Good side characters

Rev Rant: Character Empathy
Extra Credits: Amnesia and Story Structure

"In Medias Res" tends to leave little scope for character Development. If you start a story in the middle, then the past is always going to feel distant. Don't force "this is your brother, you care about him" down people throats, give the history. Fallout 3 worked well because you get an entire characters life up to that point, the important moments anyway, via mini sections that also act as the tutorial. You know about the characters friends and allies, and thus have some emotional attachment.

Agrro is a great example from Shadow of the Colossus, because he is both a character and a useful mechanic.

Other good examples I can think of are (in the sadly non-canon) Jin Sun-Kwon from FEAR's Extraction Point. In which she's your only ally. Situations where everything is against you makes your friends all the more meaningful. Again, see Agro, your only friend.


Another useful way of introducing and creating empathy with npc's is to make them meaningful to the character you play as. I'm not talking "this is your sister, you love her" stuff, but something deeper.

Say you character's a kick-ass fighter. Have it so the dad was the one that trained him, have flashbacks and cutscenes. Afterall, it's natural for a player to feel something for the protagonist they control, and to like certain aspects of that character. If in turn one of these aspects can be attributed to another character, that instantly creates an empathy toward that individual.

You like the mechanic, so it goes to reason you'll like the person that is responsible for that mechanic.


Brothers, sisters, parents and generally family are always good, because they're mostly universal.


Persistance is a good idea as well.