Some of the most memorable video games of all time are ones that feature an unforgettable twist. The case is true for action games where you're secretly the villain the entire time, but you just don't know it until it's already too late.
There are so many exceptional games where you're actually playing as the villain, and even if you don't wish to be so evil, the outcome remains the same, and it seems that the protagonist's destiny is to fall. Below, we've outlined some of the best action games where you're secretly playing as the villain.
These 10 Games Are A True Masterclass In Action
Get ready to feel an adrenaline rush in these games that absolutely nail the action-packed vibe.
The games mentioned below will delve into major spoilers, so read on carefully!
Helldivers 2
Become Fascist Imperialists and Spread "Democracy" for Super-Earth
Helldivers 2
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 83 /100 Critics Rec: 91%
- Released
- February 8, 2024
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Arrowhead Game Studios, Nixxes
- Publisher(s)
- Sony Interactive Entertainment, PlayStation Publishing
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter, Extraction Shooter, Action, Science Fiction
Join the Helldivers and spread democracy across the galaxy in the name of Super-Earth and liberty. While it might be equally fun as it is dangerous to explore strange new worlds and provide explosive death to Automatons, Terminids, and Illuminates, it's not until a Helldiver stops to think about what they're doing that it becomes clear that maybe they're not the good guys. However, thinking too much about it is an executable offense.
Writhe with satire, Helldivers 2 makes it pretty clear that the Helldivers aren't exactly the good guys. Helldivers blindly follow their orders, venturing to planets to kill anything that isn't human, without knowing why. There's no regard for killed soldiers, and friendly fire isn't even questioned. On top of the death of human allies, the genocide against factions like the Terminids reveals motives for oil, but looking deeper into the innocence of some factions could be, and will be, considered treason against Super-Earth.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War
Talion's Attempt to Hold Back the Forces of Darkness Causes Him to Join the Nine
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 82 /100 Critics Rec: 76%
- Released
- October 10, 2017
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence
- Developer(s)
- Monolith
- Publisher(s)
- Warner Bros. Games
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG
Talion and Celebrimbor work together to compete against Sauron's rule, essentially through the same methods. Using a powerful ring that combines their power into one being, Talion and Celebrimbor enslave thousands of orcs for an army to rival Sauron's own for control of Mordor. While it might initially be for the greater good, to hold back the forces of darkness, it's further proof that corruption still seeps through good intentions.
Talion's eventual split from Celebrimbor helps that corruption grow, especially through desperation. The end result has Talion becoming one of the Nine, influenced by Sauron to become a Nazgul simply because the whisper of darkness was too overwhelming, and Isildur's Ring demands enslavement to the service of evil. Talion might want to stop Sauron, but man is corruptible.
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Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Amnesiac Memories Unlock to Reveal the Truth That You Are Darth Revan
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 83 /100 Critics Rec: 85%
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- RPG
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic opens with a new destiny at the helm, where the unnamed player protagonist can begin their journey in the galaxy far, far away as someone of extraordinary potential. Teaming with the Jedi Bastila Shan, the protagonist finds themselves on a galaxy-spanning adventure against the rule of the Sith, all while their own sensitivity with the Force grows.
The protagonist is strong in the Force, and this strength becomes fearful to the Jedi, especially when it's revealed that the reason the protagonist is so strong is due to their memories being erased to hide who they truly were. It turns out that the protagonist is the evil Sith Lord, Darth Revan. With memories reclaimed, will Revan stay on the path of the Light, or return to the Dark to reclaim their evil throne and rule the Sith?
The Last of Us Part 2
Ellie's Revenge Odyssey Shows the Brutal Cycle of Pain and Violence
The Last of Us Part 2
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 93 /100 Critics Rec: 95%
- Released
- June 19, 2020
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Use of Drugs
- Developer(s)
- Naughty Dog
- Publisher(s)
- Sony
WHERE TO PLAY
While you may be the hero in your own story, The Last of Us Part 2 presents the idea that you might be the villain in someone else's. After Joel killed the Fireflies and rescued Ellie on the operating table, their relationship was fractured, and any attempts to fix it were cut short when Joel was murdered by Abby and her allies to avenge her father, the doctor whom Joel killed years ago.
Consumed by revenge, Ellie ventures to Seattle and kills anyone in her path, with her main targets being those who helped in the murder of Joel. While Ellie's task is one she sees as absolutely necessary, she fails to realise the consequences and grief until it's too late. All this murder won't bring Joel back, nor will it give closure to the fact that he's gone, but it will make her a villain in the story of so many others, just as Abby is the villain in her own story.
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain
Venom Snake is Big Boss' Secret Double, Building a Grand Army of Soldiers
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 93 /100 Critics Rec: 99%
- Released
- September 1, 2015
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Kojima Productions
- Publisher(s)
- Konami
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Action, Open-World
It's been clear since the original Metal Gear that Big Boss isn't a good guy, and in fact, he's a villain who's been fleshed out across decades of additional games. However, some players might not realise the consequences of their villainy until it's too late, and that comes to pass during the events of Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain.
