History JerkassWoobie / VideoGames

* Alys Brangwin from PhantasyStarIV. True, she often cons Hahn out of his money and one time punched a DirtyOldMan for revealing her measurements but did she deserve to be killed by Zio's Black Wave technique? No, no she didn't.

* The town of Nipton in ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas''. Yes, it was a WretchedHive, but it didn't deserve what [[TheSpymaster Vulpes]] [[LotteryOfDoom did to it]].

* Kenny from ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDead'' is practically the definition of this trope. He is supremely hot headed and often selfish, but that's mostly because the guy has been through a lot, including [[spoiler:losing his entire family]].

* ''VideoGame/{{Xenogears}}'' is chock full of them. Ramsus & Hammer stand out the most. ''Xenosaga'' continues the tradition with characters like the tortured former serial killer/victim of government brainwashing/cultist/spy Cherenkov & Albedo, whose tragic life as a TykeBomb and [[WhoWantsToLiveForever agonizing over the thought of outliving his brothers]] turned him into the AxCrazy MemeticMolester we all know and love. There's also Virgil, a first-class {{Jerkass}} who keeps harassing Shion, but who watched the woman who loved him and saved his life get ''eaten alive''.

* ''VideoGame/GodOfWarSeries'': Kratos, who has spent a good amount of his life as a CosmicPlaything of the gods.
* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'':
** In a way, [[DarkActionGirl Sniper Wolf]]. She's a murderous StalkerWithACrush assassin/terrorist, but she has her [[PetTheDog kind moments]], and her backstory is rather tragic.
** For that matter, once you hear his FinalSpeech, Psycho Mantis.

** Also, Midna, in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', except she became a Woobie after becoming much nicer.

* Dante from ''Franchise/DevilMayCry''. He is constantly making snide remarks, complaining about money, extremely lazy (only works once a week), is in debt to all of his friends (and makes it clear that he won't be paying anyone back anytime soon), and is a major jerk to just about everyone. Then again, he consistently turns down payment (does the job anyway because it is the right thing) and refuses payment from the poor, saves the world on several occasions, takes care of Patty (to a certain extent), is shown to spare demons who are able to love and refuses to kill humans, and is shown to have a compassionate side as well as a kind side (he'll just give you a hard time).
** The JerkassFacade is to cover up the fact that he is miserable (it can be seen basically everywhere, especially in the anime; really, he never smiles except when he is slaughtering a demon or when he does a good deed!). The Woobie part is that he [[MissingMom witnessed his mother being slaughtered]] [[MamaBear while she protected him]] at the age of eight and believed his brother to be dead as well. [[DisappearedDad He also believes that his father abandoned them at a young age]] and it is assumed that he basically raised himself. He finds his brother [[CainAndAbel completely insane]] and is forced to defeat him, which leads to Vergil's apparent suicide (or so Dante believed), and forced to finally (all the while not knowing that it was Vergil) kill a possessed Vergil ten years later.
** His friends constantly take advantage of him (manipulating him, forcing him to pay for clothing, etc.), he is forever hunted and hated by the entire demon world (and most humans hate him because of his demon heritage), and he has no hope of ever having a normal day (let alone a normal life). During everyday life, he is constantly being shot at (Lady shoots him point blank through the forehead twice and later through the stomach...in a period of six hours!), [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice impaled]] (a RunningGag to be stabbed through the chest or stomach), and other things. Capcom really wanted to make sure that Dante had the worst possible upbringing and life possible, didn't they?

