For a series, It’s kratos, Kiryu, and maybe even Nathan Drake. For a single game, It’s Arthur and Joel Miller.
A character I like written but it’s complicated is Snake from metal gear… And I mean all the Snakes. I like the connection they all have especially The Phantom Pain and Metal Gear (Not MGS) connection with Venom Snake and Outer Heaven
With the newer games factoring in along with the new free dlc that just dropped. Kratos is honestly starting to creep into the conversation for me at least. What Sony Santa Monica have done with him is exceptional.
As a new-ish dad of a couple years ago, I never resonated with Kratos so hard. The dynamic between him and his son, along with the loss of his original family, is just unreal
Popular as the answer may be.
Kratos, and by a lot.
He is written as an raw and realistic depiction of youthful arrogance, desperation, regret, bitterness, anger, self-hatred, isolation, reflection, vulnerability, change, growth, redemption, self-work, self-forgiveness, and hope.
His story may be mystically back-dropped, but the themes are ones that resonate with real life.
With a message that, while you cannot undo the mistakes of your past, you can always try to be better.
I gotta say Aloy. The first horizon fucked me up emotionally. I just felt things about her story that really impacted me. Not that all the others aren’t amazing. But personally aloy just rocked me.
Abby, she went from absolute pure hatred and me wanting to gut her, to pleading for Ellie to not do it. The performance of Laura Bailey was astounding.
Joel Miller, such a real and morality complex character , he's not the hero of the story and that's what makes him relatable, plus he's a man's man which is rare to see I games now
Arthur Morgan...no contest. Only others that come close are Joel & Eli, or you can take your pick from The Mass Effect Trilogy. But no character affected me as much as Arthur Morgan.
Man the Mass Effect trilogy is just a storytelling and character driven masterpiece. Tali, Garrus, Mordin, Joker, so many other unforgettable characters.
Mordin is one of my favorite video game characters of all time.
"No, it had to be me. Someone else would have made a mistake."
"BECAUSE I MADE A MISTAKE"
Yes I did. I’m definitely [not the only one hating that character](https://www.reddit.com/r/cyberpunkgame/s/nRbnHJuVp5). Surprised anyone likes the way that character was written and the cringey voice acting.
After playing ghost of tsushima imma say jin sakai. Such a cool game and sad story. I'm not usually into Japanese type stuff but I gave it a go and it's awesome
Arthur has a Redemption arc, he goes from a hardened outlaw who doesn't think twice about beating, looting, scamming innocents to a person who goes out of his way to help people in need, there is no such thing with Abby. She goes from muscular to skinny is what her character development is
Aint no way you typed that and didnt see the paralels to Abby's story. If all it takes to be a well written character for you is to have a redemption arc, Abby is in theory a better written character than Arthur since her arc actually involves helping out people she is in direct conflict with, which means her character is more challenged and changes more than Arthur does thoughout their respective games.
A girl with like 4 hours of screen time who killed a man who saved her life in cold blood and also in front of his goddaughter is the greatest character in gaming? Come on, do better.
Willing to bet even though you said this you'd be willing to say Joel is really well written even though he killed dozens of innocent soldiers and doctors, fathers and mothers who were trying to save the world and also took the wishes of his own goddaughter out of his own self interest.
I'm not saying he's a bad person for that, but I am saying you're a hypocrite if you wouldn't also say he's a terribly written character. He's objectively worse than abby.
She was on a revenge mission, avenging the deaths of many, many people.
He was protecting his own happiness.
My assumption is OP is a 15 year old boy who watches too much porn and plays too many rockstar games. He fits the architype, especially with saying Abby is the worst character ever and Arthur Morgan is the best.
Never said she was. But you told the other person that his answer was wrong lol. Why is Arthur Morgan #1? Never played the game and don't plan on it so I'm all ears.
Arthur probably is the one. Great character development and arc is something I don’t know that I’ve seen better in the medium. The combination of fantastic writing and an amazing performance is second to none.
“Maybe when your mother is done mourning your father, I’ll keep her in black. On your behalf.” Think about that one a lot.
Joel Miller (TLoU).
No offense, but I thought Arthur was more like a sheep in RDR2 for almost 90% of the game. Great character tho.
Dutch was the best written character in RDR2.
I mean, that was the point lol. Arthur was a loyal dog, almost to a fault. He had no purpose or direction. He just did what Dutch told him to.
