10 Save Points In Video Games That Want To Kill You (2024)

In the fantastical worlds of video games, safety and security are found in the sanctuary of save points. When grinding through mobs of enemies and bosses, save points are a highly anticipated lifeline, an opportunity to catch your breath. At least, it is until the save point tries to kill you.

From hidden bosses to sneaky traps, some games challenge the very mechanism trusted to protect your adventures. Beware of the following games, where safety is an illusion and every save could be your last.

Beware of story spoilers ahead.

10 Chrono Trigger

Chrono Trigger stretches across an entire planet's timeline, beginning in the prehistoric era and working through to a post-apocalyptic future. The game follows six protagonists from each era as they fight to prevent a global catastrophe.

Part way through the game, you find yourself at Magus’s Castle in 600 A.D. When fighting Ozzy, you can trigger a trap that throws you into a pit where you find a save point. But this is no ordinary save point: this save point is a monster that will break into three pieces and encircle you. It doesn’t attack you, but it will not let you leave the dungeon. Upon defeating the save point, you will teleport back to finish your battle with Ozzy.

9 Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

Set five years after the events of Star Wars: Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order follows Jedi Padawan Cal Kestis as he attempts to finish his training while avoiding the Galactic Empire. The game features meditation points to save your progress.

Cal’s journey takes him to Kujet’s Tomb on Dathomir. As you attempt to enter the tomb, a meditation point appears behind you. When you use it to save your game, Cal is thrust into a flashback, where he faces his former Jedi Master, Jaro Tapal, during Order 66. When Cal snaps out of the vision, he finds that his lightsaber is broken. This ends up being a big problem when Cal is confronted by Taron Malicos who sends zombies after him. Without his lightsaber, Cal cannot fight back and is forced to flee.

8 Changed

• Platform: Steam
• Released: April 4, 2018
• Genre: RPG

Changed follows Colin, a boy who wakes up from cryogenic stasis in a strange laboratory. As he explores the lab, Colin is attacked by experimental goo that tries to change him into an anthropomorphic animal. The goal of the game is to escape the lab while maintaining Colin’s humanity.

The save points in the game are shaped like orange boxes emitting a slip of paper. However, there are also false save points that look almost identical to normal save points except for a bit of black goo dripping from the box. If Colin interacts with a false save point, it will turn into a white latex monster and latch onto him, turning him into an anthropomorphic animal. Very rude!

7 Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night

Symphony of the Night is set immediately after the events of Castlevania: Rondo of Blood. You control Alucard as he arrives at Dracula’s Castle to destroy it. Throughout the game, you save your progress in save rooms decked out in gold and red tapestries and carpets, but there is one save room that has a glowing purple orb. When you try to use it to save your game, Alucard is pulled into a monochromatic nightmare realm.

There, he sees a recreation of his mother’s death except that, with her last words, she urges Alucard to hate and hunt humans. Alucard sees through the illusory spell, revealing the succubus who set the trap. He must defeat the boss to return to Dracula’s Castle and continue his mission. Some things are just off limits. The memory of Alucard's mother is one of them.

6 Final Fantasy Tactics

Final Fantasy Tactics is a tactical role-playing game set in the country of Ivalice embroiled in a civil war. The king recently passed away, leaving his baby son as his only living heir to the throne. Two main factions are fighting for regency and control of the kingdom. You play as Ramza to protect Princess Ovelia, the king's daughter. As Ramza progresses on his journey, he makes his way to Riovanes Castle, one of the most difficult parts of the game.

Upon saving the game at the Castle Keep, Ramza is thrown into a very difficult 1v1 battle with Wiegraf. If you did not properly equip Ramza before saving, Wiegraf can be close to impossible to beat, especially if you did not create a backup save file before entering Riovanes Castle.

5 Undertale

Undertale follows the adventures of Frisk, a human child who falls into the realm of monsters called the Underground. Undertale is unique in that you can choose to complete the game either by defeating monsters or sparing them.

On their adventures, Frisk makes their way to the True Lab. After some exploration, they come upon a save point. But when Frisk interacts with the save point, the save point star smiles as Frisk and morphs into the Amalgamate monster called Lemon Bread. Frisk is thrown into battle as a dialogue box informs you that Lemon Bread smells like sweet lemons. After defeating Lemon Bread, Frisk is not awarded with another save point and must carefully continue forward. When Undertale gives you lemons....

4 Hollow Knight

Hollow Knight immerses you in a hand-drawn subterranean world called Hallownest filled with insectoid residents. You play as the Knight, a silent protagonist who makes their way through Hallownest to end an Infection that has ravaged the world. Throughout their journey, the Knight rests on various benches to save their progress and creates a checkpoint to respawn, but one bench is different from the others.

Located in the dank entry hall to the Beast’s Den, the bench is illuminated by a beam of light and surrounded by Distant Villager NPCs. If the Knight sits on the bench, they are trapped by sticky webs. The screen fades to black, the music distorts, and then violent noises emanate through the darkness. When the darkness clears, the Knight finds themself in a sticky situation, wrapped in a spider's web deep in the Beast's Den.

3 I Wanna Be The Guy: The Movie: The Game

• Platform: Windows
• Released: October 5, 2007
• Genre: Action-Adventure, Platform

The story of I Wanna Be The Guy follows The Kid as he travels through a variety of platforming levels with the sole purpose of becoming The Guy. The game is a parody of poorly translated Japanese localizations from the early days of NES titles. Throughout the game, The Kid shoots save points, which appear as yellow blocks with a red center, to save his game data.

The final save point appears right before the last boss battle. This save point has a darker color palette and the word EVIL floating over it. If The Kid decides it's a good idea to shoot the ominous save point, it will attack him. The Kid needs to hit the save point three times to turn it into a regular save point.

2 Parasite Eve

Parasite Eve is a horror survival game based on a novel of the same name. The story follows police officer Aya Brea as she works to stop Eve from destroying humanity through spontaneous human combustion.

The final boss fight includes a chase sequence through a ship you just set to self-destruct. If you continue running and don’t take a wrong turn, it’s hard for the boss to catch up to you, but you also encounter a save point during the sequence. If you stop to save your game, the boss will not honor general video etiquette and let you finish the save process. She'll take the opportunity to rush forward and kill you.

1 Dark Souls 2

Like the entirety of the Dark Souls series, Dark Souls 2 is notorious for difficult enemies that can kill you in just a few hits. You control an Undead human who is cursed to become a hollow as they strive to change their fate. Throughout the game, you light bonfires to activate checkpoints, replenish their health, and respawn after they die.

Part way through the game, you arrive at Sinner’s Rise to defeat the Lost Sinner. One of the bonfires in the area is called the Saltfort Bonfire. Lighting this bonfire spawns a number of enemies, including the Last Sinner boss. As soon as you respawn at the bonfire, you also automatically trigger three Royal Crossbowmen. For many players, this creates a cycle of death as they respawn-die-respawn in true Dark Souls fashion.