How do you view game characters?

Hello all.

I am currently writing my thesis in game design and I would therefore appreciate any thoughts you have on the subject.

I am doing a study on player-character relations in third person games (games where you can't create your own character and where you see your character while playing, such as Batman: Arkham City, Alan Wake, Tomb Raider, and Gears of War), and I would like to hear your thoughts on how you view your relationship with the playable character while playing.

Which 3rd person games have you played and how would you, in your own words, describe your relation to the character in these games? How do you view the character and how do you view yourself while playing?

The answers will be used in my master thesis and if you do not wish to have your user name printed in the paper that is of course alright - just let me know. I appreciate you taking the time to answer and anything you can add is helpful.

Kingdom Hearts:

Personally I identify with these characters quite easily, because the overall style, both animations and design helps make the characters more believable, however the main reason why I start connecting with the character is through the cinematics.

Were it not for the cinematics I wouldn't feel as close to the characters, which is probably since there's no character development outside of the cinematics in opposition to something like Batman: The Arkham series, where you often get to experience the protagonist walking around while talking.

My relation to the characters in Kingdom Hearts is the same as when I read a book about history, I learn about the characters but I don't associate myself with them. I can still create my own opinions of the characters, however they chose to be.

When I'm playing I forget myself and thus don't think of myself, but when thinking back at the process of playing a game I guess one might say that I view myself as the god of their world, or a mighty force helping the characters move along.

Crisis Core:

This game created a deep sence of identification but it was mostly because the music and the story fit so accurately together. But once again, without cinematics this wouldn't have had an impact on me.

Assassins Creed:A game such as Assassins Creed or even Binary Domain develop a much better sense of identification.My suggestion is that the way the characters acts while you're playing is one of the important features for identifying with the characters as you get to experience their mood and situation while still being in control of their actions.
In the Assassins Creed series you have different missions where you can move the protagonist around while he is still talking to other characters in the game and in Binary Domain you can shout out different comments and get to listen to the characters converse as the game unfolds.I believe this is important to achieve a better sense of identification as you both get tactile feedback as well as audio and visual feedback, which should give a better sense of spatial presence.

If it's a third person game like Tomb Raider, where I have no control over the character's creation or choices when it comes to influencing the path of the game or interactions with NPCs, then I see the character in the same way I see a character in a movie or book. I tend to play these games once and move on.

If it's a third person game like a Skyrim or Mass Effect, where I can create the character and make choices about how I interact with the world, then typically at character creation I'll come up with a look and a personality for that character and play through the game in a way that reflects that personality. Each of the characters I make in the game may have different personalities, but they all are usually in line with my own ideals. I find it difficult to make choices with these characters that I wouldn't make in real life. I also find myself spending more time playing these games than others, as I just feel more invested in the character. Often times, I might create the very same character and play through the game again.

If it's a third person game like Alpha Protocol where I can't create the character but I can make choices, then I'll usually come up with a personality from the start and play through the game in way that is consistent with that character concept. The difference between this situation and the Skyrim/Mass Effect situation is that in these games I tend to explore morals and ideals that don't necessarily jive with my own without feeling bad about it. I guess not having created the character from the start creates enough distance for me to control my on screen avatar in a way that I wouldn't behave (or like to think I wouldn't behave) in real life. I tend to try to explore all possible paths across multiple play-throughs before setting games like this down.

My short answer is that I live the life of the character by playing the character. That being said, I can never shake the feeling that I'm being guided along a linear story. Not a bad thing, just a quirk of mine.

The Witcher 2 games I would actually put myself into the character(If I cannot relate to the character at all this doesn't work), and answer questions with answers I would deem closest to what I would say, but games such as Gears of War(probably a bad example since the characters are terribly written), and Tomb Raider I can't put myself in there shoes it just doesn't work, and I definitely see them as I guess you could say an employee(that I have direct control over at points) he/she will do what I need them to do, but they may argue with me, and we will disagree upon things.

Then again the WItcher lets you put some of your personality in the game, Tomb Raider does not.

Bottom line is Cutsenes Cutscenes Cutscenes ! There nothing to relate to in gameplay.

Thanks for the responses so far. I find your answers really interesting and valuable for my research, but the more the better :)

Let's bump it up, to try and get you some more replies.

