Summary
Many people expect modern video games to have amazing and memorable narratives that are a joy to uncover. After all, gaming has evolved from its early days of having simple gameplay loops without any clear objective in mind. Many modern AAA games are so determined to allow players to do everything in their video games that simply having a main story isn’t enough. Players also want side stories and complex character arcs to complement the experience as well.
Given how complex video game development is, it’s always possible that certain story arcs that are set up in video games never really reach any sort of a natural conclusion, being discarded in favor of other plot developments instead. The most notable instances of this are mentioned below.
Updated on July 09, 2025 by Ritwik Mitra:Video games have evolved from simplistic gameplay loops to featuring massive worlds, amazing stories, numerous plotlines, and everything in between. In fact, some games have so many storylines that it can be hard to keep track of them for both players and developers alike. This leads to some plotlines that are built up to be as major as can be, only for later events or titles to completely drop any mention of these stories. This can range from understandable to disappointing and everything in between.
Yakuza 4was the first game in the series to introduce multiple protagonists, making the narrative more engaging than ever before. One of the characters introduced in the story is an up-and-coming cop named Tanimura who uncovers some major corruption happening in the police department, with the very top of the brass stinking.
In the game’s amazing finale sequence, a total of four boss fights occur in quick succession, with Tanimura enjoying the best for last. Given the importance this character was given, it’s a shame that he’s never made an appearance in futureYakuzagames. The argument that getting the actor’s license for future games was expensive makes sense, but this is harder to swallow after seeing the protagonist ofJudgmentreturn for a future installment despite being a well-established actor himself.
God of Warwas a strong title on the PS2 that became a huge hit in no time. The Spartan may have calmed down in recent installments, but witnessing his angry persona as he hunts down Ares for the way he manipulated Kratos into killing his wife and child is quite satisfying. Players who went the extra mile to unlock the secret ending uncovered a unique piece of information.
This secret message reveals that Kratos has plans for Ares' soul, which he has kept in a hidden chamber. Players expecting something to crop up regarding this fact in later games were disappointed to see that this wasn’t the case at all.
Tyrannyis easily one of the best-written modern CRPGs that players can have a great time with, making it all the more disappointing that the title never got the ending it deserved. Budgetary restrictions led to the title ending just before getting into the meat of the conflict, meaning that no one ever found out what Kyros, the overlord and the game’s major antagonist, even looked like.
A lot of plotlines were either hastily wrapped up in the epilogue or barely addressed, which is pretty disappointing for obvious reasons. It’s a tepid ending to a CRPG that is amazing to enjoy right until that point, and players can’t help but wonder how much fun this game would be if it was given the means to achieve its fullest potential.
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhoodis a great game that builds up on the success of the second mainline entry in the series. It’s a fun title to play through, withEzio’s character being as engaging as ever. However, one particular plot point in the game that’s never really brought up later is a message Subject 16 gives to Desmond in the real world.
This appears in a hidden scene, with Desmond being asked to find Eve, the first woman, since her bloodline is apparently going to be really important to decide the fate of the world. With this in mind, fans were pretty aggrieved to find out that this arc was never picked up in later games, which makes the infamous real-world segments ofAssassin’s Creedeven harder to sit through.
Harley Quinn isone of the most popular villains of all time, with her partnership with the Joker being pretty engaging to witness in theArkhamseries. However, in the second game, this romance is cut short when the Joker breathes his last, leaving her consumed by obsession and grief, but with hope.
In the game, players can find a hidden detail with a positive pregnancy test on Harley Quinn’s table. However, instead of building on this, the arc was promptly discarded in theHarley Quinn’s RevengeDLC, with Rocksteady backing out of this story and labeling the pregnancy test as a false positive.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrimisone of the biggest video games of all time, with the world being absolutely loaded with content that will keep players invested for hundreds of hours, if not more. In fact, this game is so massive that a decent amount of content has been cut out of the title as well.
One of the characters in the game, Mjoll, is on a mission to remove corruption from the city of Riften. While this would’ve made for a great tale for the Dragonborn to explore, this expansive side quest was cut out of the game to save development time.
Final Fantasy 7is a legendary JRPG with some really twisted happenings in the mix. One character who personifies the eerie side of this game brilliantly is Professor Hojo, a deranged maniac who experiments on live subjects and creates horrible monstrosities. Even his own body isn’t off-limits.
At one point, Tifa asks Red XIII if he would be fine, given that anyone experimented on by Hojo slowly loses their sanity over time. This plotline is never brought up, leading to Red XIII being pretty underdeveloped when compared to some of the other party members in the game.
Heavy Rainwas a massive success for Quantic Dream, with players getting heavily invested inEthan’s quest to save his son from the Origami Killer. Early on in the game, Ethan experiences several blackouts, which ultimately leads to Shawn being kidnapped.
However, these blackouts are removed in the final half of the story and never really explained. One possible explanation was that these blackouts were being triggered because of a psychic connection between the Origami Killer and Ethan, but this idea was scrapped since it ruined the realism of the game.
Kiryu Kazuma is one of the greatest video game characters of all time, andthe second game in theYakuzaserieslets him interact with a potential love interest. This romance blossoms into something real, with Kiryu and Kaoru sharing an intimate kiss moments before their assumed demise, only for the bomb that was threatening their lives to never go off.
While they share a powerful moment, Kaoru ends up going away to fulfill her duties as an enforcer of the law. She never really does anything of note after that, which makes for a pretty disappointing conclusion to what could’ve been a great romance.
Mass Effect 2is one of the greatest action RPGs ever made, with players getting the opportunity to expand their squad by helping out several possible recruits. One of these characters is fan-favorite Tali’Zorah nar Rayya, who is one of the most compelling characters in the series.
Tali mentions a star that is losing energy at a rapid pace because of dark energy, which is certainly quite sinister and was even meant to serve as a major source of motivation for the Reapers totake over the universe in the sequel. However, many key figures in BioWare departed, and the motivations of the Reapers were altered significantly in subsequent games.
