One of the things I have noticed is that people love lists (to death), so I have decided to toss my own list into the fray. What is my list? Well, I am going to give you my top ten list of favorite video game characters! In order to do that, however, some criteria will be needed to follow. I base my favorite characters not off of the lines they say, but off of their actions. I think it is important for characters to be strong-willed, smart, intelligent, and fun; characters that have a personality, characters that keep you rooting for them make for much more enjoyable games that last for decades instead of the time it takes for the public to beat the game and forget about it entirely. Because, as with the people all around you, it isn’t the words that define you, it’s your actions.
10. Gordon Freeman (Half-Life)
Gordon Freeman is a very awesome person. Not only is he quiet, not only is he a particle physicist, but he’s also accidentally the savior of the human race! Yes, he observes particles and atoms, he never says anything dumb, and he wields a shotgun like a champ! Way to go, Gordon. You defeat those Combine soldiers!
9. Luigi (Luigi’s Mansion/Mario series)
Anybody who knows Luigi knows him as Mario’s brother. Anyone who really knows him knows he doesn’t get nearly enough screen time for how cool he is. He has better story lines (he’s the next Ghostbuster), he jumps higher, he’s taller, and he’s quirkier. Not to mention that he’s saved Mario tons of times. His stories usually involve Mario being kidnapped and Luigi having to save him. Let me repeat that: Luigi saves MARIO. Phooey to Mario. Luigi for president!
8. Leon Scott Kennedy (Resident Evil series)
Poor Leon hasn’t had a lot of luck in the world. His first day on the police force in Raccoon city and not only is he late, but the town is infested with zombies and the city gets destroyed. Then, he starts his position as a member of the Secret Service and the president’s daughter gets kidnapped, and he has to save her from thousands of terrifying villagers. THEN, he gets to protect the president, and the president gets turned into a zombie. Luckily, Leon’s awesome and fixes everything right up. Except for Raccoon City. … and the president.
7. Samus Aran (Metroid series)
What about Samus isn’t awesome? Samus helped integrate women into our generation. Really! When Samus first appeared on screens in 1986, all people saw was an awesome armor-clad space bounty hunter killing aliens and stuff. Then, at the end of the game, he removes his helmet and… WHOA! Samus is a SHE?! Apparently women CAN be awesome. Go figure. Back in 1986, that was a twist. Now, a twist needs to consist of there being a hole behind a picture of a woman or something. Not only have women’s roles in games and movies evolved thanks to Samus, but so have twists.
6. King Edgar (Final Fantasy VI,or III in America)
Ah, King Edgar. Also known as Gerad, the head honcho of the thieves! He may be a ruler of a kingdom, but he also wields a chainsaw and crossbow like a boss. If ever you need to get rid of a pesky boss, he’s your man. He also thinks he’s quite good with the ladies, but… well, the ladies think otherwise.
5. Andrew Ryan (Bioshock series)
Andrew Ryan is the ultimate anarchist. He doesn’t like paying taxes to the government, he doesn’t like when religion takes your money, and he doesn’t like the Communistic approach, either. But, rather than doing what a bunch of Anarchists do and just start flash mobs that destroy copious amounts of property, he did the next best thing: built an underwater city called Rapture. He was a genius that the world didn’t understand. To quote him, “It was not impossible to build Rapture at the bottom of the sea. It was impossible to build it anywhere else.” In the end, his life was cut short by his illegitimate son. Too bad, really. He could have changed the world. For the better, though? That’s up for discussion.
4. Auron (Final Fantasy X)
As he tells you that “this is your story” and makes you get sucked into a giant bubble of despair, you may be thinking that Auron is a total jerk. But in reality Auron is a total bad ass who… well, he thrives on his bad-ass-itude. Oh, sorry everyone – I should make this post NSFW. He’s mysterious, he’s complex, and he’s just cool.
3. Victor “Sully” Sullivan (Uncharted)
Not only is his mustache one of the things that Nathan Drake fears most, he’s also very a crude alcoholic and a cigar aficionado. But most importantly, a great ally and hilarious. Who doesn’t love an old coot with a set heart? He may come off as rude, but in reality, he’s… well, he’s rude, but he’s fun.
2. Wario (Mario series)
Proving that people who are fat can still be totally awesome and socially acceptable, Wario started off as a hero and decided he was bored of being good, so he decided to try to steal all the gold in the world. Since then, that is the plot of all of his games. Yup, Wario is a treasure hunter and one of Mario’s antagonists. And he has an awesome mustache to boot.
1. Setzer Gabbiani (Final Fantasy VI, or III in America)
Who is Setzer, you ask? If you ask someone who their favorite Final Fantasy character is, they will most likely say Cloud, Sephiroth, or maybe Kefka, but Setzer is way more awesome than all those guys. Setzer is a gambler who owns a casino airship, enjoys kidnapping the lead woman in operas, and also enjoys saving the world. If you weren’t won over when I said that he has an airship, then we will have severe agreement issues.
I know everyone’s going to have a personal opinion on the subject. While I have to admit to not knowing a few of these characters, I would like to add “you” or the “stranger” from Myst, a very popular game in it’s time that didn’t create a hero, you are the main character as is, no modification. Otherwise I do have two possibly more obscure or personal heroes to shamefully plug-in Minsc (&Boo) from the Baldur’s Gate series and Master Chief from the Halo series.
I like that you didn’t stick to one platform but do find it weird that you would pick two from the same game or even multiples from the same series.
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