Favorite Video Game Characters

[Specter Von Baren]

I'm surprised we don't have a thread like this already. Surely we have in the past right? Anyway, share your favorite characters from video-games and tell us why. Note that this is your favorite characters, you don't need a big justification for why they're your favorite, can be anything from their personality, actions, or just because they look cool.

So I'll start with a very nonstandard one.

Yoshiki from Corpse Party



Dude's a fighter. His parents have disowned him, he's not good at keeping his grades up, and he has very little reason to go to school aside from one specific person and he's considered a delinquent that's not worth interacting with by most people. You'd think that'd make him susceptible to the 'darkening' nature of the hell world dimension that most of the series takes place in but no, Yoshiki is one of the most stalwart and least corruptible people in the series.

Not only does he go to great lengths to save his friends at great risk to himself but in particular; his willingness to protect and stick with Ayumi endears him to most people that play the games. Ayumi is a character that comes from a family of mystics and because of that she's more susceptible to the 'darkening' effect of Heavenly Host, getting possessed by the tormented and evil spirits of that dimension many times throughout the original game, but despite that, Yoshiki manages to stick with her, showing a huge amount of patience and dedication when dealing with her possessions and saving her life when she's in danger. All this because he cares about her for being one of the only people to show concern for his well being and in spite of her having feelings for someone else (Because they're stuck in a hell dimension, ain't got time for that shit).

He has no special powers or anything, he's not super smart or knowledgeable about how things work but he puts his all into surviving and helping those he cares about. That's why he's one of my favorite video-game characters.

 

[Jarrito3002]

This blue blur everlasting speed demon right here.

Now he been around for a awhile so there is ALOT of interpretations of his character but the overall constant is shit is going down and he jumps in a instant. Yes typical hero does good just cause with no reward but that is why I like him. Like Sonic does this not only because it is the right thing to do but doing the right thing is just fun to him. No other intrinsic reason doing the right thing is just fun. Even when he is cheesy he is still cool and despite people trying to make him cringe or talking about certain aspects of the fandom that does not deny that at the end of the day from design to personality Sonic has staying power for a reason among all the ups and downs.

Also this hedgehog holds special place in my heart because he was the domino effect that lead me to being so deep in the hobby for better or worse.

 

[Specter Von Baren]

This blue blur everlasting speed demon right here.

Now he been around for a awhile so there is ALOT of interpretations of his character but the overall constant is shit is going down and he jumps in a instant. Yes typical hero does good just cause with no reward but that is why I like him. Like Sonic does this not only because it is the right thing to do but doing the right thing is just fun to him. No other intrinsic reason doing the right thing is just fun. Even when he is cheesy he is still cool and despite people trying to make him cringe or talking about certain aspects of the fandom that does not deny that at the end of the day from design to personality Sonic has staying power for a reason among all the ups and downs.

Also this hedgehog holds special place in my heart because he was the domino effect that lead me to being so deep in the hobby for better or worse.

I have thought before that it's interesting just how low-key Sonic is with how heroic he actually is. His motivation is inspiringly simple, "Someone is doing something bad. I have the ability to do something about it. I'm going to do something about it." Get in, do what needs doing, go home.

 

[Hawki]

I really don't have the time or inclination to go over every VG franchise and pick a fave, so rolling through what's here:

I have thought before that it's interesting just how low-key Sonic is with how heroic he actually is. His motivation is inspiringly simple, "Someone is doing something bad. I have the ability to do something about it. I'm going to do something about it." Get in, do what needs doing, go home.

Yeah, but how does that distinguish Sonic from, say, Mario? Or any number of mascot platformers?

Thing is, Sonic would probably be my fave character from the STH universe (nah, really?), and chances are he'd end up in a top ten list (certainly Sonic 2 on the Master System was the first game I ever played), and even now, I've still kept up with the series to an extent (played the games, watching cartoons, reading comics, etc.), but if there's a reason why Sonic's endured when so many other similar characters haven't...well, good question. I can certainly speculate, but that's a different topic.

 

[Specter Von Baren]

I really don't have the time or inclination to go over every VG franchise and pick a fave, so rolling through what's here:



Yeah, but how does that distinguish Sonic from, say, Mario? Or any number of mascot platformers?