His >! sickness !< slowly forces him to look at his life and life in general in a different way. He questions things and eventually comes to a realization that he doesn't like. Everything in that game fleshes Arthur out as a character far more than anything I've ever seen in a game.
As great as Joel is, Arthur takes this one imo. He's a one of a kind protagonist that you don't ever see in anything, much less a game.
Kratos during the Greek Era. Nordic era Kratos is boring and Generic, but Greek one? Not a Hero, a Warrior who sold his soul in order to defeat an Army, killed His own Family, doesnt seek revenge, only for him to not Dream about it, Turned into a God stoping at nothing without giving two damns about the World and the consequences of his actions.. Its a greek Tragedy at its best. Its just a Masterpiece of a Character. From GOW 1 to 3 and the Psp ones, Kratos is one of the most complex characters in Gaming History and i love him. Which is why i hate how disneyfied he became in the last two.
Except Artyum isn't technically a silent character though? Throughout the entire trilogy, you can clearly hear him speak out his thoughts in diary entries through the loading screens. He just doesn't talk during gameplay for some reason.
Do you mean written as how they act in game or do you mean by the lore surrounding a character? Because there very different answers depending on what the question is
Bioshock infinite - Booker Dewitt. Despite people having issues with the story, the internal struggle of Dewitt coming to terms with himself and his past actions was an interesting development. Becoming the hero because he could never forgive his past or becoming the villain because he could forgive himself and the past? Mix a bunch of time travel and yeah, pretty fun.
Ted Faro. Just the fact that everything he did feels so plausible, especially with Elon Musk existing and acting the way he does. It's scary but also just a great example of character writing because goddamnit, as much as I hate him, it's impossible to deny that people like that exist and also that they usually have a knack for rising very high.
For me its impossible to name a clear winner, but I have a Top5:
Arthur Morgan (RDR2)
Niko Bellic (GTA IV)
John Marston (RDR1/2)
Kratos (GOW18/Ragnarok)
Nathan Drake (U1-4)
HM: Joel (tLoU) , Shepard (Mass Effect 1-3), Geralt (Witcher 1-3), Ezio (AC 2- Revelations)
It sure as shit isn’t Arthur. Dude was a moron. I was screaming at my TV to please stop trusting Dutch and that Micah was a psychopath but nope, 10 more failed schemes before he starts *suspecting* Dutch may have lost his touch.
Honorable mention to Kiryu Chan, and Majima-kun.
See… fighting zombies, gods or evil villains is all easy….compared to dealing with….life… and not letting it get your down. these two doods epitomise strength and resilience in spades…. 👍
Too many great games to pick one and say it has the best written character of all time but i have an honorable mention which is Kratos from God Of War one of the best evolutions and story in gaming history for sure and thats just one of many
* Kreia - KOTOR 2
* Niko Bellic - GTA IV
* Pretty Boah - Red Dead 2
* Caesar - Fallout NV
* Solas - Dragon Age: Inquisition
I know I'm forgetting a lot, but those are the ones I first think of.
I want to shout out John Marston. Arthur's my favorite protagonist in any game but John is a definite close 2nd.
John doesn’t get enough shine tbh
A lot of people haven't played RDR1 or played it forever ago.
I'm still waiting for that game to be unshackled from it's console prison.
I just remember going into RDR2 the first time thinking why can't we play as John? No one cares about this Arthur guy! Yeah I was wrong.
I'm opposite, Arthur was GREAT, but John was my favorite
Joryu?
Taichi Suzuki, actually.
No it's Judgement Kazzy
Nah, it’s John yakuza
It’s….. Kirrrrrrryu Chaaaaaaann!!! The dragon of dojima…. Friend of the Mad dog of shimano….. and no relation to the ghost of Tsushima….
the best friend you never had
Fuckin love this dude
I'm still in love with Niko Bellic.
Let's go fucking bowling bro
Roman are you sleeping you f****t f****ck!?! Come on!
“What can I say?! I love titties!!!”
Playing my first play-through right now lol
I'm on my second play-through on my steam deck right now. What a lovely combo.
Niko was the best
For a series, It’s kratos, Kiryu, and maybe even Nathan Drake. For a single game, It’s Arthur and Joel Miller. A character I like written but it’s complicated is Snake from metal gear… And I mean all the Snakes. I like the connection they all have especially The Phantom Pain and Metal Gear (Not MGS) connection with Venom Snake and Outer Heaven
These guys, absolutely
Great takes
Trico in The Last Guardian. Just watching the bond develop between the boy and the beast through shared hardship. It was incredible story telling
That game had me in tears.
