History HeroicSacrifice / VideoGames

* ''VideoGame/TransformersFallOfCybertron'' in the biggest way at the end of one late chapter, Metroplex sacrifices all his remaining energon to allow the Ark to launch. He falls to his knees as the ship launches, and falls over unconscious/dead as it blasts away.

*** After all of the other Guardians have been defeated by a Demon Tide in the Keyblade Graveyard, Sora breaks down completely. In order to motivate him to keep going and save the rest of their friends from certain doom, Riku faces against the Demon Tide in [[TheLastDance a last stand]], [[SelfDestructiveCharge defending Sora from the darkness for a few more moments]] before both of them are swallowed up by it as well. Sora's conversation with the Nameless Star in the Final World more or less confirms that while Kairi is the reason Sora retains his body, Riku's sacrifice against the Demon Tide is the reason his heart survived and [[InspirationalMartyr kept him from losing all hope]] (a point that is made clearer in the [[LostinTranslation original Japanese dialogue]]).

** Xion. True, she doesn't technically "die", but sacrificing your independent existence and any record of your existence in order to wake up the MessianicArchetype has to qualify.
** ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'': Ventus does this when he kills his EvilCounterpart Vanitas.]]
** At the end of ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII'', Sora sacrifices himself to save Kairi ''again'' after she's killed by Xehanort by using the power of waking to revive her despite being warned of the dangers, and is seen fading away after doing so.

** In the backstory of Lon'qu, his FirstLove Ke'ri pulled one to save him from being murdered by bandits. This is the reason for his [[CannotTalkToWomen gynophobia\\: he believes that [[CartwrightCurse if a girl approaches him, she will die]].
** Gregor's backstory includes one where his older brother ([[MeaningfulRename and the actual Gregor died rescuing him from bandits.]]

** In ''VideoGame/SonicFrontiers'', Sage sacrifices herself to prevent [[BigBad The End]] from destroying the world out of spite, much to Doctor Eggman's despair as [[MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter he treated her like a daughter]]. Fortunately in TheStinger of the GoldenEnding, [[DisneyDeath he rescues Sage as a backup program on his computer]].

* ''VideoGame/NoUmbrellasAllowed'': In [[MultipleEndings two of the better endings]], Prof. Choi risks his life to successfully infiltrate CARI and pour the antidote for [[EmotionSuppression Fixer]] all over Ajik City, curing everyone and protecting them from the drug. He then gets arrested and Fixed by AVAC for all his trouble, with his death to its side effects imminent.

{{Heroic Sacrifice}}s in VideoGames.

** When the team [[GoThroughMe tries to shield Ioti from Furcifume's ultimate attack]], Ioti chooses to sacrifice herself by jumping into the line of fire, knowing Furcifume will ignore her teammates if she gives herself up. [[spoiler:[[MessianicArchetype This selfless act revives her in her awakened form]], putting her on even footing with Furcifume.]]
* In ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar'', [[spoiler:Chopper dies crashing his aircraft into the middle of a stadium in order to protect civilians. To be more specific, Chopper's plane was mortally damaged by a missile strike. Rather than eject immediately and risk his out-of-control plane falling into a populated area of the city, he chooses to wait until the football stadium below him has been successfully evacuated so he can let his plane fall into the field without causing collateral damage. The stadium is soon evacuated; however, by that time Chopper's plane's condition has deteriorated so much that his electronics systems, and by extension his ejection seat, won't work, so he goes down with the plane.]]
* At the end of the second ''VideoGame/AgeOfEmpiresIII'' campaign, [[spoiler:John Black]] realizes that the [[AncientConspiracy Circle of Ossus]] has allied with Russia to secretly bring in an army through Alaska and take over the New World colonies, while [[UsefulNotes/SevenYearsWar the British and the French are busy fighting one another]]. Furthermore, he knows that [[spoiler:the Circle will never stop hounding his family in search of the FountainOfYouth]]. With the help of some miners, he collapses the rock bridges, forcing the Russian army to go through the canyons and then plants gunpowder charges to bury the army under an avalanche. He is confronted by the Circle's leader and makes a split-second decision to detonate the charge right next to him, killing the leader and defeating the army, but also dying in the process.
* In ''VideoGame/AlanWake'', [[spoiler:Alan has to remain in the darkness beneath Cauldron Lake to save Alice and the town of Bright Falls, as a straight HappilyEverAfter would [[NarrativeCausality break the internal logic of the story]] -- it's a dark horror story in which victory cannot come without great loss and sacrifice. The DLC concerns his escape from this sacrifice.]]
* ''VideoGame/AmazonGuardiansOfEden'': [[spoiler:Allen]] gets shot and falls down a waterfall while trying to protect [[spoiler:Jason and Maya]] from Sanchez's death squad.

** The first is [[spoiler:Yasha]], who chooses to [[spoiler:give Asura his own Mantra Reactor so he can unlock the full potential of his Wrath Mantra affinity, allowing him to stand up to Chakravartin.]] Doing so guarantees his death when his own reserves of Mantra run out.
** In the final chapter, [[spoiler:Asura]] has defeated [[spoiler:Chakravartin]], and is poised to deliver the killing blow. He is interrupted by [[spoiler:his daughter Mithra]], who begs him to spare [[spoiler:Chakravartin, because if he dies, then the Mantra will be gone and Asura will die as well]]. After considering her warning, [[spoiler:he replies that "But you will survive." and finishes Chakravartin off. Asura dies a few moments later, after telling his daughter to not cry for him, as he is at peace and his titular wrath has finally gone]].
* In ''VideoGame/BatenKaitos Origins'', [[spoiler:Sir Rambari leaps in front of a blade to save Ladekahn from Shanath.]]
** In the final cutscene, [[spoiler:a berserk machina seizes Sagi and crushes his heart. Milly prepares to give herself to Tarazed to release him, but Guillo dashes into the machina before she can.]]
* In ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamKnight'', [[spoiler: Poison Ivy sacrifices her life force to transfer power to her plants to combat Scarecrow's fear toxin that had just engulfed Gotham City. She utters her last words 'Nature always wins' as her body disintegrates in Batman's arms.]].

** In [[VideoGame/BioShock1 the first game]], [[spoiler:provided you go for the good ending, Jack ends up heavily mutilating himself (including ''tearing out his own vocal cords'') in order to defeat Fontaine and liberate the Little Sisters.]]
** In ''VideoGame/BioShock2'', [[spoiler:after being mortally wounded by [[BigBad Sofia Lamb]], Subject Delta uses the last of his strength to save his daughter from a literal ''army'' of Splicers.]]
** In ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite'', [[spoiler:Booker realizes that the BigBad is in fact [[FutureMeScaresMe himself from an alternate future]] where he turned into a fanatical KnightTemplar following his baptism. He realizes that the only way to destroy the BigBad for good is to allow himself to die during said baptism, and he does so. However, TheStinger suggests that there's at least one universe where Booker survives, never becomes Comstock, and is able to live happily with his daughter Anna (who never becomes Elizabeth).]]
*** [[spoiler:Elizabeth herself, or rather the Elizabeths from the mulitiverse drowned Booker despite knowing that they'll be erased from existence.]]

** In the True Ending of ''VideoGame/BlazBlueContinuumShift'', Lambda [[spoiler:performs one to save Ragna from getting killed by Terumi and mentions that Nu was never lonely and will always be by Ragna's side, and Ragna apologizes for the way he treated Nu. Lambda dies in Ragna's arms and [[GoOutWithASmile Goes Out with a Smile]], in the process giving her power to Ragna, which allows him to engage Lambda's Idea Engine and unleash the true power of the Azure, which he uses to defeat Terumi, but spare him for that moment as he afterwards goes to save Noel from her current world-hating state as Mu]].
** Not to mention in the story mode, Jubei is very grateful towards Bloodedge, who sacrificed himself to the Black Beast during the Dark War to buy a year's worth of time for the 6 heroes to defeat it. Bloodedge is actually [[spoiler:the protagonist Ragna, who time traveled to the past]].

** In the very final ending of ''Central Fiction'' and the franchise, [[spoiler:Ragna uses his final moments to stop all the villains, kill Terumi for good this time, kill Izanami, and then '''use Soul Eater on every single human in the world''', [[DontFearTheReaper living up to his "Grim Reaper" moniker]]. After a final farewell to his siblings Noel and Jin, [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence he becomes the new core of Amaterasu]] and [[{{Retgone}} erases himself and all memory of him from existence]]. Poignantly, Ragna saved all of reality itself from destruction and nobody even remembers his sacrifice and they never will.]]

* In ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyModernWarfare3'', [[spoiler:Soap realizes that playable character Yuri once knew their target, Makarov, right as the building they are in explodes. Despite Soap's new knowledge, that ''still'' [[LeaveNoManBehind doesn't stop him from pushing Yuri out of the building]] before they would have been killed. In doing so, Soap reopens his stab wound from the end of ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyModernWarfare2'', but that doesn't stop him from [[HandicappedBadass continuing to fight Makarov's men]]. As the mission progresses, he gets progressively weaker, and eventually [[TearJerker dies]], but with his last breath, tells [[TheStoic Captain Price]] about Yuri's connection to Makarov. Captain Price [[BerserkButton doesn't take this lightly]]. Yuri does vow to stand by Price and take down Makarov, however.]]
** Just a few levels later, in Down the Rabbit Hole, [[spoiler:Team Metal has a mass Heroic Sacrifice in the lower levels of the mine when they find themselves severely outgunned and with RPG fire closing in on the chopper evacuating President Vorschevsky]]. Their actions to defend the leader of the country ''that attacked and completely wrecked the Eastern Seaboard'' are what spur on peace talks between all the warring parties, stopping World War III in its tracks.
** The very next (and last) level, Dust to Dust, has Yuri [[spoiler:keep his word to Price regarding taking out Makarov. After being impaled on a section of rebar, Yuri still manages to attack Makarov. Despite being fatally shot by Makarov for his trouble, he still manages to make enough of a distraction for Price to go in for the kill.]]
* After [[spoiler:using the Dominus Glyph Union]] to seal away Dracula in ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaOrderOfEcclesia'', [[spoiler:Albus]] gives up his soul to save Shanoa, [[spoiler:who he had secretly loved all this time.]]
* Midway through ''VideoGame/CaveStory'', the protagonist and the GuestStarPartyMember Curly Brace are trapped in a flooded room. Curly gives up her air tank, drowning in the protagonist's place. [[spoiler:If you're on-track for the good ending, it's possible to strap her to your back, carry her out, and save her life.]]

** Subverted with Ruth and Gwen, [[spoiler:who faked their deaths while stopping Morgoth's Eye of Destruction]].
** This is played straight with Silnastra [[spoiler:aka Lissandra, who gives her life to stabilize the Eye of Destruction, preventing the continent of Belume from crashing into the planet below]].
* In ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'', [[spoiler:Crono sacrifices his body, if not his spirit, to protect his friends from Lavos in the Ocean Palace.]]
* ''VideoGame/ConvictionSRPG'':

* The end of ''VideoGame/CryptOfTheNecrodancer'' involves [[spoiler:Aria destroying the Golden Lute to make sure no traveler comes across its dangerous powers and gets corrupted into another Necrodancer. However, the Lute's powers were the only thing keeping Aria alive, and she knew this. In the end, she [[GoOutWithASmile Goes Out With A Smile]] knowing she's put an end to the Lute's evil.]]
* In ''VideoGame/DarkestDungeon'', pulling out from a Darkest difficulty mission will have one party member (if there is more than one) stay behind to fend off the monsters to ensure the others can escape, resulting in their off-screen death. A Fearful Man-at-Arms will also plead with the enemy for the rest of his allies lives in exchange for his own. In the final battle, [[spoiler:two characters will give up their lives for Come Unto Your Maker. While most are more than willing either out of heroism or [[DeathSeeker they wish to be granted death]], [[AintTooProudToBeg others will instead plead with the Heir]].]]

** If you follow Siegmeyer of Catarina's sidequest, he will eventually do this for you, and jump into a pit full of Chaos Eaters to distract them and allow you to get to safety. Of course, you can stick around and help him, ensuring his survival. [[spoiler:But he'll go Hollow if you do, because you just ''had'' to keep helping him by showing off your superior skill and making him lose all faith in himself. YouBastard.]]

