The Slow Demise of DOM SANTIAGO (Gears of War Lore)

[@theredhood7879]

Dom will ALWAYS be my favorite friend in ANY video game. Me and my brother played GOW and we would always play Co-op. So when me and my brother played, we felt like WE were the characters since Marcus and Dom were like brothers to each other. It's one of those moments where you really grow attached to a character.

[@Foose3535]

Same here I was so young and my brother was like 16 and we felt like we were the characters. I was such a wuss with the game and being a kid my imagination opened up it was crazy

[@theredhood7879]

@@Foose3535 For some parts of the game, same. I would be scared on doing the Berserker missions in the 1st GOW but with my brother there it was a breeze.

[@Elnegro..]

Same, I forced my brother to play as Marcus, so I could get Dom. Was not a fan of playing as Jace.

[@Foose3535]

@@theredhood7879 gears is absolutely amazing, I remember very vividly we were playing the part where the krill are out and you have to use the spotlight to help the other player cross the street and I was so scared, I also was scared of the stranded for some reason 😂

[@epikreaper19]

this was me and my dad, dear god i love these games

[@KingAbzTV]

Dom left us 11 years ago today, September 20th 2011. RIP Dom

[@zidaneuddin]

Ina lilahi wa Ina ilayhi rajioon

[@steelbear2063]

In a blaze of glory

[@theredhood7879]

RIP to one of the best characters/video game brother in history

[@polariluma]

RIP da goat🙏

[@RexWort]

*F*

[@H3_Noc]

When I first saw Dom's death I cried, this guy went through as much mental pain as possible, the fact that he was able to hold himself together after losing everything he loved was mind-blowing. RIP Dominic Santiago.

[@Elnegro..]

When I saw it the first time I cried, ( I wasn't expecting it wasn't spoiled), when I saw it the second time I did as well. I've only recently stopped tearing up to the scene, but still hurt when I see the scene.

[@ElectroDrop666]

@@big_bear6530 .d a. d0lfs 0d

[@Sabbath_x]

I played the game 3 times I’ve always shed a tear at his death The trilogy was a masterpiece

[@filxie]

Same bro and every time I hear the song Mad World all I could think about is Dom’s sacrifice. He was a true character and I love this game because of that.

[@coletrain583]

I think what happened to Maria is worse for Dom than his death.

[@mattgerrish908]

Maria's death affected Marcus and Dom even more than you realize when you find out that they had actually been friends since they were 10-12 years old. Maria had a tree house and would sometimes sneak over to the Santiago household to see Dom and Marcus. They were childhood sweethearts and eventually began dating and the only reason Dom joined the military was to support Maria after he married her after he found out she was pregnant. Maria was literally Dom's reason for living, and after she died, he lost his purpose and was literally just going through the motions without ever really living.

[@misconceptions5613]

Gotta include that they got pregnant at either 16 or 18 I don’t remember (16)

[@mattgerrish908]

@@misconceptions5613 It was 16

[@skullyinc.]

Not true necessary. Yes, Dom and Marcus do become friends and best friends, And then brothers at the beginning of the locust War, but they only became close in the beginning of the locust War. And we're going to explore that side of them, in Gears of War E-Day!!!

[@mattgerrish908]

@@skullyinc. That's the new Gears game coming out?

[@skullyinc.]

@@mattgerrish908 That's right brother. Watch the trailer It's on KZbin. This game takes place on the first day of E-DAY, It's not a spin-off, either, *It's a New trilogy.

[@rakedetheron2353]

When Dom turned the truck at the tunnel, I always imagine that he was thinking to himself “Not one more. Not one more.” and dying happy knowing he managed to save someone close to him.