Thing is, Sonic would probably be my fave character from the STH universe (nah, really?), and chances are he'd end up in a top ten list (certainly Sonic 2 on the Master System was the first game I ever played), and even now, I've still kept up with the series to an extent (played the games, watching cartoons, reading comics, etc.), but if there's a reason why Sonic's endured when so many other similar characters haven't...well, good question. I can certainly speculate, but that's a different topic.

Note that my admiration is with how low-key Sonic's heroism is. With Mario it's much more obvious and he's clearly doing it for good intentions. With Sonic though, he has this whole "too cool for school" demeanor to him that would normally be placed on someone that at least pretends to just do it for fame or glory but that's never been how the character was portrayed, even back in the 90's when you'd expect that to be the case. I'm just appreciating the little things about the character that make him distinct.

 

[Drathnoxis]

This blue blur everlasting speed demon right here.

Now he been around for a awhile so there is ALOT of interpretations of his character but the overall constant is shit is going down and he jumps in a instant. Yes typical hero does good just cause with no reward but that is why I like him. Like Sonic does this not only because it is the right thing to do but doing the right thing is just fun to him. No other intrinsic reason doing the right thing is just fun. Even when he is cheesy he is still cool and despite people trying to make him cringe or talking about certain aspects of the fandom that does not deny that at the end of the day from design to personality Sonic has staying power for a reason among all the ups and downs.

Also this hedgehog holds special place in my heart because he was the domino effect that lead me to being so deep in the hobby for better or worse.

I get you man, Sonic is also my favorite. This is why Sonic Dreams collection is one of my all times games. You get to have quality time with Sonic as your intimate friend/roomate.
Hot.

 

[thebobmaster]

Whenever I think of fantastic video game characters, there is one character that always comes to mind for me. This particular character, throughout a trilogy, shows some real depth of character, struggling to find a way to reconcile his black-and-white morality in a setting full of grays, and recognizing it as a problem that he has to overcome. In addition, his romance arc throughout the series is, in my opinion, one of the most well-done of any video game romance, showing how he went from simply admiring the talents of the player character, to being attracted to her enough to have a fling, to full-on falling in love with her.

 

[BrawlMan]

I'll throw in Sonic too. If we're talking the supporting cast, Blaze the Cat is my favorite. Other favorites are Adam Hunter, Sebastian Castellanos, Elena (Street Fighter III), and Claire Redfield.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

Spoiler: A few

As an aside for the last, this would've been cool as a what-if spinoff -

 

[wings012]

There hasn't been much I give a shit about lately.

I had such a massive thing for KOS-MOS back in the day.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Gary from Bully.

He's just such a wonderful little piece of shit.




And at the complete opposite end of the spectrum, Medli from Wind Waker.

 

[CriticalGaming]

There hasn't been much I give a shit about lately.

I had such a massive thing for KOS-MOS back in the day.

Because she's a badass obviously!

 

[Xprimentyl]

The kid in a red shirt from INSIDE. No particular characterization as the game is meant to be extremely ambiguous, but I will forever remember him from one of (if not THE) most memorable gaming experiences of my life.


Artorias the Abyss Walker from Dark Souls. I just love his story: a warrior faced with an impossible task who, before succumbing to the darkness, uses his shield to protect his canine companion. And despite a broken arm and lost mind, wields an extremely heavy sword with one hand and remains a formidable opponent.

 

[Elvis Starburst]

Gotta give a mention of my favourite red haired swordman from the Ys series, Adol Christin. Though a silent protagonist, you get a hint of his personality in dialogue choices, especially in later games, and I always found it quite fun and entertaining to see. He's not stoic in any way, at times he's even a bit of a goofball. But even without dialogue, he's still never afraid to charge head first into danger if it means saving everyone around him, or even just... wanting to have an adventure, simply put. In later games, dialogue and facial expressions show that even the prospect of an adventure excites him, regardless if others consider it unsafe to do so. The details? Dangerous monsters? Spooky tales that strike fear into many? Meh, nothing I haven't dealt with before! We can work out the nitty gritty as we find it, so let's get out there and see where this crazy train ride takes us! It's a lot of fun to see play out.