** [[spoiler:Ogura and Moe's dad (he'll try to hamper your progress in World 8 towards Evil) both sacrifice themselves in a heel–face turn against their boss, Evil.]]
* In ''VideoGame/DieReiseInsAll'', the hero Von Mackwitz has one, when [[spoiler:he gave his friends some time escaping from the exploding martian spaceship]].
** [[spoiler:In fact, he hasn't. The game makes the player think that Mackwitz died to save his friends, even getting some parade. It's then revealed that he survived (the player will play this part then), and was just late for the parade.]]
* This is a [[HisStoryRepeatsItself recurring theme]] with Laharl in ''VideoGame/DisgaeaHourOfDarkness''. His mother sacrificed her life to save him from an incurable illness ([[spoiler:condemning herself to become a Prinny and eventually reincarnate]]). Flonne lets herself be turned into a flower to spare him from Seraph Lamington's wrath. He attempts to sacrifice himself to restore Flonne (and actually goes through with it in one of the endings). This even carries over to [[VideoGame/DisgaeaD2ABrighterDarkness the sequel]], where his little sister Sicily tries to sacrifice herself for him in a manner similar to that of their mother (and when she goes through with it in one of the endings, he crosses the DespairEventHorizon).

* ''VideoGame/DivinityOriginalSinII'': The [[MultipleEndings best ending]] for [[TheNeedsOfTheMany the world as a whole]] is to purge the world of [[SoulPower Source]], which [[SealedEvilInACan seals away the Voidwoken]] for good but reduces the PlayerCharacter and their companions to {{Empty Shell}}s. [[spoiler:{{Subverted|Trope}} if the AloofAlly Malady survives to the end, since she can restore their minds, if not their powers. Some Companions are then a bit bitter towards the PC for choosing that path for them.]]
* In the endgame of ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'', the [=PCs=] learn that [[spoiler:the only way to defeat the [[BigBad archdemon]] is for a Grey Warden to kill it and sacrifice his or her own life in the process. As there are a grand total of three Grey Wardens in the country of Ferelden, this means that either Alistair, the PC, or Loghain must die]]. An [[TakeAThirdOption alternative]] is offered by one of the other party members, but may or may not be worse than the other options.
** Sometimes there are still only two options, [[spoiler:and by the time you realize that, it's already too late. If you don't take the third option and keep Alistair, that leaves the choice of the main character sacrificing him or herself or sacrificing Alistair to kill the Archdemon. If playing a female who romances Alistair and your relationship survives to the end, [[TearJerker he makes the decision for you]].]]

** In the human noble origin, Ser Gilmore, high-ranking knight in the employment of your family, stays behind to hold the castle gates against [[spoiler:Arl Howe's men]], even though he knows that it won't keep them out forever and that staying behind means certain death. He willingly goes to this fate to buy his lords time to escape.

* In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'', [[spoiler:either [[PreviousPlayerCharacterCameo Hawke]] or the Warden ally (Alistair, Loghain, or Stroud) has to stay behind to hold off a demon in the Fade.]] [[SadisticChoice You get to choose who.]]
** The trope can also be seen earlier during [[spoiler:the sacking of Haven]]. Upon learning that the Elder One is attacking the settlement specifically because he wants them, the Inquisitor may say that they are willing to surrender if it will save the rest of the people. [[spoiler:They then act upon this, whether that dialogue option is chosen or not, by remaining behind to HoldTheLine while the rest of their allies escape. The trope is then averted because they actually survive.]]

** ''VideoGame/DragonQuestV'': [[spoiler:Pankraz]] lets himself be killed by [[TheDragon Ladja]]'s goons to save his son's life, whom Ladja is holding hostage.

** A more traditional example in ''VideoGame/DragonQuestXI'', when [[spoiler:Veronica sacrifices herself to let everyone else have another chance at beating Mordegon]].

* In the first two routes of ''VideoGame/DuelSaviorDestiny'' [[spoiler:Selbium]] pulls one of these in order to help save the day. The next two routes switch him for [[spoiler:Princess Crea]], though apparently [[spoiler:she was dying anyway]].
* ''VideoGame/DyztopiaPostHumanRPG'': At the end of Chapter 2, [[spoiler:Crow, Edgar, Chase, or Kiyota will stay behind in the exploding mines to start the mine cart that lets everyone else escape]]. This outcome depends on whose link level is the lowest, though the game will choose them in the stated order in case of a tie.

*** In the conclusion of the main quest, [[spoiler:[[HiddenBackupPrince Martin Septim]], the [[PlayerCharacter Champion of Cyrodiil]], and the [[PraetorianGuard Blades]] fail to [[BarrierMaiden reignite the Dragonfires]] in time. [[BigBad Mehrunes Dagon]] is able to enter Mundus at full power, leading to the world being on the verge of HellOnEarth. However, Martin breaks the [[MacGuffin Amulet of Kings]] and turns himself into an avatar of Akataosh, the draconic God of Time and TopGod of the [[SaintlyChurch Imperial Pantheon]]. The two divine entities do battle, and Akatosh is able to banish Dagon from Mundus. However, this costs Martin his life and sets the Empire on a path to becoming [[VestigialEmpire vestigial]] in the years that follow]]...
*** At the end of the Mage's Guild questline, [[spoiler:Hannibal Traven]], TheArchmage, [[spoiler:enacts a ThanatosGambit by trapping his own soul in a [[SoulJar black soul gem]] to allow you to confront [[EvilSorcerer Mannimarco]] without being turned into one of his thralls]].

* In ''VideoGame/EnslavedOdysseyToTheWest'', after you defeat the final boss, [[spoiler:Pigsy volunteered to stay behind in the Leviathan during the self destruct countdown and died with the rest of the enemies in the explosion in order to pave the way for Monkey and Trip to reach Pyramid]].

* In ''VideoGame/EverOasis'', in the player’s final battle with Chaos in the Chaos Void, Esna sacrifices herself by turning herself into rain to purify him, making sure that he disappears and is unable to wreak havoc in the desert ever again.
* ''VideoGame/FableII''. Taking a page from ''Film/StarTrekIITheWrathOfKhan'', you can choose the needs of the many, the needs of the few, or the needs of the one (which is no sacrifice at all). The Needs of the Many is particularly sacrificial in that [[spoiler:you lose your family, dog, and everyone you love so that the rest of the city can live, happy and prosperous.]]
* At least two cases of it in ''VideoGame/Fallout3''. [[spoiler:The player's father gets one first, when he sacrifices himself to protect Project Purity by sealing the control room and flooding it with radiation while inside. The player (if they take the good karma route) sacrifices him/herself to activate Project Purity (the control room for which is still flooded with radiation, from the father's sacrifice).]]
** Alternatively, [[spoiler:Sarah Lyons sacrifices herself in your place]].

** [[spoiler:You can also go in yourself and survive in Broken Steel; you wake up 2 weeks later, back at the Citadel.]]
* In ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'', [[spoiler:near the end of Lostbelt 7, Tepeu sacrifices himself against ORT in order to give the heroes a fighting chance against it. This is represented in the Lostbelt's map by ORT's purple break bar being broken.]]

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyII'' has three separate Heroic Sacrifices. Josef holds off a falling boulder so the others can escape, Minwu gives his life to unseal the Ultima magic, and Ricard pulls a one-man YouShallNotPass against [[spoiler:the resurrected Emperor]].

** Galuf of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV''. [[spoiler:He fights Exdeath, going waaaay beyond unconsciousness, at ''0 HP'', using the power of his love for the party and his granddaughter to protect them. The team tries to revive him, but fails. A poignant scene.]]
*** And Gilgamesh, similarly, [[spoiler:by ''breaking the damage cap'' to allow the heroes to finish Necrophobe.]]
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'', [[spoiler:Shadow]] [[BigDamnHeroes shows up at the last second]] to buy the party enough time to escape the FloatingContinent. If you [[NoOneGetsLeftBehind wait for him at the airship,]] he'll show up and escape with you right before the whole place is destroyed, but if you leave before that point, he gets KilledOffForReal, making it a true HeroicSacrifice.

** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'', it quite soon becomes pretty obvious to the player that [[spoiler:this is what Yuna's quest is all about. The main player character Tidus, never has the slightest clue until someone finally manages to speak out the terrible truth aloud.]]
*** The above case is ultimately avoided when [[spoiler:Yuna learns that her sacrifice would not permanently destroy Sin and would in fact provide it with the means for its eventual return.]] However, [[spoiler:Tidus ends up having to be the one to make the sacrifice when it's revealed that he's a dream projected by the Fayth, and that permanently destroying Sin will involve ending the dream, and his existence along with it.]]
*** The above two cases serve as a [[DeconstructedTrope deconstruction]] and a [[{{Reconstructed}} reconstruction]] respectively; [[spoiler: Yuna's sacrifice was going to be a SenselessSacrifice due to Sin [[JokerImmunity always returning]], and what's more is that her sacrifice was just one in a millennia-long cycle of death enacted by the [[GodIsEvil God]] of Spira. Tidus' sacrifice, however, comes outside of this circle of death and is done specifically so that it won't continue. Not to mention that Tidus makes this choice of his own volition, deciding to sacrifice himself rather than just walk away, whereas Yuna's sacrifice was in part motivated by her trying to live up to her father's legacy.]]
*** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' defies this, with Yuna rejecting a plan to [[spoiler:destroy Vegnagun that involves this trope. Having seen her loved ones die in order to bring about the Eternal Calm, she aims for a solution where nobody has to die in order for peace to be achieved. [[EverybodyLives Which is exactly what happens.]] Even better, should you achieve the GoldenEnding, she ends up ''bringing Tidus back''.]]
** The existence of this trope is [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' by Balthier, prior to the late-game Pharos dungeon. [[spoiler:There is indeed a HeroicSacrifice, but it's performed by Reddas.]]

** At the end of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'', [[spoiler:Fang and Vanille become Ragnarok and save Cocoon from falling, creating a large crystal pillar that holds it up. In the process, they go inside the pillar and turn to crystal themselves.]]

*** In the "Answers" cutscene that sets up ''A Realm Reborn'', [[spoiler:Louisoix Leveilleur sacrifices himself to save Eorzea from Primal Bahamut's rampage.]]
*** In ''A Realm Reborn'', [[spoiler:Moenbryda Wilfsunnwyn sacrifices herself to slay the Ascian Nabriales when the Warrior of Light doesn't have the power. Also doubles as a TakingYouWithMe since Moenbryda was wounded by Nabriales earlier.]]
*** In ''Heavensward'', [[spoiler:Haurchefant Greystone dies defending the Warrior of Light from a sneak attack by one of the Primaled members of the Heaven's Ward. At the end of the expansion, Papalymo sacrifices himself to seal away Shinryu temporarily.]]
** Several characters sacrifice their lives in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV''. The prequel film ''Anime/KingsglaiveFinalFantasyXV'' has [[spoiler: King Regis stay behind to fight General Glauca so that Lunafreya and Nyx can escape. Later on, Nyx also sacrifices himself to allow Lunafreya to escape.]] In the game itself, [[spoiler: Lunafreya uses the last of her energy after summoning Leviathan and being stabbed by Ardyn to heal Noctis and protect him as the city crumbles around them.]] At the very end, [[spoiler:Noctis sacrifices himself in order to rid the world of Ardyn for good and to put an end to the eternal night that had fallen.]]

** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'', [[spoiler:Marach]], after realizing that [[spoiler:his sister Rapha]] was right about [[spoiler:Barrington being the one who [[YouKilledMyFather killed their parents and (supposedly) raped her]], sacrifices himself [[TakingTheBullet taking the bullet]] [[HeelFaceTurn to save his sister.]] He doesn't stay dead, though, as Rapha uses one of the Zodiac Stones to bring him back to life.]]
** In ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy'', [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII Squall]] is performing a drawn-out, non-lethal variation: turns out his [[IWorkAlone standoff-ish "lone wolf" persona]] [[HiddenHeartOfGold is a facade]], and he really does care about his comrades in arms; he just thinks he'll be better able to protect them by acting alone, deliberately drawing the villains to attack him so his friends won't have to deal with them. Don't worry, he can handle it. When Ultimecia and Garland ambush and double-team him, he's ''happy'', as he explains that he'll be able to make things easier for his friends if he [[TakingYouWithMe brings one of them down with him]] -- thankfully, [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX Zidane]] arrives just in the nick of time to give him backup before he can pull off a real one. Also, in the prequel ''Duodecim'', [[spoiler:all the new Duodecim heroes -- Lighting, Kain, Yuna, Tifa, Laguna, and Vaan -- [[KilledOffForReal die permanently]] in a BolivianArmyEnding to seal away most of the Manikins and give the other heroes a better chance]].
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyDimensions'', AloofAlly [[spoiler:Vata of the Wind]] absorbs the intangible Dark Flow so that it will have a physical form that the Warriors of Light and Darkness can fight. It's definitely a PainfulTransformation, with his battle sprite grimacing in agony as his body is half-consumed by dark flames. He takes the time to confess his backstory to them before asking that they [[MercyKill end it quickly]], but in all likeliood, you will have to watch him be entirely overtaken.
* ''VideoGame/FindingLight'': During the quest to unseal Sylvanaras, [[spoiler:Vera gives the party the crystal she absorbed, but this causes her to die because her previous bonding with the crystal caused her life to be tied to it]].
* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn'', [[spoiler:Micaiah can [[TakeAThirdOption prevent Pelleas' death]] by [[TakingTheBullet throwing herself in front of him]] to protect him from the sword slash. A bit different from the usual situation since Pelleas is trying to pull a Heroic Sacrifice in the first place, and her reasoning has definite shades of [[MartyrWithoutACause Martyrdom Without A Cause]].]]
** [[spoiler:This is notable in that Pelleas's sacrifice is a SenselessSacrifice if he succeeds, as he was operating with incomplete information. The only thing his death is successful in bringing about is only more despair to the Daein chain of command, so it was a good thing that Micaiah can prevent his needless death.]]
** A rather odd example occurs at the end of Part I. [[spoiler:TheDragon Alder sacrifices himself to protect ArcVillain Jarod from the Black Knight, despite both of them otherwise being unrepentant scumbags. Micaiah lets Jarod go to honor his sacrifice, which royally bites her in the ass.]]
* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemShadowDragonAndTheBladeOfLight'', [[spoiler:Frey sacrifices himself as a decoy in order for Marth and company to escape. In the Easy version, this can be any of the Cavaliers, but in Hard mode, Frey is absent, making him the canonical sacrifice]].
** Subverted as of ''New Mystery of the Emblem'', [[spoiler:Frey was the canonical sacrifice, yes, but was beaten within an inch of his life and left for dead by Gra. He miraculously survived and eventually recovered from his wounds, though [[AcheyScars he was left with a particular scar that caused him recurrent pain]].]]
* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening'', there's an example that bleeds over with HeroicSuicide. [[spoiler:The BigBad and GodOfEvil, Grima, cannot be destroyed by the Exalted Falchion, nor can [[BigGood Naga]] herself do anything about it. The best they can do is seal him away for a thousand years. Grima can only meet his end by his own power -- that is, "Grima will die only if he is killed by Grima". However, the Avatar has the ability to kill Grima, because '''s/he IS Grima.''' Due to TimeTravel shenanigans, there's two Grimas at once in the same time period: the Avatar, who houses Grima's soul and was destined to become him (reluctantly), and the one from the BadFuture, who willingly became Grima. Because of this, Grima can be killed through LoopholeAbuse of those ExactWords. Because the Avatar ''wants'' to permanently put an end to the threat of Grima, s/he can opt to finish him off, saving everyone from his darkness for good. But killing Grima means [[CessationOfExistence erasing him/herself from existence]], as they share a connection and the death of one means the other's if done through his method. Furthermore, because they are the same being, this is in fact an act of suicide. Thus, an act that allows the Avatar and his/her friends to truly defeat the enemy, which results in his/her death, and also an attempt on his/her own life for the sake of his/her friends -- a simultaneous HeroicSacrifice and HeroicSuicide that only came about because of the TimeyWimeyBall. [[NiceJobFixingItVillain If it weren't for the future Grima travelling back in time, this wouldn't have been possible in the first place.]] To add insult to injury, if the player does opt to kill Grima, TheStinger reveals [[ThePowerOfFriendship the Avatar]] [[BackFromTheDead get]] [[EarnYourHappyEnding better.]]]]
** In the backstory of [[spoiler:Lon'qu]], [[spoiler:his FirstLove Ke'ri pulled one to save him from being murdered by bandits. This is the reason for his [[CannotTalkToWomen gynophobia]]: he believes that [[CartwrightCurse if a girl approaches him, she will die]].]]
** [[spoiler: Gregor]]'s backstory includes one where [[spoiler: his older brother ([[MeaningfulRename and the actual Gregor]] died rescuing him from bandits.]]

** In the backstory, [[spoiler: King Sumeragi of Hoshido and his family were attacked by King Garon of Nohr during a peace conference. Sumeragi tried to save the little Avatar from being either killed or kidnapped and ended up as a HumanPincushion, dying right there. Even worse, [[SenselessSacrifice while the Avatar survived, he or she was abducted by Garon]].]]
** In the present, [[spoiler: as the Avatar returns to Hoshido, their mother Mikoto pulls this as well: when the Avatar's CoolSword Ganglari is stolen by a mysterious attacker and used against him/her, she blocks the attack with her own body and [[DiedInYourArmsTonight dies in her child's arms]], accidentally triggering his/her TraumaticSuperpowerAwakening.]]
** In the ''Birthright'' route, [[spoiler: Princess Elise throws herself in between Prince Xander and the Avatar, getting fatally injured by Xander and dying in his arms. It's both this ''and'' a SenselessSacrifice: while the Avatar is saved, Xander plows through the DespairEventHorizon and insists on fighting him/her to the death, dying a few moments later.]]
** In the ''Conquest'' path, [[spoiler: Ryoma's {{seppuku}} is this and an HeroicSuicide, as he does so to keep the Avatar from Garon's SadisticChoice of killing him (Ryoma) or being killed.]]
** In the ''Hidden Truths'' DLC, which takes place sometime before the actual story begins, [[spoiler: Human Anankos (the Avatar's biological father) realizes that [[TrulySingleParent his sort-of daughter Lilith]] does ''not'' truly want to kill him in their fight, so when the Real Anankos intervenes, he sacrifices himself to save her and dies in her embrace. This prompts Lilith to go search for the Avatar and devote herself to him/her.]]
** In [[spoiler: Azura]]'s backstory, it's revealed that [[spoiler: her mother Arete (the aforementioned Mikoto's older sister) died like this. She was perfectly aware that no one from the Invisible Kingdom of Valla (like herself, Mikoto and Azura) should mention Valla itself outside its lands, or a curse would cause them to [[DisappearsIntoLight dissolve into water]]. She did it anyway, telling her very young daughter everything she knew about it ''when they both were in Nohr'', hoping that Azura would use said knowledge wisely later. [[TheWisePrince Which she did]].]]
** In the ''Heirs of Fate'' DLC, taking place in {{alternate universe}}s, [[spoiler: the fathers of the Second Generation characters (and mother, in the case of a Male Kana) did this when Anankos and his tropes invaded the Deeprealms.]]
* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses''[='=] Azure Moon route, [[spoiler:Rodrigue stops an AssassinationAttempt meant for Dimitri when the sister of an Imperial general Dimitri threatened to torture tries to stab him to death]].
* In ''VideoGame/ForeverHome'', the planet is doomed to become an uninhabitable wasteland due to the machinations of the Judgment Faction. [[spoiler:Despite multiple time loops, Xero is unable to prevent it, though in the final loop, he chooses to save Enda from falling to her death. This gives them the opportunity to travel back in time, have Enda turn them both into trees to TrickOutTime, and then exhaust all their power to revive the planet and all the people who died in the war.]]
* ''VideoGame/FreddyFazbearsPizzeriaSimulator'': [[spoiler:both Cassette Guy and the protagonist stay inside the fake pizzeria to ensure that all the animatronics burn up. It's specifically noted that the protagonist could have escaped but chose not to. Then again, it's hinted that said protagonist is Michael Afton, who along with Cassette Guy has a ''very'' vested interest in making sure the animatronics burn.]]

* A similar scenario happens with [[spoiler:Uncle Wolfgang]] in ''VideoGame/GabrielKnight 1''. If his sacrifice actually did what he thought it would, the heroes would have won right there and then.
** Played straight in the same game with [[spoiler:Malia Gedde, who in the good ending refuses to let Gabriel save her and sacrifices herself to ensure Tetelo can never influence anyone again]].
** ''The Sins of the Fathers'' features this in a BIG way, when [[spoiler:Wolfgang]] ''rips out'' his own heart to give the hero access to the PlotDevice.
* ''VideoGame/GameOfThronesTelltale'' has a few examples, most notably the sacrifice of [[spoiler:Rodrik or Asher in order to save the other, depending on the player's choice. Whoever is chosen to sacrifice themselves will [[LastStand attempt to kill as many of Lord Whitehill's men as possible in order to give the other the chance to escape, despite being hopelessly outnumbered and standing no chance of winning.]] Lord Ethan can also [[TakeMeInstead offer himself as a hostage for Ramsay Snow in the place of his sister Talia]], though sadly all this gets him is a blade through the throat.]]
* In ''VideoGame/GearsOfWar3'', during the chapter "Brothers To The End," Marcus, Dom, and their friends are trapped between an endless horde of Locust and an ever-expanding mass of Lambent. [[spoiler:Dom then sees a way out by detonating the huge fuel bowser they'd been filling up by crashing a truck into it, creating a massive explosion that wipes out both enemy armies.]]
** At the end of the game, [[spoiler:Adam Fenix reveals that he had been playing ProfessorGuineaPig on himself in order to develop his Lambent-killing weapon, knowing that it would also kill him when activated.]]

* Inverted in an interesting way in ''VideoGame/GodOfWarII''... at the end of [[spoiler:the fight with Zeus, when you are about to deliver the final blow, Athena rushes in and tries to defend him. Athena, the only god who showed any form of compassion to Kratos. Kratos overpowers her, and tries to stab Zeus -- but Athena takes the blow, and is killed. As she was doing it to save Olympus, this is probably the only heroic sacrifice for the sake of the enemy.]]
** Played straight in ''VideoGame/GodOfWarIII''. [[spoiler:Kratos impales himself on the Blade of Olympus to release Hope, undoing all of the damage he had inflicted on the world during his RoaringRampageOfRevenge against the gods. Kratos then dies for the last time, his final words being the names of his wife and daughter.]]
*** [[spoiler:...Maybe. TheStinger shows he might still be alive.]]

* An unintended parody occurs in ''VideoGame/GuildWars''. In the mission 'Ice Caves of Sorrow', [[spoiler:Sairdra]] rushes at the incoming Mursaat to delay them and give the party and [[spoiler:Evennia]] time to escape. However, the cutscene where she says she will do so, prepares for it, and the 'Let her sacrifice not be in vain'-speech takes roughly 1 minute. Only after all this can the player's party start running, while you can see [[spoiler:Sairdra]] attack and die in under 10 seconds. It takes [[TalkingIsAFreeAction some imagination]] to see this as a dramatic moment.

** [[spoiler:Sergeant Forge]] from ''VideoGame/HaloWars''. The UNSC officers devise a plan to destabilize the miniature star within the Dyson sphere world by converting their ship's faster-than-light drive into a bomb. The troops transport it to the elevator that would place it nearest to the star, but a group of Elites led by the Arbiter attack, and in the battle the bomb is damaged. The option of remotely detonating it gone, [[spoiler:Forge]] volunteers to stay behind with it so that Spartan-II Red Team escape, knowing that the UNSC will need all of the Spartans they can get.
** ''VideoGame/HaloReach'' has three: [[spoiler:Jorge staying behind to manually detonate a slipspace bomb, destroying a Covenant Supercarrier; Carter, flying a badly-damaged Pelican into a Scarab to clear a path for Six and Emile; and Noble Six, staying behind to man a mass driver and provide cover fire for the ''Pillar of Autumn'' to escape, and then [[LastStand being overrun by a swarm of Covenant]].]] Even the backstory for Noble Six being transferred in includes one, as one of the trailers for the game reveals that your predecessor dies planting a bomb on a Covenant ship when no one else could make it.
** ''VideoGame/Halo4'' has two back to back in the climax: after [[spoiler:defeating the Didact]], Master Chief finds himself with no other option but to [[spoiler:manually detonate a nuke in order to destroy the Composer and save Earth. His own sacrifice is actually averted, though, due to Cortana sacrificing herself to shield Master Chief from the detonation of the nuke and destruction of the Didact's ship.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheHeartPumpsClay'': [[spoiler:Bud, the golem]], moves to take a lightning strike in place of [[spoiler:Mara, that was sent from Crow]].

* The final mission of ''VideoGame/HostileWatersAntaeusRising'' consists simply of escorting the CoolShip, turned into a walking (well, floating) bomb, into the heart of the enemy installation. It seems to work, too. [[spoiler:Though the ending and TheStinger suggest otherwise.]]
* In the back-story for ''VideoGame/IcewindDale'', the hero sacrificed himself to close an open gate to hell, his blood somehow locking the gate. [[spoiler:The BigBad destroys this seal. The priest of the temple that was later built on the site then repeats the sacrifice, earning the heroes time to confront the BigBad.]]

