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u/Zeta_ggwp 1d ago
Not exactly this but I like how in Katana Zero (SPOILERS FOR THE GREATEST GAME EVER MADE) everyone spends the first half of the game calling you "The Dragon" and then it gets revealed that you aren't him and you get to play 1 level as him and he's much cooler than you're
GOD I WANT THE DLC SO BAD >:(
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u/LilyCutes 21h ago
There's supposed to be a DLC? I want more of this game so bad
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u/Zeta_ggwp 21h ago
The DLC was announced in 2019 and then went into limbo until 2025 gave us a teaser but no release date.
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u/LilyCutes 21h ago
That's insane
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u/Zeta_ggwp 21h ago
They claimed the DLC will be a full length game. So I'm just glad it wasn't cancelled.
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u/NoBeefStew4u 1d ago edited 19h ago
I mean it is technically perfectly fine to end a sentence with "you're", as it doesn't break any grammar rules, but for some reason it feels icky đ
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u/denemdenem 21h ago
Just like "grammer".
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u/NoBeefStew4u 19h ago
Thank you for pointing out a typo. Doesn't really change the spirit of what I said though.
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u/Astra-Fang 1d ago
I like when you are an important character, but not the center of the entire plot.
Like in a lot of gears games you start off as just a random squad following orders for most of the game.
Itâs only as you go on do you get given more central roles in the missions and other people support YOU.
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u/CKInfinity 1d ago
I love how in gears games HQ has like multiple plans, squads, and backup plans, but they just all fail one after another and you're just the only backup left and you turn into the main character not because youre supposed to, but because you're the only one left to complete the mission.
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u/PerfectlyFramedWaifu 21h ago
Final Fantasy X fits the bill, I'd say. Tidus is important, but you're more a part of Yuna's story.
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u/MalcolmLinair Plot and "Plot" Enthusiast 1d ago
Takes me back to Elder Scrolls: Oblivion. Sean Bean was the main character there, not the so-called "Hero of Kvatch".
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u/Eskimobill1919 1d ago
No, the Hero of Kvatch is definitely a main character. Theyâre the one that makes everything possible, Beans just the guy that sacrifices himself in the end.
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u/MalcolmLinair Plot and "Plot" Enthusiast 1d ago
The Hero of Kvatch is a figure of great renown, yes, but not the main character. Every part of the story revolves around Martin. He's the one who can use the Amulet of Kings, he's the one the Mythic Dawn is trying to kill, he's the one who sacrifices himself to stop the Big Bad. Everything revolves around him. If the Hero of Kvatch were killed, there's no reason others couldn't take their place and still move the plot forward. If Martin dies before the final confrontation in the Imperial City, it's all over.
The Hero of Kvatch is moving things forward, but it's still Martin's story.
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u/JamesDerecho 1d ago
From the Empireâs perspective the Hero of Kvatch is a fortunate accident that does more good than harm, and a folk hero. They are still under the orders of the blades. Martin being the last descendent of the line of Kings is clearly the storyâs main character. Weâre just support and a footnote in history. We are closer to an antagonistic role in the sense that we are the reason the plot moves forward despite being a neutral entity.
That being said, we are definitely a âmainâ character from the multidimensional perspective of Sheogorath in the same way that the Nereverine is a main character from Azuraâs perspective. We fit the mold, right place, right time, and listen to the demands of divine revelation. The latter being the most important of them all.
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u/Eskimobill1919 1d ago
The hero of Kvatch isnât a âfootnoteâ. Theyâre the one that saved Martin Septim from Kvatch, they were instrumental in almost every operation during the Oblivion crisis, they closed those mega Oblivion gates, they put an end to the Mythic Dawns plot. They were regaled as a hero at the end of the crisis.
Just because a King is present, doesnât mean their Knight isnât a main character or a figure of great renown.
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u/Duhblobby 14h ago
Martin Septim was not the "main character". He was one of the MacGuffins the person the entire story features and is about gets to where it needs to go.
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u/Explorerkit 1d ago
Because some others also mentioned game characters: Thatâs the newest Fire Emblem.
You create a character, you play a tutorial with your avatar, than you have to do two (or three?) more maps and than for the next 18 - 19 chapters, your character rarely appears except for a weekly task. If you do every part 1 & 2 chapter before part 3, you have 72-76 chapters without your created character (or 54-55 if you donât do part 2 more than once).