* Bowser, especially in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG'' and the ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi Mario & Luigi]]'' series, and ''most'' especially in ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiBowsersInsideStory Bowser's Inside Story]]'', where he's the sympathetic [[AntiVillain Anti]] [[VillainProtagonist Villain Protagonist]].
** Solidified in ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'', which reveals that were he ever to actually tie the knot with Princess Peach, [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt they would create the Chaos Heart]]. That's right. [[SingleTargetSexuality If the one person he's ever been interested in]] [[AllLoveIsUnrequited actually accepted him]], [[RealityBreakingParadox it would be so cosmically WRONG]] [[ApocalypseWow that the multiverse itself would collapse]]. Ouch.
** On a similar note, his son, [[OverlordJr Bowser Jr.]], also gets this status in [[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiPaperJam Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam]], where he and his paper counterpart's actions are fueled primarily by a desire to [[IJustWantToHaveFriends stay friends]].
* ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario''
** [[BigBad Count Bleck]], before becoming a flat-out {{Woobie}}. He may be an OmnicidalManiac, but he's also both a genuine BenevolentBoss to his minions -- giving them hope after their various {{Despair Event Horizon}}s, no less -- and a [[spoiler:TragicVillain who snapped after his father's DisproportionateRetribution against Tippi]]. The fact that he not only [[spoiler:wants to be defeated out of remorse]], but also [[spoiler:seemingly sacrifices himself to undo everything he started]] doesn't hurt, either.
** Why did King Croacus invoke BrainwashedAndCrazy on the Cragnons? Because [[spoiler:they polluted his people's water and drove him nuts.]]
* Subject 3 in ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheUnwoundFuture''. He was abducted and subject to many cruel experiments, resulting in him hating humans and taking on a very harsh DontYouDarePityMe attitude.

** Also, [[spoiler:Wheatley after his FaceHeelTurn. He's stuck in space forever and how much of it was really his fault?]]

* Silver, the rival from [[VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver]]. He's a huge {{Jerkass}}, but once you realize [[spoiler:that his father is the leader of Team Rocket and that the collapse of it in the first game devastated him]], it's impossible to not feel sorry for him. [[spoiler:He eventually gets a HeelFaceTurn and develops from {{Jerkass}} to JerkWithAHeartOfGold.]]
** [[BigBad Cyrus]] in ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'' (and ''Platinum'') counts. Destroying the universe and betraying his followers? Jerkass. His motivations for doing so? [[CryForTheDevil Aw,]] [[FreudianExcuse poor]] [[BrokenAce guy]] (especially in ''Platinum'').
** Mankey and Primeapes, according to their Pokédex entries in ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon''. Mankeys can suddenly enrage and rampage, everyone around it leaves in fear, its loneliness only makes it angrier [[ViciousCycle so on and so forth.]] Primeapes can ''die'' from their stress; they just get so angry that they drop dead. The look on their face is peace and calmness, finally free from their anger.

* The eponymous ''VideoGame/AlanWake'' of the video game, considering the situation he was in.

* In ''VideoGame/ToTheMoon'', during TheStinger, it's implied that [[spoiler:Neil might be dying,]] and depending on how you viewed his character, he can become this.

%%* Gabriel Belmont in ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow''.
* Pretty much most of the Deimos cast in ''VideoGame/ArcTheLadTwilightOfTheSpirits''. The Deimos are pretty much [[SocialDarwinist social darwinists]], finding nothing wrong with flat out murdering each other if it means they'll be stronger. This tends to lead to the Deimos characters' woobie-ish moments:

** Delma. Darc is probably her only friend, and he kills her brother. Rather than ''listen to him'', she decides to ''kill him''...but manages to get over her revenge spree.
** Volk. He wants to do terrible things to Paulette to get revenge on her...but because she (And her father) killed his wife and son.
** Camellia. She used to be young and beautiful, but was tortured and twisted by Tatjana.
** And that's not to say the humans don't have their woobie-ish moments too, happily willing to engage in FantasticRacism against Deimos.
*** As was mentioned, Paulette's father was killed by Volk...except that Paulette and Lloyd WouldHurtAChild and WouldHitAGirl.