* In ''VideoGame/IMissTheSunrise'', when [[spoiler:the ''Inquiry'' is being destroyed]], [[spoiler:Virgil]] stays behind and [[spoiler:uses the last available backup power]] to get Ros to safety.
** [[spoiler:Neff, Chac, Cassidy, Cole, and Ivoronus]] are shot down while fending off [[spoiler:the Lesser Horde]] in the optimist ending.
** [[UsefulNotes/SchrodingersCat Possibly]] [[spoiler:Ros]], as well. The last we see of them, they are dragging [[spoiler:the Core]] towards a black hole. Other characters say that it's not certain whether or not they will actually have to pass the event horizon, but it is a possibility that they don't make it back.
* ''VideoGame/{{inFAMOUS 2}}'', [[spoiler:In the canon (Hero) ending of the game, Cole fires up the RFI, which drains and kills The Beast, thus saving New Marais. However, the RFI kills all Conduits, including Kuo, Nix, and Cole himself, as well as conduits all over the world. After the showdown, Cole is made the [[HundredPercentHeroismRating patron saint of New Marais]] and is given the much earned respect he needs.]]

** [[spoiler:Nia Lochlain]] dies after [[spoiler:trying to stop Eremon from pursuing Yuri's ship]]. And shortly afterwards...
** [[spoiler:Bastian fires the exalaser cannon to blast a star, causing a supernova that effectively stalled Lugovalian's invasion of [=LMC=] for ten years, but he also gets swallowed by said supernova]]. [[spoiler:His brother, Dietrich,]] pulls the same act ten years later while trying to buy some time for Yuri to reach [=SMC=].
** [[spoiler:Kira gets {{Ret Gone}}d after she successfully hacked the Overlords' system. She gets better at the end of the game.]]
* In ''VideoGame/JadeEmpire'', [[spoiler:Sagacious Zu]] pulls a spectacular one to give the PC enough time to escape the Lotus Assassins' fortress. He gets Death's Hand to attack him, and dodges all of his attacks in such a way that they hit the pillar they are fighting around, and lets himself get hit finally and hits the pillar, collapsing the cave on himself and the bad guy.

* [[spoiler:Captain Phoenix]] pulls one of these at the end of ''VideoGame/JakAndDaxterTheLostFrontier'', with a few sprinklings of {{Narm}}. At least it avoided being a DeusExMachina by having a pretty hard fight beforehand, and you finish it off afterwards.

*** Two villains sacrifice themselves to save Sora. One of them [[RedemptionEqualsDeath dies]], and the other doesn't. [[spoiler:[[UnexplainedRecovery The former got better, though.]]]]
** [[spoiler:Xion]]. True, she doesn't technically "die", but [[spoiler:sacrificing your independent existence and any record of your existence in order to wake up the MessianicArchetype has to qualify.]]
** ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'': [[spoiler:Ventus]] does this when he kills his EvilCounterpart Vanitas.]]
** At the end of ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII'', [[spoiler:Sora sacrifices himself to save Kairi ''again'' after she's killed by Xehanort by using the power of waking to revive her despite being warned of the dangers, and is seen fading away after doing so.]]
* This happens to [[spoiler: Ash Crimson]] in ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters XIII''. [[spoiler: He sacrifices himself by [[RetGone erasing himself from existence]] to defeat [[BigBad Saiki]].]]
* In ''VideoGame/KingsQuest2015'', [[spoiler:Achaka does this for Graham, either by saving his life or buying time for him to escape. Graham doesn't take it well either way.]]
* ''VideoGame/KirbyAndTheForgottenLand'' does this twice. First, after [[spoiler:King Dedede]] is freed from mind control yet again, he joins Kirby and the others to the elevator, but after seeing one of his Waddle Dees trip and nearly about to be ambushed by a horde of incoming Beast Pack soldiers, he saves him by throwing him in the elevator, and realizing that he has no time to get in, he stays behind to pulloff a GoThroughMe on the Beast Pack soldiers. Then, at the end of the game, [[spoiler: the BigBad has been defeated, but the portal they opened is still pulling Pop Star and New World towards each other. With no other options, Elfilin opts to sacrifice himself, using all his power to close the rift between worlds. Thankfully, the sacrifice part is ultimately subverted as it turns out he survived and was rescued by Clawroline.]]

** In the first game, during the Endar Spire level, [[GuestStarPartyMember Trask Ulgo]] sacrifices himself so you can escape. A deleted ending for a female [[spoiler:Revan]] who completed the romance sidequest with Carth and then turned to the Dark Side has the PC kill her apprentice [[spoiler:Bastila]] and die on board the Star Forge with Carth.
** In the second game, it is possible to [[spoiler:persuade Visas to sacrifice herself in order to defeat Darth Nihilus.]] In the cut content, [[spoiler:Atton, given high enough RelationshipValues, would have a one-on-one battle with Darth Sion. If he loses, he would be brutally tortured and left to death by Sion. Eventually, Atton dies in the Exile's arms.]] According to WordOfGod Bao-Dur dies helping HK-47 reach the factory during the game's final act, which is [[KilledOffscreen never shown]] as a result of the game being ChristmasRushed. In addition, [[spoiler:if the Exile has Hanharr in the party and Malachor V is being destroyed, Hanharr would throw the Exile onto the Ebon Hawk. Hanharr would then die with Malachor V. This is likely an easily overlooked ShoutOut to the similar death of a certain Wookie in the Literature/NewJediOrder.]]
** [[spoiler:At the end of the game, Kreia predicts that Mira will die this way.]]
--->[[spoiler:'''Kreia:''' ''"Her death will occur in many years' time on a forgotten planet, saving the lives of others. But it will be her choice, and she will have no regrets."'']]

** At the end of ''VideoGame/BloodOmenLegacyOfKain Kain realizes that he must die to restore the world's balance. You as the player can do this but this ending is non-canon.
** Possible subversion: at the start of the game, Kain is resurrected as a vampire to avenge his killers, and after the deed is done, he must find a way to rid himself of his vampyric curse. It is heavily implied to him that by murdering the nine Pillar guardians of Nosgoth, he might be able to restore balance to the land and rid himself of his vampyric unlife. Yet, in the end Kain pieces together the puzzles and figures out that he himself is the last pillar guardian, and that his aides meant for him to sacrifice himself so that the pillars may be healed and he be released from his curse -- ''in death''. [[spoiler:Surprisingly, according to canon, he chooses to rule Nosgoth as its vampire king instead.]]
** That's because [[spoiler:he had become the last vampire in existence due to his own actions in the game, set in motion by one of the now-dead pillar guardians. It turns out that if vampires, the original makers of the pillars, become extinct, the pillars fall too. The choice was, in fact, no choice at all, so Kain chose to take the longer route and try to find a way to beat the odds.]]
*** [[spoiler:"There are only two sides to your coin." "Ah, but suppose that one day... the coin lands on its edge?"]]

*** Played straight in ''Defiance'' with [[spoiler:Raziel, who tricks Kain into absorbing him into the Reaver, an act that purifies Kain's sight, allowing him to see the [[BigBad Elder God]] and gives Kain the weapon that can defeat it. Raziel's FinalSpeech is a heartfelt vow of renewed loyalty to Kain.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel'': At the end of ''IV'', [[spoiler:Rean Schwarzer, Crow Armbrust, and Millium Orion all die at the end of the game to completely get rid of the curse of Erebonia for good.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfSpyroDawnOfTheDragon'': [[spoiler:Spyro]] does this at the end of the game to [[spoiler:stop Malefor's EarthShatteringKaboom.]] However, whether he's actually dead or not is left to your own interpretation, though it's heavily implied he and Cynder are alive due to the post-credits scene of the two of them joyfully flying around afterwards.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'': At the end, [[spoiler:the King of Hyrule floods his kingdom with the waters of the Great Sea, sacrificing himself to give Link and Zelda/Tetra a future, as well as to drown Ganondorf, further sealing him away.]]

*** Midna is near death after Zant exposes her to intense light. Link, trapped in wolf form, brings her to Zelda, who performs magic to save Midna's life while fading into nothingness herself. [[spoiler:She gets better... in time to become the first stage of the final boss fight.]] Fan theory is divided as to whether she passed her life essence into Midna, or the Triforce of Wisdom, or did something else entirely. Whatever she did, it worked.
*** In the final battle against Ganondorf, [[spoiler:Midna summons her pieces of the Fused Shadow and teleports Link and Zelda out of the castle. She becomes the Twili Arachnid and attacks Ganon, then outside, Link and Zelda see the castle explode. Ganondorf appears on a black horse, holding Midna's helmet, which he crushes in his hand. It is assumed that Midna had been killed, but she later is revived in her true form.]]
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks'': [[spoiler:Byrne is killed by Malladus while stopping him from possessing Princess Zelda's body again.]] He gets better.
* ''VideoGame/LibraryOfRuina'': This is attempted by [[spoiler:Angela]] in the good ending. [[spoiler:It doesn't stick, because Roland pulls Angela out of the light at the last second, saving her life.]]
* ''VideoGame/LieOfCaelum'': In the ending of Episode 1, [[spoiler:Gigarths Alkazen tries to blow himself up to kill the party, but [[RobotGirl Elysion]] uses a spell to protect them. Unfortunately, the spell also causes her to be [[DeadlyEuphemism "decommissioned"]] indefinitely.]]
* In ''VideoGame/LufiaIIRiseOfTheSinistrals'', [[spoiler:[[BadassNormal Dekar]] stays behind in a collapsing shrine to fight monsters so the rest can flee. [[UnexplainedRecovery He manages to survive, though]].]]
** [[spoiler:[[BadassNormal Dekar]] is transported into an alternate (and inescapable) dimension in the remake, ''VideoGame/LufiaCurseOfTheSinistrals'', [[UnexplainedRecovery and again manages to make it out]], [[BadassBoast which he claims to have done by having destroyed the entire dimension with one of his 100 special moves]].]]
* {{Deconstructed}} in ''VideoGame/MagicalStarsign.'' Friendly character [[spoiler: Semolina, the felin girl]] sacrifices themself to [[spoiler: become the [[PlotCoupon Wood Millenium Gummy]]]]. When the characters are mourning their sacrifice later, one of your party members angrily points out that [[spoiler: she didn't sacrifice herself for a noble purpose -- she did it because [[DrivenToSuicide she was suicidally depressed and wanted to die.]] And said party member, Sorbet, admits that she considered the suicide in exactly the same manner, turning the mood from "TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth" to "MyGodWhatHaveIDone."]]
* [[spoiler:Vayne]] attempts to do one at the end of ''VideoGame/ManaKhemiaAlchemistsOfAlRevis''. [[spoiler:Depending on the RelationshipValues the player has built up over the course of the game, the party member he has grown closest to will talk him out of it]].

*** Later on, we get a sacrifice on Virmire that has a ''much'' greater impact on the game. Either [[spoiler:Ashley or Kaidan has to stay behind, defending the nuclear device at Saren's base right up until it detonates. That's some dedication to duty.]]
*** And then there's [[spoiler: the last dozen Prothean Scientists of Ilos]], whose actions guaranteed the galaxy had a fighting chance against [[EldritchAbomination The Reapers.]] [[spoiler: When the Reapers retreated back through the Citadel relay, they used the Conduit -- a prototype Mass Relay of their own creation- to travel to the Citadel and alter the Keepers, whose job is to open the Citadel relay to begin every cycle of extinction. The trip was one way and Vigil speculates they likely didn't find any food or water on the station, but thanks to them the Keepers were rendered harmless and the Reapers were trapped in Dark Space.]]

*** The game begins with the SR-1 Normandy coming under attack from an unidentified but vastly superior warship. It isn't long before the crew is abandoning ship, but Shepard stays behind to force Joker to come with them. S/He gets Joker in an escape pod, but [[spoiler:before s/he can enter him/herself, one of the massive energy beams cuts through the hull and sends the commander hurtling away from the pod. So Shepard does the only thing that s/he can do: Shepard hits the emergency launch button, sending the last escape pod out of the ship and condemning him/herself to certain death]]. Also, the DownerEnding of the game, Joker is wounded and fails to [[TakeMyHand pull Shepard up into the Normandy hatch]], so Shepard voluntarily lets go and plummets to his/her death, so that Normandy can escape the imminent explosion of the [[spoiler:Collector Base]].

*** At the end of livetweeting the Reaper invasion of Earth, [[spoiler:[[IntrepidReporter Emily Wong]] [[RammingAlwaysWorks rams her shuttle]] into a Reaper]].
----> [[spoiler:"Go on. Make your noise. Try to scare us. You want to see how a human dies? At ramming speed. <SIGNAL LOSS.>"]]
*** [[spoiler:Mordin]] on Tuchanka. If he died in ''Mass Effect 2'', it's [[spoiler:Padok Wiks]] that makes the sacrifice.

