Adventure Forums - View Single Post - Your ALL time favorite AG heroes?! .. (an optional Poll)

ADan · 03-08-2012, 04:44 AM

I think the idea to find the most loved character of all times is quite good but I have several problems:

I haven't played that many AGs, so my perspective might be a little bit limited.

Most player characters that spring to mind are either idiots or jerks or just plain old hero archetypes (and I even think there is such a thing as an AG-hero-archetype) which means they cannot really be described as "well crafted" or "original" in my personal view.
(Think Larry, Guybrush, Roger Wilco, Rufus, Indy...).

This is why I would extend this list to NPCs as well (as Fien suggested). I believe it's easier to find truly original, i.e. excitingly different from the norm ones. The ones that are both surprising and more defined in terms of their motivation or - in case they really have a marginal role to play - well to the point and defined through the small amount of lines they have.

But without further ado - in no particular order - here are my (both player and non player) suggestions:

-Marquis de Singe (TOMI)
I was delighted to see such a good representation of an "age of enlightenment/baroque scientist" with all his quirks, his vanity and ruthlessness. Totally convincing French accent, too.

-Manny Calavera (Grim Fandango)
He's sympathetic, somewhat fragile, yet standing up to evil powers. A loving soul who selflessly takes upon him great hassle for the good of others.

-The Rock Bros. Ralph and Yngo (The Whispered World)
I know I'm singing my own praise here (for I translated them into their beautiful southern redneck selves) but I think from what little they have to say it's immediately clear what their respective characters are and what the relationship between them is.

-M. Papierwaite (Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse)
A man whose motivation becomes clearer and clearer throughout the season without him being too much of an all evil villain. Just a man with his own priorities and goals.

-Dr. Norrington/Yogh Soggoth (ibidem)
Very surprising. One wouldn't have expected this kind of dignified gentlemanlike attitude from one of the "Lovecraftian" Ancient Gods.

-The Little Robot (Machinarium (Does he even have a name?)).
Simply a lovable, huggable little bugger. Oh how you wish to help him achieve his goals!

-Sam (Sam & Max)
What can I say? Loyal, upright, a good detective and absolutely necessary to reign in the ruthless nihilistic extremism of his partner. (Although he would work without Max. Unlike vice versa).

(As an aside, for me as a translator it is often more interesting to work on the NPCs than on the heros. The latter tend to get quite tedious with the huge amount of lines and the ever so witty remarks, whereas the former offer the challenge to really make them work, make them consistent, believable with much less lines.
Sometimes I can just sink into some form of trance, get really deep into the character and their motivation and just put the lines down and never look back. I then usually don't even remember any particular lines until I see/hear them in the finished game. This is when I'm usually very satisfied and yes, proud of what I did).

There are several other characters that I encountered last year (where I did quite an astonishing amount of work) that would qualify to be mentioned here but of course it's no use bringing them up when nobody has yet had the opportunity to get to know them (and probably won't be able to do so for another year (or even more)) in some cases.

03-08-2012, 04:44 AM	#8
ADan overall swell guy Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Scotland Posts: 111	Conundrum I think the idea to find the most loved character of all times is quite good but I have several problems: I haven't played that many AGs, so my perspective might be a little bit limited. Most player characters that spring to mind are either idiots or jerks or just plain old hero archetypes (and I even think there is such a thing as an AG-hero-archetype) which means they cannot really be described as "well crafted" or "original" in my personal view. (Think Larry, Guybrush, Roger Wilco, Rufus, Indy...). This is why I would extend this list to NPCs as well (as Fien suggested). I believe it's easier to find truly original, i.e. excitingly different from the norm ones. The ones that are both surprising and more defined in terms of their motivation or - in case they really have a marginal role to play - well to the point and defined through the small amount of lines they have. But without further ado - in no particular order - here are my (both player and non player) suggestions: -Marquis de Singe (TOMI) I was delighted to see such a good representation of an "age of enlightenment/baroque scientist" with all his quirks, his vanity and ruthlessness. Totally convincing French accent, too. -Manny Calavera (Grim Fandango) He's sympathetic, somewhat fragile, yet standing up to evil powers. A loving soul who selflessly takes upon him great hassle for the good of others. -The Rock Bros. Ralph and Yngo (The Whispered World) I know I'm singing my own praise here (for I translated them into their beautiful southern redneck selves) but I think from what little they have to say it's immediately clear what their respective characters are and what the relationship between them is. -M. Papierwaite (Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse) A man whose motivation becomes clearer and clearer throughout the season without him being too much of an all evil villain. Just a man with his own priorities and goals. -Dr. Norrington/Yogh Soggoth (ibidem) Very surprising. One wouldn't have expected this kind of dignified gentlemanlike attitude from one of the "Lovecraftian" Ancient Gods. -The Little Robot (Machinarium (Does he even have a name?)). Simply a lovable, huggable little bugger. Oh how you wish to help him achieve his goals! -Sam (Sam & Max) What can I say? Loyal, upright, a good detective and absolutely necessary to reign in the ruthless nihilistic extremism of his partner. (Although he would work without Max. Unlike vice versa). (As an aside, for me as a translator it is often more interesting to work on the NPCs than on the heros. The latter tend to get quite tedious with the huge amount of lines and the ever so witty remarks, whereas the former offer the challenge to really make them work, make them consistent, believable with much less lines. Sometimes I can just sink into some form of trance, get really deep into the character and their motivation and just put the lines down and never look back. I then usually don't even remember any particular lines until I see/hear them in the finished game. This is when I'm usually very satisfied and yes, proud of what I did). There are several other characters that I encountered last year (where I did quite an astonishing amount of work) that would qualify to be mentioned here but of course it's no use bringing them up when nobody has yet had the opportunity to get to know them (and probably won't be able to do so for another year (or even more)) in some cases.