One thing that is really important in just about any adventure/action game is the protagonist. The hero is the player (unless your playing some sick game where you really are a bad guy and hate everyone and eat lil babies for breakfast). Thus, the hero itself is a really important character. If you want to make the game better for the player, learning different techniques, can make the game a whole lot better because the player actually feels like he is the character.

-------Making the character real---------

Often we have characters that play a role of like being the supreme hero. In which a character has no flaws, no weaknesses, nothing that the enemy can use to his/her/its advantage except for the fact that maybe the character is mortal. However, even that was taken away in some really crappy Genesis game (which unfortunately I cant remember the title) Well it was ________, The Immortal Man or something like that. And basically all you did was complete levels and if u died, which u really cant, u get warped back to the beginning of the level. HOW BORING IS THAT?! I despised the game the first time I played it. Had nightmares because it was so bad, and now Genesis games will never be the same, some are great, but never the same. So how do we fix this. We make the characters real! Give them a living, breathing essence. Make the character a real human, monster, robot, etc. Give him weaknesses that the enemy knows about, will give a real life struggle between the enemy and the hero. The hero has a weakness and he has to overcome if he wants to beat the enemy. Lot more fun than just restarting the level, immortal man. One good example of a character with a major flaw would be Cecil from Final Fantasy II. Cecil is a Dark Knight, and because he is a Dark Knight he will never be able to defeat the evil that is going on in his home kingdom of Baron. Thus, there is a major like sidestepping quest (its not a sidequest because its really important and its not the same thing as going and beating up some evil) to become a Paladin, and gain the powers of light and not dark. Like that adds to the whole motions of the story, and gives good character depth. When Playing FFII, i really felt like I was Cecil. Cecil and I were thinking on the same wavelength and I had a great gaming experience.


-------Character’s Background-----------

A lot of times we find ourselves with characters who just show up and have to fight evil. Nothing of the past is reminded during the game. Its just go out and beat em up. If u die, u lose, and if u win, hey thats great thanks for playing. BORING! Its time to be original. Giving a character a past, gives the game more depth. It also allows for plot twists and serious internal struggles for the character which makes him/her more real. For example, Cloud Strife from FFVII has a deep past and brings about internal struggle, which Cloud almost loses to (I wont say because it is a major spoiler). I truly felt closer to Cloud, and had a great gaming experience.

------------Character’s that aren’t Real----------

Not all the time you need a character that is this real emotional character with a deep past and internal struggles. Sometimes it could be easier to give the player the ability to write his own story in his mind. In the greatest possible adventure game for the computer, Diablo and Diablo II. The character has no story, there is no background for the character. In fact, the character wont really say much, except “This sacred place has been fouled,” or “Your death will be avenged.” One line hitters and thats it. Occasional grunts, and u might actually read a book if your lucky to survive that long, but there’s no conversational character who has “feelings” and a “past.” So how come this isn’t boring unlike other games. Because you have total control of the character and his development. You choose if you want him/her to be a warrior, a rogue, or a socerror. Then its up to you to decide if you want to pump up ur strength, dex, mag, or vitality. Not to mention the random dungeon generator, so no game is the same, you really feel like your adapting to the surroundings as if you were the character. By not giving a big past or making the character seem real, u become the character. The emotions and past that the character lacks is given to u. This doesn’t work all the time, because you’ll need some serious interaction between the character and the player (like fixing stats, choosing position), very similar to FF Tactics.


------Combining all the above tactics------

Now having one or two of the above tactics is good, but if you can combine all three you really have talent. Very few games, make the player the character and then gives a detailed past and emotions to the character. Thus, the player is shaped into the character and not vice versa. Probably the best game to do this was Chrono Trigger. Right away many can say Chrono was the main character, but I really think that the main character is the player. Notice how Chrono never says anything, is almost always in the party, and has one of the coolest looking hair dews (only works if u have a cool looking hair dew as well). Chrono is the player, and the past and feelings of Chrono are really what the player has. In addition, to deal with the lack of past and feelings for the main character, the other “teammates” all have a deep past and feelings. Marle is in love with Chrono, and she’s a princess who hates the fact that she is being always ordered what to do. Lucia is a girl whose mom has no legs, and she wishes she could change that. Robo is a robot, who has an urge to be with Lucia the one who fixed him. Magus, real name is Janus, who lost his beloved sister and was separated from his “evil” mother to Lavos, and now wishes to kill Lavos. Chrono, you, have to deal with all these people, try and work with their problems, and in the meantime kick some Lavos ass. This is like the REAL DEAL.



---------In conclusion-------

Three basic tactics for making the player more closer to the character or even becoming the character. 1. Give the character emotion, make him/her real. 2. Give the character a past, give him a life before the game. 3. Make the character interactive with the player, so the players decisions seem like the character’s decisions, and the character and player are in harmony. I hope you enjoyed, its been a while since my last article. Peace.