Video games are a perfect medium for revenge stories to thrive. When a hero has nothing to lose, it becomes much easier for storytellers to contextualize the actions of a video game protagonist who kills anyone in their path. The enemies they face have done nothing wrong besides getting in the hero's way, and yet for a character on a warpath, that's all the justification they need.
It doesn't always play out as expected though. Many video game heroes devote themselves to revenge only to come up short, see another path at the last instant, or watch as their enemy escapes their clutches. Whatever the case may be, these video game heroes sought vengeance, only for it to slip through their fingers at the moment of truth. This list contains spoilers.
9 Ryo Hazuki (Shenmue)
Ryo has had three whole games to track down Lan Di, the man who killed the protagonist's father in the search for an ancient Dragon Mirror. Ryo sets out on a path of revenge and hunts Lan Di for years, but finally comes face to face with him at the end of Shenmue 3.
Fans of this series will know the absolute frustration that came about when, after defeating Lan Di's lackeys and finally facing him in combat, Lan Di completely embarrasses Ryo. In fact, not only does Ryo not land a single punch in this fight, but Lan Di defeats him literally with one hand behind his back before escaping into the night. Shenmue fans will need to wait until a potential fourth installment to see if Ryo finally gets his revenge, but as of right now, he remains unfulfilled.
8 Jack (Stranger Of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin)
From the very beginning of Stranger Of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin, Jack's sole purpose is to defeat Chaos, an entity that he believes is responsible for the darkness rapidly consuming the world. He is joined by a pair of warriors upon his arrival in Cornelia, and the three of them face off with and seemingly defeat Chaos. However, they discover that Chaos is a young girl who tried to absorb all the world's darkness into herself so that a group of heroes could eventually defeat her and the darkness simultaneously.
Jack should have listened, but vengeance clouds his judgment, and he sets out on a quest to find the true Chaos entity. In classic Final Fantasy fashion, a lot happens on that journey, but it ends with Jack realizing that he is himself becoming Chaos. His friends send him into the past and begin laying the groundwork for a group of warriors to one day defeat him. Not only does Jack never get his vengeance, but he becomes the entity he sought to defeat.
7 9S (NieR: Automata – Ending E)
After witnessing the rogue android A2 seemingly murdering his best friend, 2B, at the mid-point of NieR: Automata, 9S swears revenge. He climbs a massive tower created by alien machines and discovers their plans to wipe out his memory banks, along with the memories of all remaining androids. He and A2 finally face off atop the tower, and in Ending E, their battle ends with both of them being killed.
However, at the last minute, 9S is offered a chance to join the Machine Network; essentially allowing him, A2, and 2B to be reborn on another planet. Not only does 9S's revenge initially result in his own death, but it also ends up being meaningless with the rebirth of both 2B and A2 on a new world.
6 Kiryu Kazuma (Yakuza Kiwami)
In Yakuza Kiwami, a Tojo clan lieutenant named Kiryu willingly takes the blame for the murder of the head of the Tojo clan, a crime actually committed by his best friend Akira Nishikiyama. After serving ten years in prison, Kiryu re-enters the world only to discover that Nishikiyama is a changed man and has ruthlessly claimed a seat at the head of the Tojo clan.
Kiryu's attempts to reconcile with Nishikiyama are met with violence, and in the end, the two become enemies. However, Nishikiyama eventually succumbs to his guilt and sacrifices himself to kill Kyohei Jingu, a corrupt politician bent on destroying the Tojo clan. Nishikiyama's sacrifice robs Kiryu of his revenge but does allow Akira to redeem himself in his final moments.
5 Nariko (Heavenly Sword)
Nariko's story begins with her fighting alongside her father and fellow clansmen against the forces of King Bohan. As her clan falls beneath the King's forces, and her father is captured, Nariko takes up the titular Heavenly Sword, a weapon that requires the life sacrifice of whoever wields it.
During her journey, Nariko discovers that her father wanted to have her killed shortly after her birth, but he could not bring himself to do so. Thus, when the moment comes for her to deliver the killing blow to King Bohan, the arrival of the King's son Roach – who pleads for his father's life – causes her to falter. Nariko successfully defends her clan from Bohan's forces, but ultimately her revenge goes unfulfilled, and yet because she still wielded the Heavenly Sword, she must sacrifice her life regardless.
4 Alex Mercer (Prototype)
In the original Prototype, Alex Mercer wakes up in a morgue with no memory of who he is. After discovering he carries a rare strain of the Blacklight virus which gives him superpowers, Alex sets out to get revenge on the scientists who experimented on him, took his memories, and unleashed a virus on NYC.
Initially, Alex's revenge is successful, and he defeats both the military General responsible for the experiments, as well as the physical manifestation of the virus itself. However, in Prototype 2, Alex has become the very thing he fought against. He now seeks to infect the world with the Blacklight virus in a misguided attempt to solve international conflicts by effectively turning everyone into a single super organism. While Mercer's initial motives of revenge were fulfilled, it was all for naught, as his goals become indistinguishable from those he sought to defeat.
3 John Marston (Red Dead Redemption)
In 2010's Red Dead Redemption, reformed outlaw John Marston just wanted to settle down with his family, but the government had other ideas. After kidnapping John's wife and son, the FBI forces John to hunt down the members of his former gang if he wants his family to be reunited.
Given little choice, John succeeds in finding and killing his former compatriots. However, instead of seeking revenge on the agents who took his family, John chooses to count his lucky stars and settle down again. Sadly, that peace is short-lived. John is betrayed by the FBI and both he and his wife are gunned down by a squad of agents who ambush them on his farmland. Revenge is left up to their son Jack Marston, who eventually succeeds, but only after becoming the kind of man his father never wanted him to be.
2 Jacqueline "Jack" Nought (Mass Effect 2)
Jack was born with the innate ability to manipulate dark energy. She was kidnapped as a child by Cerberus and experimented on for most of her youth, which left her with physical and psychological scars that manifest in her violent temperament and "punk" aesthetic.
During Mass Effect 2, Jack's loyalty mission involves returning to the Cerberus facility where she was held prisoner. Jack and Commander Shepard seek out the facility and find it long abandoned, now filled with mercenaries using it as a hideout. Jack and Shepard destroy the facility and kill the mercenaries, but the Cerberus scientists who experimented on her are long gone. Jack's revenge mission ends here, and she must settle for knowing that what happened to her as a child won't happen to anyone else.
1 Ellie (The Last Of Us Part 2)
After Joel is brutally murdered by Abby (in her own quest for revenge) at the beginning of The Last Of Us Part 2, revenge becomes Ellie's sole focus. Her journey across post-apocalyptic America sees her face off against the dangerous WLF militia and a twisted cult known as the Seraphites. Ellie kills every single person who gets in her way, regardless of their allegiances.
However, when she finally corners Abby during the game's climax, their battle on the shores of the Pacific Ocean leaves them both mutilated. Ellie lets Abby go, unable to continue the cycle of violence that began with Joel, and she returns home to find that her need for vengeance has cost her everything that gave her life meaning.