Summary
It’s no secret that most people (gamers included) are drawn to the power fantasy of heroism and glory rather than villainy or mindless destruction. However, most people feel that urge to let loose and dive headfirst into chaos occasionally, even if just for a moment. Thankfully, most people can also let the impulse boil away without consequence.
Then again, it is fun to imagine what it would be like to embrace those dark urges. Video games with virtual worlds offer safe yet satisfyingly reactive playgrounds for the inner madcap murderers to get their freak on, whether that means betraying allies, terrorizing NPCs, or just causing pure, unadulterated chaos.
Most people assume that the concept of “good and evil” oversimplifies a story, breaking it down into basic, uncomplicated components. Obsidian’sTyrannyblows this idea out of the water with the hook that the world has already been conquered by evil, its heroes vanquished, and the dark lord’s ambitions simmered down to cleaning up the stragglers.
Players take on the role ofone of the dark emperor’s evil lieutenants, a Fatebinder, as they snuff out the world’s last flame of hope. The way this goes down is entirely left up the the player, butTyrannyheavily incentivizes evil. Chaotic evil is a viable way to go, and there are joinable factions and allies to be found throughout the story to accommodate the implacable psychopath playstyle.
As the title might imply,Overlord 2is a game about going out into the world to do some serious evil. The morality mechanics are much improved upon the original in that it measures not the intensity of the Overlord’s evil (Corruption) but its type via the Tyranny Rating.
Players are regularly given the option to dominate or destroy. Destruction naturally aligns with chaotic evil over lawful evil. By committing to senseless destruction, players gain more powerful versions of the spells that remove obstacles directly, as opposed to spells thatmanage various minionsor turn enemies against each other.
With the exception of the buttoned-up fourth-numbered entry, theGrand Theft Autoseries has always been a vehicle for mayhem.Grand Theft Auto5fully embraces that identity, especially with its third and most chaotic playable character, Trevor.
Michael might represent neutral evil with his passive reactionary attitude and Franklin could represent lawful evil through his stock manipulation and affinity for efficiency in crime, Trevor isone of the most unhingedGTAcharactersto date. Trevor was purpose-built for players who relish creating mayhem and for those who simply enjoy the challenge of up as many stars as possible before being taken down.
While some may argue that all kings are tyrants, the premise ofPathfinder: Kingmakeris that the player canclaim, build, and manage their own kingdom, or, more accurately, their own barony. Depending on their moral alignment, their reign will produce a prosperous, happy community, or in the case of a chaotic evil player character, a carnival of carnage.
In the place of inspirational monuments and bustling markets, there is a surplus of impaled or crucified bodies and extortionate guards running a protection racket.Kingmaker’s kingdom management system allows players to make cruel decisions, betray allies, and spread chaos across the land.
The human track record of visiting other lands and peoples and being a good guest is pretty poor, and if intelligent life out there is anything like it is down here, an encounter of the third kind will likely involve being enslaved or robbed by a technologically superior species.
That is exactly the premise ofDestroy All Humans, a game that puts the player in the space boots of Cryptosporidium 137, an alien on a mission to wreck every single member of their home team with explosions, disintegration rays, and deadly, head-imploding probes up the rear.
Few people in the world are still unaware of the absurd number of playstyle options available inBaldur’s Gate 3, but for those unaware, Larien went far out of their way to emulate the total roleplaying freedom provided in a tabletop game ofDungeons & Dragonsin their adaptation. Most other games will find a way to prevent their players from screwing up the story with acts of chaotic evil.
However, inBaldur’s Gate 3, the story keeps rolling and even accommodates a player’s unpredictable selfishness. For example, one of the presets and possible companions (and the appealing face on all the game’s art), Asterion, is chaotic evil by default. The"Dark Urge" character origineven gives players an in-game canon reason for their constant need to murder hobo every NPC they lay eyes on.
Prototype
Alex Mercer (or at least the near-invincible supervirus that inhabits his appearance, memories, and identity) is not a good person. In his pursuit of answers and revenge, he is willing to destroy everything and everyone without remorse, directly or indirectly. Nothing prevents the player from continuously running around and absorbing every single person they see, enemy or passerby. In fact, the game’s mechanics are geared towards doing just that.
In fact, trying not to be a vile monster inPrototypeis difficult, as Mercer erupts with an explosion of tendrils, claws, and deadly force with the single press of a button, and the unfortunate pedestrian blood bags in his vicinity are extremely fragile by comparison. Every innocentwalking, talking healthpackis somebody’s mother, brother, or aunt, but to Mercer, they may as well be plastic balls in a ball pit at the rate he tears through them.
Fallout: New Vegashas a legendary reputation for being one of the most mature and compelling RPGs in video game history with relatable characters, deep philosophical themes, and meaningful choices and reactivity. It is also revered for its ability to offer players near-unlimited violence, should they wish to walk down that path. Chaotic evil isn’t just about violence: it’s about creating violence almost at random, and that often means spreading it somewhat evenly as well as sparodically.
Lawful evil types might find themselves siding with Caesar’s Legion, but chaotic evil characters have many chances to ruin things for everyone, whether that meansmurdering every single person in the gameor choosing the worst possible options for energy and security management during the main story. A courier who sufficiently screws everyone over will be rewarded with a bleak (or darkly hilarious) set of end slides outlining the consequences of their malicious incompetence and/or bloodlust.
