[Seboist]

Mine are (in no particular order),

Geralt
Adam Jensen (DX:HR)
Hugo Fact (Ys: Origin)
James Grayson (Resistance:Retribution)
John Marston (Red Dead Redemption)
Nathan Drake (Uncharted)

[slimgrin]

1. Geralt
2. Adam Jensen



...and that's it, because most RPG's feature a blank slate, and since they're my character, there's no placing them on a comparative list. Shepard and the Warden don't count either. As much as I want to identify with Corvo Atano, he's a blank slate too, disappointingly so. My short list is also due to the lack of games played.

[Costin Moroianu]

My list would be:

5: Jim Raynor.
4: Adam Jensen.
3: Arthas Menethil
2: Geralt of Rivia
1: Michael Thorton

Quote

Yes, because he's not a set character. While he has a set name and set looks more or less, he can still end up a very different character, with different origins and extremely different mannerisms.

Even so I'd strongly argue that regardless of how you play him, regardless of his origins and mannerism he is still brilliantly written.

[Gibb_Geralt]

Costin Moroianu said:

Even so I'd strongly argue that regardless of how you play him, regardless of his origins and mannerism he is still brilliantly written. ›››

Can't agree with that. If you just perpetually hit the three tone icons randomly and make choices that would be inconsistent for even those living in an asylum, then he cannot be considered a good character. Thorton is one of those characters that are as good as you make them; essentially a blank slate.

OT:
1. The Nameless One (Bit unsure of including him; because despite him being pre-defined, a lot of the reason i love him so much is because of how i played him)
2. Geralt
3. John Marston

[KnightofPhoenix]

Yea I agree with Gibb. I'll also add if you just choose one tone exclusively or almost so, you end up with a meh character (potentially entertaining, but meh). Michael's character development depends solely on you, otherwise he can potentially not develop at all. The complexity of his personality, goals and aspirations depend solely on you, otherwise he can be a boring one-dimensional character. And there is not much emotional complexity involved, unless you headcanon a bit. So no, I don't think Michael is well-written as a character, that depends on the players. His role as protagonist is well-established (potentially pro-active, solid freedom, how he can interact with others, potentially intelligent...etc), but that's not the purpose of my list.

[KnightofPhoenix]

Number 7 is here. Niko Bellic from GTA IV.

[▫ Dona ▫]

I am surprised to see Adam on so many lists tbh, I think he is pretty bland and doesn't have much of a personality to show :/ His VA read a lot of lines in a really weird way.

Oh, Niko. Watched my brother play GTA4 for a while, back when it came out, didn't know whether to laugh or cry at their butchering of Serbian language. He seemed interesting, though.

His name means "nobody" btw. And is also a popular nickname in Bosnia.

[KnightofPhoenix]

Number 6 is up. Tommy Angelo from Mafia.

▫ Dona ▫ said:

I am surprised to see Adam on so many lists tbh, I think he is pretty bland and doesn't have much of a personality to show :/ His VA read a lot of lines in a really weird way. ›››

Well a lot of people accuse Geralt of being like that. While not as interesting, I don't think Adam is bland. There are several good moments with his character.
What bothers me personally is in terms of his personal story (his relationship with Megan, Pritchard, Malik, his real parents), it was just left hanging imo.

[▫ Dona ▫]

KnightofPhoenix said:

Well a lot of people accuse Geralt of being like that. While not as interesting, I don't think Adam is bland. There are several good moments with his character.
What bothers me personally is not in terms of his personal story (his relationship with Megan, Pritchard, Malik, his real parents), it was just left hanging imo. ›››

Haven't heard anyone say that, but I can see why if they only played TW2. Geralt's personality is less prominent in it, although he's miiiles better than most videogame protagonists.

I agree about Adam's relationships. A lot of it was just left... unfinished. Pritchard and Malik sort of just disappear, and the Megan thing is never truly resolved. I got a feeling he was over her after the conversation in white room, yet writers claimed they both felt for each other until the end... guess what, it didn't show :/ Not to mention I started warming up to him during the 'personal backstory' quest, and then it ended when it got the most interesting D:

I get that they had to cut the game short, but man... so much potentially good stuff got left out/forgotten.

[Costin Moroianu]

I guess I should play Mafia in the near future, looks interesting.

Knight if you are going to make a list of best antagonists, I'd strongly recommend checking out Black Ops 2, it has an amazing antagonist.

[KnightofPhoenix]

Costin Moroianu said:

I guess I should play Mafia in the near future, looks interesting.

You can see all cutscenes on youtube, tough it's of course not the full experience.

Quote

Knight if you are going to make a list of best antagonists, I'd strongly recommend checking out Black Ops 2, it has an amazing antagonist.

From what I read, he sounds cool but well reading something and experiencing it are two different things.
Don't think I'll buy the game anytime soon, definitely not before I do my antagonist list. That said, I can watch walkthroughs of it.

[Costin Moroianu]

Cutscenes don't do it though now do they? There is dialogue outside of them right?

Black Ops II for instance has this, crucial information is not learned just through cutscenes but also outside of them.

Personally if I were to compare him to Jacques, Letho and Loghain I'd argue his motivations are not as good as either of the three, however the way he carried out his plans is very very good to me, perhaps even more so then Letho. Playing Russia, China and America as your bitches and then turning China against America is a sign of brilliance in my eyes.

[KnightofPhoenix]

Costin Moroianu said:

Cutscenes don't do it though now do they? There is dialogue outside of them right?

There is, but nothing crucial IIRC. One could get a more or less full picture by just the cutscenes, but well it wouldn't be the full experience.

If you are going to play it, don't expect great gameplay, at best it's decent.

Quote

Personally if I were to compare him to Jacques, Letho and Loghain I'd argue his motivations are not as good as either of the three, however the way he carried out his plans is very very good to me, perhaps even more so then Letho. Playing Russia, China and America as your bitches and then turning China against America is a sign of brilliance in my eyes.

I've also read that in some segments we play as him, which I always find intriguing.
As for his plan, well one of the writers was a writer for Dark Knight Rises, so I'd expect the plan to at least be an impressive spectacle. Whether it's well written or not, I'll have to see.

[Costin Moroianu]

There is a full mission as him very late game and a small portion of a much earlier mission.

[KnightofPhoenix]

Now it's number 5!

And yep, it's our favorite Witcher of the Wolf School
Geralt of Rivia - The Witcher.

[KnightofPhoenix]

And now, one of my absolute favorites. The kind of protagonist that makes me want to cry not only because of his tragedy, but also because of how brilliantly complex he is.

Raziel from The Legacy of Kain series.

[Pangaea]

Would just like to say I thought Mafia was a great game, much due to its story.

[Bloth]

Fucking YES, screw the anorexic tomb raiding kung fu girl and make more Legacy of Kain. Brilliant summary, hard to contain the vast wealth of narrative in the Legacy of Kain, so all the more worthy.

[KnightofPhoenix]

I knew you'd appreciate it Bloth thanks

[KnightofPhoenix]

Now we get to the magnificent bastard himself, Kain. This piece is quite long.