The five best video game protagonists of all time.
- Eli Grimes
- 3 hours ago
- 5 min read
Meet my gaming Heroes
I have a complicated relationship with video game protagonists. Plenty of games decide to take the easy way out and make the protagonist the least interesting person in the room. Be it through making them faceless or voiceless or both. In a world where film, TV, and game writing decides that heroes are passe or that heroism comes from being awesome at everything already and experiencing no setbacks, I’d like to point out some of my favorite heroes in the gaming sphere. (Also, spoilers ahead for the Mass Effect Trilogy, Baldur’s Gate 3, Telltale’s the Walking Dead, the Witcher 3, and Red Dead Redemption 2.)
My favorite hero on the citadel
5.
Commander Shepherd- I would like to specifically point toward their writing in Mass Effect 3 which I believe is the best written game in the trilogy especially for the leading man or lady. The mass effect trilogy is one of my favorites in gaming but for its first two outings it treats its main character somewhat odd. I wouldn't necessarily claim they are poorly written in these games, but they are treated less as their own character and more as a functional vessel for the player. And then the third game comes around.
There are many polarizing thoughts about Mass Effect 3 mostly for good reason. I could write another blog about my own feelings on the game and perhaps someday I will. But, one of its best decisions is after two games finally treating Commander Shepherd like a living breathing character. You can so often feel the weight of the entire universe on their shoulders, trying to juggle saving as many lives as possible without dooming the entire galaxy to extinction. Starting the game claiming to be “just a soldier and not a politician” while potentially being able to unite an entire galaxy against insurmountable odds. What a legend.
You think you have daddy issues?
4.
The Dark Urge- Most of you might be surprised about not seeing Tav here, but I’ll let you guys in on a little secret. Tav is not all that characterized. That’s fine, by the way, but whatever backstory you make for them is made up by you. Now Baldur’s Gate 3 is so well written that Tav can so easily become a full-fledged character with just a bit of effort from the player, but Durge is a little different.
Durge has an entire backstory, design, and existing relationships with the two big bads of act three even if we and them don’t know it at first. But the nameless Dragonborn’s dynamic with Gortash and Orin is secondary to their relationship with dear old dad and even more importantly their relationship with themself. The story of the child of the god of murder struggling with their killer impulses outside their own control and eventually standing up to their father (A god need I repeat myself) and deciding they would rather die a hero and throwing away the opportunity to become an all-powerful messiah. Thanks to the intervention of everyone's favorite god of death the Dark Urge gets a second chance at life without the call of their murderous blood in their ear (an amazing scene). And, after all, this the child of Bhall ends up saving the realm and etching themselves in history as the hero of Baldur’s Gate. We can all learn from the Dark Urge that we can be more than our family. (You just have to decide if the sacrifice of Alfira is worth it. Probably the only reasons not all my playthroughs are Durge)
OH, my Darlin'
3.
Clementine- Clementine is one of the few child characters that is actually written as a character and not just a plot devices. She may very well be the medium’s best example. While you may not play as her in Season 1 Lee’s main goal is to balance keeping her safe while still teaching and preparing her for this new world post walkers. As time goes on, she becomes more desperate to help Lee and the others, leading to her saving Lee’s life from the stranger when he’s at his weakest and eventually leads to Clem mercy killing Lee so he doesn’t turn into a walker.
Obviously following all of those traumatic events you can feel the trauma in Clem in season 2 but also her grit and determination to survive. “Still. Not. Bitten.” Despite everyone around her having different ideas of what's best for Clem, she and AJ come out the other side with a lot of scars and baggage. Clem may only be the third best character on this list, but she is the best young heroine in all of gaming.
Retired Sommelier
2.
Geralt of Rivia- Before 2018 I would’ve called him the greatest protagonists video games have to offer. The Witcher 3 really is a marvel because it does something that it might be the only example of. Geralt is the player and thus needs to be able to take your decisions as the player into account and yet Geralt is a well-defined character with multiple books and previous games to prove who he is. And despite all that, most if not all of the choices in this game feel like something Geralt would reasonably do. There are some outliers (letting Dijkstra kill Ves, Thaler, and Roach, and killing Keira being the most egregious in my eyes) but in a massive game with two major DLC's the batting average is actually crazy.
What makes Geralt so great in my eyes is the fact that he's undeniably human in a world that sees him as a freak. Those in the Witcher world see Witcher’s as mutant freaks and yet despite Geralt’s gruff exterior he is an undoubtedly moral man. His quest for Ciri is that of a father looking for his adoptive daughter. He has a strict code of ethics about not killing peaceful sentient creatures despite the potential rewards of doing so. He’s no bleeding heart, but he is a good man in a world that will both always need him to save them from monstrous threats and yet will never be able to accept him as human. I have a school of the wolf amulet like the one Geralt himself has; it gives me comfort when I feel it over my heart and I feel like I outsider It reminds me that no matter how much of an odd one out I feel like I can always stay true to my beliefs and do my best to be good in spite of that.
A good man
1.
Arthur Morgan- Did anyone not see this coming? I almost feel like I don’t need to talk about him or why he’s the greatest protagonist gaming ever produced, but I think I'm going to anyway. The story follows a flawed man raised by who is essentially a cult leader learning he’s living on borrowed time and uses that time to save everyone left that he cares about. There’s so much to talk about with Arthur. He’s a surprisingly subtle character.
His tragic backstory. His understated intelligence and wisdom. His self-loathing hidden underneath the stoic workhouse persona.
How all of his masks eventually slip away to reveal a fearful man just doing his best to save the remains of his family. Nothing in gaming can match the feeling of watching Arthur give his all to finally save John and watching him stare into that last sunset and hearing “May I stand unshaken.” Arthur Morgan taught me that it's never too late to do better and try and turn my life around. Morality isn't about notches on a whiteboard, because, in the end, Arthur Morgan was a good man.
I've shared my opinions. Now I want to hear yours. Who is your favorite gaming protagonist of all time and why?
Who is your favorite video game protagonist
Commander Shepherd (male)
Commander Shepherd (female)
The Dark Urge
Clementine
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