Highlights
- Rockstar's best games have compelling main characters, but no one is safe - not even the protagonists.
- From Johnny Klebitz to Arthur Morgan, Rockstar doesn't shy away from shocking and tragic character deaths.
- Betrayal is often a major theme in Rockstar games, leading to tragic and violent ends for characters like John Marston.
One of the things Rockstar is best known for is creating games with great storylines. Whether it be the Red Dead franchise, Grand Theft Auto, or L.A. Noire, the writers at Rockstar are master storytellers.
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Of course, players can't have a good story without having equally good characters, and Rockstar's best games have some of the most compelling main characters in the business. Unfortunately, Rockstar likes to break its toys. That means no one is safe, not even their main characters. If they're lucky, they'll live long enough to die in another game. If they're unlucky, they won't live to see the credits roll.
1 Johnny Klebitz
Killed In Grand Theft Auto 5
Johnny was the main character in one of GTA 4's two story DLCs, The Lost and the Damned. In that game, he's a leading member of the Lost MC biker gang and a recovering drug addict. He spends most of the DLC trying to keep his club together and ultimately does so by killing its villainous president, Billy Grey. His story seemingly ends with Johnny riding away from Liberty City in an attempt to evade the police.
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Then he turns up again as a minor character in Grand Theft Auto 5 when players are introduced to Trevor. This leads to arguably the worst death in all of Grand Theft Auto. Just as he is declaring his love for his girlfriend Ashley (who Trevor is sleeping with), Trevor smashes a bottle over Johnny's head and proceeds to stomp on the poor guy's head. The scene ends with a gruesome joke as Trevor picks the remains off his shoe as if he's stood in something unpleasant.
2 Vic Vance
Killed In GTA Vice City
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 2 , PSP
- Released
- October 31, 2006
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure , Third-Person Shooter
- Developer(s)
- Rockstar Games
Next to poor Johnny, Vic Vance is the only Grand Theft Auto protagonist confirmed to be dead in canon. He was the protagonist of the spin-off game Vice City Stories. He joined the military so that he could care for his sick brother (and one of Rockstar's best side characters), Lance Vance.
After a corrupt commanding officer gets Vic thrown out of the military, he turns to a life of crime, building an impressive empire in a short amount of time. Unfortunately for Vic, his game was a prequel to the original Vice City, in which he dies. GTA Vice City opens with Tommy and his goons arriving in town to buy $2 million of drugs from Vic. The transaction goes south when hitmen turn up and start spraying lead, killing Vic in the process.
3 Cole Phelps
Killed In L.A. Noire
Cole Phelps has a pretty lousy time throughout L.A. Noire. He starts the game as an ambitious, honorable cop trying to make his way through a corrupt system, but ends up being personally and professionally humiliated. Internal affairs starts looking into his cases, commits adultery, and it's revealed that during the war he led a unit that killed civilians.
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It's true that Cole has made many mistakes, but ultimately, he's trying to make amends and protect his city. That's a problem for Roy Earle, a corrupt detective who hates honest cops like Cole. Ultimately, Cole sacrifices himself to save his allies in the game's final mission and is swallowed up by a flooding tunnel. In one of Rockstar's darkest endings, his eulogy is given by corrupt cop and arch-nemesis Roy Earle.
4 Arthur Morgan
Dies In Red Dead Redemption 2
Arthur Morgan is one of Rockstar's most complex characters, and some would argue he is one of the best game protagonists ever written. Depending on the player's actions, Arthur can be an honorable outlaw who does what it takes to survive but is generally a good man, or a total scoundrel who only cares about himself. Sadly for Arthur, if the player decides to make him a good man, his redemption begins a little too late.
A relatively early mission in Red Dead Redemption 2 has Arthur working as a debt collector for Strauss. Arthur gets a little carried away and begins beating one debtor, Thomas Downes, who ends up coughing blood in Arthur's face. From there, the character's fate is sealed - he's caught a deadly case of tuberculosis. If fans play honorably, Arthur will die serenely on a mountaintop watching the sunrise. If they play dishonorably, they'll watch Arthur meet his end at the hands of Micah.
5 Michael & Trevor
Both Can Die In Grand Theft Auto 5
Grand Theft Auto 5
- Platform(s)
- PS5 , PS4 , PS3 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , Xbox One , Xbox 360 , PC
- Released
- September 17, 2013
- Genre(s)
- Open-World , Action
- Developer(s)
- Rockstar North
Betrayal is a major theme in Grand Theft Auto 5. It begins in one of Rockstar's best opening missions with Michael betraying Trevor so that he can start a new life, and it can end with Franklin making a similar decision. Towards the end of the game, Franklin is asked to make a choice: betray Trevor or Michael, or sacrifice himself.
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It's a tough decision. Michael and Trevor might be murderous psychopaths, but they've also been (mostly) good friends and mentors to Franklin. Both protagonist's deaths are equally tragic and violent. Trevor's, in particular, is pretty stomach-churning. The third "canon" option suggests Franklin will die, but it is actually a happy ending where everyone survives (unless Rockstar stays true to form and kills them off in GTA 6).
6 John Marston
Killed In Red Dead Redemption
Red Dead Redemption
- Released
- May 18, 2010
- Genre(s)
- Open-World , Adventure
- Developer(s)
- Rockstar San Diego
Red Dead Redemption was released back in 2020, but some fans are still recovering from its ending. John Marston is one of the best playable characters Rockstar ever created, and his death hit many gamers like a truck. Just as it looks like John is going to get his "happily ever after" ending, his past comes calling.
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The U.S. government turns up on John's farm looking for "justice" (revenge). John manages to get his family out but is trapped in his barn. His only option is to go out all guns blazing. As the player exits, Dead Eye engages, and everyone starts shooting. It doesn't matter how quick John is or how many guys he takes out, he's always killed in a hail of bullets. His death came as a total shock to many fans, but the game's ending showed that games could tell impactful stories and also be fun to play.
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