*** On Rannoch, if [[spoiler:you allow Legion to upload the code to give the geth true sentience, it disseminates its personality to complete the upgrade and is confirmed dead afterwards]].
*** Either [[spoiler:Grunt]] or [[spoiler:Dagg]] has one of these when investigating the presence of rachni. If [[spoiler:Grunt]] was loyal in ''Mass Effect 2'', he'll live, but [[spoiler:Dagg]] can't be saved.
*** There is also [[spoiler:Lieutenant Tarquin Victus]], who is ordered to defuse an ancient [[spoiler:turian]] bomb planted on Tuchanka. Were it to be detonated, it would cause heavy casualties among the krogan and destroy any possibility of making an alliance with them. [[spoiler:Victus]] succeeds, but at the cost of his own life -- a price he was willing to pay.

*** Thane will sacrifice himself in a final stand against Kai Leng to stop him from killing the Salarian Councilor. Also counts as TheLastDance as he was living on borrowed time to begin with due to his lung illness. If Thane died in ''Mass Effect 2'' then [[spoiler:Kirrahe will take the bullet for her.]]
*** [[spoiler:And ultimately the ending, in which Shepard is presented with up to three options: sacrifice him/herself to combine all synthetic and organic life into a new framework, thus ending the Reaper cycle; sacrifice his/her body to control the Reapers directly; or destroy them all together along with all synthetic life. The first two options invariably result in Shepard's death, though if the player gathered enough War Assets, Shepard can live through the destruction of the Reapers.]]
*** The penultimate cutscene of ''Mass Effect 3: [[{{DLC}} Omega]]'' involves [[spoiler:Nyreen]] sacrificing herself via grenade-belt to save a group of civilians from a cluster of Adjutants. Unlike the other examples in this entry, she makes no big speech of production of it, simply accepting it as a necessary move, [[spoiler:because that's what it is to be a [[ProudWarriorRace turian]]]].
*** Even [[spoiler:Conrad Verner]], of all people, can give his life to save Shepard from a gunman. [[spoiler:Although, if you had saved the girl working undercover in Chora's Den all the way back in ''Mass Effect 1'', she will subvert the scene by sabotaging the gun beforehand. She's still impressed by Conrad's bravery and willingness to sacrifice his life for Shepard.]]

** ''X1'': [[spoiler:destroying Vile's MiniMecha to give X the upper hand in what was supposed to be a HopelessBossFight. He eventually gets rebuilt, partially thanks to the villains collecting his parts in an attempt to rebuild him as a villain.]]
** ''X5'': [[spoiler:after the seemingly final battle with Sigma, the Maverick manages to critically damage X and Zero via both a self-destruct and a sneak-attack before the latter is able to finish Sigma off and save X before succumbing to his wounds. He got better partially thanks to his own systems and partially thanks to the next game's villains.]]
** [[AllThereInTheManual Sometime between]] ''X'' and ''Zero'': sealing himself, and surrendering his body to [[spoiler:begin the study of TheVirus, enabling the means to ultimately destroy said virus.]]
** ''Zero 4'': (a real big one, and arguably the best of all his efforts): [[spoiler:opting to stay on board a [[ColonyDrop falling space satellite]] instead of allowing it to crash on the last free colony of humans. On top of that, his actions ''finally'' bring about the peaceful era for humans and Reploids that he had been fighting for for a very long time. This does not bode well for those closest to him, especially Ciel, who was closest to him more than anyone else. Though he does recover by ''ZX'' in the form of Biometal Model Z.]]
** ''VideoGame/MegaManZX Advent'': as Model Z, [[spoiler:in an echo to the above, staying behind in Ouroboros to paralyze the QuirkyMinibossSquad while Ouroboros collapses, so his allies could escape. His current fate is [[LeftHanging unknown.]]]]

** [[spoiler:Ballade]] of ''Mega Man IV'' on the Gameboy, during the ending.

** ''VideoGame/MegaManZero'': Hidden Phantom, one of X's Four Guardians in his rematch with Zero. Unable to stand defeat, he becomes a martyr and self-destructs, trying to kill Zero in the resulting suicidal detonation. [[BungledSuicide Not only does it fail (given you avoid the final attack in-game), it's for the wrong cause: The X he follows orders from is a corrupt copy of the original.]] His spirit returns in the third game as a Cyber-Elf due to Omega's arrival on the planet, all the wiser to Zero's background after snooping around Cyberspace's enormous database. Exactly ''how'' this is possible is unknown, though it might have to do with being created from X's DNA, who shows similar abilities. He eventually returns as Biometal Model P in ''ZX''.

** [[spoiler:[=MegaMan.EXE=]]] at the end of ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork 3''. [[spoiler:[[UnexplainedRecovery He gets better]].]]
** [[spoiler:[[TheLancer Colonel.EXE]] and [[ShrinkingViolet Iris.EXE]]]] in ''Battle Network 6''. [[spoiler:Although Wily makes a new Colonel and Iris, the originals [[KilledOffForReal do NOT get better.]]]]
** Even [[spoiler:[=Roll=]]] in one of [[spoiler:Mega Man's]] cutscenes in ''VideoGame/MegaMan10''. [[spoiler:[[DisneyDeath However, this doesn't spell the end of the little girl robot, though the ending doesn't show it]].]]

** [[spoiler:Gray Fox destroys Rex's sensor array, rendering himself vulnerable in the process. He is crushed into paste shortly after a cool monologue]].
** [[spoiler:Peter Stillman in ''2''.]]
** [[spoiler:The Boss was sacrificing herself for her country all along in part ''3''.]]
*** This was probably the worst, as [[spoiler:her sacrifice would go all the way into history books and she would be remembered as one of the worst traitors in American history and a vicious war criminal in Russian history. It gets even worse than that when you realize that her death was actually planned by a deviously cunning strategist who wanted her offed.]]
** [[spoiler:A non-lethal example in ''3'' has Snake throwing himself at Ocelot just as he's about to shoot and kill EVA. Snake is successful in knocking his aim off and saving EVA's life, but the gun still fires and grazes Snake's right eye, permanently damaging it. EVA expresses nothing but gratitude for it]].
** [[spoiler:Subverted in ''4'', when Snake can't quite bring himself to suicide.]]
*** [[spoiler: Not completely subverted in ''4''. Raiden seems bent on doing this, fighting a legion of Gekkos twice to let Snake escape, slicing off his own arm and ''stopping a submarine larger than an aircraft carrier'' to save Snake again. It seemingly ends with him crushed and dead...Only to reveal in the next chapter he's still alive, he just lost his other arm. He's '''still''' bent on being a sacrificing himself to save Snake, without his arms (yet ironically still [[CutlassBetweenTheTeeth armed with a sword]]), he fights off a group of soldiers to buy Snake time...again. And after all this, he gets a Happy Ending.]]
*** [[spoiler:Big Boss in ''4'', in a way. He knew going to see Snake would kill him due to the new FOXDIE strain, but still chose to do so, knowing he and Zero had to end it to prevent the same events from repeating again.]]
*** [[spoiler:Surprisingly, Ocelot in ''4''. He subjects himself to AndIMustScream by implanting himself with a fake copy of Liquid's mind to trick the Patriots and motivate Snake to hunt him down, thus causing the eventual defeat of the Patriots. However, he also knew that the Liquid persona would lead to his death, as it would mean he would face Snake in combat at the end and be killed, dying with the whole world believing that he was truly evil and never meeting the revived Big Boss, the man he sacrificed everything for. It was only revealed to Snake (and thus the Player) that all along he was one of your greatest allies in the fight against the Patriots after his death, when Snake finally met Big Boss.]]
** [[spoiler:Jonathan]] in Portable Ops.
** [[spoiler:Quiet in V. Venom is bitten by a cobra and falls unconscious. Quiet (due to her vocal cord parasites that would activate if she spoke English) attempted to contact Pequod in Navajo but he doesn't know the language. So she speaks English to guide Pequod to their position. When Venom comes to, he tries to find Quiet but instead only finds a cassette tape with her final message.]]

** Subverted in ''VideoGame/MetroidFusion''. [[spoiler:At first, it looks as if the only way to destroy the SA-X is to destroy the Biologic Space Labs, which would necessarily mean Samus's death. When Adam points this out to her, she simply says "... I know," showing that she is completely ready to give her life in order to get rid of her EvilTwin. However, Adam reveals that there's a way for her to escape -- and in the process, [[SomethingOnlyTheyWouldSay utters a phrase]] that opens her eyes.]]
** In ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'', [[spoiler:Adam Malkovitch shoots Samus in the back before she can enter the section of the Bottle Ship containing the genetically-altered, cold-immune Metroids. He does this so she can't stop or join him when he goes in there himself to make that sector detach and self-destruct in order to get rid of the Metroids, saying that she has to be the one to survive since she's the only one who can take care of the other threats.]]

* At the finale of ''[[VideoGame/MightAndMagic Might & Magic V]]'' (which is the final game of a five-part series), [[spoiler:[[BigBad Sheltem]] is finally killed when the player's ally Corak purposely initiates a self-destruct mechanism, [[TakingYouWithMe killing both of them]].]]
* ''VideoGame/MinecraftStoryMode'': At the end of Episode 4, [[spoiler:Reuben dies from a long fall after recovering Jesse's enchanted weapon so they can destroy the Command Block. He holds on just long enough for Jesse to say some final words.]]

* [[spoiler:The Masked Man, aka, Claus]] in ''VideoGame/Mother3'', seems to have actually pulled a Heroic [[spoiler:Suicide]].
** It's implied that [[spoiler:Hinawa]] died in this fashion in order to save her sons from [[spoiler:the Mecha-Drago]]. Bronson speculates this in an attempt to comfort her [[BerserkerTears grief-stricken]] husband, Flint, [[UnstoppableRage but to no avail]].

** First, [[spoiler:Callum, the noble Dwarf who you befriended during the events of Old Owl Well and was instrumental at the Ember Trial, holds off a Shadow Reaver that was assaulting Highcliff long enough for the party to arrive and destroy it, at the cost of his own life.]]
** Second, [[spoiler:if the player is male and had romanced Elanee, then ''Mask of the Betrayer'' reveals that she gave her life to save the player from falling debris in the aftermath of the King of Shadow's death.]]
* [[spoiler:Emil]] of ''VideoGame/NieR'' has one of the most heartrending one in all of gaming, with his last words being how he wants to see his friends again and how truly afraid of dying he really is. Depending on what ending you choose, [[spoiler:Nier himself will do this, [[{{Retgone}} erasing himself from existence]] (along with your save file) in order to save both Yonah and Kainé]].
** ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'' takes the concept of the latter case and brings it to a whole new level: [[spoiler:In order to achieve Ending E which allows 2B, 9S, and A2 to be rebuilt with their memories intact and the war finally over, you need to complete a NintendoHard BulletHell minigame in the CreativeClosingCredits that ''very'' few players will be able to complete, but if you die enough times a bunch of real life players come to your aid and give you a power boost that makes it trivially easy. You find out at the end that such a feat was only made possible because those players sacrificed their save files, and you are given the choice at the end to do the same to help other players.]]

* In ''VideoGame/NoOneHasToDie'', this is invoked if Christina and Steve are the only characters remaining. [[spoiler:Steve will plead to sacrifice himself in order to save Christina. You can choose to let him do so by sending him to activate the sprinklers while hiding Christina behind a fire door, or you can ignore this plea and do the reverse.]]

* In ''VideoGame/{{Okamiden}}'': [[spoiler:Kurow lets himself get possessed by Akuro so that Chibi and Kuni are able to kill it, thereby sacrificing his own life as well.]]
* In ''VideoGame/OverlordII'', during an EnemyMine between the [[HeroAntagonist Elven Sanctuary]] and the Overlord to defeat [[TheEmpire The Glorious Empire]], [[spoiler:Queen Fay offers her own energy to the Overlord to power [[ArtifactOfDoom the Tower Heart]].]] This doesn't kill her, however, instead corrupting her and making her a FallenHero who serves the Overlord. [[spoiler:If you're REALLY evil, you can kill her after her corruption, upon which her ghost becomes your mistress instead]].

