games that gave me character hyperfixations
these games introduced me to characters that i have been obsessed with since encountering them, with notes explaining who and why. not ranked or anything, just generally sorted by release year. should be relatively spoiler-free
20 Games
Aya Brea is an NYPD officer who gets pulled into events beyond her imagination in Parasite Eve. at her core, Aya is an introvert who has trouble hiding her thoughts and feelings, and yet she pushes herself so hard because she is the only one who can deal with the events in-game. she worries about how the plot progression will affect not just her but the people she cares about, and she remains steadfast and competent as she confronts those things.
Aya is one of Square Enix's best female characters and it's likely we won't see more of her.
Aya is one of Square Enix's best female characters and it's likely we won't see more of her.
Shermie. thank you for coming to my ted talk
Rival Schools introduced Akira Kazama, one of my favorite Capcom characters ever. a lot of what i like about the character has to do with their use of Chinese martial arts, but the punk biker aesthetic helps as well. Akira's brother, Daigo, is a close second.
The Last Blade 2 introduced Hibiki Takane, a young swordswoman who recently lost her swordsmith father due to illness after he overexerted himself while crafting a sword for the mysterious swordsman Setsuna. i find Hibiki incredibly interesting in that she is shy and dislikes fighting yet practices the incredibly difficult art of iaido at a high level. her arcade mode ending also changes depending on the way you end matches; this part of her character comes up again in her guest appearances in Capcom vs. SNK 2 and Samurai Shodown (2019).
i was fixated on the entire cast for whatever reason, but special mention goes to Volt Krueger, the "muscle" of the main character trio. tall, dark, and mysterious, you can tell he's been through some shit but he has a muted sense of humor and holds a soft spot for the "kids" in the group, Sion and Dominique. i basically wrote fanfiction because i thought the characters, especially Volt, could use more fleshing out that we originally didn't get because of the problems the devs experienced during development.
this janky little voice recognition tech showcase of a game stars Rio, a waitress working on a space hotel when it is attacked and overcome by monsters. Rio is a gem; she's clever, quickwitted, skilled, patient, and assertive. she's also voiced incredibly competently by Kristen Miller, in a time when voice acting could be hit-or-miss, and she makes the few humorous moments feel more real.
Kyle Hyde is a former detective now working as a door-to-door salesman when he gets caught up in a caper at the titular Hotel Dusk. Kyle is a silly little man who consistently gets himself into dumb situations. he may be nosy but his smile lights up my life.
Sacred Stones has Gerik, an experienced mercenary who has a soft spot for the people under his command. (disclaimer: big men with soft spots may be a running theme)
is it me or are the laguz extremely hot in this section of the franchise? special shoutout to Mordecai, a big laguz softie who loves kids and is so gentle that he has to close his eyes before he beats your ass.
in this somewhat dreary game with a disproportionate amount of hot characters, i stan Captain Brenner. an idealistic warhorse who is always trying to do the right thing, Brenner could put his hand on my shoulder, smile, and say "you'll be okay," and i would jump out of a plane for him
as a queer person, i feel contractually obligated to love the titular Bayonetta. she may be confident to the point of arrogance, but she has always backed it up, and each game in the series adds more and more interesting layers to her character.
to this day, Resident Evil 5's rendition of Jill Valentine is my favorite. Patricia Ja Lee sounds so natural in the role, and the writing manages to show that Jill still has a sense of humor despite everything she's been through. her appearances after this game (Revelations, 3 Remake, Death Island, etc.) have been either inconsistent or just boring, which i hate to say because Michelle Ruff and Nicole Tompkins are such great performers. it's just that the material they were given didn't hit
i love a lot of the characters, but special mention has to go to Inspector Cabanela and Missile. iykyk
the original Ace Attorney trilogy introduced us to Dick Gumshoe, but the Investigations games where he has more screen time and bounces off Edgeworth for the entire game is absolute peak if you love the character as much as i do. he may be bumbling but i just want to brush off his shoulders and say "you'll be alright, darling"
Yakuza 4 introduced us to Saejima, but i think his personal chapter in 5 is where he really shines. 4 explored so much of his suffering, and while he does go through a lot of trials in 5 as well, there's a sort of new light in his eyes and a fire in his heart to live by his own code.
i had known of Majima after playing the original Yakuza and Yakuza 2, but Yakuza 0 is where the character really shines for me. this game dives right in to make Majima so much more complex, and the cabaret club subplot is incredibly endearing to his character.
Lady Maria: A corpse should be left well alone...
Me: (blushes like a slut) you know what, you are so right queen
Me: (blushes like a slut) you know what, you are so right queen
[Composure skill check failed] I FEEL VERY NORMAL ABOUT KIM KITSURAGI.
Guilty Gear Strive marks the debut of Nagoriyuki, a massive swordsman with vampiric abilities. in typical Arc System Works fashion, he is also a bit of a goofball who loves food.
Nagoriyuki could read me the nutritional content of his favorite food like a bedtime story and i would sleep soundly.
Nagoriyuki could read me the nutritional content of his favorite food like a bedtime story and i would sleep soundly.
i like a lot of the cast, but i LOVE Karlach unconditionally. she feels things so strongly and wears her heart on her nonexistent sleeve. for someone who has fought to survive for so long and has suffered so much, maybe she has no choice but to live that way, burning hard and still managing to stay tender through it all. she is inspiring.
