Both heroes and villains are prone to making fatal mistakes. One simple act of violence or carelessness can often have deadlier consequences than intended. While some characters are able to brush these deaths off as mere accidents, other characters can't clear their conscience so easily.
Some are left with the burden of knowing they were responsible. If the protagonist is responsible for an avoidable death, this means that the player themselves may have accidentally done something they didn’t mean to. Being responsible for an accidental death can leave a lasting impression on players, even if it is in a game.
10 Robin Accidentally Killed Nightwing With A Blow To The Head
Injustice
Robin and Nightwing often spared together in Injustice. Sometimes, Robin would throw one of his batons at Nightwing, who always saw these attacks coming. When Superman tried to kill the inmates at Arkham Asylum, Nightwing and Batman left to stop him. Robin decided to side with Superman.
During the heat of battle, Nightwing continued to give Robin advice, which made him throw his baton at Nightwing again in frustration. Nightwing failed to see this attack coming, and was stunned when it struck his head. He fell to the ground, and broke his neck when he landed. While this death isn't seen in game, Batman mentions this when Damien Wayne is confused with Dick Grayson.
9 The Player Has A Chance To Deal Critical Damage To Toriel
Undertale
A few of the Undertale characters can be killed in a single blow if the protagonist finds a way to make them completely lower their guard. In order to see if the player has enough determination and strength to leave the Ruins, Toriel challenges them to a fight. If the player continues to choose the "Spare" option, Toriel slowly lowers her guard.
She reveals that she never really wanted to hurt the player, and tries her hardest to keep the player from leaving the safety of the Ruins. She eventually can't bring herself to continue with her attacks. If the player chooses to attack her during this moment, the blow is fatal. Many players who do this for the first time are shocked by how suddenly she is defeated.
8 Ms. Applegate Shoved Nugget Into The Nugget Cave
Kindergarten
Kindergarten's Ms. Applegate is one of the worst teachers in video game history. Ms. Applegate tasks the player with eliminating all the students in her classroom. Each successful elimination ends with Ms. Applegate giving the player a gold star. The player befriends Nugget, according to plan, and finds the corpse of Cindy's dog in the Nugget Cave.
After the player presents this incriminating evidence to Ms. Applegate, she rushes over to Nugget and interrogates him. During her interrogation, she accidentally knocks him back into the Nugget Cave, where he lands with a resounding thud.
7 Tohru Adachi Pushed Mayumi Yamano Into The TV World
Persona 4
After shaking hands with Izanami, who was disguised as a gas station attendant, Adachi gained access to the TV world in Persona 4. Shortly after gaining these powers, he was assigned to protect Mayumi Yamano from a swarm of reporters who wanted to interrogate her about her alleged affair.
Rather than doing so, he confronted her, asking if the rumors were true. Enraged by her lack of response, he attacked her, leading to her falling into the TV. He was shocked by this revelation, but would later use this against other people.
6 Vincent's Puzzle-Solving Skills Killed A Few Other Sheep
Catherine
Catherine's Vincent Brooks is one of the many men who are put through The Great Trials orchestrated by Thomas Mutton. In order to survive the nightmares, each sheep has to climb and move blocks to get to safety. If they fall, they die. Sometimes, multiple sheep find themselves climbing the same tower.
With each tower acting like an intricate puzzle, if Vincent moves a few blocks, he may make it impossible for another sheep to climb, essentially dooming them. In order to ascend, he may also have to knock a sheep away. Other sheep who had to do the same to survive were horrified when they realized that all the surrounding sheep were actually human.
5 Cousin Alan Botched The Protagonist's Scar Removal Surgery
Life – The Game
When Life – The Game's protagonist enters puberty, the player is tasked with popping his zits before they completely overwhelm his face. It's not a pleasant sight, but succeeding is a necessary requirement in order for the protagonist to enter the next stage of his life. If the player fails, the protagonist is mocked for having so many pimples on his face.
At least one of them scars, prompting the protagonist to go to his Cousin Alan for a dirt-cheap scar removal surgery. Unfortunately, Cousin Alan completely fails to perform the operation properly. He botches it so badly that he kills the protagonist.
4 Kratos Killed His Family Without Realizing It
God Of War
Kratos served Ares loyally, becoming a vicious and ruthless warrior in the god's name after the god saved him. Ares, claiming that he wanted to sever any mortal attachments that Kratos had in order to turn him into the perfect warrior, sent Kratos' wife and daughter to a nearby temple.
With no knowledge that his family was there, Kratos killed everyone within. He would later discover, to his horror, that he had killed his family during his violent rampage. Ares' actions made Kratos abandon his loyalty to him.
3 Kalista's Attempt To Save King Viego Killed Isolde
League Of Legends
Kalista was Viego's niece, and his most loyal general in League Of Legends. She and her uncle were close, and she was always there to support him, even when he inherited a throne he was not ready for. When Viego met and married Isolde, Kalista was happy for him.
However, Viego cared only for his wife, leading to some unrest within the kingdom. An assassin threw a poisoned dagger at Viego, but Kalista managed to knock it away with her spear. In doing so, the dagger grazed Isolde, which ultimately led to her untimely death.
2 Polly Was Killed When Her Father Drove Under The Influence
Monster Prom
When Monster Prom's Polly is finally comfortable sharing more about her life, she tells the player that she knew the importance of moderation. She said that her father, who had been crushed by his father's expectations, used alcohol as a means of escape. One day, he drove while drunk, leading to the death of his entire family. He was the only survivor.
Polly mentioned that after the accident, her father sobered up. It's a tragic story that could have easily been avoided. After her death, Polly used her easy-going attitude as a means of escapism, but later decided that if her father could finally confront reality, she should too.
1 Kerrigan's Zerglings Slaughtered A Lot Of People
Starcraft II
After being transformed into a human, Valerian Mengsk ran a few tests on her to make sure she wasn't a threat. In order to prove that he shouldn't assume that he could control the zerg he was asking her to create, she made a few zerglings, who destroyed his Eradicator. After her point was made, she instructed the zerglings to return to their pens.
Knowing that Kerrigan was at her weakest, the Dominion attacked the laboratory she was in. This released some zerg specimens she created. She said she was uncomfortable with trying to control them again, leaving everyone in the facility to fight the stray zerg.