Usually, we know who is the villain from the start. The antagonist is introduced at the beginning to let us know who is he/she and what his/her ambitions are But, there are some cases where the game doesn’t tell us who is the villain until it is revealed as a form of plot twist.
In some cases, we meet the villain early in the came without knowing, in other cases we are the villain, and more. Today we are going to select 10 antagonists that surprised us when he or she was revealed as the villain, so let’s begin!
10. Jester – Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening
Getting clowned by a clown is something that we will never forget, and that is why we will always remember when Jester was revealed as the true antagonist in Devil May Cry 3.
Jester is a comical and terrifying character; we had our doubts about him, but we always thought that Vergil was the villain, but after fighting him in mission thirteen, Jester appears and reveals he has been the Devil Trigger all along and that he was manipulating Vergil, his daughter Lady, and you to help him with his evil plans. Remember, never trust a clown.
9. Ferris Boyle – Batman: Arkham Origins
Ferris Boyle is the CEO of GothCorp and initially a very decent dude that you like, unless you have read the comics before. He is taken as hostage by Mr. Freeze, but the moment Batman arrives, it is revealed that Mr. Freeze’s rampage was, in fact, provoked by Boyle. After Batman defeats Freeze, Boyle releases cryo gas on Batman, freezing him.
Boyle then tells Freeze that he will keep him alive enough to see his wife, Nora Fries, die. But Batman suddenly breaks free from the ice and disarms Boyle before knocking him unconscious.
8. Edelgard Von Hresvelg – Fire Emblem: Three Houses
This game is split in two parts. In the first part, we deal with the Flame Emperor and his machinations.
We don’t know who he is, but it is hinted that the Flame Emperor could be any of the leaders of the three houses Later, it is revealed that the Flame Emperor is Edelgard Von Hresvelg, the princess and the future emperor of the Adrestian Empire, and the leader of the Black Eagles.
Despite being the main antagonist, we can choose to side with her in the Crimson Flower route.
7. Haytham Kenway – Assassins Creed 3
At the beginning of the game, we control Haytham Kenway who we believe is the central protagonist. We are tasked with a series of heists and assassinations to find a storehouse. As we progress throughout the game, it is revealed that he is a member of the Templars and the main antagonist of Assassins Creed 3.
It was a surprising twist because it was the first time that something like this happened in an Assassins Creed game, and because everything we did as Haytham was to advance an evil agenda.
6. The Catalyst – Mass Effect
The Catalyst first appeared in the infamous Mass Effect 3’s ending, and was hardly mentioned before that. But The Catalyst is then revealed as the Mass Effect trilogy’s central antagonist because is the guiding intelligence of the Reapers; it embodies the collective memories and consciousness of them, and is an Artificial Intelligence that exists throughout the Citadel, in another words, every time we go to the Mass Effect’s hub, we pass very close to the Catalyst.
Literally, The Catalyst remained hidden until the very last moment of the entire trilogy, which adds a lot of mystery to the reveal.
5. General Shepherd – Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
At the beginning, Shepherd is the commander of both the Task Force 141 and the US Army Rangers, and despite his controversial calls, he is depicted as a competent commander who is willing to do always the right thing for his country.
However, everything goes wrong when it is revealed that Shepherd wants to complicate things between Russia and America to start World War 3 and use the war to reshape the American culture. His reveal as a villain is considered one of the best and most shocking moments in the Call of Duty franchise.
4. Scott Shelby – Heavy Rain
Heavy Rain was a rollercoaster of emotions and an amazing video game. In this game we have to solve a series of crimes perpetrated by the Origami Killer by filling roles of multiple characters, but there is one who stand out from the others.
Scott Shelby is a private detective who is investigating the murders, but almost at the end, it is revealed that Shelby is the Origamy Killer himself. It was a disturbing reveal because throughout the game he showed a very human and tender side towards others, and seeing him as the killer at the end was shocking.
3. Wheatley – Portal 2
Imagine having only one ally in a video game, and as you start liking him, he betrays you and leaves you alone; that’s Wheatley for you.
In Portal 2, the initial villain was GLaDOS, but after you install Wheatley into the Aperture Science laboratory to defeat GLaDOS, he becomes vindictive and megalomaniac, literally traps GLaDOS inside a potato battery and tries to kill you.
He has been with us since the beginning to seeing him turning into a villain was surprising and the plot twist is often considered one of the best moments in Portal 2.
2. Atlas – BioShock
Just like in Portal 2, in BioShock you only have one ally in Rapture, Atlas. He helps Jack fight his way in this hostile place in order to find Andrew Ryan, the supposedly villain of BioShock. But then Ryan tells you a shocking truth: Atlas is an alias of Frank Fontaine, the one who devastated Rapture in the past.
Fontaine manipulated Jack throughout the game using the phrase “Would you kindly?”, forcing him to kill Ryan and many other people.
1. You – Star Wars: Knight of the Old Republic
KOTOR gave us the most shocking “surprise villain” in the history of video games when they decided to tell you that “you” are Darth Revan, the Dark Lord of the Sith Empire all along. You create your character, you awaken with no memories about who you are, and you begin to play.
The revelation is shocking, and despite you can choose whether side with the Jedis or reclaim the title as Dark Lord of the Sith, the revelation of being Darth Revan all along was universally acclaimed.
