My Top 5 RPG Characters

A little look into my mind, this time dealing with some of the individuals who have engraved themselves deeply into my memory to never be forgotten. On these lists, I try to avoid choosing characters from the same series.
These are my personal 5 favorite characters to have been featured in an RPG game.

*Spoilers Ahead*




NUMBER 5:
The Red Mage
Games Featured In: Final Fantasy I, III, V


A picture can say a thousand words. In this case, you can clearly see the awesomeness a Red Mage exudes through every pore in his body. Pimping a feather in his hat, he's ostentatiously fashionable and there's no doubt he get's all the ladies.

In Final Fantasy games, a Red Mage is a jack of all trades character, capable of using both black and white magic, as well as being a great fighter upfront.
There has to be a downside right? Wrong. A Red Mage will prove much more useful than a Black or White Mage in the games he appears in, almost as if the developers wanted you to ignore the other magic classes. After all, what do Black or White Mages do when they're not casting spells? Nothing. They sit in the back, looking pretty. A Red Mage looks pretty all the time, and his physical strength puts him right below, if not equal to, a Warrior, the basic physical orientated class.

So next time you're choosing your party, remember the Red Mage. He will set your enemies on fire, and heal them up again, just to cut them in two with his sword. Hell take four Red Mages, and you can't go wrong. You'll be traveling in style and cutting down monsters left and right with alarming ease.

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4)Yoshiya Kiryu (Joshua)
Game Featured In: The World Ends With You


Where to begin with Joshua? An extremely intelligent character, with a refined sense of awareness of the world around him. He's calm, collected, and commanding, often displaying a trait of manipulation that makes you wonder if we're all just pieces in his game of chess. He keeps his intentions as mysterious as his past, which often puts him at odds with the game's protagonist, Neku. The thick air of arrogance and a condescending nature doesn't help either.

He earns his place on this list because of the character interactions between him and Neku. Constantly teasing and taunting, Joshua provides numerous memorable quotes that on occasion appeal those who would wish to see Neku and Joshua become way more than friends. His arrogance is pulled off well thanks to superb writing, and at the end of the day Josh remains a mature and wise person, no matter what his personality might lead you to believe.

Gameplay wise, Joshua is Neku's partner during Week 2. Easily the best companion in the game, he out-damages the other two by miles thanks to his "Jesus Beams" ability he gains sometime during the middle of the week. His Fusion attacks also have some of my favorite lines in the game.
* Joshua: "Follow my lead!"
* Neku: "Screw that!"


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3) Garrus Vakarian
Game Featured In: Mass Effect


Im usually not a big fan of aliens in games. They never seem to be as awesome as aliens in movies or other works. However, Mass Effect managed to create very interesting alien races, all with very interesting cultures and history that I was fascinated by. The Turian race is one of them. They are known for their disciplined culture, and one of the few races on the Council on the Citadel. They were the ones who sent the Krogan race into decline after the Krogan Rebeliions.

Garrus Vakarian is a Turian investigator with C-Sec, the security force of the Citadel which is a massive space station and home to the Citadel Council, a powerful governing body. He was leading an investigation on Saren Arterius, the game's villian, after reports of Saren going rouge. Due to Saren's Spectre rank(An elite group that preserves the peace at any cost) getting proof of Saren's wrongdoing was difficult, and he was taken off the case. However, Garrus continues to believe his gut instinct, Saren being guilty, which leads him to join Commander Shepard(The player) on a quest to bring Saren down.

Garrus is calm, courteous, and reassuring. On the flipside, he's absolutely ruthless in a fight, as seen when the player first meets him taking out a group of thugs in a medical ward. Despite his abillities, he has some real world experience to gain as seen in his interactions with the Krogan, Wrex.
"You'd better head back to the ship, kid - any longer out here in the real world and you just might have to learn something."
-Wrex to Garrus

Almost chosen to be a Spectre himself, Garrus has an extreme sense of justice, believing that it doesn't matter how thing get done as long as they do. He despises Saren, calling him a disgrace to their race. In fact, it's doubtful he would have taken the Spectre position because of the legal freedoms in grants. He is described by his superiors as a "Hothead who thinks he can still change the world".

