When players encounter enemies in video games, the first instinct is to kill them. That's often how people win the game, but some situations require a bit more finesse. The heroes occasionally need information on where to go next. Interrogating foes can help them attain that information.
Certain titles let players partake in that process. They extract info from enemies in intense minigames, usually employing painful methods bordering on sadism. Because of that, these sequences are sometimes more disturbing than the typical virtual violence. At least in combat, the targets are shooting back.
7 Informant Interrogations - The Batman: Arkham Series
Though fearful interrogations are a staple of Batman, they don't actually factor into gameplay until Arkham City. When the Dark Knight sees a Riddler informant among a group of thugs, he can take out everyone around said informant before holding him at his mercy. He mostly lifts the perp by the throat or holds him in other compromising positions. Once the Caped Crusader gets the information, he brutally knocks out the informant with a bone-crunching blow. The subsequent games all contain this mechanic, but it goes further in the series' conclusion.
Searching for the eponymous Arkham Knight, Batman pins one of the villain's henchmen to the ground. He then calls in his car and slowly backs it over the guy's head. The image is extreme enough, but the man's screaming and the hero shouting at him makes it more impactful, as it shows Batman truly losing his cool. The only way to make this more brutal would be if players could actually crush the poor sap's skull, but that violates the Dark Knight's code.
6 Threatening The Butcher - Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)
Much of modern warfare is about combatting terrorists, and this Call of Dutyreboot of a reboot sees the SAS capture one of their figureheads: "The Butcher." This sets the stage for an exercise in psychological torture. The dark room and clandestine atmosphere would be bad enough, but it gets more twisted when the Butcher's family comes in.
Players can turn their wrath on him or his wife and son. Pointing the gun at either party causes emotional pleas from everyone involved. True, the weapon is empty, but they don't know that. As if the situation couldn't get any more volatile, the agents load the revolver, raising the stakes sixfold. Even after getting the desired info, fans can still execute the villain. Leaving him alive may seem like mercy, but the Russians pick him up soon after. Like the conflicts it emulates, the scenario has no happy endings.
5 Executions - The Punisher
One superhero even darker than Batman is the Punisher. This Marvel vigilante routinely mows down the filth of the criminal underworld in retribution for his murdered family and a failed justice system. Players fully embrace that bloodthirsty mantra in the 2004 title based on the Thomas Jane movie.
Throughout this tie-in game, the Punisher pumps thugs for information on his next target. He can hurt and eventually kill them using whatever machine or implement is on hand. When he turns human beings into mincemeat, it's hard to look at the screen. The Punisher, however, retains his cold calm through it all, making his character more threatening as a result. The fact that such horrific sights don't phase him shows how scarred he is. Moreover, it demonstrates the developers' demented creativity.
4 Suspect Interviews - LA Noire
It stands to reason that a detective tale would feature questioning. Protagonist Cole Phelps drags perps down to the station numerous times throughout LA Noire, and it unfolds in the style of '40s hardboiled capers. This means it's anything but professional. His partners regularly suggest beating confessions out of suspects, peppering their suggestions with the odd ethnic or sexist slur. Phelps tries a civil veneer, but even he isn't above lobbing insults when he's onto something. All of this inevitably leads to things getting heated.
The tension escalates to palpable levels, especially for the more serious crimes. This ramps up the pressure for Phelps to get it right. If he fails to read the person correctly or put the evidence together, he could condemn an innocent soul to persecution from crooked cops. Suffice it to say, that wouldn't look good in the report.
3 Environmental Interrogations - Splinter Cell: Conviction
Interrogation is a recurring element in the Splinter Cell series, but it gets a particular focus in Conviction. In an evolution of the Punisher sequences, Sam Fisher must inflict as much pain as necessary to get the goods. He can obviously go the basic route with his fists, but more entertaining are the environmental strikes.
Depending on where he is, Fisher can use the world around him to hurt his targets. Options range from slamming them into a piano to smashing their heads into a restroom sink. These objects are all just tools in his toolbox, meaning players will never look at the hero the same way again. Sam Fisher is someone who can fashion an instrument of torture out of anything, and that makes simply being in the same room as him a daunting task.
2 By The Book - Grand Theft Auto 5
Raising a fresh host of news stories decrying the depravity of video games, Grand Theft Auto 5 piles a torture scene on top of all its other gleefully offensive content. The government strongarms the main trio of crooks into doing several off-the-book jobs. One of these is assassinating a terrorist, which involves torturing a poor informant named Ferdinand.
The unhinged Trevor gets the lucky task of inflicting pain, and it's as twisted as you'd expect. Players choose from a variety of instruments like pliers, jumper cables, and a tank of water before going to town on the victim. The whole sequence takes shots at torture tactics used in the real war on terror. In that, it's tinged with the GTA series' brand of dark humor, thanks in no small part to Trevor's snarky comments and Ferdinand's petty complaints (like damaging his perfect teeth). With any luck, gamers will be laughing and crying at the same time.
1 Count Reuven's Treasure - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Players aren't the ones inflicting pain here in this Witcher 3 quest, at least not directly. To find out where a friend is imprisoned, Geralt and Triss walk right into the witch hunters' base. The witcherthen hands his sorceress ally over to the religious zealots in exchange for an audience with their leader. Now, he must covertly uncover the info he needs while Triss endures torture in the next room. No pressure.
This entire scene is like walking a tightrope. To convince the witch hunters and attain the answers, Geralt must choose the right responses throughout the conversation. One misstep will shatter the facade and stir up the whole hornet's nest. Making things worse is hearing Triss's agonized screams from the other room, wearing down his resolve. For the cherry on top, spymaster Dijkstra also wants the witcher to discern the location of his treasure. This sequence pulls players in a million different directions at once. Even the smoothest speaker can't achieve all objectives here. It's just a matter of deciding which compromises to make: always a demoralizing prospect.