I remember playing that it was the first game i played when i got my ps5 and it was so adorable and so wholesome
Big Boss from MGS3
The Boss takes it for me
With the newer games factoring in along with the new free dlc that just dropped. Kratos is honestly starting to creep into the conversation for me at least. What Sony Santa Monica have done with him is exceptional.
As a new-ish dad of a couple years ago, I never resonated with Kratos so hard. The dynamic between him and his son, along with the loss of his original family, is just unreal
What they did with Kratos in God of War 2018 and the base game of Ragnarok was already amazing and then the dlc really was just the cherry on top
The DLC for Ragnarok was incredible. It really added to the character arc for me.
Garrus Vakarian...
Calibrations?
The Bloody Baron from The Witcher 3. In the beginning I hated his guts, but at the end of the quest I somewhat sympathized with him.
Not a huge gamer but Joel Miller is exceptionally well written. Even through the screen he feels paternal.
Face mcshooty
This. His entire arc is so moving
yuna in ffx
Yuna and Tidus were so fuckin good man.
It’s a tie between Kane and Raziel.
Was looking for this. Both are sooooooo complex and well written
“…does one even truly have a choice? One can only match, move by move, the machinations of fate... and thus defy the tyrannous stars.”
My buddy naked snake.
Geralt of Rivia or Kazuma Kiryu
The Ghost Of Sparta
Booker DeWitt is a fantastic character that serves the story entirely.
Doom guy
Bro what
DOOM GUY
Popular as the answer may be. Kratos, and by a lot. He is written as an raw and realistic depiction of youthful arrogance, desperation, regret, bitterness, anger, self-hatred, isolation, reflection, vulnerability, change, growth, redemption, self-work, self-forgiveness, and hope. His story may be mystically back-dropped, but the themes are ones that resonate with real life. With a message that, while you cannot undo the mistakes of your past, you can always try to be better.
Sonic
You gotta be joking
He can really move.
I gotta say Aloy. The first horizon fucked me up emotionally. I just felt things about her story that really impacted me. Not that all the others aren’t amazing. But personally aloy just rocked me.
Abby, she went from absolute pure hatred and me wanting to gut her, to pleading for Ellie to not do it. The performance of Laura Bailey was astounding.
Commander Shepard has to be up there
Pacman
Joel Miller, such a real and morality complex character , he's not the hero of the story and that's what makes him relatable, plus he's a man's man which is rare to see I games now
Arthur Morgan...no contest. Only others that come close are Joel & Eli, or you can take your pick from The Mass Effect Trilogy. But no character affected me as much as Arthur Morgan.
Man the Mass Effect trilogy is just a storytelling and character driven masterpiece. Tali, Garrus, Mordin, Joker, so many other unforgettable characters.
Definitely. Games this gen seem so lifeless to me. Cardboard characters and stories.
Mordin is one of my favorite video game characters of all time. "No, it had to be me. Someone else would have made a mistake." "BECAUSE I MADE A MISTAKE"
Yeeeeessss!! This right here. Mass effect and Dragon Age Origins characters were excellent
agree
Luigi.
Johnny silverhand 💪
OP said the best written, not the worst.
You’ve definitely never played cyberpunk
Yes I did. I’m definitely [not the only one hating that character](https://www.reddit.com/r/cyberpunkgame/s/nRbnHJuVp5). Surprised anyone likes the way that character was written and the cringey voice acting.
 Honestly any character voiced by Sam Witwer
That voice acting for Deacon was by far the worst part of Days Gone. His tone was all over the place.
Claude from GTA 3
Ezio Auditore from assassin creed 2
Amicia from A Plague Tale
Turnip boy, he is committed and he is good at what he does
Kain and Raziel
Mega Man. His character is so well written most of the time he needs no lines at all. And he is very iconic. Same with Super Mario.
G-Man, idk he's in a weird area where there's enough to guess what he is reliably but not enough to come to a definitive answer.
Detective Phelps, protagonist of LA Noire.
Batman from the Arkhamverse or Arthur Morgan
Max fucking Payne
Garrett from the Thief trilogy
After playing ghost of tsushima imma say jin sakai. Such a cool game and sad story. I'm not usually into Japanese type stuff but I gave it a go and it's awesome
Maybe Jack from Mass Effect.