This is probably the most interesting "help me with a school paper" thread I've come across. And so I'll drop in my 2 cents.

Batman: Arkham.

Batman: Arkham makes me feel like Batman and I are working together. Frequently when I'm doing particularly well and the combat system fails- by performing the wrong move, or targeting the wrong enemy- you'll hear me shout at my on-screen persona something like, "C'mon! You're makin' me look bad!" I don't apologize or anything when I screw up- that'd just be weird.

Tomb Raider.

All of the ridiculous ******** bullshit aside, the feeling I got playing Tomb Raider was exactly what the devs promised: the player(to wit: me) backing up Lara on her first journey into the supernatural. This one was a bit disturbing at times just because of how abruptly and gruesomely her journey ended at several points in the game. There was more than one time when I turned the game off in disgust because I had repeatedly failed her and watched her gruesome end time after time.

Spec Ops: The Line.

This one was a bit different- yeah, it was Nolan-fuckin '-North again, but somehow I managed to assume the role of the player character despite his instantly recognizable voice. This game turned me inside out. I knew going in that there would be choices and I had decided to be the hero. During my playthrough, I kept getting angrier and more hateful of the antagonists to the point where I was, at one point, mowing down a mob of civilians with automatic weapons' fire. I like playing the part of the hero most times, but this game left me brooding for days afterward.

Mercenaries 2: World in Flames/Just Cause 2.

Mercs 2 and Just Cause 2 are just me and my favorite action figure. Playing Mercs or Just Cause isn't so much me playing a videogame as it is me reliving my childhood- playing with my GI Joes, pretending they were wearing rocket boots and could fly around or blowing up playsets and such with massive explosions.

GTA Online.

Okay, so it doesn't fit the criteria per se, but you don't exactly create your own character. My character in GTAO is basically me. But in GTA Land. All of my cars are painted in the colors of my gang and they all bear my gang symbol. I run around being my wisecracking self while commiting whatever crimes are conveniently available and killing(and dying) en masse. It's hilariously entertaining and strangely liberating. It's also a great stress reliever for when I'm pissed off at the local law enforcement for the latest atrocities reported on in the news.

Thanks for bumping and answering. It is okay if the games mentioned doesn't "fit the bill" 100%, because though some users answer for other types of games it helps to understand how we as players relate, so that's just wonderful.

I have difficulty figuring out how I feel when playing these games. As someone else said, it's mostly like watching a movie when it comes to narrative development. The fact I can control the character's movements and/or some story elements doesn't really change that, although I can imagine that the power to make actual choices makes the experience more personal. In all three Mass Effect games there was the illusion you could control the story and the protagonist's choices, but I never felt like I was Shepard. It just felt like I was making choices for her/him.

I do have a tendency to think that the more developed a character is, the less it feels like you are the character. For example, when I compare Max Payne from the first game with Desmond/Altaïr in the first Assassin's Creed, I feel I can project more of myself on the latter, because he lacks a lot of character depth in comparison with Max. It's easier to imagine myself climbing walls in AC then it is shooting thugs in MP. That doesn't mean I was automatically more involved in AC. The story of MP had a much bigger impact and I remember that game much more fondly because Max Payne was a great character.

I think that I personally don't play games to imagine to be a certain person. When I play Skyrim I don't think (or need to think) it's me in that world. I just want to test the game world and see how it reacts to what I do. I think that in my case the amount of control I have over character creation is irrelevant when it comes to feeling involved in a game. Unless it's a fixed character I really don't like. The reason I really don't want to play games like Infamous: Second Son or the newest Devil May Cry, is because it appears those protagonists are cocky assholes and I can't relate to such attitudes in any way.

Not to invade in your writing process, but maybe Gordon Calleja's "In-Game. From Immersion to Incorporation" is an interesting title to consider, if you don't know it already (I used it for my MA thesis). It deals with the different ways videogames contribute to the feeling that the player is part of or involved in the gaming world. Good luck with your thesis. If you have to archive it online in the end, do post a link. Sounds like an interesting read. :-)

Thanks guys :)

Calleja's incorporation theory is really interesting and I have used it in previous studies, but thanks for the heads-up. I'll see what I can do about putting up a link.