* [[spoiler:The main character]] in ''VideoGame/Persona3''. Doesn't get much more sacrifice-y than [[spoiler:cutting the Goddess of Death off from the world... using your ''soul'' to form the seal on the [[SealedEvilInACan the Can o' Evil]].]]
** Also, [[spoiler:Chidori sacrifices herself to revive Junpei after he's shot by Takaya]]... though given that she was [[spoiler:fighting, and cursing, the player characters a few minutes before,]] her motives might have been slightly less than heroic. Or maybe she's just crazy.
*** Unlikely, as [[spoiler: she clearly stated her love for Junpei beforehand, in that she confessed her being afraid of losing him]]. Also, [[spoiler: the movie adaptation showed that she was distraught after Junpei was shot]].
** [[spoiler:Shinjiro]], in a completely badass fashion. [[spoiler:He had already been shot by Takaya once, but rushed in front of Ken to save his life...also fulfilling RedemptionEqualsDeath.]]
*** [[spoiler:Can be subverted in the Portable version of the game: if you max out Shinjiro's Social Link as the female protagonist, his pocket watch will slow the bullet enough to keep from hitting anything vital. He falls comatose instead, waking up for graduation.]]
* In ''VideoGame/Persona4'' [[UpdatedRerelease Golden]], [[spoiler:Marie/Kusumi-no-Okami]] attempts to kill herself to ensure [[spoiler:the fog of deception will never plague the real world again.]] Thankfully, the [[TrueCompanions investigation team]] comes to save her.
* In ''VideoGame/Persona5'' [[UpdatedRerelease Royal]], The Kasumi Yoshizawa that Joker meets in the game [[spoiler: is ''not'' Kasumi; she died saving her sister Sumire from accidentially throwing herself to incoming traffic by taking her place, and the "Kasumi" Joker meets is actually Sumire.]] Of course, since that [[spoiler:accident was caused by Sumire being envious of Kasumi's talent and her seeming CondescendingCompassion fueling Sumire's inferiority complex to outright ''suicidal'' levels, Kasumi taking her place to become roadkill just made her go insane from the SurvivorGuilt, to the point that Maruki had to use his cognition warping persona for the first time to make her think that she's Kasumi so she won't off herself or go catatonic from the grief.]]
* Alys Brangwyn from ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarIV'' took a [[spoiler:dark blast from Zio]] meant for Chaz. Interestingly, she doesn't die immediately and the group's WhiteMage specifically mentions the game's healing spell doesn't work on her.
* ''VideoGame/PilgrimRPGMaker'':

* ''VideoGame/PokemonMysteryDungeonExplorers''. [[spoiler:First, the main character [[TakingTheBullet takes an attack meant for Grovyle]] and is turned into a Pokémon and loses his/her memory. Then, [[YouShallNotPass Celebi stays behind to face Dusknoir]]. Then, [[TakingYouWithMe Grovyle gives up his freedom and possibly his life]] to save the main character. Then, [[SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong the main character fixes the flow of time]], thereby erasing him/herself from existence.]]
** [[spoiler:When Chatot takes an attack for the main character and their partner.]]

* For ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyoTetris'', [[spoiler:Tee decides that it isn't fair that Ex is forced to exist in the edge of timespace alone without being able to see his daughter or friends, and decides to take his place. All of the other characters argue against it, clearly pointing out how it'll only swap one person for another, however Tee refuses to listen, and even forces Ex to face him in Tetris (which the player ''must'' win), and once bested he points out how Ex has to give up the seat and go back home by honor of defeat. The following mission has Ringo explain that this isn't a solution, and that they'll keep looking for a better answer. When Tee still refuses to listen, wanting to sacrifice his happiness for Ex, Ringo ultimately defeats him in battle and Tee is forced to listen to her. Ultimately, Satan and Ecolo warp spacetime so that no sacrifices have to be made, allowing Ex to continue protecting the universe but having an option to quickly pop in and see his friends.]]

* A good way to tell who has played ''VideoGame/RadiantHistoria'' is to see who starts crying when you mention [[spoiler:[[SacrificialLion Kiel]], who lures the Granorg army away from Stocke and Rosch, only to be killed by heavy soldiers.]] The [[TearJerker music that plays during this scene does not help.]]
** [[spoiler:The ritual used to keep the continent from turning into a wasteland requires a HeroicSacrifice from a member of the Granorg royal family who's died and been resurrected. The last Sacrifice, Heiss, was [[RefusalOfTheCall less than pleased with this]], leaving Stocke as the only candidate. [[MessianicArchetype He agrees]]. However, in the True Ending, he basically gets shoved out of the way by Heiss, who, in a last burst of bloody-mindedness, decides that if someone's going to get their soul ripped out, [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes it's not going to be his nephew]].]]

** On Planet Orion, [[spoiler:Bryan stays behind to stall the Galactic Enforcers so that the rest of the party can escape]].
** In the ending, [[spoiler:Count Vorakia Estuuban captures Klein and tries to use him as a hostage against Arcturo and Ellemine while planning to steal his ether powers. Klein overloads both of them with ether, resulting in both of them being killed]].
* In ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemption'', [[spoiler:[[DyingMomentOfAwesome John Marston]] goes out to face the bullets and take as many enemies down as he can so his wife and son can escape and have a better life]].
** Ultimately [[spoiler:borders on SenselessSacrifice, as Abigail dies a few years afterwards and his son Jack begins to live the sort of gunslinging, lonely, violent life his father lived; the very life his father tried to save him from.]]
* In ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil6'', [[spoiler:Piers]] sacrifices [[spoiler:him]]self to save [[spoiler:Chris, at the end of the campaign. After injecting himself with the C-virus to save Chris from the Haos, Piers' arm was mutated beyond return. After defeating the Haos, or so they thought, Piers shoved Chris into an escape pod and locked him in. Despite Chris yelling at him to open the door, Piers refused. This turned out to be for the best (well, arguably, because Piers' death was sad) as the Haos was not yet dead and as Chris's escape pod was rushing to the surface, Piers used one last electrical bolt from his mutated arm to destroy the Haos before it killed Chris, and presumably wreaked havoc on the world. There's also the fact that Piers injected himself with a virus that would have eventually destroyed his mind and made him into a mindless killing machine like all the other monsters he and Chris had encountered.]] Could be considered a HeroicSuicide.
** Another example in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil5: Lost in Nightmares''. When Chris and Jill unexpectedly find [[spoiler:Wesker]] in Spencer's mansion, a badass fight ensues. Towards the end of it, [[spoiler:Wesker]] has got [[spoiler:Chris]] [[NeckLift by the neck]], and is about to deliver a final, fatal blow before [[spoiler:Jill tackles Wesker out the window, saving Chris but supposedly falling to her death.]] Somewhat subverted by the fact that [[spoiler:she doesn't actually die, but it was still a massive sacrifice with big personal repercussions. Chris ends up saving her towards the end of ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil5'' proper, with an emotional reunion and another of their JustFriends moments.]]

* In ''VideoGame/{{Rosenkreuzstilette}}'', Freudia freezes Graf Sepperin's throne room to save Spiritia when [[spoiler:Iris]] attempts to kill her for [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness having outlived her usefulness]]. Her area-freezing attack freezes [[spoiler:Iris']] attack with it to [[spoiler:Iris']] surprise, and [[spoiler:Iris]] leaves for her palace to let the organization of RKS prepare itself for a final showdown. After she leaves, it is revealed that Freu had overdone the attack a little and used up some of her power to use the attack, but hey, it's a non-fatal sacrifice she made, so she's definitely alright, she's just shaken up a little bit.

*** In the backstory, [[spoiler:Kazuma Shinguji died in his valiant efforts to stop the demonic invasions]].
*** [[spoiler:The rest of the Flower Division sacrifice themselves to stop Aoi Satan's henchmen so that Ichiro Ogami and the top-ranking girl can face off Satan themselves. They get better]].
** ''VideoGame/SakuraWars2ThouShaltNotDie'': [[spoiler:Kazuma, having been revived by Keigo Kyogoku, gives his life once more to protect his daughter Sakura, dying in her arms]].
** ''VideoGame/SakuraWarsSoLongMyLove'': In Gemini's backstory, [[spoiler:Mifune attempts to take down Ranmaru by falling into the waterfall. Unfortunately, he doesn't survive]].

*** [[spoiler:Hinata Amamiya helped stop the Great Demon War at the cost of her own life]].
*** A double whammy occurs at the end of chapter 7. [[spoiler:When Yasha is about to kill Azami Mochizuki, Clarissa "Claris" Snowflake jumps in to protect her... at the cost of her own life. Then, Hatsuho Shinonome snaps Sakura Amamiya and Seijuro Kamiyama out of their HeroicBSOD and de-powers Yasha before dying of her injuries. This is subverted when the sakura petals from the alternate dimension revive Claris and Hatsuho]].
* ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxTheDevilsPlayhouse'' features TWO in its final episode. [[spoiler:Sal, after accomplishing an important task in a radiation-filled room.]] Then, later, [[spoiler:Max, through his spore-heads and optical sensors, tells the rescue team in his head to save Sybil instead of himself. Once they leave, his head is about to explode from the psychic energy in his head and the nuclear bomb in his stomach; so he teleports himself out into space before exploding to save New York. Later, when Sam meets Max from an alternate universe, Alt!Max explains that, in his world, it was Sam who performed the identical sacrifice]].
* ''VideoGame/SepterraCore''. [[spoiler:Doskias and Selina stay behind to fire the Doomsday Device in the ending]].
* Depending on your judgment of the character's "personhood", the Neutral ending to ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiStrangeJourney'' has one. [[spoiler:Arthur, the Red Sprite AI, decides that his knowledge of the future (given to him by Gore) cannot be kept if humanity is to truly be free. Therefore, he orders his personality component be left with the part of the ship being sacrificed to destroy the Schwartzweld. The crew treats it as the same as a living person sacrificing themselves.]]

** ''Shovel of Hope'' ends with [[spoiler:Shield Knight holding off a powerful attack from the Enchantress while telling Black Knight to save an unconscious Shovel Knight. Subverted since [[TheStinger the stinger]] shows that she survives the attack and manages to reunite with Shovel Knight]].
** ''Specter of Torment'' has a variation. [[spoiler:Specter Knight is already a ghost, but by freeing Reize from the Enchantress's curse he loses his only chance to become alive again.]]
* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':

** [[spoiler: Shahra]] does this at the end of ''VideoGame/SonicAndTheSecretRings'', protecting [[spoiler:Sonic]] from a fatal blow by using [[spoiler:herself]] as a shield.
** In ''VideoGame/SonicFrontiers'', [[spoiler: Sage sacrifices herself to prevent [[BigBad The End]] from destroying the world out of spite, much to Doctor Eggman's despair as [[MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter he treated her like a daughter]]. Fortunately in TheStinger of the GoldenEnding, [[DisneyDeath he rescues Sage as a backup program on his computer]].]]
* Subverted in the ''VideoGame/SoulSeries'', where [[TheAtoner Siegfried]] [[spoiler:expects to die in the process of redeeming himself, but survives in his good ending in ''Soul Calibur 3''. As the scene fades out, he remembers [[EnemyWithout Nightmare]]'s comment "You have no right to live," and replies (though Nightmare is [[NotQuiteDead ''theoretically'']] dead), "It doesn't matter. I will live on. To live... that is my redemption."]]
** ''[=SoulCalibur=] 4'': In his own ending [[spoiler:Siegfried does indeed commit a HeroicSacrifice that in turn gets subverted by [[KnightTemplar Soul Calibur's extremism]]]], but in Hilde's ending, [[spoiler:he confesses to having created and once ''been'' the Azure Knight, and tells her he wants her to kill him. Instead, Hilde declares him to have atoned for his sins and that he can now live in peace.]]
** There's a real one in Ivy's (non-canon) ending in ''4'', although [[spoiler:it does not involve one of the fighters, but her EmpathicWeapon. After defeating Nightmare, Soul Calibur turns on her, starting to seal her in a CrystalPrison (the most likely reason is, her blood carries Soul Edge's taint); deciding that it is for the best after all she has done, she simply accepts her fate and waits for death, but then, her own sword destroys itself to save her. She realizes that she may have a purpose beyond this, and the closing narrative suggests that she eventually found peace.]]
* In ''VideoGame/SoulNomadAndTheWorldEaters'', [[spoiler:Gig]] performs a HeroicSacrifice in the "good" ending by [[OneWingedAngel going critical]] and destroying three gods with his full power, saving the world in the process. [[spoiler:Subverted because, being TheGrimReaper, he simply has himself reborn afterwards in a new body. He just needed access to his full powers to be able to do it -- which the main character gave to him like the sucker he/she was.]]

* Turns out in ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheForceUnleashed'' that this trope is the impetus for [[spoiler:the birth of the Rebel Alliance. Though it was technically formed before the sacrifice, Galen's final act provides them with a martyr to rally around and inspire them. [[NiceJobFixingItVillain Nice job breaking it,]] [[InvertedTrope Vader and Palpatine.]]]]