[@jonathanoxlade4252]

I was expecting dom to roll out of the truck before impact

[@Aaron_mf]

I can never hear “Dom! No!” Without getting goosebumps all over my body no matter how many times I’ve seen it before lol

[@frenzy2846]

The scene of Dom Euthanising Maria and his sacrifice are two examples from a very short list of scenes in media that have ever made me cry. Something about the juxtaposition of this incredibly rugged soldier next to the tortured and lobotomised body of his civilian wife. It puts into perspective the brutality of the locust perfectly. The music shows the futility of the situation coupled with Dom’s panic and not knowing what to do as he goes back and forth on the idea of pulling the trigger before all we hear is a single shot. Everything about it is perfect in how it’s set up to create a very specific emotion in the player a mix of fear, hopelessness, and somber acceptance of what we all knew was coming.

[@lakalister]

I'll never forget the first playthrough of GoW3, and the tears I shed when Dom sacrificed himself. What an amazing character thru and thru

[@aarong7551]

i was still a kid when the game came out so at the time the xbox was in our family room and when i realized what he was gonna do i paused it and sarted bawling while pacing back n fourth

[@AG-fv4yb]

The shock, the realization, the feelings, "never thought it would be like this huh Maria?!" Then Marcus to call out to him. Dude my heart, the only time I've cried at a video game. Dom was the best

[@NickHernandez2024]

It was So sad seeing Dom die and sacrifice himself. But I don't remember if I cried or not

[@sdmiii1102]

Dom lost his brother in the Pendulum Wars, lost his kids on Emergence Day and lost his wife during the Locust War. If it weren’t for Marcus, I don’t think Dom would’ve kept going as long as he did.

[@coletrain583]

Dom has literally lost everything. Man, this man didn’t deserve to go through this.

[@jonathanoxlade4252]

Dom lost everything his family his brother yer marcus lost friend's and family and hid father marcus had it worse then lost anya no wonder marcus is gruff and fed up trying to keep James out of trouble yet kait said the truth James and marcus both have made bad judgements one sent marcus to the slab for forty years but spent 14 years instead and James decides to be cocky and make similar decisions both are alike

[@IronDeath.Official]

If I'm not mistaken Marcus was only in the slab for 4 years not 14​@@jonathanoxlade4252

[@LovelyCinccino]

No doubt that’s a big part on why he sacrificed himself for Marcus: He refused to let the one person he had left die at the hands of the monsters that took everyone else away from him.

[@ShyOne1995]

Maria’s mercy killing and Dom’s death are still some of the saddest scenes I’ve watched.

[@xebenatrosxeracroft5178]

Dom is one of the best characters in the series, alongside Marcus, dude, went through so much and continued to serve, despite the painful, hardships he was dealing with.

[@coletrain583]

And boy, they were hard.

[@parkerp1ayz]

Why am I crying, it's a testosterone-injected, chainsaw, gnasher-combo, 3rd person, funny shooty game?

[@4390BigBoss]

You could really feel that Dom was depressed in Gears 3 and could really feel the despair Marcus felt when Dom died

[@HisDudeness2020]

The most dangerous man to his enemies, is the one with nothing left to lose. Dom's family was everything to him.

[@LittleFilmsMC]

If they do a remastered GOW2 I can only Imagine the look of the Tortured Maria

[@JanitorJason]

Dom's death brought a tear to my eye, RIP DOM

[@TOXIC-jq3ry]

The moment in the tunnel, will never not make me cry... Rip maria and Dom.

[@mikeysansone8724]

I just played through 3 again not too long ago and I still had some tears in my eyes when Dom died. You can feel his absence for the rest of the game

[@Bdanny234]

Oh yea for sure I just beat 3 again today and yea it felt empty

[@callanambulance8994]

There are so many video games deaths that go unnoticed and are totally forgettable..I will never NEVER forget Dom Santiago..RIP soldier we will never forget

[@superzilla784]

This just makes killing Locust all the more enjoyable knowing the horrors they have done against humanity. they say two wrongs don't make a right... but every dead grub is one saved human.