Venom Snake continues to build a private army with a country of soldiers without borders, to the point where he even introduces child soldiers into the mix. The twist at the end reveals that Venom Snake isn't even Big Boss, but a proxy that's been surgically and emotionally altered to act, talk, look, and think like the main man himself. Knowing this truth, Venom continues on as Big Boss's body double, refusing to look for a more peaceful outcome, but instead, to accept the inevitable constant of war that's to come.
Fallout 4
The Sole Survivor is Forced to Join a Faction That Controls the Commonwealth
Fallout 4
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 87 /100 Critics Rec: 89%
WHERE TO PLAY
Fallout 4 shows a unique side of evil in humanity from the start, especially since the Sole Survivor is subjected to the horrors of Vault-Tec by becoming frozen for 210 years to find that the pre-war home they knew, and the family they had, is all gone. When the Sole Survivor tries to integrate back into what's left of humanity, they find themselves torn between factions and their constant battles, proving that war never changes.
The Sole Survivor is left with a choice that will forever fracture the Commonwealth, and it proves that it's hard to be a hero when the world has forgotten what those look like. The Brotherhood of Steel, the Institute, the Minutemen, and the Railroad are all factions that demand control of the Commonwealth, but none can be all-powerful and all good, and the Sole Survivor is forced to make a decision that might not benefit them or the remnants of society.
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BioShock Infinite
Booker is Revealed as an Alternate Version of Comstock
BioShock Infinite
- Released
- March 26, 2013
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language, Mild Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco
- Developer(s)
- Irrational Games
- Publisher(s)
- 2K
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 3
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Shooter
Throughout BioShock Infinite, it's made rather clear that Booker DeWitt has his fair share of flaws. The entire job to find Elizabeth in the floating city of Columbia is one that Booker took out of desperation, but it's that same spiralling desperation and violence across Columbia that helps the two characters uncover the truth, and the steps needed to prevent the cycle from looping.
Booker is revealed to be an alternate version of Comstock, the antagonist of BioShock Infinite, who helped to build the floating city of Columbia. Comstock, being a religious zealot who creates a utopia, only to see it fall into corruption, is a constant across the multiverse, so will Booker help break the cycle in sacrifice, or let it loop?
Spec Ops: The Line
Walker's Atrocities Are Confronted Through His Guilt-Riddled Mind
Spec Ops: The Line
- Released
- June 26, 2012
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Yager Development
- Publisher(s)
- 2K Games
- Engine
- havok, unreal engine 3
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter
Captain Martin Walker is exposed to the horrors of war during his campaign through Dubai, where a reconnaissance mission spirals out of control. With tense alliances, the scorching sun, and hostilities seemingly at every turn, it's inevitable that the thin line that keeps Walker's humanity intact snaps, and he's forced to confront the atrocities of war he's responsible for.
Walker's attempts at being a good soldier are the catalyst for his own downfall. War can make good men do terrible things, and Walker's no exception to that philosophy, as it's made rather clear to the player and to the protagonist that his atrocities will be unveiled, but when confronted with the truth, what will he do now?
InFAMOUS
Kessler is a Future Version of Cole MacGrath
- Released
- May 26, 2009
- ESRB
- T For Teen // Blood, Drug Reference, Language, Mild Suggestive Themes, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Sucker Punch
- Publisher(s)
- Sucker Punch
- Franchise
- Infamous
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure, Open-World
Kessler came from a future in Empire City, where he had everything. A loving wife, two daughters, and a set of powers that made him and his family safe. However, everything changed when The Beast destroyed Empire City, forcing Kessler to channel his grief to teleport back in time to accelerate the events that gave him his powers so that the younger version of himself, Cole MacGrath, would have the powers he needed to stop The Beast when the time came.
Fueled by grief, Kessler committed unspeakable acts of terrorism through the destruction of Empire City and the death of countless human lives. Kessler disrupted his own future in a desperate effort to give his past self the strength he would need, revealing to Cole that they are the same person. Even if Cole chooses a path of good or bad for his future, he has to live with the fact that a version of him from a future that will never happen is directly responsible for the man he is today.
Dark Souls 3
The Ashen One is a Pawn in a Game of Hollows, Gods, and Monsters
Dark Souls 3
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 90 /100 Critics Rec: 94%
- Released
- March 24, 2016
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood Violence
- Developer(s)
- From Software
- Publisher(s)
- Bandai Namco Entertainment, From Software
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG
All Dark Souls games can technically be considered ones where the protagonist is not exactly the hero. Whether Hollowed or an Ashen One, the cycle is the same: the world is dying, and the Age of Fire needs to be redeemed or snuffed out to repeat the constant loop of suffering, and to let the world breathe a little longer before darkness consumes once more.
However, Dark Souls 3 is a tad more interesting in its concepts, for choice is alluded to in a multitude of endings. The Ashen One can fight through the kingdom of Lothric to restore the fire, to let it die out, or to bring about the age of Hollows. Whether it's manipulated into a new destiny or to fulfill a prophecy with guided hands, it's hard to look at the protagonist's journey as a heroic one, where you play as a pawn in a game of Gods.
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