*** [[spoiler:Gremio]] sacrifices himself in order to save the hero and the rest of the party from [[spoiler:General Oppenheimer's flesh-eating spores trap]]. Can also be considered a YouShallNotPass as he prevents them from reaching the party.
*** [[spoiler:Odessa]] dies protecting a child, and begs the hero that her death remain a secret to keep the morale of the rebel army up.
*** A potential sacrifice occurs when [[spoiler:Teo and his Armoured Cavalry absolutely trounce the Liberation Army in battle.]] The hero, Mathiu, Pahn, and Cleo are fleeing when [[spoiler:Teo catches up to them, along with his two lieutenants Alen and Grenseal. It looks hopeless until Pahn volunteers to try and hold Teo off while the hero and the rest of the group escape. Pahn then duels Teo, and if he loses, he's executed as a traitor.]] However, this sacrifice can be avoided if you've [[spoiler:trained Pahn up enough to the point where he can defeat Teo in the duel, who then allows Pahn to leave.]]
*** Later on, [[spoiler:[[TheWoobie Ted]]]] does this to save the hero from [[spoiler:[[HotWitch Windy]]]] and to keep the hero's rune away from evil's hands.
*** In the end, [[spoiler:Mathiu]] dies, after abandoning his desired life of pacifism and solitude to help the army save the kingdom.
** In ''VideoGame/SuikodenV'', [[spoiler:when the Armes forces are laying siege to the player's castle, [[TheLancer Roy]] disguises himself as the hero to go out and fight a duel that he knows is a trap and defeats the enemy commander, Childerich. Childerich promptly orders his entire army to fire a storm of arrows at Roy, and Roy deflects most of them before being finally punctured. Jidan Guisu and Childerich mock him for [[SenselessSacrifice getting himself killed for nothing]], but then he hears a noise and turns the mockery right back on Jidan and Childerich. Immediately thereafter, the camera pans to show the newly-arrived Dragon Cavalry, who promptly attack and relieve the siege.]] Most players will never see it, as the game beats you over the head to keep you from taking the action leading to this.
* ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy''. [[spoiler:Bowser's star reactor sinks into the sun after Mario beats him one last time. This causes the sun to implode and create a massive super black hole that is sucking up everything in the universe. All the Lumas then jump into the hole to prevent it from destroying life any further. Although this may fall under DisneyDeath since Rosalina mentions that the Lumas will eventually be reborn]].
* ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'': Peach, Bowser and Luigi [[DwindlingParty end up sacrificing themselves so Mario can go on]] at the end of their DuelBoss fights with Count Bleck's minions. [[spoiler: It's [[SubvertedTrope subverted]] however [[LikeYouWouldReallyDoIt because those were just]] {{Disney Death}}s]].
** [[spoiler:Count Bleck and Tippi end up sacrificing themselves at the end of the game to destroy the Void]]. This act is a little more permanent, though it's unknown if [[spoiler:Bleck and Tippi actually died, or if they are in another world the characters cannot access.]]

** In ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsDestiny'', [[spoiler:Treize Khusrenada]] sacrifices himself to stop the Ruina. While [[spoiler:Ventus and the "Chris" personality of Cliana]] takes his place in ''[[VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsOriginalGeneration 2nd Original Generation]]''. [[TearJerker Tears were shed.]]
** In ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsUX'', [[spoiler:Richard]] sacrifices himself during the ''Anime/MazinkaiserSKL'' finale, in the stead of Kaidou and Magami who would most likely have survived like in the OVA.
* ''VideoGame/SwordOfPaladin'': [[spoiler:Emilia uses her brother's Paladin Soul to revive Nade and the people of Vanaheim, but after the soul goes into Nade, she loses her immortality and dies.]]

** The first is [[spoiler:Scooter, who, when trying to disengage an unstable rocket booster from the ship, accidentally gets his arm trapped in a malfunctioning sliding panel. He tells Fiona to disengage the booster from the rest of the ship, so she and the rest of the gang can fly far enough away to avoid the explosion about to occur. He dies shouting his catchphrase as the booster rapidly descends towards Pandora and explodes.]]
** The second is [[spoiler:Gortys, who upon getting her final upgrade and summoning the Vault, realises that the Vault cannot be closed and the monster sealed back inside unless she is destroyed. She instructs Fiona and Sasha to destroy her with Vallory's rocket launcher and they reluctantly do so, meaning that she is blown apart and seemingly killed. Thankfully, being a robot, she can't really die in the traditional sense and Loader Bot later [[WeCanRebuildHim rebuilds her]].]]
** Finally, [[spoiler:Sasha attempts this after she and Fiona have just planted an explosive device inside the Traveller. Fiona attempts to detonate it, but realises that they are out of range and the device won't go off. Sasha quickly takes the detonator and jumps out of the caravan so that she can be close enough to detonate it, apparently dying in the process but allowing the rest of the crew to defeat the monster once and for all. However, [[DisneyDeath she gets better]] thanks to a healing device gifted by Felix.]]
* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'', [[MauveShirt Botta]] and a couple of nameless [[LaResistance Renegades]] sacrifice themselves to let the heroes escape a flooding dungeon. Later on, [[spoiler:all of the party members appear to do this in order to let [[IdiotHero Lloyd]] reach [[BigBad Yggdrasill]] in time to save [[ChosenOne Colette]]. They come back, though, because an RPG without a party to support you is useless.]]
** Honourable mentions include Colette, [[spoiler:although she's really more a sacrificial lamb who's been brainwashed into the whole thing]], Sheena, who attempts one in the 'Otherwordly Gate' scene, [[spoiler:wherein her childhood friend Kuchinawa turns out to be a traitor and holds a huge grudge against Sheena for failing to control Volt as a child, as well as joining the Chosen instead of killing her. However, when Sheena offers to sacrifice herself to save the group, saying, "I'm the one you despise, right? Then I'm the only one you need to kill." Zelos gets pissed and pulls her through the Otherworldy gate that convieniently activated at that moment and everyone escapes.]] Also [[spoiler:Corrine]].
** Also seemingly done at the very end of the game by [[spoiler:Tabatha, who becomes the vessel for Martel.]]
** Honourable mention for [[spoiler:Kratos, as well, who fully expects to die releasing Origin's seal. Being a DeathSeeker, he actually seems kind of disappointed when it doesn't happen. It's kinda [[NarmCharm funny.]]]]
* Abused to the point of incurring head banging in ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'', where first [[spoiler:Ion willingly goes with Anise and Mohs to read off the Planet Score, knowing that it will kill him, but not wanting to put Anise's parents in danger. It ends up working in the player's favor, as he is able to save Tear and give the party one last clue before dying, but it's still a [[PlayerPunch blow to the player]]]]. And then there's [[spoiler:Asch, who may as well be suicidal, between the many times he's been stabbed, shot, and otherwise mutilated and didn't seem to ''care.'' His initial sacrifice is subverted by Luke at the Tower of Rem, but he ultimately meets his end buying the party time in the final dungeon, the animated cutscene [[PlayerPunch driving the point home]]]]. Lastly, there's [[spoiler:Luke himself, who spends most of the game thinking that his death would be some sort of redemption for his [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter stupidity]], and eventually succeeding in supposedly dying at the end of the game]]. Geeze.
* [[spoiler:Milla]] and [[spoiler: Jiao]] in ''VideoGame/TalesOfXillia''. [[spoiler:The former [[BackFromTheDead gets to come back]], though.]]

** The researchers who put together the TALOS Project spent time that could have been spent with their families and personal pursuits, knowing the end of the world was encroaching and they'd never have another chance, in order to complete what may have been the best chance to preserve the essence of humanity. Special note goes to Alexandra Drennan, who [[spoiler: spent her last days feverishly working on the project, and died not knowing if it would succeed]].
** Shepherd [[spoiler:stays in the Tower and helps the next generation reach the top, countering the contrary efforts of Samsara, not knowing whether anything of him will be preserved when the simulation ends]].
** In ''Road to Gehenna'' [[spoiler: there are 19 units in the simulation underworld, but only enough bandwidth for 18 to be ascended. Two of the endings involve either Uriel or Admin staying behind to allow the other to ascend, although in Admin's case it's less heroism than reluctance to leave behind the only home he knows]].

* Sacrifice is a major theme in ''VideoGame/TearsToTiara2'', so there are lots. Special mention goes to [[spoiler:[[MyDeathIsJustTheBeginning Hadrubal for sacrificing his own life to ensure he's son's rebellion in the future will succeed]], Izebel for "killing" the man she loves, enduring the hatred of all her old friends, colleagues, and little-brother figure, and finally losing her own life to shield Hispania from the worst of TheEmpire while preparing LaResistance for what's to come, Tart for luring Melqart with her own blood, preparing to die to satisfy Hamil/Melqart's BloodLust, and Hamil for running himself through with his sword to prevent Melqart from taking over and killing Tart.]]

** A couple of these occur in the 2013 reboot. [[spoiler: First, Grim tackles a mook off of a platform, killing them both in order to prevent himself from being used as leverage against Lara. Later on, Roth (whom Lara looks up to as a surrogate father) takes a hatchet to the back in order to protect Lara from it, then kills the mooks around them before dying from his injuries. Then there's Alex, who also lays down his life on Lara's behalf...in fact [[MenAreTheExpendableGender most of the male cast dies in Lara's name.]]]]
* ''VideoGame/TransformersFallOfCybertron'' in the biggest way at the end of one late chapter, [[spoiler:Metroplex sacrifices all his remaining energon to allow the Ark to launch. He falls to his knees as the ship launches, and falls over unconscious/dead as it blasts away.]]

** Sam will do this if the player [[spoiler:distracts the Wendigo so that the others can escape, but fails to keep the controller still.]]
** [[spoiler:If Mike gets gored by the Wendigo and Sam dies, he will pull off a heroic sacrifice instead, lighting a lighter and igniting the gas, setting the cabin aflame.]]
* [[spoiler:Ash]] from ''VideoGame/VandalHearts'' sacrifices himself at the end to [[spoiler:stop the Flames of Judgement from spreading.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDeadTelltale'' Season 1: [[spoiler:Kenny's both possible deaths]] in Episode 5 are this. However, Season 2 Episode 2 [[spoiler:reveals that he managed to survive charging into a wave of walkers.]]
** If [[spoiler:nerdy NiceGuy Doug]] survived the events of Episode 1, this is how he perishes in [[spoiler:Episode 3]], via TakingTheBullet [[spoiler:fired by Lily and meant for Ben]].

* In the finale of ''VideoGame/Wasteland2'', [[spoiler:one of your party members will have to stay behind to manually detonate the Davy Crockett nuke and destroy Cochise before it can activate its AssimilationPlot. This results in their death, but you can allow your other teammates to run to safety first. Or alternatively your party member can be a colossal tool and set it off straight away, dragging their buddies down with them.]]
* Canadian web series ''Watch Mojo'' has a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qs6bCg0MY7Y video]] devoted to this trope in video games, including [[spoiler:James]] in the third ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' game, [[spoiler:Dominic Santiago]] in the third ''VideoGame/GearsOfWar'', and the top one going to [[spoiler:Baby Metroid from the ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'' series]].

** First, [[spoiler:Boomerang, one of the villains, [[BloodKnight impressed by the party's strength]], decides to give his life to protect them from rampaging demons (or from a newly revived Berserk, in the remake). He comes back as a bonus boss in the arena, though, claiming to have ''fought his way out of hell'' for another chance to fight the party.]]
** Then, at the end of game, [[spoiler:Asgard, a [[ForgottenSuperWeapon Golem]] befriended by the party, saves them from [[BigBad Ziekfried]]'s final attack, but is destroyed in the process.]]
* {{Deconstructed|Trope}} in ''VideoGame/WildArms2'', where a major theme is that heroes ''have'' to perform sacrifices. They're apparently not heroes unless they give up everything so that other people don't have to fight. The Sword Magess made that sacrifice in the backstory, and, ultimately, [[spoiler:her descendants Irving and Altaecia]] do the same. The protagonist [[DefiedTrope defies this trope]] moments later, and the final battle consists of spamming a CombinedEnergyAttack while he and ''all of humanity'' deliver a RousingSpeech on the subject.

