Let’s do a thought experiment. Think of a video game. I’ll give you 10 seconds. OK, now, does that game have a protagonist? Can you name them anything from Dennis to Poopface? Have you ever thought about why that is (or isn’t)?
The main character of a video game is one that the player takes control of. It’s how it works. Mario is the main character of Super Mario Bros., so you play as Mario. Nathan Drake is the protagonist of Uncharted, so you play as him. Sometimes the game has secondary characters that have gameplay as well, like Mary Jane in Spider-Man PS4 or members of your traveling party in Final Fantasy.
But in some role-playing games like early Final Fantasy and pre-Switch The Legend of Zelda, the main character’s name can be anything you want it to be! This is a surefire way to make players stick with the game longer, as they now have a personal connection and input on the narrative. Hell, you can even name your rival and partner characters like in Pokémon or Dragon Quest! You and your pals, against the world, solving the world’s issues one encounter at a time.
But are you really a part of the story? Sure, the main character has a pivotal role in making the game move forward (you are the main character), but in a video game, your actions (the gameplay) speak louder than words (the story). Unless your words are actions. Or Phoenix Wright. Then they’re all loud.
A silent protagonist with vast amounts of customization tells the player that “this character can be anything you want them to be.” It’s a form of self-expression within the visual language of gaming. There is no character like yours, the game is saying. You are the only you. But when you start playing the game itself, that’s when your true story begins.
Of course, someone else could name their character the same as yours, wear the same clothes and choose the same cosmetics. But all of that is just the thickest of fluff hiding the most obviously self-affirming part of any video game: the gameplay. The story the game presents might always go one way or another based on the scenario designers and storyboarders’ vision, but the developers have given you the tools to make the game anything you want within its world.
You and your friends can name your guys Beevis and your rivals Butthead in Pokémon Fire Red, but you’ll always be Link in Breath of the Wild, exploring a world lost to time and misfortune. No matter what choices you do make, the name Link will stay with you. Because the goal of a video game isn’t just to transform your world into a digital one, it’s to help you grasp onto the values of self-expression and link it to your everyday life.
To explore and experiment, and know that just by taking actions in your everyday life, you are affirming your existence.
Isn’t that slick!? I think it is.
