gamesecosse

Video Game Protagonists

Although there have been many attempts of late by developers to blur the boundary lines between film and video games, there are some unique aspects to video games which will always remain in place. Some of these are fairly obvious, and many films could never really be translated to the video game world & vice versa.
However, one characteristic which many don't notice is the development of the protagonist in video games. Because you, the player, assumes the role of the main character, he/she therefore cannot have too much depth. This character must be an 'empty shell' to a certain extent, and allow the player to be this person in their own, individual way. Having said that, this concept is fairly loose and differs depending on the type of game, although the central character must always have attractive traits for the player to be able to enjoy the game and relate to him/her. Typical RPGs are at the extreme end of the above concept, where you create a generic character from a template at the beginning and develop them throughout the game. Each to their own, but I always feel that no matter how much customisation the game allows, the character will always be a little 'numb'.

posted by qmchaz64 @ 3:29 pm