1) The Blue Shell – Mario Kart
While the origins of this series stretch farther back than modern generations of games and consoles, it’s maintained a longstanding fanbase and has found its way successfully onto many modern consoles.
And so it is within the confines of Mario’s wacky race tracks that we find our most heartbreaking moment: being hit by a blue shell. The blue shell is a Mario Kart weapon that targets the leader of the race, forcing them into an almighty crash that all but guarantees they will lose said lead.
In the early rounds of any race this is frustrating, but in the latter stages of a final lap it can be simply soul destroying. Having clear sight of the finish line, only to be cruelly scuppered by a player almost have the track away surely represents the most devastating moment in modern gaming.