[@dominicp9296]

agreed but they went through many horrors as well. there's no good guy in war. war is war and its just killing and death all around

[@paradoesntcare7275]

His parents, his kids, his wife, his friends, and his brother in the pendulum wars. I found Dom the most down-to-earth character in this series because grief is such a human and relatable thing to go through and we've all been there, probably not as bad as he might've gone through but we can all feel for/with him in the stories.

[@yummylumps9401]

You've actually got me back into playing through the og trilogy on insane, I literally watched the death of Maria today and it brought me back to being a kid again, the feels man 😭😭

[@luisnavarro5]

I’d kill to play gow2 again. I lost the physical copy I had 😪 it had the steel vase and picture of dom and Maria in it

[@lamp6307]

@@luisnavarro5 get the game pass man all the gears of war games are on there

[@yummylumps9401]

Yeah that silver/Gray case you got with the special edition? I lost that and the picture of Dom and Maria when I moved house

[@dominicp9296]

​@@luisnavarro5 I had the same steel color copy man. dam it's crazy so many years ago I forgot I even had it until I seen your comment.

[@dasspanienabwehr4906]

I remember seeing all the trailers ik he was slowly giving up I seen plenty of people like this in my life with the same physical and body language my mother always told me "you already know what's going to happen if thats the way they want it to end thats the end of their story" was a bit cruel but my mother wasn't always soft about the real world.

[@ADotThaGod]

It’s not too cruel it’s simply the harsh reality. Tai said in the GoW comics “once the body becomes a prison the soul must leave”

[@stringboom5132]

10:48 In gears of war 4 Marcus cares a lot about his tomato’s too just like they were a memory from dom just a beautiful thing of Marcus to do

[@pheorrungurd8746]

I remember playing these games with my wife during our second anniversary. We had to take a few hours after Mariah's scene in Gears 2. That was the most emotional I have ever seen her from a game. She was happy after he sacrificed himself, finally getting closure and helping his friends. After beating the trilogy the first time, she refuses to play 2 and 3 again.

[@kyesamathe160]

I got mad attached to dom because when me and my older brother played gow I was always dom and when I saw what he had to do to Maria has a kid I knew it was bad but going back and seeing it , it hits way harder and makes it way sadder

[@Neo-bd9dk]

Delayed the Locust War “The Locust never died!”

[@thesoicybroadcast9384]

The fact that they put the mad world instrumental over doms death scene hit so hard. Like wow I’ll never forget that moment. And we all knew it was coming because of the trailer too 😢 just a perfect trilogy by all means. So happy with how they handled it.

[@joshuarios-noisycreature496]

I never had many found memories of my older brother, but what I will never forget would be me and him playing through the gears trilogy experiencing the story together and obviously because I was the youngest I was always Dom so when Dom finally went out after the years of me growing up as him I practically broke down as I watched Dom give his life for his family

[@RealKame]

One of the best characters ever to be written one of the first times I've ever cried playing a video game of many

[@HungSuhLow]

There’s a lot of emotional deaths in video games, but personally this one hit different. Everything he went through looking for Maria to find her and not immediately realizing how she truly looked was soul crushing. He did what he to putting her out of her misery. It feels good that he’s at peace and was reunited with Maria, but damn I cry every time I see that cutscene. Marcus was a “do what needs to be done” kinda guy but seeing how broken it made him seeing what Dom went through, I wouldn’t wish either sides pain on my worst enemy 😔

[@aslightlystablefootsoldier9838]

One of the most wholesome and friendly characters in the series, always had Marcus and everyone’s back no matter the situation. It’s so unfair that he just got hit with blows losing his family and his will to carry on the fight instead giving the others the advantage by sacrificing himself. One of the most underrated characters and one of the top dogs for the splitscreen gamers.

[@Pinkarmada01]

It sucks cause back then i remember launch day of gow3, when i got to the flores graveyard, when dom left his cog tag there, it immediately struck me that, thats it hes dying here. The cog tag as we know is picked up by squadmates and such to remember you, pretty much where you find one in game, is where someone died. The fact dom left his in marias hometown told me, hes dying here then commence the cinematic that broken millions of teenagers like me. Great Vid as always!