* In the MMO ''VideoGame/Wizard101'', Necromancy professor Malistaire Drake, who, after going rogue and disappearing from Ravenwood, unleashes armies of Undead upon Wizard City, causes the Death School to [[spoiler:fall into Nightside]], allies himself with [[spoiler:Meowiarty, the most dangerous crime boss in Marleybone]] in order to steal the dangerously powerful Krokonomicon, severely injures the Emperor of Mooshu in order to gain the Dragonspyre Spiral Key, and attempts to use the Krokonomicon to summon the uncontrollable power of Dragon Titan, who was responsible for the apocalypse of Dragonsypre, and would have been able to use the Krokonomicon to extend his reign of terror over the whole Spiral. It all seems pretty bad until you consider that Malistaire was deeply affected by the death of his beloved wife, Sylvia, and his only goal in all of this was to obtain the power to bring her back to life.
** Subverted briefly when, just before the player battles him at the end of the original story line, Malistaire arrogantly expresses the belief that, as the Master of Death (essentially the most powerful Necromancer in the Spiral), he can control the Dragon Titan, even though the former Masters of Dragonspyre, who were presumably as powerful as him, could not. In other words, Malistaire has no qualms over causing havoc for Spiral, but does not wish to go so far as enslaving it under the Dragon Titan, although this would have been a direct result of the success of his plan.
*** Played straight again after the battle, when the defeated Malistaire, [[spoiler:as a spirit, repents to the spirit of Sylvia, and to his living brother Cyrus, and joins Sylvia in the afterlife, as lovers for eternity.]]

* Zulf from VideoGame/{{Bastion}} is a pretty good candidate for jerkass woobie status. Sure, he [[spoiler:goes berserk and tries to wreck the Bastion, sics his Ura kinsmen on [[EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep The Kid]] and Rucks, and kidnaps Zia]], but at the same time, he's also one of the sole survivors of a horrible cataclysm that wiped out most of the nation (including his fiancee) and [[spoiler:gets rejected and brutally beaten by his own people]] at the climax of the game. He's sort of a destructive, treacherous bastard, but at the same time, it's hard not to [[VideoGameCaringPotential take pity on him]].
* Juhani from the first ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' game is a mild case. She grew up in terrible poverty and suffered from lots of FantasticRacism on Taris after her parents became refugees from Cathar, which was bombarded in the Mandalorian Wars. Then her father became a drug addict and died in a bar fight. ''Then'' her mother starved herself to death so Juhani could eat, and Juhani was sold into slavery to pay her mother's debts, but thankfully a Jedi [[spoiler:to whit, Revan]] saw the Force in her and freed her. Oh, and one of the first things to happen in the game is the destruction of Taris, meaning that Juhani's childhood home, however awful it was, is now gone. And then she had a terrifying brush with the dark side. However, she tends to be really defensive and snappish when you try to get her to open up about these things and has a case of DontYouDarePityMe (although she does apologize for blowing up).

*** The Black Knight [[spoiler:Zelgius]] is one when you find out he led the same kind of life Soren did. In fact, even his family hated him if a flashback is any indication. The only one who truly cared about him was his master, [[spoiler:Sephiran]], and he's [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds another story]]. The "Jerkass" part comes from the fact he killed Ike's father in front of Ike and threatened to kill Ike and Mist if Greil wouldn't give him Lehran's Medallion. He's at the very least very honorable and is a sympathetic antagonist overall, compared to Ashnard, Lekain, and Izuka. His death is also played for tragedy.