@chimeraofebony: Glad to see your study is going well =)

Thank you @Korvus85 . It has helped me a lot to be able to use this site for my preliminary research.

I could still use a couple more, so bumping up the thread one last time.

@chimeraofebony: In that case let me give you my contribution, although I'm not sure how helpful it will be since I won't be exactly focusing on your question, but I'll give it a shot.

In regards to the character I play with/as I'm normally fairly detached; I normally don't care if they live, die, have a happy ending or not. If anything, the only thing that binds me to my character is morality. If the story is set on me being the kind of person I wouldn't be in real life I'm ok with it and I don't mind playing the asshat or the serial killer but if the choices are up to me I always play "the good guy" because normally I can't force myself to play against my moral compass; exceptions being games that boast severely different story based on your alignment, and then I play it through twice, one with each alignment but I don't really enjoy "the bad guy"; it's mostly to satiate my curiosity.

Obviously (for me at least), it's easier to create ties with characters that are well fleshed out (and therefore harder to relate to my own character when he's a mute with a dialogue wheel) but interestingly enough I sometimes form deep bonds with game and tv shows characters (games because I can impact their "life", shows because of the sheer amount of time I spend with them...movies normally are too short for me to get invested in a character). In those cases, after I invested 200 hours in a game or watched a show for 10 years and all of a sudden it's over, I spend a few hours with a sense of loss like I'm never going to see a group of friends again.

Also, if my character has to sacrifice him/herself to save others I never hesitate, but if one of my teammates is put in the same position I try my damnest to prevent it from happening. I always have a "must save everyone" mentality and I react "badly" to losing characters on my watch, whether it's longtime friends of my character or just a random civilian in the background.

I've restarted my Mass Effect trying to prevent a certain character from dying (it was scripted though, so no luck...and even though it was good story writing it still upset me for a while) and restarted missions in FPS's because I accidentally shot a civilian, even though there was no penalty for doing so...I don't know why I do it, but a big part of my enjoyment with a game dies down if someone doesn't make it because I did something wrong (as in, the person wasn't necessarily scripted to die). Don't quite remember the game but there was one situation where I uninstalled a game completely because I accidentally killed someone and the game immediately overwrote my saved game.

(If any of this is of use to you feel free to rewrite it since English is not my first language and I'm sure you can organise my thoughts better and if you have any follow-up questions just ask them here or send me a PM. Hope it helped ^_^)

@chimeraofebony: Uncharted... I use this game because every "hero" is generally...a hero! Nathan Drake is someone who is smart, witty, cunning, agile and most importantly...makes mistakes. I have always enjoyed that while playing the series because it shows that a character in a game can be extremely smart at completing puzzles and quests, but at the same time just goes with his gut and the moment. There are times when he gets lucky and other times he realizes he could not complete that quest if it wasn't for the help of those around him; enemy and friend. So, yes... I can see myself as Drake because he is "only human" and doesn't possess super-human strength, cool gadgets/technology or is super rich. In reference to other games, I never really found myself immersed into the character because there is really no room for development. If this topic was towards RPGs, MMOs... I could go on about how I enjoy creating a character from scratch and I get to decide their fate, personality, outfits, etc. Good luck with your thesis!

I mainly play 3rd person games and have played to many to list them all. I'll name a few series that I play. Assassins Creed, Fallout, Elder Scrolls, Mafia, Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead R, and Super Hero games.

kind of a short answer but here it goes.

When I play games I pay close attention to the character biography, backstory and I visualize myself as the character in the game I also visualize my self in the environment that the game is set.

@chimeraofebony: Depends on the game, you have the games with choices and the ones with a story you just follow

Hello all.

I wanted to thank you for answering and letting you know that all your responses have been of great help to me. They allowed me to get some first hand insight which I have used to construct a series of interviews with students from my university and the current findings are extremely interesting (which is also why I went absent for a while - I have been really busy going through the interviews and coding the responses).

I cannot say anything about the results yet, as my research is still ongoing, but I want you to know that I deeply appreciate anyone who took the time to answer in this thread. There was one in here interested in reading my findings and I will atleast post some information when I am done. The project is expected to be finished at the end of May.

Thanks again guys :)

@chimeraofebony: Best of luck. And please send me a PM with the results when you're done; I'm curious to see how it turns out! =)