On a different spectrum, we've got Ventuswill from Rune Factory 4. She is very vocal, and not afraid to give people shit when they deserve it. Yet she's super kind and caring for others, to the point she'll put them forward before herself, even if it means hiding how she really feels. But when you get to know her, she's absolutely adorkable in the best way, loves sweets, and can get flustered rather easily if you playfully jab at her. Though she does make it clear she's a DRAGON and can eat you if you push it, and you can never quite tell if she'd seriously do it or not. I don't think I've ever liked a character as quickly as I did with her

 

[CriticalGaming]

Tifa....because...well BECAUSE!

 

[Specter Von Baren]

Fegor from Trillion

Most of you probably recognize her as the character I was using as my avatar for several years, only reason I stopped is because I ran out of art of her since Trillion is a pretty niche game. I really like her character because she's kind of my "spirit animal". She's one of the Overlord's of the underworld in the game and the one that bears the crest of Sloth. She's very lazy, and sleeps almost all the time, not interested in doing much of anything. However, she's also the considered the strongest of the Overlords, even stronger than her brother Zeabolos who's the Grand Overlord but her brother ended up with responsibility since she had no ambition for it. It's only after all the other Overlord's have died trying to stop Trillion that she decides to give it a shot (There's a reason only one Overlord at a time could take a shot at Trillion so this isn't her just being negligent, everyone else wanted to try before her is all) because while she may be lazy, she will stand up and do something when she's truly needed. If you succeed in killing Trillion with her, there's a great scene where she confronts her brother about the deal he made with another character that would cost him his soul in order to have a chance at stopping Trillion; the only times she's ever gone to the front lines in battle is whenever her little brother needed her and once she learns about what he did, she gets pissed off, it's the only time in the game she doesn't speak in a slow and tired way, being very quick with her words and responses and I love that kind of characterization.

And that's why I really like her character, because that's how I am. I'm not an ambitious person. I'm content to grasp onto what I have rather than put effort towards something that might give me greater burdens but even still there are times I'll stand up and not just let things happen if I can do something about it, especially when people I care about are involved.

 

[SilentPony]

Whenever I think of fantastic video game characters, there is one character that always comes to mind for me. This particular character, throughout a trilogy, shows some real depth of character, struggling to find a way to reconcile his black-and-white morality in a setting full of grays, and recognizing it as a problem that he has to overcome. In addition, his romance arc throughout the series is, in my opinion, one of the most well-done of any video game romance, showing how he went from simply admiring the talents of the player character, to being attracted to her enough to have a fling, to full-on falling in love with her.

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Garrus did nothing for me. I never liked his personality, and I certainly never liked his shipping with FemShep. I dunno, I just never clicked with him. The others, Tali, Liara, Kaidan, Ashley, I loved and romanced them all in my various playthroughs. Garrus was always the odd one out.

 

[thebobmaster]

Garrus did nothing for me. I never liked his personality, and I certainly never liked his shipping with FemShep. I dunno, I just never clicked with him. The others, Tali, Liara, Kaidan, Ashley, I loved and romanced them all in my various playthroughs. Garrus was always the odd one out.

To each their own. I really liked Tali's arc as well, both as a character and a romance. As for the other character I was considering going into...well, let's just say that is probably more suited for the "hot takes" thread.

 

[CriticalGaming]

To each their own. I really liked Tali's arc as well, both as a character and a romance. As for the other character I was considering going into...well, let's just say that is probably more suited for the "hot takes" thread.

I would argue I like the cast of Mass Effect as a whole over any particular character. Separated I don't have super found attachments to anyone but as a unit I really like them together. If that makes sense.

 

[SilentPony]

I would argue I like the cast of Mass Effect as a whole over any particular character. Separated I don't have super found attachments to anyone but as a unit I really like them together. If that makes sense.

It does. Especially ME2 and ME3's expanded motley crew. They work really well together and gave us some great dialogue and scenes. And I still hold the Citadel DLC as one of the best DLCs ever, on par with Under The Sea from Bioshock or The Old Hunters from Bloodborne.