*** There's also a particularly jerky and [[BuffySpeak woobie-ish]] example in [[spoiler:King Gangrel]]. He commits some true atrocities in the first part of the game, but it's possible to recruit him near the end, and if you do -- boy does he have some HiddenDepths. [[spoiler:You find him seeking out a living as a pawn for an abusive bandit chieftain, and he's long since realised how horrible he was during his time as TheCaligula. He feels that he's crossed the MoralEventHorizon and can never be forgiven for what he's done, which drives him into crushing depression, though he tries to [[TheAtoner atone for his sins]] anyway. If you go through his supports, you find out that he started life with nothing, and when he took the throne he initially wanted to help his people before he allowed the power to corrupt him to the core. Worst of all, Chrom has been so deeply wounded by Gangrel's evil actions (which led to either the HeroicSuicide or the TraumaInducedAmnesia of his beloved older sister Emmeryn, depending on whether you played her Paralogue or not), that he absolutely ''refuses'' to ever forgive him. ''And'' the person who can be either his best friend [[LoveRedeems or his wife]], the Avatar, isn't very convinced of his sincere intentions at first.]] To add to the drama, the only other character besides [[PlayerCharacter the Avatar]] that can give him another chance is [[spoiler:''Emmeryn'', [[SacrificialLion of all people]]]]. In the Hot-Spring Scramble DLC, [[spoiler:her forgiveness utterly [[VillainousBSOD breaks him]]]].
*** Let's not forget Henry. The {{jerkass}} part comes from him being a SociopathicHero who joins in [[BloodKnight just to spill more blood]] since he couldn't fight in the former wars, and how he's [[BlueAndOrangeMorality more than a bit unhinged]] even after coming in. The Woobie part comes from his massive DarkAndTroubledPast, which has [[spoiler:ParentalAbandonment, being partially RaisedByWolves, the death of his OnlyFriend, a RoaringRampageOfRevenge, being sent to either an OrphanageOfFear (original Japanese) or a [[WizardingSchool Wizarding]] BoardingSchoolOfHorrors (international versions)]].

*** Those who don't consider Rhajat TheScrappy view her as this since on one hand, she an incredibly lonely DarkMagicalGirl who truly doesn't know how to change it, and she does get PetTheDog moments (like her supports with her potential moms, or those with Selkie). On the other, she at ''very'' least starts as a creepy jerkass to almost anyone around her, and her localized supports with the Avatars ''[[{{Flanderization}} do]]'' crank up some of her worst flaws rather than her good sides.

** In ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemGaiden Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia]]'', both [[UpperClassTwit Fernand]] and [[BlackKnight Berkut]] have quite the {{dark and troubled past}}s, with the first [[spoiler: losing his beloved family in ''horrifying'' circumstances]] and the latter [[spoiler: being raised by very harsh parents and then by a well-intentioned but duty-bound uncle (who kept a life-wreaking secret from him)]]. However, both [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds lash out at the world]] in very reprehensible ways, cause lots of misery to [[EvenEvilCanBeLoved the people who care for them]], and ultimately [[spoiler:die regretting their cruel actions and asking for forgiveness.]]

* VideoGame/IHaveNoMouthAndIMustScream:
** Benny was morphed into a hideous apelike monster that can't even eat or climb stairs. He was also a merciless SocialDarwinist military commander who [[spoiler:murdered anybody who showed weakness.]]
** Nimdok is an old man with a poor memory who is constantly being burnt alive. [[spoiler:In his prime, he was a Nazi scientist who sold out his Jewish parents and mutilated countless people in his experiments. He is horrified when he regains his memories, but no matter what you do, he is told repeatedly that he ''cannot'' make up for what he did, and will end up in hell for his crimes.]]
** Ted was a con artist who used his looks and charm to defraud women. He spent a lot of time fearing his fraud would be discovered and he would be attacked by those very women, a paranoia that is egged on AM, and longs to be a true hero.
** [[spoiler:AM himself is one. He is an evil monster who killed humanity and tortured the humans he kept alive. But he was programmed to be this, and is furious that he can only think in terms of war and violence and can't do anything more than that.]]

* The Na'Khul in ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline''. All they want is their world back, nothing more, nothing less. However, because of their heavy xenophobic leanings, all attempts to help them rebuild have been rebuffed, they blame the Federation for dooming their planet when it was actually the Tholians who did so and they go so far as to use time travel to ruin everything for this very reason.

* Nessiah of ''VideoGame/YggdraUnion'' sits on the borderline between one of these and a WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds, and has a number of characteristics of both character types--he can be really, ''really'' manipulative and uncaring, but he is also ''seriously'' messed-up. Exactly what players perceive him as usually depends on how much they sympathize with him.

