History SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism / VideoGames

* ''Franchise/DeadRising'' is on the cynical side for sure. A recurring theme of the games is how, even during a zombie outbreak, [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters humans can be just as bad or even worse than the undead.]] Gameplay-wise, this is shown by the Psychopaths, humans who either have gone insane from the outbreak or are taking advantage from it for sinister goals, that take the role of [[BossBattle game bosses]]. Lore-wise, the zombies are nothing more of a product of human greed, and were created through a failed experiment on cattle to produce more meat, and the games' stories are focused on how the government, corporations and other nasty individuals try to profit from the various outbreaks. Even after the zombie infection was basically cured at the end of the third game, a new outbreak happened regardless, as the fourth game shows. That said, this doesn't mean that everything is bleak. All of the playable characters [[EarnYourHappyEnding were to able to survive all of the madness and eventually continued their lifes for the better]]. And in top of that, none of the nastier individuals in the games [[KarmaHoudiniWarranty are able to eternally get away for their actions.]]

* ''VideoGame/DemonsSouls'' and 'VideoGame/DarkSouls'' are very, very firmly on the cynical side, much like the dark fantasy stories that inspired them. There is a general feeling of hopelessness and futility recurring in both games; most of the characters you meet in both games don't have their stories end on a positive note (quite the opposite), and the games' endings are ambiguous as to which one is ultimately better, being largely dependent on your viewpoint.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' lies firmly on the cynical end of the scale. With a sort of fantasy-punk setting, a beloved party member dying, every member of the cast having Evangelion-esque psycho-trauma of some kind or another, and the BigBad Sephiroth only being salvageable with a sword to the face. There's less of an {{Aesop}} about the power of friendship, as Cloud specifies he needs everyone to come with him ''to stop him doing something terrible''. By the end though, it does settle into rather idealistic territory.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', however, is ''firmly'' on the Idealism side. The main character starts as a cheery fellow, and one HeroicBSOD notwithstanding he stays that way (and he even gets out of the HeroicBSOD through ThePowerOfFriendship played completely straight).

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' is very dark for an FF game, with a sort of fantasy-punk setting, a beloved party member dying, every member of the cast having Evangelion-esque psycho-trauma of some kind or another, and the BigBad Sephiroth only being salvageable with a sword to the face. There's less of an {{Aesop}} about the power of friendship, as Cloud specifies he needs everyone to come with him ''to stop him doing something terrible''. By the end though, it does settle into rather idealistic territory.

* ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' is ever-so-slightly towards idealism. While some of the expanded universe material is much darker than the games (for instance, a lot of ''Literature/HaloEvolutions''[='s=] stories, like [[spoiler:''Stomping on the Heels of a Fuss'' and ''The Mona Lisa'']], end with betrayal and the death of basically everyone), the games are much more hopeful, though with a lot of HeroicSacrifices. ''VideoGame/Halo3'' ends the original trilogy with not only the end of the war, but [[spoiler:peace between the Elites and Humans, the survival of both protagonists and the eradication of the Flood]].

* ''VideoGame/DemonsSouls'' and ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' are very, very firmly on the cynical side, much like the dark fantasy stories that inspired them. There is a general feeling of hopelessness and futility recurring in both games; most of the characters you meet in both games don't have their stories end on a positive note (quite the opposite), and the games' endings are ambiguous as to which one is ultimately better, being largely dependent on your viewpoint.

** ''VideoGame/{{Ace Combat 7|Skies Unknown}}'' shows both a cynical and idealistic perspective, with the idealistic one seemingly winning out in the end, though not without sacrifices. Avril, one of the narrators of the story, is rather cynical about Osea's prior war conduct and how they treated her deceased father, a former war pilot. There's an undertone of fear over the old-fashioned values of a skilled pilot in a fighter seat being replaced by more impersonal, highly effective and highly destructive automated drones. Peace between Osea and Erusea, and the idealistic space elevator project worked on in the years since the Circum-Pacific War, seem doomed [[spoiler:at first]]. Mihaly Shilage of Erusea is an aging, cranky literal BrokenAce who, dissatisfied with earthly politics and the fate of his own homeland, only finds solace in the skies, in his real element. The squadron you fly in for a good chunk of the game is made up of various convicts and prisoners. It would seem fairly cynical, if the story didn't take gradual optimistic turns. [[spoiler:Shilage's young granddaughter intervenes when one least expects it, bringing an end to Dr. Schroeder's drone-related conspiracy, and confronting him bluntly over the emptiness and pathetic nature of Belkan revanchism. Schroeder himself admits his embittered, cynical attitude. His change of heart and the eventual renewed peace between Osea and Erusea signal a probable end to the quarter century of Belkan meddling in world affairs after the end of the Belkan War, bringing that story arc to a close. Avril herself, watching the ongoing space elevator and space exploration efforts, [[DawnOfANewEra notes that the world is headed to]] [[TitleDrop skies unknown]].]]

