TOP TEN TOPIC: FAVORITE VIDEO GAME HEROES

10. (Lylat Wars) Peppy Hare - "Do a barrel roll!"
9. (KH) Sora - Everyone's favourite key wielding virgin
8. (FF7) Cid - Abusive to his co-works and always smoking, what a role model!
7. (Grandia 2) Millenia - What a bitch...
6. (Dragon Quest) Yangus - "COR BLIMEY!"
5. (Super Mario) Mario - cos...y'know.
4. N/A
3. (FF6) Kefka - Well he's my hero... you can't take his away from me!
2. (FF9) Vivi - If I could pinch his fictional cheeks, I would...Oh yeah.
1. (FF8) Zell Dincht - Just awesome.

1) Samus Aran - Metroid

I like pretty girls, and girls with power, and Samus is clearly the #1 amalgamation of that fondness. She's badass, deadly, determined yet still shows signs of warmth and humanity, and extremely stylish.

2) Terra - Final Fantasy 6

A great female protagonist close to my heart. I was pretty young when playing through this the first time on the SNES, and I was devastated when I thought I lost her. When I got her back in Mobliz in the World of Ruin, it was such a genuinely good and reassuring feeling :P

3) Cecil - Final Fantasy 4

Hero of the first game I played on the SNES. I played that game so much that I basically thought I was Cecil in the 5th grade. Nowadays he seems rather cliche, but he still has a very special place in my heart and childhood memories.

4) Sothe - Fire Emblem 10: Radiant Dawn

Basically me put into a video game. My character class, my personality. Fiercely loyal to Micaiah, with whom he has a complex and wonderful relationship. Doesn't accept it when bullshit happens, always fights for what he believes in, even in the face of overwhelming odds.

5) Frog - Chrono Trigger

The poor guy's had a hard life. The toughness of his character is astounding, he actually chooses to remain a frog than kill to turn back into a human. Just like the guy.

6) Master Chief - Halo

I don't get all the Halo hate. Master Chief is the best archetypal male role model every young lad should learn to emulate. Brave, dutiful, stoic.

7) Naesala - Fire Emblem 9/10

Awesome personality. Very, very stylish in look and speech. Poor guy has it rough, but he just does what he needs to do, his own way, and somehow doesn't have his feathers plucked.

8) Female Soldier - Dragon Warrior 3

No personality whatsoever, but this chick won the game for me. Repeatedly, everyone else would just die while the powerful, generic "Female Soldier" I had in the 2nd slot in my party just crushed the game. Great fan art of her nowadays too...

9) Micaiah - Fire Emblem 10: Radiant Dawn

I love Micaiah. Some FE fanbois don't. She has a complex, rare personality, basically I wish I could meet someone like her in real life.

10) Rydia - Final Fantasy 4

Rydia marks the 3rd green-haired person on this list! I had an imaginary crush on her as a young boy, and her spells simply rock. Bahamut ftw!

1. Fei Fong Wong (Xenogears)

I love Fei. I really do. While there's nothing about his personality that stands out in neon lights like a lot of RPG protagonists, the fact that he was just a regular dude in his mannerisms (all the while being a prodigy at painting, giant fighting robots, and shit) in a crazy world is what I like. Not to mention his Kung-Fu fighting style pretty much makes him my favorite RPG hero in terms of how he fights.

Not to mention in terms of love interests, he doesn't play around; Elly and Fei hit the sheets, while most RPG lovers are still getting nosebleeds off of each other and stumbling.

2. Balthier Bunansa (Final Fantasy XII)

I don't give a shit if you're walking around as Vaan, Balthier is the leading man. He's the most badass, suave pirate ever in a video game. I can't even describe him, he speaks for himself. Whoever came up with his concept needs to be given a lifetime position at Square.

