As 2015 draws to a close, we thought we'd look back on the moments that made our favorite video games of the year great.
From Bloodborne to Super Mario Maker, our standout moments ranged from exciting to sad, hilarious to downright scary. Read on for the most epic video game moments of 2015, but be warned... there are some major spoilers ahead!
Snake’s first encounter with Sahelanthropus, The Phantom Pain’s imposing bipedal tank developed by Huey Emmerich, occurs at the end of a long, grueling infiltration mission. Most games would have you go in guns blazing during a confrontation like this, but Metal Gear Solid isn’t most games. Instead, you’re left feeling small, vulnerable, and encumbered against this sinister new adversary, tasked with finding cover across Afghanistan’s rocky terrain to avoid its line of sight, and make it to the landing zone undetected. It’s a tense and terrifying sequence that makes your eventual final encounter with Sahelanthropus in a later mission that much more powerful. -Chloi
Destiny: The Taken King was all about the ominous shadow on the horizon. The premise focused squarely on the inevitability of Oryx arriving to exact his horrific paternal vengeance. The build-up of Oryx’s terrible power was a thing of myth… until The Taken King met the Awoken Queen. The opening cinematic shows the epic moment when Oryx shrugs off Queen Mara Sov’s attacks, before leveling her entire armada, and his, in one blast of the Dreadnaught’s weapon. The destruction was so complete that it left a permanent hole in the rings of Saturn, and gave us the first taste of Oryx’s true power. -Brandin
Things aren’t exactly normal in Yharnam at the start of From Software’s twisted Souls follow-up, Bloodborne. While innocent townspeople take refuge indoors, all manner of half-men, half-beast, corrupt hunters, rabid dogs, werewolves, and deranged servants to the church run amok in the streets outside. It’s a bloody mess. But things don’t get really weird until you arrive in Byrgenwerth, take that leap of faith into the lake, and encounter your first Great One: Rom, the Vacuous Spider. Slaying Rom and her otherworldly spiderlings is a major turning point in the early hours of Bloodborne. You get your first glimpse of Yharnam, the Pthumerian Queen, the Blood Moon descends over the city, the Lesser Amygdala become tangible, and you realize for the first time the true weight of the cosmic horror hidden behind Bloodborne’s classically gothic facade. -Chloi
In Halo 5: Guardians' 13th mission, Genesis, Jameson Locke and Fireteam Osiris magnetize themselves to the body of a Guardian to keep from, well, plummeting to their doom on the planet below. What follows is an exhilarating sprint/fall down the body of a monolithic creature en route to the surface. It's a dizzying, brief bit of stunning spectacle and scale. It also shakes up the combat, giving you more room to pull of sweet headshots while airborne -- if you decide to fight at all, rather than blitzing by everyone on your way down. In a campaign that was mostly a letdown, this was an incredible, unforgettable moment that defined Halo 5's story. -Mitch
I knew that Fallout 4 was going to have power armor, and I knew it was going to have Deathclaws, but I didn’t expect the introduction of the two to come in barely an hour after the game started, and at the exact same time. Fallout 4’s Deathclaws are just as brutal, but significantly smarter than those in Fallout 3 – they strafe, and retreat, and seemingly hide on occasion, just to jump out again when it’s least convenient to you and start swiping at your back. Luckily, Fallout 4’s new power armor is the best equipped to deal with that, but maybe not entirely when you’re still getting used to the controls. You’re sitting on a roof, gloating about how easily you can mow down raiders, when a hulking deathclaw starts tearing up the street. It was an exciting, tense way to introduce both of those things, but also epic in how quickly it manages to remind you that, no matter how great your gear is, you’re never entirely safe in the Wasteland. Never get too cocky, Lone Wanderer. -Alanah
There are plenty of standout moments in Tales from the Borderlands, but the one to rule them all is the hilarious finger gun shootout from "Escape Plan Bravo." It starts with protagonist Rhys attempting to pass himself off as the president of Hyperion, which quickly escalates into a battle of opposable digits after angry employees confront "Vasquez" over an accounting issue. The unspoken agreement among the participants to treat the imaginary duel seriously is what makes this scene so great. The fire fight goes on until only the hero and a single oblivious janitor are left standing. It's definitely absurd, but the well-crafted choreography and sporadic commands that prompt you to react to increasingly ridiculous scenarios make this mission an absolute blast to play. -Meghan
I don’t like The Witcher 3’s “Bloody” Baron. He’s coarse, brutish, weak-willed, and unable to keep his anger from hurting the people he loves. But it’s because of these flaws that he’s a believable character, and when he holds the twisted, writhing remains of the child he failed to protect from himself in his arms and recites an ancient rite in an attempt to lift its curse, something extraordinary happens: he shows true, unmistakable remorse for his actions. In a game filled with ancient race-wars, monstrous creatures, and enough blood and sex to fill a season of Game of Thrones, the most spectacular moment is a man realizing the weight of the unforgiveable things he’s done. -Vince
Sometimes the most epic moments are the ones we create for ourselves. Few things were quite as satisfying this year as designing a marvelously obnoxious Mario Maker stage and then watching a friend try to cope with the abuse. Witnessing my friend Brian Altano wreaking vengeance on Jose Otero with his sadistic level designs had my laughing so hard I had to pause the video several times just to regain my composure. Watching their interactions inspired me to develop my own hell-in-the-clouds obstacle course for Daemon Hatfield, and seeing every insidious trap play out as he struggled through the gauntlet was one of the more rewarding experiences I’ve had with a game this year. I also found myself cheering inside as he adapted to every challenge, persevering through the onslaught and achieving a truly epic victory. -Jared
Black Ops 3’s Demon Within mission continues the mind-bending aspects of the campaign with a trip into the nightmare world of soldier Sarah Hall. Inside Sarah’s mind, I had to fight my way through a World War II battle — the Siege of Bastogne — as the landscape changed and shifted Inception-style. It’s a fascinating sequence that harkens back to old Call of Duty campaigns, from World War II collectibles to taking down a German Tiger Tank. It’s also a critical point in unraveling the story, and seeing the darkest parts of Sarah’s mind was unforgettably impactful. -Kallie
No matter how you choose to play Undertale, the final fight will crush your heart and possibly leave you with nightmares. It depends on which ending you get, of course, but without too many spoilers, one of the concluding battles plays by its own rules in the most obscure ways and completely warps the structure of the typical boss fight. It's visually appalling and playing it feels impossible, but despite the utter insanity of it all, the final fight is awesome. -Miranda
These weren't the only awesome moments and amazing games 2015 had to offer, though. We weren’t able to cover them all, so don’t forget to share your most epic gaming moments from 2015 in the comments below.
Don't forget to also check out IGN's Best of 2015 nominations and put in your own vote for what made this year a great one for gaming.
Have a happy New Year!
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