong ties to string and multiverse theory, and the possibility of INFINITE worlds, the game has had players arguing about the ending, and has left us with multiple trains of thought. The reason this tops my chart is that reason alone. A game that can keep people so involved that it leads to arguments with friends and co-workers is a game that will stand the test of time.
Honorable mention: The perseverance of the human condition to survive. That is, in the end of this amazing game, the moral. As you journey through the testing facility in Portal 2, you encounter 2 villains fighting each other for control of the test site. Caught in the cross-fire, your journey pits you against these two robots in an attempt to escape and once again feel the warmth of the outside world. For a puzzle game, Portal 2 has an intriguing story line not normally seen in this genre.