** ''VideoGame/ChronoCross'', however, is a bit more difficult to place on the scale. On the one hand, HumansAreBastards who pollute the planet and discriminate against demihumans, time travel dooms other timelines to non-existence, and several characters from VideoGame/ChronoTrigger are stated or implied to be dead. On the other hand, fate can still be fought against ([[spoiler:[[ClimaxBoss literally]]]]), humans are still perfectly capable of living in peace with other beings, and the ending outright says that every being can create its own fate and none are worthless. All in all, it's still on the idealistic side, but much closer to the center.

*** ''VideoGame/Persona3'' is one of the ''idealistic'' ones just because [[spoiler: the main character's HeroicSacrifice really does save everyone he cares about. Unfortunately, it also leaves him DeaderThanDead - his soul has to keep providing a barrier around the planet to protect humanity from itself until such a time that humanity stops wishing for its own demise. ''FES'' and ''Persona 4'' both imply that it may not be entirely hopeless - the two people trying to help are ageless after all. The fact that [[BonusBoss Elizabeth]] is absent in ''Persona 4'' because she's looking for a means to free the main character without breaking the seal--and given the sort of power she can crunch out when [[BerserkButton you break her rules of engagement in your duel]]--may edge ''Persona 3'' even further towards the idealistic end, because the way it's spoken of, it sounds like Igor and his assistant give Elizabeth rather good odds for success.]]

* Despite quite a few of their works being LowFantasy, a genre often at the cynical end, ''anything'' made by ''Gust Incorporated'' (most known for making the ''VideoGame/{{Atelier}}'' series) will be very, very idealistic. Half the villains (even the {{Big Bad}}s) will eventually undergo {{Heel Face Turn}}s, and those who don't will probably be [[SmugSnake egotistical bastards]] that deserve [[KarmicDeath everything they get]]. None of the good guys will ever die or have anything truly bad happen to them, and if they do die they'll usually have [[MultipleEndings an alternate ending]] where they get to survive and live HappilyEverAfter.

** And, of course, there's ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'' a [[PlayerPunch relentlessly sadistic]] game about deconstructing ScrewDestiny. It's unclear how, but the world is dictated by an extended prophecy that will [[spoiler: eventually doom the planet.]] The BigBad's solution to this CrapsackWorld is [[spoiler: to kill ''everyone on the planet'' and clone them.]] The protagonist's solution still [[spoiler: kills ten thousand people]]. Not to mention the other [[spoiler: ten thousand people he killed earlier, by accident.]] There's a CorruptChurch (with multiple people corrupt in different ways). The protagonist is implied to be seen as little more than a weapon by his family, which becomes worse [[spoiler: since he's also a clone, and suffers from CloningBlues like no one's business.]] [[DarkAndTroubledPast Dark and troubled pasts]] haunt characters and past mistakes endanger them constantly, nothing can be fixed without massive sacrifice, and to top it all off, [[spoiler: TheHeroDies and a GainaxEnding means we can never be sure if he comes back or not.]] That being said, it also ends on an overall idealistic note. Luke's family eventually ''does'' come to love him genuinely, and Luke gains treasured friends throughout his adventure. While thousands are killed, a fullscale war is completely averted as a result of a PoliticallyActivePrincess who is ''incredibly'' competent at ruling (and while she's a bit naive, she recognizes this fact and will typically think a situation over before jumping to conclusions) and is mirrored by a competent and silly Emperor in the rival nation. While the [[spoiler: ending is ambiguous about Luke's fate, his easygoing smile and how well Tear and Natalia ended up liking each other tells the player that it's an overall happy situation. The entire purpose of the ending is to ''avert'' the dreary fate in favor of giving people choice and letting them be happy.]] Additionally, while much of the Church is corrupt, multiple members of your party are ''heroic'' figures in the organization.

** Actually, Knights lean to the Idealistic side, having the belief of [[KnightInShiningArmour Fighting the evil in the galaxy]] [[ForGreatJustice for good and peace]]. they still can eventually devolve into KnightTemplar though.

