Over the years, we've seen some truly standout video games with some absolutely incredible levels, missions, and stages (or however games choose to cut up their content). Arguably the most important of these levels are the final ones, the ones at the end of the game that test your mettle and skill in the ultimate trial.
Some of these final levels are outstanding, capturing everything that's great about the game and putting players through the ringer as they prove that they have indeed mastered the mechanics. Others are decidedly less so, falling short of the standards set by an otherwise excellent experience. With that in mind, let's take a look at the five best final levels from gaming history - as well as five that were just plain disappointing.
10 Disappointing: Fallout: New Vegas
Fallout: New Vegas was, in the minds of many fans, the definitive first-person Fallout video game. New Vegas was also significant in that it let players roleplay the game, picking paths and decisions that felt in line with the character they wanted to be.
It's a little upsetting, then, that at the end of such an extraordinary game came a level that just wasn't. After an entire campaign filled with choices and decisions, picking factions and selecting allies, the Hoover Dam level feels a bit boring. The actual mechanical gameplay is alright, but players don't pick Fallout for the shooting, but rather the unique ways in which problems can be solved, and the last level just didn't cut it.
9 Best: Half Life 2
We could hardly make this list without including Half Life 2 somewhere on it, as it could be one of the best video games ever made - and it absolutely is one of the best first-person shooters ever made. There are a lot of memorable chapters that deserve commendation, from the eerie, dystopian introductory scene to the outright terror as you explore Ravenholm. But we're here to talk about great final levels, and Half Life 2's Citadel is just perfect.
It begins with the protagonist, Gordon Freeman, being captured by the Combine and all his weapons being confiscated - except for the Gravity Gun, which reacts violently with the Combine tech and becomes powered up, allowing players to make their way through the final stage as they gleefully move massive objects and even enemies around. That, in addition to the puzzles and level design that make full use of the newly overcharged Gravity Gun, allows for a level that is simply a wonderful capstone to an already wonderful game.
8 Disappointing: Half Life
Let's take a step back now and look at the game that directly preceded Half Life 2, the original Half Life. This game was no less incredible in its time, although its graphics certainly date it somewhat.
And then the game reached its final level, and things went a bit downhill. At the end of the game, players are tasked with entering the alien dimension of Xen and the game suddenly turns into a first-person platformer combined with strange gravity that isn't like any other area and bosses that can be pretty difficult to navigate when also trying to deal with the other changes. Xen is an interesting idea but ultimately it isn't one that paid off.
7 Best: Mass Effect 2
After the success of the original Mass Effect, with its varied cast of characters and memorable choices, the sequel Mass Effect 2 expanded on these systems in every way. While Mass Effect was certainly a good game, Mass Effect 2 let players really feel like they were developing these connections and attachments to their crew and their ship as they explored the galaxy and prepared for the final mission.
The last level of Mass Effect 2 sees Commander Shepard and crew going on a suicide mission and facing off against a new Reaper based on humans. Nearly every choice you've made so far in the game affects the outcome of the battle - what characters you bring with you, whether or not they're loyal to you, and how you upgraded your ship. Making the wrong choices can lead to character deaths as you lose friends and allies before your eyes, whereas making the right ones makes you feel like a confident and assured leader.
6 Disappointing: Mass Effect 3
Just as the Half Life series has had its high and low points regarding final levels, so too does the Mass Effect franchise. Mass Effect 3 was a solid title, bringing an end to nearly every plotline that had been established throughout the story. However, this didn't change the fact that it's ending was underwhelming, to say the least.
The final level of the game sees players making a single choice that determines how events play out. Given the intricate nature of the previous title's final sequence, one can see how the simplistic nature of Mass Effect 3's finale was disappointing. None of the choices players had made had all that much of an impact on the ending - they were simply presented with three options and told to pick, which led to the game's three different endings.
5 Best: Goldeneye 007
Goldeneye 007 is remembered as one of the earliest first-person shooters that helped to define a genre, spawning multiple clones, copycats, and inspiring other developers to create their own titles based around similar mechanics and gameplay. While the game is mostly notable for its multiplayer mode, which pitted friends against each other in combat, its single-player story was also excellent for its time.
The final sequence of the game sees players trying to stop the villain, Alec Trevelyan, from activating the titular Goldeneye laser and destroying MI6. The level itself was great, but the really memorable moment comes at the end as players got to experience the iconic exchange between the two, with Trevelyan sarcastically quipping, "For England, James?" and Bond replying, "No, for me."
4 Disappointing: Borderlands
The Borderlands franchise has been around for a while and the initial game has led to a variety of other titles including a sequel, a pre-sequel, a surprisingly good adventure game, and the upcoming Borderlands 3, releasing this September. This is in large part due to the success of the first Borderlands game, which introduced players to the world of Pandora, the heroes known as Vault Hunters, and the hilariously annoying robot Claptrap.
While the first game nailed a lot of things, from the action to the humor, one thing it didn't quite manage was the final boss fight against the Destroyer. A massive tentacle monster that lives in an alien vault seems like it would be a lot more intimidating, but the creature is actually one of the easier fights in the game, leaving players disappointed that there wasn't more.
3 Best: The Last Of Us
The Last of Us is a memorable title for any number of reasons - grim atmosphere, solid gameplay, characters that are easy to empathize with, and more. The game begins with player character Joel losing his family, and then jumps ahead in time to his journey with Ellie, a young girl who is immune to the zombie infection spreading throughout the world.
The final level takes place in a hospital as Joel realizes that the doctors he's been working so hard to reach with Ellie plan on sacrificing her to make a cure for the infection. Unwilling to lose his new surrogate daughter, Joel fights his way through the hospital, killing everyone who gets in his way, until he reaches Ellie and takes her away. This level sticks with us still as we understand and have compassion for Joel, yet also understand that by saving Ellie, he could very well be dooming the rest of humanity.
2 Disappointing: Batman: Arkham Asylum
As the game that kicked off the popular Arkham series, Batman: Arkham Asylum is overall a superb title that manages to really capture what it feels like to be Batman. As the titular caped crusader, you explore Arkham Island during a prison break led by the infamous Joker. Your path brings you into contact with a number of classic Batman villains, from Bane to Poison Ivy to Harley Quinn, ultimately leading to a confrontation with the Joker himself.
It is this last battle that is simply underwhelming. After the long walk up to this last encounter, players were hoping for something that would really test all aspects of the skillset they had developed. What they got was the Joker injecting himself with a serum that made him Hulk out (no copyright infringement intended) and proceeded to a simple boss fight where you pummeled the Joker between waves of enemies.
1 Best: Bioshock
Finally, let's bring our list to a close with a classic - the original Bioshock. There's a lot to be said about this game that has already been said - it has deep themes regarding free will, what we owe to the people around us, and the nature of humanity. The gameplay, which centers around combining traditional shooting with a variety of powers drawn from genetic mutations, is stellar, both then and now.
The last sequence of Bioshock sees the player character hunting down Frank Fontaine, a mobster who had previously manipulated you into handing him control of the city of Rapture by pretending to be your ally. In order to reach Fontaine, players must become a Big Daddy, one of the game's iconic NPCs, then accompany a Little Sister as she collects the genetic material ADAM. This creates an interesting power shift in the last stretch of the game, as previously you had been focused on defeating the Big Daddies. All this leads up to a last stand against Fontaine, who has been supercharged with ADAM.