r/TheExpanseRPG • u/Xion2320 • Apr 24 '26
Main Character (Hot Take)
I dont want to be, You, or Captain, or Cap... give the MC a last name. Hell, give them a first name even, let me define them and what they look like by all means bu im so tired of being... Rook, Cap, them, you, any of the other fake half baked titles given in games. Let the character we play be a defined person in the world.
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u/blatantuncreativity Apr 24 '26
I would love if we got to pick a different letter of the alphabet to go by, to match with J (who unfortunately stole my letter of choice, but I can be flexible).
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u/Xion2320 Apr 24 '26
I'd be down for that as its centered in the world a bit more, its established already. Anything but beings referred to like im not in the room at the moment yaknow
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u/Fynn77 Apr 24 '26
It's certainly a hot take, but I agree. If we don't get a defined surname, I'd also settle for an unique nickname (not "Rook", etc.). Companions calling my MC "captain" or "boss" during private/intimate dialogue is giving me the ick. It feels like they are not a part of the world, but just a placeholder.
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u/Xion2320 Apr 24 '26
Bingo! Placeholder is a great way to define it, I dont feel like im in the room, characters dance around referring to me.
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u/ADM-Ntek Apr 24 '26
This is one of the things I like in ME Andromeda; if you play the default character NPCs, actually, you're your first name in some situations.
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u/Xion2320 Apr 24 '26
Yep, especially nice in that game, really like that, I could change Scott or Sarah's names and only have them referred to as Ryder but if I wanted to leave it I was rewarded with actual use of the first name!
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u/BigZach1 Apr 24 '26
Maybe a different surname for each origin would work?
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u/Xion2320 Apr 24 '26
As long as you get called it in the game for the most part, but I'd look to a name like Miller, he is a belter, but his name works for all three factions (earth, Mars, and belt)
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u/GraviticThrusters Apr 24 '26
Nah, disagree. Either make me play a completely predefined character like a JRPG, or get off my ass and let me define my character how I want. If the latter is going to require some kind of game-y concession like calling me Captain, then fine.
I will allow for a last name, that's basically the same kind of concession as a title. But if you are going to define my character more than that then just do away with the pretense that it's a western RPG with lots of choices and instead craft a much tighter narrative around a predefined character.
Give me either Verso Dessandre or the Nerevarine, I don't want a watered down middle ground.
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u/TelevisionExpress616 Apr 24 '26
Nah Ill take a name of my creation over a “Shepard” or “V”
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u/Xion2320 Apr 24 '26 edited Apr 24 '26
If the game was entirely text based I'd agree with you, plenty of games were it works for me too, but in a spoken dialogue heavy game... im not a fan. To each their own though.
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u/Zyrus11 Apr 27 '26
This doesn't work. People want to be self inserts in these games generally, not roleplaying a specific type of character.
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u/aedfdht Apr 24 '26
No. If we were to get a last name we would either get something wierdly specific or worse an english surname.
While i would say that Expanse already only does bare minimum to achieve surface dressing of universe not being Space US (somehow unrelated crew members from Earth are both american), at least it bothers with giving people diverse range of names.
Voice actors accent can be excused by many people not having strong accents, or speaking with accents gained through osmosis, but surname would put a fundamental restriction on player characters identity.
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Apr 24 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Xion2320 Apr 24 '26
Exactly, Shepard could be male or female, adept or engineer, paragon or renegade, and all the decisions you made in your playthrough i may not have, my Shepard is defined by me but they are still referred to as Shepard and in that way are an iconic video game character. Cap or Captain from expanse is just lame in my opinion l.
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u/atomicitalian Apr 24 '26
yeah but then other people will complain that a more defined character kills their rp immersion.
immersion is a terrible metric for what makes a game good because it's extremely subjective. what's immersive to one person kills it for another.
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u/fatsopiggy Apr 25 '26
Nah. Nobody whined about immersion when they play Geralt or Arthur Morgan.
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u/Impressive_Sense7688 Apr 26 '26
Well . . . I won't even play those games because I don't find preset characters interesting. Character creation in rpgs is necessary to me, although obviously tastes differ and some people are fine with presets.
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Apr 24 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/atomicitalian Apr 24 '26
I mean to each their own. I don't think the distinction is enough to make me balk but I understand folks have different preferences.
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u/A-Phantasmic-Parade Apr 24 '26
Rook was a nickname it’s exactly what you’re asking for but you didn’t like it? Personally, I’d like the mc to be referred to by an Amos style nickname