** The second exception is the overall tone of the games' storylines and gameplay in an arch of games including ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'', ''VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog'', and ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006'' (Note that the cynicism took a reprieve in the jovial ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes''). ''Sonic Adventure 2'' introduced the series's iconic antihero Shadow, in addition to incorporating governmental corruption, anguished revenge, the first clearly planet-wide threat in the series's history, and an ambiguous ending concerning the fate of Shadow the Hedgehog. ''Shadow The Hedgehog'' swerved heavily in the direction of cynicism, in which guns and other weapons feature heavily into the gameplay, the player can choose the fight for the bad guys or pursue their own self-interest, and in which the plot features the corruption and tragedy of ''Sonic Adventure 2'' in addition to an attempted alien-induced human genocide. ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' (2006) takes things a bit more in the direction of optimism, but still manages to incorporate ancient demons, orphans, death, and a hopelessly BadFuture.

* The ''VideoGame/{{Mother}}'' series is overall on the Idealistic side. The first two games, ''[[VideoGame/EarthBoundBeginnings MOTHER]]'' and ''VideoGame/{{Earthbound}}'' are firmly on the Idealistic side, as while the world is shown to be relatively cynical at times, with the adults being unreliable, people and animals being corrupted by Giygas's influences and such, the heroes still save the day from an Alien Invasion through ThePowerOfFriendship and Empathy. The games go out of their way to show that no one is truly born evil, they're made that way and usually still have their sympathetic sides; Empathy manages to repel the BigBad of the first game when the kids sing the melody that the Human who raised him, Maria, sung to him when he was young and reminds him of his love for her, forcing him to retreat; ThePowerOfFriendship actually destroys the EldritchAbomination that said BigBad becomes in the sequel, calling in the prayers from all the friends and people the heroes have met over the course of their journey, including the Player themselves! Usually following the defeat of the Alien invasion, the world is overall a better place because of it and the people become more optimstic about bettering themselves and the world.
** ''VideoGame/Mother3'' gets noticeably much [[TearJerker darker]] and cynical than its predecessors, and deconstructs the overall optimistic tone and characters of ''Earthbound'' hard, as well as the fact that ThePowerOfFriendship is nowhere to be seen here, but despite all of its Cynicism, the game still lands on the Idealistic side in the end.

** Various a lot from hero to hero, too. For example, [=McCree=] started a criminal, but got redemption through Overwatch, becoming a hero by getting a moral code. Even while being a mercenary, he's still a hero and does good things whenever he can. On the other hand, [[NightmareFuel we have Widowmaker, the tortured and brain-washed wife of an Overwatch agent who killed him in his sleep.]] On another hand, not all heroes are goodie-goodie like the aforementioned Tracer. Soldier: 76 was once a complete idealistic {{Face}} as Jack Morrison, leader of the Overwatch, but after certain events, he became a bitter AntiHero who wouldn't mind doing low blows just to get the job done (which is largely good).

** For ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyII'', although Firon, Maria, and Guy tend to be pretty positive people, wishing for a world without the threat of conflict, the rest of the world leans towards what the writers did with ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI''. Pretty much everyone on the planet is dead, those who aren't have had their confidence massively shaken or are forced to give up the fight, the most idealistic member of the playable cast (Ming-Wu/Minwu) dies pathetically just to give you access to a UselessUsefulSpell and some stat-ups, at the end of the game the party of TrueCompanions--doubling as the hero's own ''family''--is still splintered due to one member's (TheHero's and TheChick's ''brother'') ongoing guilt over his own evil actions prior to his HeelFaceTurn, and, unbeknownst to all of them, [[NiceJobBreakingItHero because they killed him]], the ''BigBad is'' '''still''' ''tearing ass through Hell, wreaking havoc.'' [[spoiler:Fortunately, all those party members he killed over the course of the game can school him, but ''daaaaaamn.'']]

* ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' is normally in the middle, with some games leaning farther to the side of idealism than others. This allows for the use of both GrumpyBear and WideEyedIdealist characters.

** See, ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' is what you get when a cynical director tries so hard to push a series so hard towards the Idealistic end of the scale that it simply ''falls off.'' Even though it's becoming increasingly clear that [[WideEyedIdealist being an idealist in this setting does nothing to shield you from the consequences of your own actions or the machinations of others]], being a cynic is far worse. Refusing to take advantage of ThePowerOfFriendship doesn't make you a GrumpyBear, it makes you dead. Strangely, while cynicism is likely to kill you, pragmatism is necessary for survival - more often than not, the real [[ThePowerOfFriendship Power of Friendship]] is the willingness to do whatever it takes to save the ones you care about, regardless of the consequences to yourself or anyone else.