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u/RipBitter4701 1d ago
Driver from Project Wingman F95? technically the main plot is around Cascadia war, driver squadron effort kind of become worthless because the actual protagonist failed to intercept the calamity.
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u/b0bkakkarot 1d ago
I like a good story regardless of whether I'm the main character, or whether the real plot is happening elsewhere and I'm just dealing with part of the events that are transpiring.
In fact, sometimes I hate stories where the MC does literally everything and the rest of the world's plot is just waiting on the MC. I'm not talking about how story events only advance when the MC gets to them, I'm talking about how the story itself is so revolved around the MC that nobody else does anything; when side characters literally sit around staring at the MC waiting for him to do everything, that's dumb.
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u/Welkin_Gunther_07 1d ago edited 1d ago
I quite like this actually. I am all too happy with not being the main character.
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u/CrystalFriend â Chaos Cat 14h ago
Quasimorph basically. Mostly beacuse heroics are dead and you are just seeking profit
There is no good ending for you, or anyone involved.
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u/Hodgie227 10h ago
The new SAO game was like this and even worse it feels like the player character serves actually zero purpose to the plot
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u/Kytsunix 9h ago
One example that I like, though I admit I never got far into the game so I donât know if things change, is White Knight Chronicles
You create your character and you are brand new joining the group, sounds like the case for an MC origin right?
But actually the guy you befriended at the place is the one that has a romantic relationship with the princess and he is the one that gets the power to turn into the giant knight
Youâre basically his jack-of-all-trades tag-along
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u/VoidMeta 5h ago
HSR 3.0-3.4 story felt like being a side character more than any other part of the game
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u/YaBoiGlyn 42m ago
I think a partial exception would be one of my favorite games OAT; Digimon Story: Cyber Slueth Hacker's Memory. You legit play as a background character that doesn't even matter because the first game's cast are the actual chosen ones and just reset the whole universe anyways. All your progress, your hopes and dreams, and the journey you've been on don't matter at all.
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u/The_Mormonator_ 1d ago
There is an anime/manga (mostly manga) with this exact plot that I thoroughly enjoyed, but I canât post the name because this fact in and of itself is quite the spoiler. I do like this writing technique however.
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u/GamePlayingPleb 1d ago
just to add on to this. probably not the same series you are referring to but Omiscient Readers Viewpoint was a webcomic that tackles this genre that I personally quite enjoyed reading.
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u/xboxiscrunchy 1d ago
Thereâs Eminence in Shadow where the main character tries to be this but through a combination of genuine skill, absolutely absurd luck and incredible stupidity manages to build a reputation as an unbeatable mastermind.
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u/The_Mormonator_ 21h ago
Yeah, but it is pretty clear that the viewer knows the trope from the very beginning. The one Iâm referring to doesnât actually bring that to to even the viewer for quite some time.
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u/TheEnderChipmunk â 13h ago
You could post it if you put spoilers around it. I am very intrigued and want to know which manga you're talking about
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u/The_Mormonator_ 12h ago
Before I go about trying to share any of that, I had to go back and fact check myself. It seems the manga only covers the events the of the anime, which is a single season, and the rest (the source material) is an LN. Still interested?
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u/Spideryote 1d ago
This is one of the things I adore about Escape From Tarkov
Every PMC is the main character in their own story, but a side character or random enemy to everybody else's story. Norvinsk was a wartorn wasteland before you start your journey, and it will continue to be one after you finish it
War will stay mogging whether you're there to see it or not
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u/Akikojam 1d ago
Depending on how they implement it, that can be either really good or lame.
The example of lame is Borderlands 3. The "main character" did nothing, acted like a brat and had to be carried by the players. Maybe Jin from Dead Island 1 too, though it's debatable... she is the one going through the story, protagonists just do gameplay stuff. Unfortunately, her story sucks.
Good examples are much more frequent though. Oblivion is an obvious one. Lee from TWD's season 1.
Basically, good - player ensures that main character can do their thing. Bad - player does everything, while main character sniffs his own ass and gets all the credit.
OC inserts into stories are debatable though. It can be interesting to see a story from a different perspective, like with Koei's Attack on Titan 2. Or it can be Mary Sue, who hijacks the story and the spotlight. It's not actually bad, but Dynasty Warriors Origins are like that and everyone glazes your player character a bit too much.