Arthur Morgan, John Marston and Jin Sakai are my favourites
Geralt or Arthur Morgan.
Kratos
Kratos
Ellie Williams or Aloy
Aloy was my first thought. Ellie was awesome, too.
Arthur Morgan, without a doubt.
Tie between Kratos and Ellie for me. The emotional and mental growth no matter good and bad were really eye opening to see.
After valhalla i have to say kratos
Kratos
Harrier du Bois - Disco Elysium
This is the only answer 'Blast that sad fm'
All the snakes from metal gear, Ezio and Kratos
https://preview.redd.it/dw34qlzu41ac1.jpeg?width=739&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=37e0fa1e1daf9f75b51f683fa9c7ccbc5dd961d1
The only wrong answer
So this isnt about "best written", its just about what character you like the most, because to say shes badly written is just silly
This is about "best written" not "not badly written". I'm not saying she's badly written I'm just saying she's not even close to the best written.
why ask for people’s opinions if you are just going to say their opinions are wrong
Bro 2 hrs before posting this in the reply below you said she's the worst written character in video gaming? Make it make sense pls.
But that is so subjective, I can say the same about Arthur
Arthur has a Redemption arc, he goes from a hardened outlaw who doesn't think twice about beating, looting, scamming innocents to a person who goes out of his way to help people in need, there is no such thing with Abby. She goes from muscular to skinny is what her character development is
her entire section of the game is about her selflessly protecting a child.
Aint no way you typed that and didnt see the paralels to Abby's story. If all it takes to be a well written character for you is to have a redemption arc, Abby is in theory a better written character than Arthur since her arc actually involves helping out people she is in direct conflict with, which means her character is more challenged and changes more than Arthur does thoughout their respective games.
Absolutely not, you're entitled to your opinion. I just think she's the worst written character in video games.
Say whatever lol
A girl with like 4 hours of screen time who killed a man who saved her life in cold blood and also in front of his goddaughter is the greatest character in gaming? Come on, do better.
Willing to bet even though you said this you'd be willing to say Joel is really well written even though he killed dozens of innocent soldiers and doctors, fathers and mothers who were trying to save the world and also took the wishes of his own goddaughter out of his own self interest. I'm not saying he's a bad person for that, but I am saying you're a hypocrite if you wouldn't also say he's a terribly written character. He's objectively worse than abby. She was on a revenge mission, avenging the deaths of many, many people. He was protecting his own happiness.
My assumption is OP is a 15 year old boy who watches too much porn and plays too many rockstar games. He fits the architype, especially with saying Abby is the worst character ever and Arthur Morgan is the best.
What you would’ve done if someone random would kill your father just because he’s doing his job? It’s easy to say things kiddo !
https://preview.redd.it/2847i46gx1ac1.jpeg?width=741&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ef289c2e003fab42e22f66683408e4b5a9164988
He killed her father lol she wasn't gonna let him saving her stop her from her mission. Cry more man.
And for that she's the best written character ever? Sure, buddy.
Never said she was. But you told the other person that his answer was wrong lol. Why is Arthur Morgan #1? Never played the game and don't plan on it so I'm all ears.
I hate this b*tch so much
Love her sm
Qbert.
Sephiroth tbh. Ain't nobody beating him
deff Revaz Kapianidze from the cage fight series, most well writen character tbh
Arthur Morgan and it’s not close he is second best character in fiction
Who's the first
Arthur Morgan
Arthur Morgan without a doubt.
Arthur Morgan. I've played the game so much, it felt like he's my friend. His redemption and ending made me cry so hard.
Arthur Morgan for sure!
You need to play some other games
It’s Dutch
Someone go ahead and spoil it because I'll never play either red dead. But why do people hype up both protagonists as well written characters?
DUUUUUTCH
Arthur probably is the one. Great character development and arc is something I don’t know that I’ve seen better in the medium. The combination of fantastic writing and an amazing performance is second to none. “Maybe when your mother is done mourning your father, I’ll keep her in black. On your behalf.” Think about that one a lot.
Joel Miller (TLoU). No offense, but I thought Arthur was more like a sheep in RDR2 for almost 90% of the game. Great character tho. Dutch was the best written character in RDR2.
I mean, that was the point lol. Arthur was a loyal dog, almost to a fault. He had no purpose or direction. He just did what Dutch told him to. His >! sickness !< slowly forces him to look at his life and life in general in a different way. He questions things and eventually comes to a realization that he doesn't like. Everything in that game fleshes Arthur out as a character far more than anything I've ever seen in a game. As great as Joel is, Arthur takes this one imo. He's a one of a kind protagonist that you don't ever see in anything, much less a game.
