Have You Ever Felt Something For A Video Game Character?

[Seil]

Now, I'm not talkin' 'bout those weird Japanese games that I have to buy under the counter, those make me feel something. Three or four times actually. They really get a rise out of me, and at some point, I'll probably need a tissue.

No, I'm taking about something else: something probably almost completely stolen from The Escapist's forums - characters in video games that you like. Let's say... Gray Fox from Metal Gear Solid. Or Garret from the Thief series. Or Janos Audrin. Or James Sunderland. Characters that make you feel compassion, contempt, that make you laugh, or make you sad.

A good story pulls you in with an emotional connection. What emotions connected you to your favorite characters?

[Kim]

The protagonist of NieR. I really connect with him since he really has this "fatherly compassion" thing going for him.

[Azisien]

I'd say I've developed an attachment to Tali of the Mass Effect franchise. Probably that whole story and world in general, but more so with Tali.

[PyrosNine]

I like Boone, but who doesn't? A loner wandering a wasteland, discovers he actually had something truly horrific happen to him that started off his whole "silent and gruff" attitude and his being the most capable companion you get.

Ezio Auditore wins points for being a character that you literally follow from the womb to Old Age, and one who is both skilled and flawed, and yet an all around likeable badass.

Also, Colette from TOS, and most definitely Solid Snake! Both are people willing to give their all for saving the world, but we actually get to see what this means to the gory details! God Save the people saving the people!

Alyx, especially because she was designed to be: after long experiences of being completely alone, and doing incredibly superhuman and insanely difficult/awesome feats just to survive you finally get a companion who is justifiably a fangirl who appreciates how awesome YOU as Gordon Freeman are. The fact they made her an attractive dork helps her out as well too, and the fact she's coming onto the story secondhand compared to Kleiner, Barney and yourself. So while she knows how the dark future world works, the player still knows how to deal with this crazy one man against an alien apocalypse shit works.

I've seen cutscenes and several trailers occur in FF13, but I already felt a deep connection to the characters in that game: Just the knowledge that the people you're fighting for are doomed, you yourself are doomed to follow them, and there's this sense of hopelessness even though you're a badass super warrior riding an ice motorcycle made out of Twin Shiva's.

Persona 3's characters, but that may mostly be because of that one LP.

[Red Mage Black]

I can't really explain why, it was more of something that just happened. I'm pretty sure it started with Lavitz from Legend of Dragoon. It was just something that happened and when he was replaced by Albert, the connection was lost.

Not any bigger then with Lavitz, but Delita from FFT. Can't really find the words to explain why or how, like with the former.

Going more along a timeline, I'm not too sure, as I've felt a dozen connections before, maybe not as strong as the former, but they were there in their own ways. Yes, I've even felt it towards female characters. Honestly, with most of the newer stuff coming out, its been harder for me to connect with other characters. I guess I could say because sometimes they just feel like cookie cutter cutouts of previous characters I liked, but I don't feel like that's entirely true.

[Aerozord]

The horse from Shadow of the Colossus

[PCD]

I have a tendency to overanalyze really minor characters and look at their deeper backstory for all the sadness and etc that motivates them, even where there is apparently no actual backstory present and I'm just making shit up. Enough online RP will do that to a person.

That aside, I still think that Godot from Trials and Tribulations is a majorly tragic character. He's an ass, but it's because he's a broken man with nothing left to live for; everything that he felt made him who he was, or that mattered to him, was stripped away--even the person to take revenge on. So all he can think to do with himself is this sad little delusion that he needs to defeat Phoenix. He's got nothing else to do; there's no one waiting for him.

[Kim]

Half the NPCs in Majora's Mask.

[akaSM]

From Baten Kaitos: Origins, the guardian spirit (you, within the game). Finding about your past, and the connection you have with Sagi is really nice. Specially in the later parts of the game.

From that game, Shanath. Fuck that guy, I was so happy when I got to kick his ass.

In Super Paper Mario, there's a character you know nothing about but, as the game progresses you get a series of messages about that character. Once you reach the later part of the games, everything connects and...that last image you get in the credits (?) is a heartwarming moment.

I second Colette, both for what Pyros said AND because, even though she's quite clumsy, sometimes she solves stuff by pure luck...and clumsiness...just like me XD...except for the fact I'm not THAT clumsy :3

Also, Sissel and Missile from Ghost Trick. Can say anything though, don't wanna spoil anything :P

[PCD]

Hell, half the characters from Ghost Trick. Jowd and Yomiel are in no good place, and Kamila's not the happiest kid either, when you get down to it.