PixelVixen707

While this year’s games spawned some memorable protagonists, supporting characters got a bad rap. Michael Abbott argued that the non-player characters in both Fable II and Fallout 3 seemed limited and wooden in the wake of the rich, multifaceted worlds they were supposed to help animate. Far Cry 2’s buddies are a nuisance, and ditto Grand Theft Auto IV: I wish I could find the critic who astutely noted that Roman and the other pals who constantly buzz your cell are basically trying to keep you from playing GTA IV, making them just as annoying as your real-world friends.

So that’s the bile. Now, let’s say something positive.  Instead of scribbling your basic “Best Games of the Year” list, I’ve decided to start with a list of the best characters.  We all know that a great NPC can make a game great.  Which imaginary friends were so believable, so sympathetic, so vulnerable, and so engaging - so real - that they made the endless dialogues and runaround sidequests worthwhile?

5. Hammer, Fable II

Hammer is the daughter of pacifists who, in the wake of a tragedy, embraces violence and then renounces it.  As I argued in October, her arc tells us as much about heroism and power as the player’s own storyline.

She’s also built like eight Ultimate Fighting Champions sewn together with boar guts - and a triumph for those of us who always suspected that a woman who could break boulders with her buttcheeks likely wouldn’t have a figure like Red Sonja’s. My only gripe is that we don’t get to spend more time fighting at her side.

4. Daisukenojo Bito, The World Ends With You

I grew fond of all the emo kids in this spectacular Japanese RPG, but I’ll hand the award to the skateboarding hero Daisukenojo Bito, aka “Beat.” Distraught over the death of his sister, he sides with the game’s villains and becomes a Reaper. But because his heart stays in the right place, he eventually learns the error of his ways and comes back to help the player. Beat is not bright, and I’ve noticed writers often have a tough time with dumb characters. But they nailed it this time, creating a character who’s more complicated than his intellect suggests. Also, every single thing he said made me laugh.  ”Ramen? Naw, it takes curry flavor to curry my favor!”

3. Graham, Everybody Dies

As I was swooning last week, I was sold on Graham as soon as he mentioned the “Moustache Brotherhood.”  His lines are few but true. Ten years ago I would’ve been glad to spend an evening getting lit in the woods with him and his buddies. I wouldn’t even rule out first base.

2. Dwayne Forge, Grand Theft Auto IV

Dwayne Forge is a recent ex-con living in the projects in North Holland. Broke and forgotten, he’s lost his rep and his girlfriend, and even his callow protege, Playboy X, has turned against him. You get to choose sides between Dwayne and Playboy - but if you decided to kill Dwayne? I’m not sure I even want you reading my blog.

Dwayne has the lowest self-esteem of any character this year. When he calls you up to get a drink or a bite to eat, you know he has nothing else going on - and if you turn him down, he’ll sound genuinely hurt, and yet not that surprised. The world has moved past Dwayne, and you’re one of the last people around who’ll even hear him out. We’ve all had friends like this, who are down on their luck and just need a friend. Do the right thing and take him out to a diner for some eats. It’s its own reward.

1. Mayor MacCready, Fallout 3

By all rights, Paladin Lyons should’ve made it on this list, but they didn’t give her enough dialogue. Instead, my sheriff’s hat goes off to Mayor MacCready, the mayor of the kids-only town of Little Lamplight. Fallout 3 is full of amateur political scientists: Whether it’s the slaver communities, the militant Brotherhood of Steel, the bomb-worshippers in Megaton or the various dysfunctional experiments in the surviving Vaults, everyone has their own cracked theory on how to survive the Capital Wastelands.

But of all the would-be leaders I met in Fallout, MacCready had his head screwed on the tightest. His theory of leadership is simple: keep everyone safe and let them have a good time, ’til they hit puberty - and then you kick ‘em out. MacCready didn’t make the rules, but he’s smart enough to enforce them. Maturity is a disease that, once caught, becomes incurable, and can lead to nuclear warfare and other calamities. The good Mayor gets this - and that’s why he’ll always have my vote.

… So who’d I miss? And who’s your pick?