Best Secret Choices In RPGs, Ranked

Summary

• RPGs offer hidden choices with major consequences for players, challenging them to discover these options on their own.
• Games like FF8, Dark Souls, and Mass Effect 2 have hidden choices that can significantly impact the outcome of the game.
• Players must explore and pay attention to details to uncover these hidden choices and unlock alternative endings or unique events.

By their very nature, role-playing games usually feature choice-driven gameplay that’s a blast to engage with. Developers make it a point to let players make several meaningful choices that can have major ramifications for the world and its inhabitants.

However, in many titles, not all the choices offered by developers are obvious. In fact, some games feature options that are hard to discern. Most players won’t even know these choices exist until the consequences are already playing out in front of them. Here are just a few that RPG fans might not have known were available to them.

8

Final Fantasy 8: A Hidden Choice To Acquire Bahamut

Players Must Go Through The Questions Against If They Make A Mistake

Bahamut is one of the most iconic summons in Final Fantasy, and it’s easy to see why acquiring his services in the eighth mainline entry is anything but straightforward. Players enter the Deep Sea Research Center and are constantly questioned by Bahamut as they near his resting spot.

A wrong answer triggers an unavoidable encounter and boots players to the room’s entry. The catch here is that Bahamut’s final question features a correct answer that is actually blank, making it the most literal example of a hidden choice in an RPG.

7

Dark Souls: Walking Away And Ushering In An Age Of Dark

Most People Assume The Only Choice Is To Light The Final Bonfire

After beating Gwyn in one of the most tragic boss fights in video game history, Dark Souls players will obviously head to the bonfire and light it to link the fire and initiate what many people consider to be the good ending. This seems like the only action that players can take here, after all.

However, there’s a second ending that players can unlock if they simply leave the boss room after the final battle. This ushers in an Age of Dark. It seems like the bad ending until players realize that the world was already doomed, and starting a new one upon the ruins of the old may actually be the better choice.

6

The Witcher 3: Helping Little Red Saves Syanna’s Life

A Simple Choice With Long-Reaching Consequences

Appearing in the Blood & Wine DLC, the Land of a Thousand Fables is one of the most memorable locations in The Witcher 3, with Geralt entering this fantasy world to find Syanna. During his adventures here, he’ll find Little Red, a young girl who can give him a small ribbon to hold onto after a certain series of optional events.

Players have no idea about the significance of this until the finale of Blood & Wine. If Geralt made the choice to help Little Red, then her ribbon will save Syanna in the nick of time and whisk her away to the Land of a Thousand Fables, preventing her jilted lover from getting the revenge he felt he deserved.

5

Bloodborne: Ingesting An Umbilical Cord To Fight Moon Presence

A Hidden Way To Unlock The True Ending

Throughout Bloodborne, players may find pieces of an Umbilical Cord that’s about as mysterious as it comes. It’s not until players make the choice to ingest three pieces of this item that they realize just how important this item is. Once players do this, they’ll be able to fight the Moon Presence after the battle against Gerhman. This unlocks the True Ending, which turns the chosen Hunter into an infant Great One taken care of by the Doll in the Hunter’s Dream.

4

Final Fantasy 7: A Hidden Relationship Meter

Leads To A Memorable Date Event At The Gold Saucer

One of the most memorable events in Final Fantasy 7 involves a date at the Gold Saucer. Players can enjoy this moment with either Aerith, Tifa, or (hilariously enough) Barret. What governs the person asking Cloud out on this date stems from a hidden relationship meter that builds up based on Cloud’s choices.

Every action Cloud takes before this moment can either strengthen or weaken his relationship with a character. If players want to go on a date with a certain character, they must prioritize them both in and out of combat. Something as simple as a conversation can decide whose relationship gauge increases the most.

3

Cyberpunk 2077: Mounting A Solo Assault On Arasaka Tower

A Specific Set Of Choices Can Unlock The Game’s Hardest Ending Route

The assault on Arasaka Tower marks the finale of Cyberpunk 2077, with V enlisting the help of a party to help them reach Mikoshi. However, this always leads to a major casualty, unless V takes Hanako Arasaka’s help and dooms themself in the process.

If players choose a specific set of responses with Johnny during their adventures together, they can potentially unlock a secret path that involves them unleashing a one-man assault on Arasaka Tower. It’s one of the hardest missions in the game, and dying leads to the end credits instead of letting the player load an earlier save.

2

Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Letting The Hostages Die

The Player Is Chastised If Jensen Waits Too Long Before Initiating The First Mission

Deus Ex: Human Revolution is a blast to play through, and makes it clear to players that their actions matter from the very first mission. Given this title’s nature as an immersive sim, most people would want to explore Sarif Headquarters to their heart’s content before eventually heading to the helicopter that takes them to their mission.

This mission involves a critical situation where a terrorist has taken hostages, and these innocents can die if Jensen doesn’t initiate the mission in time. It’s an eye-opening moment that shows just how important player agency is in this game, with players unwittingly making the choice to let these hostages die if they spend way too long exploring Sarif HQ.

1

Mass Effect 2: Waiting Too Long To Assault The Collector Base

Causes The Normandy’s Crew To Die Cruel Deaths

The stakes are extremely high in Mass Effect 2, with Shepard having to deal with the threat of the Collectors during this adventure. Players must make major choices that they’re not even aware of, such as when the Collectors kidnap everyone on the Normandy and bring them to their base.

If players spend too long exploring the galaxy before initiating the Suicide Mission, then everyone they knew in the crew will die, barring Dr. Chakwas. She will get angry at Shepard for taking so long to save the crew, and understandably so.