Opening Sequences

[Moonface]

So I just came across a tweet by former Naughty Dog employee Bruce Straley, who thinks that Resident Evil 4 has the best opening fight sequence in any game:

I'm not sure yet whether I agree or not on it being the outright best, but it is definitely a cool opening sequence considering it doesn't hold back any punches by even allowing the chainsaw guy to spawn in during it.

What about you guys? What opening sequences in games do you think are the best, or are at least your personal favourites?

[ShiraNoMai]

I love games that get you right into the action pretty quick. Doom (2016) was a really good one of those, and really set the tone for the rest of the game: "Fuck this situation, these rules, these disgusting creatures. Everything dies."

[Moonface]

I love games that get you right into the action pretty quick. Doom (2016) was a really good one of those, and really set the tone for the rest of the game: "Fuck this situation, these rules, these disgusting creatures. Everything dies."

Reminds me of Nier: Automata's opening sequence where you get right into a fight. Barely any story details other than androids vs. machines and no building it up, the game is set around a war and you get put into it immediately with no bullshit.

I found Prey 2017 to have a neat opening sequence since the first time through it really disorients you by seemingly repeating itself but with signs of the problem that happens at the end of it the first time to throw you off on the whole thing being a repeat and wondering what's going on, and then revealing that it's real but an illusion at the same time. It's hard to explain it decently without basically just writing up the entire opening sequence play by play and really spoiling it, and it's also best served with no expectations.

[Mr EliteL]

Uncharted 2. Need I say more?

Playing as Nate mid way through his adventure in a perilous situation right off the bat, tension already building. How'd he get into this, how's he going to survive, what on Earth was he thinking? Was a great opening to such a game. :3

Dragon's Dogma I thought had one too. Another getting straight into the game as you play as Savan on his way to fight Grigori, but also serving as a tutorial in some ways for combat. Wasn't a hand holding style, heck I didn't learn everything straight away, but getting a taste of enemies and a boss type was a good introduction to the game. Then after your own character customisation, beginning in your village that immediately gets attacked by Grigori and what does your character do? Run towards the massive dragon without your permission, forcing you to fight with absolutely no chance of doing anything to it. Ah, if only I didn't see that sequence before I got the game to know what was going to happen. Still enjoy it though.

[Moonface]

Uncharted 2. Need I say more?

Playing as Nate mid way through his adventure in a perilous situation right off the bat, tension already building. How'd he get into this, how's he going to survive, what on Earth was he thinking? Was a great opening to such a game. :3 

Oh yeah, that was such a good one. I remember getting so invested in the game when you reach the train sequence because I knew that opening was coming soon and I wanted to see how Nate ends up in that scenario.

The Last of Us has a good opening sequence. Excluding the story beats that happen in it, I just like how you see the outbreak actually starting and just how devastating it hits, followed by seeing what's left of the world 20 years later. Days Gone tried a similar approach with their opening, but the entire thing was cut scenes and a large amount of what happens is cut out and shown considerably later into the game for some strange reason, by which time I don't care because it's all stuff happening to the characters and by that point I had long stopped caring about any of them because everyone is an intolerable piece of shit or just downright boring.

Bioshock 1 and Infinite both have great openings. I think the first one is the better of the two though since Infinite is really just a carbon copy of it, except you go up into the sky instead of down into the ocean.

[ShiraNoMai]

The Evil Within's opening is really tense. One of those horror movie openers that begins with you desperately trying to escape your killer as he prepares to kill you after capturing you.

[Moonface]

The Evil Within's opening is really tense. One of those horror movie openers that begins with you desperately trying to escape your killer as he prepares to kill you after capturing you.

https://youtu.be/W6peAF8ElsY?t=346

Reminds me a lot of The Evil Within 2's opening sequence. I really like that one for how the opening credits are done and the parallel the entire opening sequence has with the first game, in that the main character goes somewhere expecting one thing, and is suddenly met with shit hitting the fan by being taken somewhere by an antagonist unexpectedly. I think they're both very good in their own ways since the second game is suspenseful with moments of peace that build into a crescendo, whereas the first is suspenseful through a constant chase. I guess the first starts with peace too if we include the initial investigation before the chainsaw moment starts though.

Dead Space 1 and 2 both have incredible openings and I can't believe I didn't mention them before now. Funnily enough like TEW they too start with peace where you can tell something is up, that builds up to everything going bad. Looking at Resi 4 in the first post, I guess it's a horror game trope to start off with foreboding peace and then thrusting the player into chaos. Gonna try and think of any horror game that has a good opening that doesn't follow that routine.

[queenzelda]

For me my favorite opening sequence is the one for Legend Of Zelda: Majora's Mask.



Cause that mask salesman laughing at the begging just sets up the creepy tone for this N64 title. It's great. I even love the BEN creepy pasta story involved with it. This game and the extra bits to it made by outside sources are great impo.

[Nightingale]

The one from Resident Evil 3: Nemesis haunted my memory for YEARS.

It was mind-blowing seeing that, especially after having been a Genesis gamer for so long before that.

[WR91]

The best opening sequences for me are The Walking Dead: Season One and The Last of Us (Part I & II). The way those games made me feel were something I will never forget. For those that have played those games knows what I'm talking about.

[Moonface]

Been meaning to share this one after watching a streamer replay the game a week or so ago...

Ghost of Tsushima has an amazing opening that starts off with the war kicking off on the beach, everything obviously going wrong otherwise there wouldn't be a game, and once the entire prologue finishes and the game transitions into Act 1 you get treated to this superb title sequence: 



One of the rare instances that I've played a story focused game in recent times from a PlayStation studio that doesn't have an opening which feels like a slog on a subsequent playthrough.