Tuesday, 24 November 2009

• Top 5 New Characters of this Generation

  

  Courtesy of Joey C. at Koku Gamer
  

  I think it’s safe to say that we all are commonly driven to play games for about the same reasons. Be it to unwind after a long day, to reduce stress, or really just to have a good time. But sometimes we are met with a little more than just those expectations. There are times when a game can wrap us so deep in a story and its characters that we have trouble distinguishing reality from the virtual world. We forget that it’s just a game and we should probably turn the lights out, lock up, and go to bed. In no other prior generation have we been able to connect with characters as well as we have with the characters of today. These characters have displayed a distinguishable trait that many other characters seem to lack. They have style, flavor, and personality. These are the top 5 new characters of this gen that made me care.

  5. Travis Touchdown from No More Heroes

  
  

  As if the name Travis Touchdown wasn’t awesome enough, so is Travis Touchdown the man. Travis was one of the many reasons why I felt No More Heroes was a must play. What makes him so different is his image. When you think of assassins, I’m not sure Travis Touchdown is the style you would imagine. It’s what made him stand out. His image, his personality, and his charisma pretty much made No More Heroes better game, even though the game was great to begin with.

  Travis:  [to Silvia] "If I become number one, will you do it with me?"
  

  4. Brucie Kibbuts from Grand Theft Auto 4

  
  

  Brucie is easily the guy you would want to party with. A very enthusiastic guy that is just bouncing off the walls with humor and style, it was just one of the many reasons why we loved him. He was so over the top that it was nearly impossible to predict what he would do or say next. He was very dynamic in his nature. Given Rockstar's habit of creating new characters per title in the GTA franchise, it’s a shame that we may not get to see anymore from Brucie. But you never know, really.

  Brucie: “STAY ALPHA!”

  3. GLaDOS from Portal

  
  

  I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say that Portal came as a surprise to us all. It was more than just a great puzzle game. GLaDOS, the games AI challenges the player to complete a series of test chambers (in the form of puzzles) with the constant reminding and promises that there would be cake following the test. But the AI’s dark and witty personality is what drove us to finish the game. As the player progressed through the game, GLaDOS’ personality would come out more and more, especially in the latter half of the game. Anytime GLaDOS spoke, it would be something totally outrageous, and just hilarious.

  GLaDOS: “”The Enrichment Center promises to always provide safe testing environments. In dangerous testing environments, the Enrichment Center promises to always provide useful advice. For instance, the floor here will kill you. Try to avoid it.”

  2. Niko Bellic from Grand Theft Auto IV

  
  

  What can I say, Rockstar just nailed the characters in GTA4. Niko Bellic was a tragic hero. He had a dark past that he seemed unable to get away from. In a lot of ways we sympathized for him. What makes Niko so great is his attitude. He never let someone walk all over him, and he echoed that statement loud and clear. He is by far the most realistic character we’ve seen in the Grand Theft Auto franchise. There was superb writing all around in Grand Theft Auto 4, especially Niko’s constant sarcastic remarks.

  Brucie Kibbutz: “Do you wanna learn something, or do you wanna make fun?”
  Niko Bellic: “Make fun.”

  1. Nathan Drake from Uncharted

  
  

  Its abundantly clear that Uncharted writer Amy Henning set out to create a character we could all love and relate to. For me personally it was the small details to Nathan that made him feel so real. In the middle of gameplay there were times when you would hear Nathan mumble to himself about his current situation, or really what he just had on his mind. A lot of people want realism in their video games. And that’s exactly what Nathan Drake is: realistic. There are a lot of reasons why Uncharted was so good. Nathan Drake was one of them.

  Nathan Drake: “Man only interested in the climax, you must be a real hit with the ladies.”

  This is of course based only on my opinion and should not be taken as what the general public agrees upon. There are so many amazing new characters that it was quite a task just to narrow it down to my personal 5.  The generation isn’t over and there are plenty of chances to see new and exciting characters rise up to the status these five have achieved. And at the same time to think that there are many more just as good. Creating a great character is not easy. The character needs to have a vision, goals, and relatable attributes. With use of standard voice over and motion capture, developers have made video game characters come to life like never before. It wasn’t as common to come across dynamic interesting characters in past generations. But thankfully we hit a point where the bar can only go up from here. At least I hope.

  What are some of your favorite characters of this generation?

  URL: http://http://kokugamer.com/2009/11/15/top-5-new-characters-of-this-generation/

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