* The Creepers in ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'', when you really think about it. They're the game's most infamous enemy, ruining hours of work by...[[DrivenToSuicide blowing themselves up.]] Almost all of their lives are spent finding a place to die. Even if that place is right in the player's face, that's a pretty bleak existence.

* Ayano Aishi a.k.a. Yandere-chan, the VillainProtagonist of ''VideoGame/YandereSimulator'' is worthy of pity, as [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydIf-EAmn0c her backstory is shown in this video]]. Her father frequently took her to doctors in an attempt to explain her [[InTheBlood genetic mental health problems]] and [[EmptyShell crippling apathy.]] From a young age, she knew that she was "different" and [[IJustWantToBeNormal wanted to experience emotions like normal people]], yet still remained frustrated that she couldn't. Also, her parents frequently argued about her condition. Because her father worried and kids bullied her, she soon learned how to ''pretend'' to be normal, but not truly connecting with anyone, as her father probably knew she was faking it. Whenever she talked to Ryoba about it, she'd just deliberately ignore it, downplay the situation or enable her future {{Yandere}} tendencies. It doesn't excuse anything she does, but anyone can understand why she's so desperate to have Senpai.

*** Soren in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTellius''. He's cold, harsh, brutally honest and with the exception of Ike regards everyone with indifference at best and contempt at worst. But he's also led one hell of a shitty life including ParentalAbandonment, prejudice and physical beatings just for being who he is, not learning to speak until he was at least eight years old, and the one person who bothered to reach out to him disappeared and didn't remember him when they were reunited. First you want to slap him, then you want to give him a hug.
*** The Black Knight Zelgius is one when you find out he led the same kind of life Soren did. In fact, even his family hated him if a flashback is any indication. The only one who truly cared about him was his master, Sephiran, and he's [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds another story]]. The "Jerkass" part comes from the fact he killed Ike's father in front of Ike and threatened to kill Ike and Mist if Greil wouldn't give him Lehran's Medallion. He's at the very least very honorable and is a sympathetic antagonist overall, compared to Ashnard, Lekain, and Izuka. His death is also played for tragedy.

* Soren in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTellius''. He's cold, harsh, brutally honest and with the exception of Ike regards everyone with indifference at best and contempt at worst. But he's also led one hell of a shitty life including ParentalAbandonment, prejudice and physical beatings just for being who he is, not learning to speak until he was at least eight years old, and the one person who bothered to reach out to him disappeared and didn't remember him when they were reunited. First you want to slap him, then you want to give him a hug.
** The Black Knight Zelgius is one when you find out he led the same kind of life Soren did. In fact, even his family hated him if a flashback is any indication. The only one who truly cared about him was his master, Sephiran, and he's [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds another story]]. The "Jerkass" part comes from the fact he killed Ike's father in front of Ike and threatened to kill Ike and Mist if Greil wouldn't give him Lehran's Medallion. He's at the very least very honorable and is a sympathetic antagonist overall, compared to Ashnard, Lekain, and Izuka. His death is also played for tragedy.

* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening''
** Severa is a BrattyTeenageDaughter to her parents, quite the AlphaBitch towards the closest thing to a best friend she has, and can be incredibly harsh to anyone she crosses paths with. However, under that facade there's a terribly wounded girl who [[spoiler:once ''seriously'' misjudged her mother out of fear and told her things she should have not said -- and said mother [[PartingWordsRegret died in battle before Severa could apologize]], which wrecks the girl with guilt]]. Not to mention there's how her mother's [[TheAce fame]] has given her a massive inferiority complex, and how [[spoiler:she and her friends are among the few survivors of one ''hellish'' BadFuture.]] Now, can someone punch this girl to the ground, and then give her a bear hug?
** There's also a particularly jerky and [[BuffySpeak woobie-ish]] example in [[spoiler:King Gangrel.]] He commits some true atrocities in the first part of the game, but it's possible to recruit him near the end, and if you do -- boy does he have some HiddenDepths. [[spoiler:You find him seeking out a living as a pawn for an abusive bandit chieftain, and he's long since realised how horrible he was during his time as TheCaligula. He feels that he's crossed the MoralEventHorizon and can never be forgiven for what he's done, which drives him into crushing depression, though he tries to [[TheAtoner atone for his sins]] anyway. If you go through his supports, you find out that he started life with nothing, and when he took the throne he initially wanted to help his people before he allowed the power to corrupt him to the core. Worst of all, Chrom has been so deeply wounded by Gangrel's evil actions (which led to either the HeroicSuicide or the TraumaInducedAmnesia of his beloved older sister Emmeryn, depending on whether you played her Paralogue or not), that he absolutely ''refuses'' to ever forgive him. ''And'' the person who can be either his best friend [[LoveRedeems or his wife]], The Avatar, isn't very convinced of his sincere intentions at first.]]
*** To add to the drama, the only other character besides [[PlayerCharacter The Avatar]] that can give him another chance is [[spoiler:''Emmeryn,'' [[SacrificialLion of all people]]]]. In the Hot-Spring Scramble DLC, [[spoiler:her forgiveness utterly [[VillainousBSOD breaks him]]]].
** Let's not forget Henry. The JerkAss part comes from him being a SociopathicHero who joins in [[BloodKnight just to spill more blood]] since he couldn't fight in the former wars, and how he's [[BlueAndOrangeMorality more than a bit unhinged]] even after coming in. The Woobie part comes from his massive DarkAndTroubledPast, which has [[spoiler:ParentalAbandonment, being partially RaisedByWolves, the death of his OnlyFriend, a RoaringRampageOfRevenge, being sent to either an OrphanageOfFear (original Japanese) or a [[WizardingSchool Wizarding]] BoardingSchoolOfHorrors (international versions)]].
* There's no shortage of these people in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemFates'':
** Prince Takumi has gentler sides that come out with his family and subordinates, but it's also true that he brings quite a bit of his own grief on himself. Most of his behavior can be traced back to his frighteningly low self-confidence and his mistakenly believing that no one in his family loves or even cares for him. This is the main reason he can act so abrasive, as he is resentful of the Avatar for being lavished with love and attention, even when the Avatar isn't to blame for it and doesn't deserve it either. [[spoiler:It's especially strong in ''Conquest'', though his aggression towards the Avatar does have some justification, his resentment is strong enough to make him ''far'' more liable to Anankos' MoreThanMindControl.]]
** Niles's DarkAndTroubledPast left deep scars on him, both physical ''and'' psychological, that turned him into a sadistic person who enjoys bursting the bubbles of people who've lived charmed lives; his supports have stated that he savors the moment where he can personally force people to feel pain and suffering for the first time. This is thanks to being abandoned by both his parents and the gang who pretty much raised him, the latter instance leading to a DespairEventHorizon, and his growing up in wretched poverty that led him to steal. It's also heavily implied he was sexually abused in some instances, though it doesn't define him the way his abandonment issues do.
** Those who don't consider Rhajat TheScrappy view her as this since on one hand, she an incredibly lonely DarkMagicalGirl who truly doesn't know how to change it, and she does get PetTheDog moments (like her supports with her potential moms, or those with Selkie). On the other, she at ''very'' least starts as a creepy jerkass to almost anyone around her, and her localized supports with the Avatars ''[[{{Flanderization}} do]]'' crank up some of her worst flaws rather than her good sides.
** Jakob is a handsome and skilled BattleButler who is a huge JerkAss to almost anyone but the Avatar and can be [[SinkOrSwimMentor needlessly harsh]] to [[spoiler:his son and]] fellow butler Dwyer. On the other hand his loyalty to the Avatar is ''not'' about sucking up but completely genuine, and it comes from his DarkAndTroubledPast in which [[spoiler:he was badly neglected by his BlueBlood parents before being abandoned in the Nohrian court so they'd become their servant, and the Avatar was [[BecauseYouWereNicetoMe the first person who ever was kind to him]].]]
* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemEchoesShadowsOfValentia'', both [[UpperClassTwit Fernand]] and [[BlackKnight Prince Berkut]] have quite the {{dark and troubled past}}s, with the first [[spoiler: losing his beloved family in ''horrifying'' circumstances]] and the latter [[spoiler: being raised by very harsh parents and then by a well-intentioned but duty-bound uncle (who kept a life-wreaking secret from him)]]. However, both [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds lash out at the world]] in very reprehensible ways, cause lots of misery to [[EvenEvilCanBeLoved the people who care for them]], and ultimately [[spoiler:die regretting their cruel actions and asking for forgiveness.]]