** As of [[VideoGame/MortalKombat9 the 2011 reboot]] yes. Before, it was actually quite idealistic, with Kitana and Scorpion as the only truly gray characters, camp all the way, teams of heroic heroes, and bright and shiny ninjas, and [[ObviouslyEvil ridiculously]] [[EvilIsCool villainous]] yet colorful villains. Despite the gore, the series was quite idealistic. As of the reboot, [[KillEmAll not]] [[DownerEnding so]] [[RevengeBeforeReason much.]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' is a ''very'' special case in this trope. Depending on how you choose to play it, it can be highly idealistic, or highly cynical, or anywhere in between. Wanna [[EverybodyLives save everyone]] and [[DefeatEqualsFriendship become bestest friends]]? Go right ahead! Wanna KillEmAll? Knock your socks off! Those, or any combination thereof, are completely fair game. Of course, if you ''do'' try to KillEmAll, prepare for the game's spirited attempt to make you feel like an utter bastard.

* ''VideoGame/PhantomBrave'' is, despite several few depressing elements, an extremely idealistic game. Marona is a [[ThePollyanna Pollyanna]] who gets the most ridiculous AllOfTheOtherReindeer treatment you've ever seen, but she's still confident that the people who hate and fear her will one day come to accept her - and, by the end of the game, ''they do''. Castille is an IllGirl whose family can barely afford her medical bills. No problem; that CorruptCorporateExecutive running the pharmaceutical company isn't such a bad guy after all, really, and he'll help out once you save him from some monsters. Oh, and that guy who says money is everything and keeps trying to steal your rewards? [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold He's got a good reason, honest!]]

** The non-main games tend to vary more on their placement. The ''[[VideoGame/PokemonRanger Ranger]]'' games stick close to idealism and the ''[[VideoGame/PokemonMysteryDungeon'' Mystery Dungeon]]'' games are a bit towards the middle but still very much idealistic. While the [[VideoGame/PokemonColosseum Orre games]] go to much more cynical territory than others, the overall theme of "restoring the hearts of Pokemon" and the protagonist's DefectorFromDecadence past is very idealistic.

** Interestingly, VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}} has a story arc in which you get a bad end no matter what you do. ([[spoiler:If you decide to work for Tenpenny at his tower, you'll kill a group of homeless ghouls who're just looking for a place to live. Tenpenny hates the ghouls, and won't let them live in his luxurious tower. However, if you negotiate with Tenpenny and get him to allow the ghouls to live there, they'll move in and work alongside the humans. Then slaughter them all when you're not there, taking over the tower for themselves. If you try to kill them for their lying actions, you lose Karma.]])

*** Ultimately though, Fallout 3 is actually much more idealistic than its predecessors. If you do things right, you can destroy the Enclave once and for all, and meet the Lamplighters who have discovered a new breed of moss that negates radiation, find a mutant who is able to grow plantlife in the irradiated Wasteland and complete a means for creating clean, radiation-free water on a large scale, all signs that the people of Fallout can [[EarnYourHappyEnding Earn Their Happy Ending]]. Also, in earlier games idealistic actions or ideas got you nothing but scorn, while in the new game Three Dog will cheer you on over your radio as 'The Last, Best Hope of Humanity'.

-->The Truth: You know, I mean, you beat the system! I tried for thirty years to cross over, but you've maaaanaged it, man! I mean, man, you're an icon, man!"

* All of the main series ''{{Franchise/Pokemon}}'' games are definitely on the idealism end of the scale -- however, the dynamic is played with in ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'', in which the BigBad is arguably [[WellIntentionedExtremist an extreme idealist]] himself. Instead of "Idealism vs Cynicism", it's "Idealism A vs. Idealism B".

** The non-main games tend to vary more on their placement. The [[VideoGame/PokemonRanger Ranger games]] stick close to idealism and the [[VideoGame/PokemonMysteryDungeon Mystery Dungeon games]] are a bit towards the middle but still very much idealistic. While the [[VideoGame/PokemonColosseum Orre games]] go to much more cynical territory than others, the overall theme of "restoring the hearts of Pokemon" and the protagonist's DefectorFromDecadence past is very idealistic.

** The second exception is the overall tone of the games' storylines and gameplay in an arch of games including ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'', ''VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog'', and ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006'' (Note that the cynicism took a reprieve in the jovial ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes''). ''Sonic Adventure 2'' introduced the series's iconic antihero Shadow, in addition to incorporating governmental corruption, anguished revenge, the first clearly planet-wide threat in the series's history, and an ambiguous ending concerning the fate of Shadow the Hedgehog. VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog swerved heavily in the direction of cynicism, in which guns and other weapons feature heavily into the gameplay, the player can choose the fight for the bad guys or pursue their own self-interest, and in which the plot features the corruption and tragedy of ''Sonic Adventure 2'' in addition to an attempted alien-induced human genocide. ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' (2006) takes things a bit more in the direction of optimism, but still manages to incorporate ancient demons, orphans, death, and a hopelessly BadFuture.