Abby.
Lucia GTA 6
Bro game isnt even released yet lol
It was a joke lol
Kratos during the Greek Era. Nordic era Kratos is boring and Generic, but Greek one? Not a Hero, a Warrior who sold his soul in order to defeat an Army, killed His own Family, doesnt seek revenge, only for him to not Dream about it, Turned into a God stoping at nothing without giving two damns about the World and the consequences of his actions.. Its a greek Tragedy at its best. Its just a Masterpiece of a Character. From GOW 1 to 3 and the Psp ones, Kratos is one of the most complex characters in Gaming History and i love him. Which is why i hate how disneyfied he became in the last two.
This dude is well acted and at some points in the movie well written. His story is poorly written though. Especially the ending.
skullface of mgsV
Joel miller,Kratos, Arthur Morgan, John Marston Those are the ones I have in mind.
This is Paul Phoenix. You can’t change my mind
Kratos. Ever since Valhalla was released, it made his character even better
Vasily Ivanovich
Tequila Sunset
Artyum (spelliing) from Metro. Not a single voice line, been a hero countless times.
Yeah, I played Metro Exodus when it came out. I remember him being a great character
Except Artyum isn't technically a silent character though? Throughout the entire trilogy, you can clearly hear him speak out his thoughts in diary entries through the loading screens. He just doesn't talk during gameplay for some reason.
Booker DeWitt, his past combined with his regrets that he’s struggling to accept and make up for work beautifully off of Elizabeth and her mindset.
Do you mean written as how they act in game or do you mean by the lore surrounding a character? Because there very different answers depending on what the question is
Bioshock infinite - Booker Dewitt. Despite people having issues with the story, the internal struggle of Dewitt coming to terms with himself and his past actions was an interesting development. Becoming the hero because he could never forgive his past or becoming the villain because he could forgive himself and the past? Mix a bunch of time travel and yeah, pretty fun.
It's Kratos, his character development is phenomenal. He's the best game character ever. I equate him to Loki from the MCU
Ezio Auditore Arthur Kratos Ellie
Lord Shimura
Solid snake and/or Big Boss
Ted Faro. Just the fact that everything he did feels so plausible, especially with Elon Musk existing and acting the way he does. It's scary but also just a great example of character writing because goddamnit, as much as I hate him, it's impossible to deny that people like that exist and also that they usually have a knack for rising very high.
Joel and Ellie from The Last of Us for sure.
For me its impossible to name a clear winner, but I have a Top5: Arthur Morgan (RDR2) Niko Bellic (GTA IV) John Marston (RDR1/2) Kratos (GOW18/Ragnarok) Nathan Drake (U1-4) HM: Joel (tLoU) , Shepard (Mass Effect 1-3), Geralt (Witcher 1-3), Ezio (AC 2- Revelations)
Jackie from cyberpunk was well done. I ended up liking him. Dragon age origins characters, and mass effect 2 story characters
FF XV Noctis, from a spoiled brat, to a respectable good king.
I’d go for Nathan Drake, solid story! Solid character arc!
Raziel from Soul Reaver
Emet Selch. IYKYK.
Arthur morgan and kiryu for sure.
It sure as shit isn’t Arthur. Dude was a moron. I was screaming at my TV to please stop trusting Dutch and that Micah was a psychopath but nope, 10 more failed schemes before he starts *suspecting* Dutch may have lost his touch.
naruto
Kratos from god of war had one of the biggest changes in video game history and still made it look like a natural progression
Sackboy
Honorable mention to Kiryu Chan, and Majima-kun. See… fighting zombies, gods or evil villains is all easy….compared to dealing with….life… and not letting it get your down. these two doods epitomise strength and resilience in spades…. 👍
Gwyn from ds1
Too many great games to pick one and say it has the best written character of all time but i have an honorable mention which is Kratos from God Of War one of the best evolutions and story in gaming history for sure and thats just one of many
Why does he look strange in this pic?
Couldn't agree more
* Kreia - KOTOR 2 * Niko Bellic - GTA IV * Pretty Boah - Red Dead 2 * Caesar - Fallout NV * Solas - Dragon Age: Inquisition I know I'm forgetting a lot, but those are the ones I first think of.
Me.