3. Zack Fair (Compilation of Final Fantasy VII)

At first, Final Fantasy VII didn't give two much info on the guy. All you know is that Cloud thought he was his SOLDIER persona due to Jenova screwing with his brain. Also that he got shot to death. That's it. But after Crisis Core, I like Zack more than Cloud. He's your "atypical hero", brave, confident, fights for justice. That sort of thing. But Zack does it with such swagger that I can't help but see him as different from the "atypical hero". Add his sacrifices for Cloud and his epic and surprisingly moving sendoff...Zack Fair definitely is a great character.

4. Cloud Strife (Compilation of Final Fantasy VII)

Cloud's growth from being a literal nobody to the twice savior of the planet is interesting indeed. Given at how shy and insecure he his, but he's also one of the strongest beings on the planet adds a little more charm to his status.

Also gets points for banging his love interest.

5. Gustave Eugene the Steel (SaGa Frontier 2)

Gustave is the man. He went from an outcast from his own kingdom as a child (reason: not possessing Anima, or magic, rather) to coming back to stomping everyone's shit in years later. Not to mention how the game portrays it, for all the shortcomings SaGa Frontier 2 has, it does a good job of portraying Gustave as the man who makes his own way, no matter what disability he has.

6. Tir McDohl (Suikoden)

Tir doesn't fuck around. Considering he went from a pampered noble to the leader of an underground rebel network to take over an Empire in about two years...the man is badass. Also considering he wields and eventually masters the Soul Eater True Rune, which turns him into an immortal Grim Reaper. And he does all this while sipping on Gremio's stew.

Not to mention he'll beat the shit out of you with a bo staff. A stick.

7. Ryu (Street Fighter series)

Because he'll break off a Shoruken in your ass. I grew up on Street Fighter, so I'll always have love for Ryu.

8. Ryu (Breath of Fire series)

Because he'll breath fire on your ass. But really, I like his character, since I grew up on Breath of Fire as well.

9. Zidane Tribal (Final Fantasy IX)

A refreshing change from the lone, aloof "I don't care" heroes that permeated RPG's at the time, Zidane was a pretty cheery dude, who didn't let anything stop him from what he wanted to do (like feeling up Garnet). He handled his business pretty well.

10. Tidus (Final Fantasy X)

Everyone complains about him, but I liked the kid. He acted pretty realistically for being in his situation, and he grew up a lot while still retaining his sunny, upbeat attitude.

10. Christopher Blair - Wing Commander
9. Faith - Mirror's Edge
8. Revan - Knights of the Old Republic
7. Solid Snake - Metal Gear
6. Squall - FFVIII
5. Siren - Borderlands
4. Lara Croft - Tomb Raider
3. Cloud - FFVII
2. Link - The Legend of Zelda
1. Samus Aran - Metroid

Somehow, I shouldn't be surprised most of the heroes mentioned are from RPGs. :p Some of my choices are technically ambiguous or silent protagonists, as the player decides their actions. Nevertheless, if Revan can make it onto others' lists, my choices can too.

10) Fox (Starfox). Throughout the canons of the SNES Starfox and the series ending at Command, Fox has been a favorite of mine. He's a charming reynard with some real skill to back up his cocky nature, and perhaps one of the best good-aligned mercenary characters I've seen in gaming thus far. Apparently inspiration for his design was taken from Han Solo, which makes sense in hindsight.

9) The Lone Wanderer (Fallout 3). This is the ambiguous character I mentioned in the intro, and I'll mostly be going off the canon events of the Fallout timeline. Bethesda really made Fallout 3 a personal journey for its main quests, and it's one of the reasons I appreciate the game in lieu of it getting smeared in recent years. Even if New Vegas and onward innovated and did things better, the narrative that worked in 3 really, really did it for me.