* ''VideoGame/WitchHunterIzana'': Performed by [[spoiler:Izana]] in the good endings to buy time for the other heroes and villagers to escape. The difference between the good and the best ending is if she goes through with it.
* ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'' has these out the wazoo. Before the game even happens, [[spoiler:Beat tries to push his sister Rhyme out of the way of an oncoming car]], and just [[spoiler:four days]] thereafter, [[spoiler:she pushes ''him'' away from a Shark Noise -- and it's even implied that she briefly regained her lost memories.]] Then, in the second week, [[spoiler:Joshua takes the full brunt of Minamimoto's attack, saving Neku; however, this is then subverted when Joshua turns out to be [[CrystalDragonJesus The Composer]], who simply warped into another dimension and prevented the blast from touching Neku simultaneously; plus, he had ulterior motives.]] Even a few Reapers get one: [[spoiler:777 as well as Kariya and Uzuki lend Beat and Neku their keypins after being defeated; 777 is killed for mutiny, and the other two soon get sucked into the AssimilationPlot.]] And finally, [[spoiler:everyone gets absorbed by Megumi, and once Megs is offed, Neku gets shot by Joshua in a game, which it turns out was what saved Shibuya from total erasure in the first place.]] Yeesh, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcIbWmO75P4 that was convoluted]].
* In ''VideoGame/WorldInConflict'', [[spoiler:you can see Captain Bannon and his subordinates doing this during an epic last stand against an overwhelming Soviet invasion force (large numbers of enemy tanks and infantry) with his already decimated forces long enough to let the main bulk of the U.S. defenders escape and get the Soviets concentrated in the area of effect of a nuclear tactical strike, more points for him since the sequence was neither corny nor cheesy]].
* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' has one [[spoiler:at the end of the final battle against the Lich King. Arthas (the old Lich King) is defeated, but [[KnightInShiningArmor Tirion Fordring]] knows that "there must always be a Lich King", and so he prepares to take up the sword and helmet that contain the Lich King's power, believing himself to be the only person in the world able to resist the inherent corruption, even though it will incur the cost of his own life and personality. He's stopped by Bolvar Fordragon, who'd been killed, captured by Arthas, and tortured for months (in that order). He takes the sword and helmet himself, in order to control the undead Scourge and stop them from running (even more) amok. Fordring tells Fordragon that his sacrifice will be remembered; Fordragon insists that he must be ''forgotten'', and tells Fordring and the player characters to "go -- and '''never return!'''" as he seals himself inside a glacier.]]

** Questing in post-Cataclysm Badlands revolves around the red dragon Rheastrasza attempting to free the Black Dragonflight of the Old Gods' influence. She eventually succeeds, creating a purified egg that will hatch into the first untainted black dragon born since the flight's corruption. [[spoiler:Realizing that the egg will never be safe as long as the tainted black dragons know of its existence, she secretly swaps it with one of her own eggs before being cornered and killed by Deathwing, sacrificing her own life and that of her unborn child to ensure the egg's survival.]]
** [[spoiler:Velen, Maraad, and Ga'nar in ''Warlords of Draenor:'' Velen's dying act is to purify the [[PhysicalGod Dark]] [[CastingAShadow Star]], returning it to an ordinary Naaru, which then aids the Draenei in driving off the Iron Horde. Ga'nar holds a crucial pass to buy the shaman Drek'thar enough time to collapse it so the Iron Horde cannot get through, holding off a small army ''alone'' in the process. Finally, Maraad, in Talador, uses a shield of light to save his comrade Yrel instead of himself.]]
** [[spoiler:Varian in the Broken Shore scenario. He sacrifices himself to take down a giant Fel Reaver that is preventing the Alliance airship from leaving. He gives Genn Greymane a note and says "take this to my son", then jumps off the ship and destroys the fel reaver, only to see the ship flying away (saving your player character in all the NPC's), while he's surrounded by demons. Gul'dan says "you will be remembered as the king who sacrificed himself for nothing", Varian says "for the Alliance", then Gul'dan disintegrates him with a fel explosion.]]
** [[spoiler:In the Antorus, the Burning Throne raid, Illidan Stormrage sacrifices himself to imprison [[GreaterScopeVillain Sargeras]] and permanently end the Burning Legion.]]

** In ''VideoGame/XCOMEnemyUnknown'', [[spoiler:the Volunteer sacrifices him/herself in the final cutscene in order to pilot the exploding Temple Ship away from Earth, saving the planet. He/she also uses a telekinetic blast in order to force the rest of the team to get back to the Skyranger and escape]].

** In ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles1'', [[spoiler: Fiora is killed after she comes in with a Giant Mech]] and saves Shulk, Dunban and Reyn, who are currently paralyzed and about to be killed by Metal Face. [[spoiler: She gets better though.]]
** In ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'', when the gang confront [[BigBad Malos]] at the colosseum and he defeats them, [[spoiler: Vandham volunteers to stay behind and hold him off so that Rex and co. can escape. [[TheDeterminator Rex]] refuses to do so, and still tries to fight alongside Vandham while in a weakened state. In the end, Vandham ends up getting killed, but his sacrifice gives Rex and Pyra the strength to awaken Mythra and finally [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown Malos the beating he deserves]].]]
* In the end of ''VideoGame/{{Xenosaga}}'' Episode III, it's implied [[spoiler:that chaos, KOS-MOS and everyone who remained on Mictam died, which is shown by KOSMOS floating out in space.]] Whether or not this is actually the case, we'll probably never know because the series has been cancelled. However, before this, it's played more by the book when [[spoiler:Jin decides to go back (after almost escaping with the surviving party) and help chaos and the others try and get to Lost Jersaulem by fending off the relentless Gnosis attack. Long story short, he self destructs his HumongousMecha (for good reasons), gets stabbed clean through the back and leg (at the same time) by a Gnosis with two BFSs, takes the first one out of his body, and then along with his katana, kills the Gnosis that stabbed him with both swords whilst getting stabbed again by the Gnosis's other sword. Only then does he die.]]
* ''VideoGame/YesYourGrace'': During certain mandatory stages of the game, some members of King Eryk's court can sacrifice themselves to solve an issue. [[spoiler:His advisor]] will falsely confess to a murder if Eryk refuses to execute a scapegoat in place of an elusive murderer, while [[spoiler:his Court Witch and Court Hunter]] can volunteer to sacrifice their lives on big defensive moves during the final siege.
* In ''VideoGame/YoungSouls'', [[spoiler:the Professor]] sacrifices himself to blow up the goblin drilling machine, save the town, and let the twin protagonists escape.

* ''VideoGame/DyztopiaPostHumanRPG'': At the end of Chapter 2, [[spoiler:Crow, Edgar, Chase, or Kiyota will stay behind in the exploding mines to start the mine cart that lets everyone else escape]]. This outcome depends on whose link level is the lowest, though the game will designate them in the stated order in case of a tie.

-->[[spoiler:'''Kreia:''' ''"Her death will occur in many years' time on a forgotten planet, saving the lives of others. But it will be her choice, and she will have no regrets."'']]

* At the end of ''VideoGame/LegacyOfKain'': Blood Omen, Kain realizes that he must die to restore the world's balance. You as the player can do this but this ending is non-canon.
** Two in ''VideoGame/LegacyOfKainDefiance''. Ariel appears at the Spirit shrine and merges with Raziel to give him power to defeat the [[EldritchAbomination Elder God]] which he must pass on to Kain.
*** Raziel then forces Kain to impale him with the Reaver Blade. The Blade absorbs Raziel's soul making the blade whole and granting Kain the power to defeat the Elder God. Doubles as a HeroicSuicide.
* Possible subversion in ''VideoGame/BloodOmenLegacyOfKain'': at the start of the game, Kain is resurrected as a vampire to avenge his killers, and after the deed is done, he must find a way to rid himself of his vampyric curse. It is heavily implied to him that by murdering the nine Pillar guardians of Nosgoth, he might be able to restore balance to the land and rid himself of his vampyric unlife. Yet, in the end Kain pieces together the puzzles and figures out that he himself is the last pillar guardian, and that his aides meant for him to sacrifice himself so that the pillars may be healed and he be released from his curse -- ''in death''. [[spoiler:Surprisingly, according to canon, he chooses to rule Nosgoth as its vampire king instead.]]

** Played straight in ''Defiance'' with [[spoiler:Raziel, who tricks Kain into absorbing him into the Reaver, an act that purifies Kain's sight, allowing him to see the [[BigBad Elder God]] and gives Kain the weapon that can defeat it. Raziel's FinalSpeech is a heartfelt vow of renewed loyalty to Kain.]]

* Seems to happen all the time in ''Franchise/MetalGear''.

* ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'': Peach, Bowser and Luigi [[DwindlingParty end up sacrificing themselves so Mario can go on]] at the end of their DuelBoss fights with Count Bleck's minions. [[spoiler: It's [[SubvertedTrope subverted]] however [[LikeYouWouldReallyDoIt because those were just]] [[DisneyDeath Disney Deaths]]]].

* [[DeconstructedTrope Deconstructed]] in ''VideoGame/WildArms2'', where a major theme is that heroes ''have'' to perform sacrifices. They're apparently not heroes unless they give up everything so that other people don't have to fight. The Sword Magess made that sacrifice in the backstory, and, ultimately, [[spoiler:her descendants Irving and Altaecia]] do the same. The protagonist [[DefiedTrope defies this trope]] moments later, and the final battle consists of spamming a CombinedEnergyAttack while he and ''all of humanity'' deliver a RousingSpeech on the subject.

* [[VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles Xenoblade Chronicles]]

** In [[VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2 Xenoblade Chronicles 2]], when the gang confront [[BigBad Malos]] at the colosseum and he defeats them, [[spoiler: Vandham volunteers to stay behind and hold him off so that Rex and co. can escape. [[TheDeterminator Rex]] refuses to do so, and still tries to fight alongside Vandham while in a weakened state. In the end, Vandham ends up getting killed, but his sacrifice gives Rex and Pyra the strength to awaken Mythra and finally [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown Malos the beating he deserves]].]]

* In ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyModernWarfare3'', [[spoiler:Soap realizes that playable character Yuri once knew their target, Makarov, right as the building they are in explodes. Despite Soap's new knowledge, that ''still'' [[LeaveNoManBehind doesn't stop him from pushing Yuri out of the building]] before they would have been killed. In doing so, Soap reopens his stab wound from the end of ''[[VideoGame/CallOfDutyModernWarfare2'', but that doesn't stop him from [[HandicappedBadass continuing to fight Makarov's men]]. As the mission progresses, he gets progressively weaker, and eventually [[TearJerker dies]], but with his last breath, tells [[TheStoic Captain Price]] about Yuri's connection to Makarov. Captain Price [[BerserkButton doesn't take this lightly]]. Yuri does vow to stand by Price and take down Makarov, however.]]

* ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'':

* In ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare3'', [[spoiler:Soap realizes that playable character Yuri once knew their target, Makarov, right as the building they are in explodes. Despite Soap's new knowledge, that ''still'' [[LeaveNoManBehind doesn't stop him from pushing Yuri out of the building]] before they would have been killed. In doing so, Soap reopens his stab wound from the end of Modern Warfare 2, but that doesn't stop him from [[HandicappedBadass continuing to fight Makarov's men]]. As the mission progresses, he gets progressively weaker, and eventually [[TearJerker dies]], but with his last breath, tells [[TheStoic Captain Price]] about Yuri's connection to Makarov. Captain Price [[BerserkButton doesn't take this lightly]]. Yuri does vow to stand by Price and take down Makarov, however.]]
** Just a few levels later, in Down the Rabbit Hole, [[spoiler:Team Metal has a mass Heroic Sacrifice in the lower levels of the mine when they find themselves severely outgunned and with RPG fire closing in on the chopper evacuating President Vorschevsky]]. Their actions to defend the leader of the country ''that attacked and completely wrecked the Eastern Seaboard'' are what spur on peace talks between all the warring parties, stopping World War III in its tracks.
** The very next (and last) level, Dust to Dust, has Yuri [[spoiler:keep his word to Price regarding taking out Makarov. After being impaled on a section of rebar, Yuri still manages to attack Makarov. Despite being fatally shot by Makarov for his trouble, he still manages to make enough of a distraction for Price to go in for the kill.]]

* A certain supervisor A. Dallas in ''VideoGame/DeadSpace'' has a particularly nasty variant of this. He leaves an audio recording saying that he knows what the necromorphs do to corpses, how they turn them into weapons...
--> ''At least if I don't have any limbs... I won't be able to kill anyone when I'm infected... (Gun charging in the background)''
** This trope occurs twice in 2, but is subverted once.

* In the True Ending of ''VideoGame/BlazBlueContinuumShift'', Lambda [[spoiler:performs one to save Ragna from getting killed by Terumi and mentions that Nu was never lonely and will always be by Ragna's side, and Ragna apologizes for the way he treated Nu. Lambda dies in Ragna's arms and [[GoOutWithASmile Goes Out with a Smile]], in the process giving her power to Ragna, which allows him to engage Lambda's Idea Engine and unleash the true power of the Azure, which he uses to defeat Terumi, but spare him for that moment as he afterwards goes to save Noel from her current world-hating state as Mu]].

* At the end of ''VideoGame/KirbyAndTheForgottenLand'', [[spoiler: the BigBad has been defeated, but the portal they opened is still pulling Pop Star and New World towards each other. With no other options, Elfilin opts to sacrifice himself, using all his power to close the rift between worlds. Thankfully, the sacrifice part is ultimately subverted as it turns out he survived and was rescued by Clawroline.]]