** Mankey and Primeapes, according to their Pokédex entries in ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon''. Mankeys can suddenly enrage and rampage, everyone around it leaves in fear,it's loneliness only makes it angrier [[ViciousCycle so on and so forth.]] Primeapes can ''die'' from their stress; they just get so angry that they drop dead. The look on their face is peace and calmness,finally free from their anger.

* Subject 3 in ''ProfessorLaytonAndTheUnwoundFuture''. He was abducted and subject to many cruel experiments, resulting in him hating humans and taking on a very harsh DontYouDarePityMe attitude.

* Niko Bellic in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV''. Niko. Sure, he is a career criminal, but we cannot forget that he is the GTA protagonist with the most tragic, awful and dark backstory. He witnessed several war crimes and horrors when he fought in the Yugoslav Wars such as child murder, mass murder and rape. After the war, he lived in extreme poverty, decided to contact a Russian mobster and things just got worse for him, he was blamed for the sinking of a ship and was chased by the Russian mafia all over Europe. In Liberty City, he committed crimes because of the circumstances and ends up losing a loved one.

* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'' series:
** Sean "Sweet" Johnson from ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas''. Yes, he is a gangster, who says, with pride in his voice, that he robbed people to finance his mother's operation. But all he wants is to build his gang on respect and loyalty rather than money, to keep his neighborhood dope-free and to wreak righteous vengeance on those who try to get his friends hooked on crack. He is betrayed by the people he trusted more than anyone and sent to prison, while said drug dealers run rampant in his absence, nearly sending him over the DespairEventHorizon. Oh, and both his mother and little brother were killed by drug dealers.
** Niko Bellic in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'', who had spend his early life growing up in the Yugoslav Wars and eventually becoming a criminal.
** Trevor Phillips in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'', who was, apparently, abused by both parents (probably sexually by his mother), was permanently grounded from the Air Force because he was mentally unstable, met his best friend, Michael, started drifting away from Michael before he was [[FakingTheDead apparently]] killed in a bank heist gone wrong, found out 10 years later that not only was Michael alive but living in the same state, meets up with him again, their relationship slowly frays more and more over the course of the game... and [[spoiler:2 of the 3 endings are downers for Trevor. In ending A, he's [[KillItWithFire burned alive]] and is KilledOffForReal. In ending B, Franklin kills Michael, meaning his dearest friend is dead and one of the few people Trevor completely trusted betrayed him, and he cuts off all contact with Franklin.]] Of course, there's still one way to get Trevor a sort of happy ending, but when all of that shit's happened to you, it's really not that surprising that Trevor became a [[AxCrazy batshit insane]] meth dealer/addict and black market weapons peddler.

* In the MMO "Wizard101," Necromancy professor Malistaire Drake, who, after going rogue and disappearing from Ravenwood, unleashes armies of Undead upon Wizard City, causes the Death School to [[spoiler:fall into Nightside]], allies himself with [[spoiler:Meowiarty, the most dangerous crime boss in Marleybone]] in order to steal the dangerously powerful Krokonomicon, severely injures the Emperor of Mooshu in order to gain the Dragonspyre Spiral Key, and attempts to use the Krokonomicon to summon the uncontrollable power of Dragon Titan, who was responsible for the apocalypse of Dragonsypre, and would have been able to use the Krokonomicon to extend his reign of terror over the whole Spiral. It all seems pretty bad until you consider that Malistaire was deeply affected by the death of his beloved wife, Sylvia, and his only goal in all of this was to obtain the power to bring her back to life.

