bad ending
Story finishes poorly
A bad ending is an unfavorable conclusion to a story, game, or situation—one where things turn out poorly for the protagonist or player.
In video games with multiple endings, a bad ending typically results from wrong choices or failure to meet certain conditions: I got the bad ending because I didn't save enough villagers.
The term extends beyond fiction to real-life outcomes: This relationship is heading toward a bad ending.
Sudden loss of power
- catastropheDevastating, large-scale misfortune
- doomUnavoidable grim fate
- heartbreakCrushing emotional pain
- despairTotal absence of hope
death · destruction · ruin · calamity · grief · sorrow · anguish · fatalism
Sadness from unmet expectations
- letdownFailure to satisfy expectations
- underwhelmingFailing to meet expectations
- unsatisfyingFailing to gratify
- fizzleFail after promising start
damp squib · peter out · flat · deflating · lackluster · whimper · cop-out · unfulfilling
Victory over another
- collapseSudden structural failure
- fiascoHumiliating public failure
- debacleSudden, complete failure
- ruinComplete destruction or collapse
fall · undoing · unraveling · disintegration · breakdown · losing · disgrace · shame
Sudden narrative redirection
- betrayalBreaking of trust
- revelationSurprising disclosed truth
- ironyMeaning opposite to words
- double-crossTreacherous deception of partner
backstabbing · reversal · deception · turnabout · subversion · tragic irony · comeuppance · dramatic irony
downfall
Sudden loss of power
- catastropheDevastating, large-scale misfortune
- doomUnavoidable grim fate
- heartbreakCrushing emotional pain
despair · death · destruction · ruin · calamity · grief · sorrow · anguish · fatalism · demise
disappointment
Sadness from unmet expectations
- letdownFailure to satisfy expectations
- underwhelmingFailing to meet expectations
- unsatisfyingFailing to gratify
fizzle · damp squib · peter out · flat · deflating · lackluster · whimper · cop-out · unfulfilling · anticlimactic
defeat
Victory over another
ruin · fall · undoing · unraveling · disintegration · breakdown · losing · disgrace · shame · humiliation
plot twist
Sudden narrative redirection
- betrayalBreaking of trust
- revelationSurprising disclosed truth
- ironyMeaning opposite to words
double-cross · backstabbing · reversal · deception · turnabout · subversion · tragic irony · comeuppance · dramatic irony · unveiling
- game narrativestory, narrative, plot, storyline, dialogue tree
- otome gamesfemale protagonist, heroine, visual novel, dating sim, confession scene
- speedrunningspeedrun, world record, WR, PB, splits
- Playthroughsreplay, speedrun, challenge run, walkthrough, blind run
bad endinghappy ending
Story concludes well
good ending · fairy tale ending · Hollywood ending · happily ever after · true ending
bad, badly, badness, end, ending, endings, ended, ends, endless