For starters he is the character in the Half Life series that helped set the standard for generic FPS games like Halo. That is why he is loved. Either this or it is just a great mystery.Anticitizen_Two said:
Why is Gordon Freeman so popular?
- Thread starter Anticitizen_Two
- Start date
I agree with you that a silent protagonist is in many cases better than one that speaks, but silent protagonists have been around as long as gaming itself. The earliest characters to emerge were entirely silent, and the main characters of the two most popular series, Mario and Link, are almost entirely silent (Mario can say a few different phrases but that's it). Even looking at FPS's alone, the player characters of most of the early ones were silent, namely Doom and Quake and the early Wolfensteins. Half-Life came out in 1998, five years after Doom popularized the genre in 1993. So I'm not as much asking why a silent character is better than one who is given lines, I'm asking why Gordon has become so much more popular than other silent protagonists.Therumancer said:
Because he was fantastic both in Driving Miss Daisy and The Shawshank Redemption.
EDIT: Deleted link in case of moderator's wrath. Basically, look her up in google search and find the picture that looks like a guy in a Tifa outfit. Cos' it IS a guy in a Tifa outfit!
Luckily, I agree with those before who say he's not that popular. I don't see people raving about him than many other characters in videogames.
Oh, God, your link led me to this:ThrobbingEgo said:
EDIT: Deleted link in case of moderator's wrath. Basically, look her up in google search and find the picture that looks like a guy in a Tifa outfit. Cos' it IS a guy in a Tifa outfit!
Luckily, I agree with those before who say he's not that popular. I don't see people raving about him than many other characters in videogames.
Well he escaped Black Mesa, which was full of Army soldiers and Zombies. Then he pretty much crumbled the Totalitarian state that the combine had enacted.
But, most importantly of all, he has a beard.
Also, what happened to the soldiers from Half-life 1? Why are they not present, getting in the way all the time?
But, most importantly of all, he has a beard.
Also, what happened to the soldiers from Half-life 1? Why are they not present, getting in the way all the time?
Step 1. Go to work
Step 2. Follow directions from your superior via loudspeaker, causing everything to go to shit
Step 3. ???????
Step 4. Profit!
Step 2. Follow directions from your superior via loudspeaker, causing everything to go to shit
Step 3. ???????
Step 4. Profit!
Well, a lot of people like Half Life. A lot of people who like Half Life are nerds (myself included). Gordon Freeman is a nerd. See the connection there?
Because Gordon Freeman is you.
And who wouldn't feel proud about saving the world repeatedly with just a crowbar and a degree in theoretical physics?
Everybody can relate to Freeman in some way if you've played any of the half-life games; he's not a musclebound demi-god, a trained clone assassin, a jedi, an alien, a robot or jesus...but just some guy with a degree.
Furthermore, there is no specific reason to actually dislike Freeman; he has no personality traits to dislike, no whiny voice to get on your nerves, and the character you play, is you. Finding general hatred of Freeman would be like finding a hate forum about the character that YOU created in Dragon Age.
And who wouldn't feel proud about saving the world repeatedly with just a crowbar and a degree in theoretical physics?
Everybody can relate to Freeman in some way if you've played any of the half-life games; he's not a musclebound demi-god, a trained clone assassin, a jedi, an alien, a robot or jesus...but just some guy with a degree.
Furthermore, there is no specific reason to actually dislike Freeman; he has no personality traits to dislike, no whiny voice to get on your nerves, and the character you play, is you. Finding general hatred of Freeman would be like finding a hate forum about the character that YOU created in Dragon Age.
Imo, he sucks. His games are great, not BEST FPSs EVER, but great.
But Gordon is the typical silent protagonist
And the crowbar is stupid.
But Gordon is the typical silent protagonist
And the crowbar is stupid.
you talk for him, it makes shouting: 'Get the fuck out of the doorway you dithering idiot' that much more real
and the crowbar is the single greatest weapon in gaming history
and the crowbar is the single greatest weapon in gaming history
I love that video! And I do like Freeman, I just don't see why he has become so much more popular as the myriad other silent protagonists, who are pretty much the same person as he is.Patrick_and_the_ricks said:
Because he is a nerd pretty much. He doesn't DO anything particularly out of the ordinary and he never speaks a word, and without a real back story he has no character. Interestingly enough, the same people who say Master Chief is so generic and boring love Gordon Freeman, even though Master Chief has a much better back story and he does much more interesting things. He also actually says a few words in the game, unlike some people.
since everyone has already covered most caveats in this debate [super nerd, insertion fanstasy(whoops, innuendo)], here are my two cents:
everyone loves Freeman. He's the messianic hero of City 17
He's sexy, with a lovely red beard to compliment his striking facial structure.
he has lots of sexy friends, namely Alyx (down-to-earth mutliethnic babe with great personality) and Barney (he's your bud).
Even random people care enough about him to remind him "Don't forget to reload Dr. Freeman."
everyone loves Freeman. He's the messianic hero of City 17
He's sexy, with a lovely red beard to compliment his striking facial structure.
he has lots of sexy friends, namely Alyx (down-to-earth mutliethnic babe with great personality) and Barney (he's your bud).
Even random people care enough about him to remind him "Don't forget to reload Dr. Freeman."
Sorry I thought I said something on that, basically I think Gordan is popular because he's differant. He's like the guy that would typically die in most FPS games 10 seconds in before the usual military type guys show up, but instead here we have the lab geek kicking butt.Anticitizen_Two said:
I think games like Dead Space tried to cash in on this with their "Engineer" protaganist but it didn't quite catch on the same way.
That would be my guess to be honest. That and I think the whole Half-Life world and characters like G-man captured imaginations, so by association the character that was central to that world became popular. Sort of like what happened with Master Chief, when really he's almost a cut and paste from all the other military space tough guy heroes. It's fairly rare when you see someone saying "I love the game, but hate the hero" it happens (especially with RPGs, I've been discussing dislike of certain Final Fantasy protaganists in another thread) but it's fairly uncommon.
I also think that the game works with the whole "your a scientist" vibe which gives it a slightly differant feel from the constant military junk backing other shooters. Making Gordan feel fairly unique in the way situations are presented.