[@XXAnthonyCarmineXx]

Oh forsure man 😢

[@kursk_kuku141]

Def man… 😢 i cried when he’s talking to Maria in Mercy.

[@GoodFishMan]

I will always remember being little and playing this with my dad, we've played all 3 gears of war games and i was Dom everytime, I remember when I watched Dom died and it really did make me cry, honstly the first game that actually made me cry and that says something.

[@glitch2463]

Its good to see that gears is not just a run and gun type of game, we get story, scenes that make us feel as if we're really there, as if we are the characters.

[@blueperry6465]

honestly i was really sad when dom died because i always played co-op so i was always playing with him, and after gears 1 I thought we would see more of maria, But then I went to play gears 2 (in co-op mode) And just when I thought we were going to find Maria and then we'd have to escort her to the helicopter, but then she... and Dom had to kill her. And from then on, things only got worse. Excellent video (sorry for not being able to see it at launch time)

[@KingAbzTV]

Yeah I feel like Dom's death hit even worse for those 2nd players in co-op :( Thank you and no worries, appreciate you watching and commenting!

[@LTOZONE240]

It's been years since I've seen Dom's death again and I won't lie I teared up. It's been 11 years since GoW 3 and 24 yr old me will never forget what 13 yr old me felt watching him die.

[@AG-fv4yb]

Literally me, except I go back and watch that cut scene from time to time. I grew up playing those games with my dad, some good times there. I got a little sad in gears 4 because Marcus took over Doms farming and was pissed when the Swarm destroyed the tomatoes "Not my goddamn TOMATOES!" I hope we get a Marcus Fenix collection but idk if my heart can handle it lol

[@DarkWolf-407]

Wow all this time I've played Gears of War games and never realized Maria suffered from mental depression.

[@jalobsterman6475]

I thought Dom did have some feelings for Sam but just didn’t want to go through the same thing that happened with Maria

[@raptorjesus5870]

Rest in peace to Dominic and Maria Santiago. Loving parents and partners in all lifes struggles. To Maria a farewell, and to Dom, you gave em hell. The locust are nothing more than that. Bugs.

[@YungKonquera]

Dom, the heart and soul of gears of war 1-3… rest in peace fella

[@tonygriggle5569]

As Marcus and Dom once said, "Who wants toast!" Marcus said. Dom replied, "I like em crispy!" This really shows how Dom is the best character in Gears Of War.

[@hunterminnich3858]

This was a hard one. Dom is one of my favorites in the franchise. Thanks for the video abz. You're my favorite KZbinr

[@KingAbzTV]

My pleasure, I really appreciate the kind words :) Glad I can create great videos for you and others to enjoy!

[@freehugzhere865]

I've been playing through all the gears of war again on hard and man, Dom's story broke my heart. Thanks for another badass video man.

[@notimeleft1]

Dom was honestly the best character for the series. Marcus was the stoic poster boy and Dom was a charismatic dude with a sense of humor. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw Dom literally give up his own life to save his best friend and everyone in Delta Squad. I was in tears when he died. But at the end, seeing Myrrah die at the hands of Marcus , seeing Dom’s knife as the weapon to finish her off for good, oh man that felt good. So good. Rest in peace Dominic Santiago, and I pray you and your family are reunited watching over Marcus, his son and new friends, and the rest of Delta Squad.

[@tonysquinz]

I remember when I played Gears 3 way ago and Doms death was such a shock to me, my Uncle was watching and told my mom that we were busy with something very sad. R.I.P Dom and Maria

[@dianasaasaa9125]

When he said, 'sleep tight sweetheart', I teared up and couldn't keep watching. I am playing GOW 3 atm and will watch it after I finish. Thank you for a great video

[@IgoByaGo]

Bruh, Gears 3 ended for me when Dom died. My brother and I just went through the motions to “beat it”, but it was a hollow victory without Dom.