By the end of the game, it's evident that Garrus has grown up since his time at the Citadel. Depending on the player's actions(hopefully proving Spectres are capable of using their powers non abusively), he may choose to apply for the Spectre position a career choice he will no doubt excel at. The way his character develops, and his interactions with Commander Shepard and Wrex are what earn him his spot at number 3.

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2) Geno
Game Featured in: Super Mario RPG


Geno is not actually the puppet you see above. Rather, he is a celestial being from the Star Road, who has possessed the puppet in order to carry out his mission. His real name is whose real name is the unpronounceable ♥♪!?, so to make things easier on the group, he chose the name of the doll Geno. Not at all confusing right?

Anywho, Geno is arguably the main character of the game, rather than Mario himself. Afterall, the game revolves around you going to gather the pieces of the Star Road, which Mario is only aware of after meeting Geno. Geno recruits Mario to his mission, not the other way around.

Geno is the sage figure of the group, offering wisdom and advice to Mario and the rest of the party. He understands the big picture well, which is a trait that helps him convince Bowser to continue the quest to take down the evil Smithy after retaking Bowser's castle. He is a foil to Bowser's personality, who is egotisical and narcissistic; whereas Geno's comes from his strong confidence and attitude. Also evident is Geno's power. Even in his first appearance, the player can see just how powerful Geno is, knocking Mario out with ease despite being a doll.

In battle, Geno uses energy beams and rocket fists to destroy enemies. He is capable of boosting the stats of his allies as well, making him a great addition to the team. Eventually he learns the skill Geno Whirl, capable of dealing 9,999 damage if the player has good timing.
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1) Frog
Game Featured In: Chrono Trigger

Man is turned into a slimy frog. An age old tale. However, Frog is no cliche and his story is one of a kind.

Glenn, as he was previously known, was the loyal squire to the brave knight Cyrus, also his best friend. They set out from the Kingdom of Guardia to vanquish the Fiendlord Magus and restore peace to the kingdom. Unfortunately, even with the legendary sword the Masamune, Cyrus fell in battle to Magus' powerful magic. Glenn would be cursed to forever bear the form of the frog you see above, and the death of his friend would remain with him until he gained revenge on Magus.

The shame of being unable to do anything in the battle caused him to answer only to Frog and exile himself from the Guardia Kingdom. Eventually he meets Crono and pals on their first trip to the past( Frog is from 600 A.D meant to be the middle ages, while Crono is from 1000 A.D) and on their second encounter, they team up to find a way to destroy Magus. Eventually Frog and the gang get caught up in a much bigger adventure to save the planet from Lavos, a parasitic creature who is feeding on the planet, who destroys the world in 1999 A.D.

On their wild shenanigans through time, Frog is the stoic character, though he shows his fun side when he taunts Magus and his minions in battle. Frog speaks in Shakespearean style language, fitting because of the era he is from. This dialect adds charm to an already charming character.

Throughout the story, Frog's character grows tremendously as he puts aside his differences with Magus in order to stop Lavos and even rebuilds the legendary Masamune. He hope to live up to Cyrus' dreams and aspirations, taking them as his own. The guilt he has from his friend's death is evident, and eventually this weight on his shoulders is lifted when he speaks to Cyrus' spirit at the gravesite Frog helped build in order to help Cyrus be remembered as a legendary hero.

In battle, Frog is the red mage of the game, capable of using water magic and healing his allies. His strength is decent, and his Masamune has one of the highest critical hit rates in the game. Though not the most powerful ally, one will find themselves using him because of his awesome factor.

So in short, Frog earns his place as number one by being a true friend to Cyrus and his subplot with Magus, all of which help develop his character grow into someone who is not at all forgettable.