8) Erdrick (Dragon Quest 3). Though originally my character Raziya was heavily inspired by The Lion King, I can't help but draw more striking parallels to the hero of DQ3. Trying to fill the shoes of their heroic father and tasked with saving the world from an arch-demon, the hero grows from a scrawny sixteen-year-old with three of their equally-wimpy pals to being an epic hero, a worthy successor of their dad's legacy. Also, I feel the hero is less OP than other jack-of-all-trades MCs in JRPGs. Their magic usually being an afterthought in battle but helpful to utilize when needed, and they even get some unique spells compared to a Mage, Priest or Sage battle-buddy.

7) Mega Man (from the Classic series). Though most of the gameplay doesn't lend to heavy story, especially in games 1~6, the Blue Bomber has more interesting character development in other media (especially the Archie Comics, so I'm told). I'm a big fan of gaining abilities from defeated enemies, and Mega's rock-paper-scissors approach to exploiting the Robot Masters' weaknesses is perhaps the absolute best approach to this concept.

6) Alucard (Castlevania: Symphony of the Night). This pretty boy dhampir had some unfinished business from Castlevania 3, and despite his personality being reserved he's quite fun to play as. Skilled at swords but capable with other weapons, his arsenal is excessive but his dedication to opposing big daddy Dracula works. I love how the Netflix series really fleshed out the clash of beliefs at what Drac's wife and Adrian's mother would have wanted, forcing the tragic prince to become the polar opposite of his father. Though changing your name to just be Dracula backwards is a bit excessive.

5) Balthier (Final Fantasy 12). Absolutely the most BAMF character in the whole game, even in all of Final Fantasy to begin with. If I thought Fox McCloud drew inspiration from Han, Balthier is the one who is Han with serial numbers filed off. Easily the one playable character I played the game to witness, as long as I did.

4) Yangus (Dragon Quest 8). Of the four playable characters (six in the 3DS remake), Yangus is by far my favorite. Even if his buddies have a beef with Dhoulmagus and are driven by such, this cockney-speaking ex-bandit is drawn to be a hero only because of his kinship with 'the guv', who extended him mercy after a failed mugging. Apparently his Strength stat can also become the highest of any other Dragon Quest character, statistically speaking, so he be a beefy boy.

3) Freya (Final Fantasy 9). Saved the best for the last three, and this is where my analysis into my choices have meaning. For a token furry party member, Freya is surprisingly deep and used to be my top favorite from FF9 for a long time. Strong yet vulnerable, tragic yet determined, she finds the strength to represent her people as a dragon knight in the wake of her lover's amnesia and the genocide of the Burmecian and Cleyran cultures. Her splash screen quote, "To be forgotten is worse than death", sadly holds true over my psyche to this day.

2) Zidane (Final Fantasy 9). "You don't need a reason to help people". As I come into myself, this quote holds more true as a virtue than Freya's fear; partly for this reason, Zidane is my favorite FF9 character these days. A roguish protagonist with a heart of gold, he was only daunted in his journey to keep his "hostage" safe (and eventually her world, by proxy) when he realized his origins and original intent. In spite of this he held true to his morals when his friends came back for him, even showing mercy to his nemesis during Kuja's final moments. Zidane would be my all-time favorite Final Fantasy hero, even my all-time favorite video game hero, if not for...

1) Ramza (Final Fantasy Tactics). This spoiled royal speaks to me more than any other character I've ever witnessed in a game. In a game where almost every hero and villain has human motives for their actions, Ramza seems the most relatable to me of them all. Having taken his life for granted, in spite of his naive nature, at the core of his inexperience with the world lies the heart of a true hero. All Ramza ever wanted was to do the right thing, not for glory and fame like his best friend Delita would experience while Ivalice's history nearly forgot Ramza. His determination to uphold justice, in spite of his noble status and the popularity of choosing sides in an ultimately unjust war, speaks volumes. It's one thing to witness a freedom fighter in a story; it's wholly another to see someone of privilege fight for what's right against the flow, when everyone else chooses a flawed side. Just as imperfect as everyone else, Ramza is forever the true hero of the War of the Lions, and is forever my favorite video game hero.