[@1989SupraGuyFIN]

For me thinking "I made this for Dom" helped a bit, but it indeed was hollow victory.

[@novoice9286]

7:26 voice acting is amazing. makes me cry every time

[@BobBob-up8fz]

Dom: "Hey Markus, I hope you don't mind, but I'm gonna eat your toast." Markus: "Don't do it, Dom!" *Dom moves a slice of toast to his mouth* Markus: "DOM! NOOOOOO!"

[@jonathanoxlade4252]

Dam the whole story of dom is just heart breaking makes his death also a mercy killing to end the pain and save Marcus one more time

[@HiddenCloudlobo]

Man I remember I fucking shed a couple tears to doms death it was crazy

[@Catdaddyacab]

Wow the pain and confusion in Dom’s voice. Such great acting. This scene hit hard then and it hits hard now.

[@solas444]

Such a well written character and the voice actor bodied the emotion

[@DeadFTP]

Dom is forever a legend in Gears of War

[@coletrain583]

As we as we play E-Day, this is going to be sad, considering not only what happened to Dom in Gears of War 3, but we're going to see his whole family, then watch them die. It's gonna be the a very depressing and heartbreaking game that will make you cry.😢😭 R.I.P. Dom and the whole Santiago family.

[@SafyreWorks]

I don't know how it'd sit with the fans, I'd love a secret alternate progression / ending where Tai, Maria, and Dom get to live, and Anya doesn't die off screen for GoW4. My way of coping with the feeling of loss.

[@theclown3967]

Gotta give the VAs props. Dudes knew how to convey emotion.

[@polariluma]

Dom's story is peak Gears of War

[@kyleknotts9590]

When Dom put his dog tags on the statue it said he was ready to die. He was growing tired of living and wanted his wife again.

[@TheLilBear]

Dom went through so much man. One of the toughest guys in any game ever.

[@jakebissell7930]

Both my dad and I cried when he sacrificed himself to save Marcus and them in GoW 3

[@occuringgrievances3625]

Dom is lovely and all, but when I'm trying to lure the fucking berserker out of the fucking door he decides that walking into the damn thing is the best course of action!!!

[@KingAbzTV]

lmaoo true, his ai was always funny and questionable

[@occuringgrievances3625]

@@KingAbzTV the only excuses that can be made is that it was 2006

[@Elnegro..]

For me Dom was a grub killing unstoppable machine, ofc I was playing as him.

[@duran4689]

Top 5 saddest gaming moments no cap, rip dom man. Best side character in video game history to me.

[@Cosmostrained]

This scene really hits me in my feels, best game series I've played and in my top 3. When I got 3 and played it that night I teared up some from this. It was sad enough in 2 when maria died. But now watching this, when he said "Look, Marcus is busy saving the world right now, and I gotta be there for him." Such an amazing character he was. So loyal to Marcus and his squad and going throaugh all this. Killing himself to save them in the end. Dom wasn't my favorite but I respect all that he did for delta squad.

[@submissionsniperfan]

Gears of War will always be in my top 5 favorite game franchises. So much thought was put into the story which is not something you really see anymore in games. Anyway just found the channel recently and these videos are very enjoyable

[@fariszakwan4433]

Now I know Marcus in GoW4 raise a farm of tomatoes to remind him about Dom and the war took toll on his best friend.

[@TwistedExisted894]

i remember always trying to get someone to play with me so i could play Dom; i loved who he was and what he fought for. it broke my heart seeing and hearing that song play on his death. i will forever cry for him

[@maxmazzotti6651]

Who’s ready for Gears of War E Day? RIP Dom Santiago

[@kursk_kuku141]

I’m not. When I saw the word E-Day. I know what that means. Maria, billions gone, and the beginning of the war. 😢😢😢

[@lorddeathspit1124]

Dom was my favorite character, a loyal right hand man tortured by the state of the world. A truly sad story. I always played multiplayer as him.