* Handsome Jack from the {{Borderlands}} series might also qualify. Though an absolute {{Jerkass}} and the trolling {{Big Bad}}, he's also had a pretty bad life himself, suffering from physical abuse from his grandmother and verbal abuse from his {{Bad Boss}}. He set out to try to make a difference and ''be'' an actual {{Hero}}, but after getting stabbed in the back by a corrupt sheriff, betrayed and permanently scarred by those he considered friends, and his daughter accidentally killing his wife with her Siren powers, he began a slide into insanity, turning the good-natured Jack into the douchebag Handsome Jack.
* Kenny from [[VideoGame/TheWalkingDead The Walking Dead Video Game]] is practically the definition of this trope. He is supremely hot headed and often selfish, but that's mostly because the guy has been through a lot, including [[spoiler:losing his entire family]].

* ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'': Kratos, who has spent a good amount of his life as a CosmicPlaything of the gods.

* Nessiah of ''YggdraUnion'' sits on the borderline between one of these and a WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds, and has a number of characteristics of both character types--he can be really, ''really'' manipulative and uncaring, but he is also ''seriously'' messed-up. Exactly what players perceive him as usually depends on how much they sympathize with him.

* [=LaCroix=], the Camarilla Prince in ''VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines''. For all his ambition, ruthlessness, devious schemes, and the fact that he's the main antagonist in all but one of the possible endings, he's so damn ineffectual that he winds up coming off as more pathetic than villainous. Hell, unless you side with him, he doesn't get so much as a [[spoiler:boss fight in the end. You just shrug off his attempt to dominate you and slice'n'stab him with a [[CherryTapping letter opener off his desk]] in a ''[[HumiliationConga cutscene]]'']].

** Solidified in ''SuperPaperMario'', which reveals that were he ever to actually tie the knot with Princess Peach, [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt they would create the Chaos Heart]]. That's right. [[SingleTargetSexuality If the one person he's ever been interested in]] [[AllLoveIsUnrequited actually accepted him]], [[RealityBreakingParadox it would be so cosmically WRONG]] [[ApocalypseWow that the multiverse itself would collapse]]. Ouch.

* ''SilentHill4'': Walter. As mentioned on the [[AntiVillain/VideoGames Anti-Villain page]], it's hard to decide whether or not you want to kill him because of what he did or because he needs to be put out of his misery.

** Also, Cynthia. Yes, she might have been a bit of a bitch, but did she really deserve that?

* Handsome Jack from the {{Borderlands}} series might also qualify. Though a absolute {{Jerkass}} and the trolling {{Big Bad}}, he's also had a pretty bad life himself, suffering from physical abuse from his grandmother and verbal abuse from his {{Bad Boss}}. He set out to try to make a difference and ''be'' an actual {{Hero}}, but after getting stabbed in the back by a corrupt sheriff, betrayed and permanently scarred by those he considered friends, and his daughter accidentally killing his wife with her Siren powers, he began a slide into insanity, turning the good-natured Jack into the douchebag Handsome Jack.

** A Renegade Shepard can be this. They're an asshole, but they have also has been dead for 2 years, and if you picked Ash or Kaiden, they also get dumped. Poor Shepard. Oh, and Liara has...changed, which also has the ability to make him/her a Woobie.

** Jakob is a handsome and skilled BattleButler who is an huge JerkAss to almost anyone but the Avatar and can be [[SinkOrSwimMentor needlessly harsh]] to [[spoiler:his son and]] fellow butler Dwyer. On the other hand his loyalty to the Avatar is ''not'' about sucking up but completely genuine, and it comes from his DarkAndTroubledPast in which [[spoiler:he was badly neglected by his BlueBlood parents before being abandoned in the Nohrian court so they'd become their servant, and the Avatar was [[BecauseYouWereNicetoMe the first person who ever was kind to him]].]]