The Best Endings in RPG History

AXE OF THE BLOOD GOD | Kat and Nadia delve into the art of creating a great ending in an RPG.

Article by Kat Bailey, Editor in Chief

26 February 2018

Axe of the Blood God is our weekly RPG podcast hosted by Kat Bailey and Nadia Oxford. You can find the previous episodes here.

Following on from our discussion of meaningful decisions in RPGs, Nadia and I delve still further into the art of making a good RPG ending. Do we want a happy ending? A bittersweet one? How important is it to tie up all the loose threads? We discuss all that and more while highlighting the endings of Final Fantasy X, Planescape Torment, Mass Effect, Fallout, and other classic RPGs in the latest episode of Axe of the Blood God [download link here].

But that's not all! As Kingdom Come: Deliverance's sales continue apace, Nadia and I debate what its success means for historical RPGs in general. Plus, we add a termite to our party in Cosmic Star Heroine.

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Show Description

Kat and Nadia dive into the best RPG endings and why they work [20:00], with the discussion touching on Final Fantasy X, Fallout, Planescape Torment, the Mass Effect games, Breath of Fire, Chrono Trigger, and Valkyrie Profile. Plus, Kat and Nadia debate what Kingdom Come's success means for medieval RPGs, and the pair add a termite to their party in the Cosmic Star Heroine Report.

Music from Axe of the Blood God is courtesy of Lena Chappelle, who has also contributed the themes to Active Time Babble and Roleplayers' Realm. I also use music from the RPG Music Pack over at rpgmaker.net. Check it out!

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Kat Bailey

Editor in Chief

Kat Bailey is a former freelance writer and contributor to publications including 1UP, IGN, GameSpot, GamesRadar, and EGM. Her fondest memories as a journalist are at GamePro, where she hosted RolePlayer's Realm and had legal access to the term "Protip." She is USgamer's resident mecha enthusiast, Pokemon Master, and Minnesota Vikings nut (skol).

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