[@_GeneralMechanics_]

Greetings from 2024, after the E-Day trailer just released and we see the pain in his face after losing his children.

[@tdpuuhailee8222]

Gears of War gameplay: Buff men with big guns. Gears of War story: 7:19

[@flowtech3988]

The the beginning of gears of war 3, in one of the rooms on the ship there is a note from a psychiatrist saying * he's worried about doms mental state*.

[@MintyLime703]

The Mad World instrumental coming in for Don's sacrifice gets me every time

[@hurtboychulo7371]

Not gonna lie,growing up with these games,when Dom died I was torn😭"man I love Gears of War" was the perfect way to end this video

[@samantha-jane4424]

This absolutely made me cry.

[@bernard8793]

Awesome video a great subject for the next video could be the vehicles of the cog army like their tanks and helicopters

[@KingAbzTV]

Thank you! & yes that video is on my list!

[@OMEGANEEDLER]

Dude that hit my heart

[@God-eo9zj]

Can't blame Dom Maria was FIIIIIIINE. I l'd be pissed if i lost her too

[@jaykayebandftw]

that little comment about you loving gears at the end was so sweet

[@CogCouple]

Tissue warning at 13:36 Good to see you still going Abz keep it up !

[@555Cyrus666]

Lovely video man. Thank you !

[@KingAbzTV]

Thank you good sir!

[@bringbackpluto4134]

i still get choked up, man

[@KzRFAUSTI]

In terms of video game homies he is easily one of the best

[@michaelbaker2610]

This is awesome,gow 2 was my favorite

[@maxmuetzel5364]

One of the reasons why I found GoW2 better over GoW3 was even tho I shed a tear when Dom died, watching Dom being forced to put Maria out of her misery had always struck a harder blow to me as gamer. Like CoD WaW, GoW2s man message is to show a gritty, mature, dark story that highlights the horrors of war. To show what crimes are committed with no censorship, and purely unfiltered. We first see it with how badly screwed up Tai is after being taken prisoner and is held prisoner just for a short while compared to Maria. We see how the innocent energy that Benjamin Carmine brings is snuffed out while inside the worm. And Marie is found, we sympathize with Dom and even get angry. We are completely on board with Dom when he says “I wanna kill them all.” GoW3 has Doms sacrifice but ultimately has a happy ending, where GoW2 has a foreboding ending. What horrors will we see next? And GoW3 finishes it spectacularly.

[@davidbuckley117]

I love watching your vids on my break man

[@KingAbzTV]

I’m glad I can create content for you and others to enjoy! 😄

[@HieiDaHellSpawn94]

Also today is the 11th anniversary of Gears of War 3

[@KingAbzTV]

Indeed, where did the time go :(

[@OrgNobody13]

I cry every time man, it's the one series that makes me cry

[@frankorefice4115]

Always brings tears to my eyes

[@eduardomaldonado430]

Bro I teared up watching this, from now on, when I see a locust ima make sure to drill is in half

[@tonytattletaleliano956]

One of the few games that got me to shed tears only one to still get me every time

[@dominicp9296]

another absolute great video man. so happy I found you some months ago I love for these gears lore videos. the locust lore video you have is so great I've watched it so many times loll

[@SwesomegamerX]

it’s weird we never got his gears 3 variant in any of the tc games outside of zombie dom

[@tommydriggers9433]

Man this brings me back

[@robticdeath1793]

eerytime man i watch that cutscene it brings a tear to my eye never thought a movie or game could but gears of war and the iron giant did man such great things

[@archangel6666]

New gears of war E-DAY let’s gooooooo!!!

[@mrkeron1255]

Dom's scenes in Gears 2 and 3 still make me cry to this day.

[@CoCoNutBoy.2.0-v5m]

This is the first game can make me cry 😭

[@RealKame]

Never thought It ended like this Huh Marcus

[@Grinch34]

How Marcus screamed out to Dom, damn.... right in the feelers man..... Damn....