** Super Robot Wars Destiny is also known mainly for two things: making every Super Robot a GlassCannon, and being downright depressing. It ''starts'' with TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt a-la [[Manga/GetterRobo Getter Robo Armageddon]], and it goes ''downhill'' from there, mainly because of the presence of [[Anime/MobileSuitVictoryGundam Victory Gundam]]. It regains much of the franchise's idealism by the end, but it's a hard climb between the nature of the story, and ScrappyLevel after ScrappyLevel.
** Also, [[VideoGame/SuperRobotWars Super Robot Wars Alpha Gaiden]] averts the idealism somewhat. Sure, by the end of the game, you've saved the world, but are left with a heavy HumansAreTheRealMonsters (at least potentially) message, and thanks be to the time warp aspects of the plot (which resemble an AlternateUniverse), the ResetButton is NOT pressed on the alternate Earth you saved, outside of eliminating the SOB's making it worse, in exchange for giving it a chance to heal and make the remains a potentially better place as a result. It should also be noted that Char's FaceHeelTurn was born out of this game, adding some heavy drops of cynicism to the end of the game, which get realized in full with Alpha 2 (starring the events of Chars Counterattack).

** Ophilia's story is mostly idealistic, with Ophilia herself being one of, if not ''the'' sweetest character in the entire setting; but her story also deals with some very mature themes, culminating in her having to stop [[spoiler:her adoptive sister Lianna]] from unwittingly bringing about TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt in [[spoiler:her]] futile attempt to [[spoiler:bring her biological/Ophilia's adoptive father BackFromTheDead]].

* Quite some [[VideoGame/ProjectZomboid indie flash]] [[{{VideoGame/Shank}} games]] of the early 21st century, namely ''VideoGame/TheBindingOfIsaac'', are completely cynical, often a grim dead baby tragicomedy where the story is as brutal as the game sometimes with absolutely no hope for the hero. Granted, ''VideoGame/TheBindingOfIsaac'' is pretty heavily cynical, but it's PlayedForLaughs in a sort of sick ComedicSociopathy.

* Three (in)famous games by [=ClockUp=] vary on the cynical part of the spectrum:
** ''Euphoria'': [[spoiler:ThePowerOfLove saves you and your lover [[EarnYourHappyEnding from the continuous torture.]]]]
** ''Maggot Baits'': Happier than ''Fraternite'' [[spoiler:due to the endings]], but not by too much.
** ''Fraternite'': Cynical and depressing all the way. [[spoiler:You can't save anybody.]]

* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' and ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'', Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s most powerful franchises, are quintessentially idealistic. Every one of their games ends with TheHero [[SaveThePrincess saving the princess]] and defeating the BigBad. Eventually, the ''Mario'' games (particularly the ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' games) begin parodying their idealism, while the ''Zelda'' games become DarkerAndEdgier, but still idealistic.

** Two massive exceptions exist, however. The first comes in the form of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'', where the player's actions determine just how gritty the game ultimately becomes. The game's time-travel mechanic allows for two possible futures - [[{{Utopia}} One where technology and nature fuse together to benefit both and becomes pristine and happy]], and one where Robotnik was taken over, [[CrapsackWorld where plant life, if it exists, is dying and wilting, where industrialization has been recklessly pursued, and where everything is either decaying or has broken down from neglect.]] This is probably the most extreme interpretation of Robotnik as a polluting industrialist, a character trait that has been downplayed in recent years (now he's much more of a straight-up MadScientist type) but was common in early materials, including ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'', [[WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM the SatAM television show]], and [[ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics early issues of Archie's Sonic comic book series]].

** Various a lot from hero to hero, too. For example, [=McCree=] started a criminal, but got redemption through Overwatch, becoming a hero by getting a morale code. Even while being a mercenary, he's still a hero and does good things whenever he can. On the other hand, [[NightmareFuel we have Widowmaker, the tortured and brain-washed wife of an Overwatch agent who killed him in his sleep.]] On another hand, not all heroes are goodie-goodie like the aforementioned Tracer. Soldier: 76 was once a complete idealistic {{Face}} as Jack Morrison, leader of the Overwatch, but after certain events, he became a bitter AntiHero who wouldn't mind doing low blows just to get the job done (which is largely good).