Videogame protagonists come in many forms. Some are silent, some are powerful, and some never seem to shut up. There’s no one model for them, but they’re the main characters in the games that we play every day. While some are somewhat forgettable, the greatest characters stick with us for years, and are fondly remembered. These are some of our community’s choices for the best videogame protagonists of all time.
Special thanks to thejboy88 for starting the thread!
Don’t see your favorite? Tell us in the comments, and make a forum account so you can join the discussion!
The Boss (Saints Row series)
First mentioned by: EyeReaper
The always nameless star of the Saints Row games may have started out as a nobody who just joined the gang, but he winds up not only running the streets, he’s President of the United States. It’s hard to pin down just what makes The Boss so likable, as he’s both ruthless and violent, but somehow he’s still endearing. Maybe it’s his devotion to his friends, or the zeal with which he dives into every action. For me, it was that he never felt like he was trying to be a hero; he was just a guy doing what he had to do to help out his friends and piss off his enemies.
Joel (The Last of Us)
First mentioned by: LeathermanKick25
The Last of Us has rightfully garnered a lot of praise since its release, and main character Joel has received his fair share as well. Deservedly so, as he’s not your typical grizzled videogame hero. Joel seemingly takes no joy or pleasure in the violence he’s forced to employ. For him, it’s more of a means to an end. Throughout the game, we watch him regain his humanity through his dealings with Ellie, and the ending reflects both his affection for her and the brutality he’s become accustomed to. Add in a standout performance by voice actor Troy Baker, and it’s no wonder Joel makes this list.
B.J. Blaskowicz (Wolfenstein series)
First mentioned by: Barbas
The main character in a run and gun shooter is awesome? No way! Well, B.J. Blaskowicz is all of that. He may look like the typical muscle-bound, gun-toting soldier boy, but through creative use of a few lines of dialogue (and plenty of inner monologue), Machine Games managed to turn him into a character that isn’t just likeable, he’s sympathetic as hell. You can hear his emotions, and feel how the deaths around him and the constant encroachment of the Nazis is affecting him. Even when it’s apparent that the war is all but lost, Blaskowicz struggles on.
James Sunderland (Silent Hill 2)
First mentioned by: Fox12
Silent Hill 2’s James Sunderland is one of the more complex characters you’ll find in any videogame. Ostensibly searching for his wife in the titular town, we soon find out that not everything about James is as it seems. Through his interactions with the other characters in the story, a picture emerges of a man who is tormented in more ways than one. As the game progresses, we learn more disturbing details about James, culminating in the game’s ending, which is determined by the actions the players has taken throughout the game. Regardless of which ending you get, James remains somewhat of a mystery.
Captain Martin Walker (Spec Ops: The Line)
First mentioned by: RipVanTinkle
What makes Captain Martin Walker so compelling a character is that gamers rarely get to play as someone who is slowly losing touch with reality. Despite the good intentions the character harbors at the beginning of the game, events begin to wear him down. Guilt and denial combine to trigger his instability, and you can see the change not only in how he speaks, but in the way his execution moves become more brutal, and even the look of the character. While there are a number of different outcomes to Walker’s story, there’s no denying the impact it had on gamers.
The Nameless One (Planescape: Torment)
First mentioned by: the silence
when Planescape: Torment launched, one of the first things that people noticed was how different the main character was from the usual videogame protagonist. in fact, the character was left largely to you, as the game began with you awakening with no memories. the freedom and flexibility the game granted you to make the character your own are largely why it was so well-received. You could take The Nameless One and and make him noble, sarcastic, or selfish, and his relations to the various factions and characters were entirely in your hands.
Geralt of Rivia (The Witcher series)
First mentioned by: Aetrion
Geralt began as the main character of the novels in The Witcher series, and of course was the protagonist of the games based on them. Known as “The White Wolf,” Geralt travels the lands killing monsters to earn his living. What makes him interesting is how strongly the character is defined. We know almost everything about Geralt’s history (except the things he himself can’t seem to remember), and we also get to know his friends and allies quite well along the way. However, many of the game’s important decisions still fall to player, giving you agency while not diminishing the strength of the character. It’s a powerful combination.
Lee & Clementine (The Walking Dead)
First mentioned by: Kingjackl
The two protagonists of Telltale’s The Walking Dead have one of the most interesting relationships in any videogame. It fluctuates back and forth between a father-daughter dynamic to allies in surviving a world gone mad. Lee’s questionable past rears its head at times, but you can’t deny the powerful interactions between the two of them, or the bond they form to each other. Between their interactions, Clem’s status as the group’s moral compass, and the choices the player makes, the relationship is one of the best in games in recent memory.
